bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Clinical features of acute glufosinate ammonium and initial serum ammonia and CK-MB as early predictors of unfavorable prognosis
Authors: Xue Xiang , Xie Donghui , Shen Yulan , Huang Changbao 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

This retrospective study was conducted on 67 patients who suffered from acute oral glufosinate ammonium poisoning to summarize a comprehensive overview of the clinical characteristics. General clinical data and laboratory test results were collected from the time of admission to hospital discharge. The most common clinical symptom of GA poisoning were nausea and vomiting, The incidence of unfavorable outcomes and the mortality of GA poisoning were 41.8% and 13.4%. The unfavorable outcomes group had a higher initial serum ammonia level (75.7±17.3umol/L vs 47.5±12.8umol/L, P<0.001), more ingestion amount of GA (103.6±63.4ml vs 72.3±37.7ml, P=0.032) and higher-level CK-MB (43.5 U/L vs 16.0 U/L, P=0.002) compared to favorable outcomes groups. Multiple logistic regression analyses showed the initial serum ammonia (OR=1.031, 95%CI, 1.069-1.197, P<0.001)，ingestion amount of GA (OR=1.017, 95%CI, 0.997-1.039, P=0.013) and CK-MB (OR=1.017, 95%CI, 0.997-1.039, P=0.013) levels were independently associated with unfavorable outcomes. Receive operator characteristic (ROC) curves were used to determine the optimal initial serum ammonia level (62.7mmol/L with sensitivity of 85.7% and specificity of 87.2%, and AUC=0.873, 95%CI, 0.773-0.974, P<0.001), CK-MB level (43.5U/L with sensitivity of 42.9% and specificity of 87.2%, and AUC=0.680, 95%CI, 0.562-0.809, P=0.012) and the ingestion amount(110ml with sensitivity of 32.1% and specificity of 92.3%, and AUC=0.652, 95%CI, 0.518-0.786, P=0.035) respectively.The patients with GA poisoning may exhibit clinical symptoms of gastrointestinal and neurological toxicity, as well as respiratory failure after latent period that we need to pay special attention to prepare. Initial serum and CK-MB might be better accurate prognostic factors for predicting the unfavorable outcomes.
Immune cell patterns before and after neoadjuvant immune checkpoint blockade combined with chemoradiotherapy in locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Zheng Dan-Dan , Li Yu-Ying , Yuan Xiao-Yi , Lu Jiang-Li , Zhang Mei-Fang , Fu Jia , Zhang Chris Zhiyi 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Background: Neoadjuvant immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) combined with chemoradiotherapy offers high pathologic complete response (pCR) rate for patients with locally advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCC). But the dynamic tumor immune microenvironment modulated by such neoadjuvant therapy remains unclear.
Patients and methods: A total of 41 patients with locally advanced ESCC were recruited. Paired matched pre- and post-treatment tissues were obtained for fluorescent multiplex immunohistochemistry (mIHC) and IHC analyses. The densities and spatial distributions of immune cells were determined by HALO modules.
Results: The differences of immune cell patterns before and after treatment were investigated, using matched paired tissues of 41 patients who received R0 resection. In the pretreatment tissues, more stromal CD3+FoxP3+ Tregs and CD86+/CD163+ macrophages were observed in patients with residual tumor existed in the resected lymph nodes (pN1), compared with pCR patients. Spatial analyses showed majority of macrophages were mainly distributed in close proximity to tumor nest in pN1 patients. In the posttreatment tissues, pCR patients had less CD86+ cells infiltration, whereas higher CD86+ cell densities were significantly associated with higher tumor regression grades (TRG) in non-pCR patients. When comparing the paired pre- and post-treatment samples, heterogeneous tumor-associated immune cell patterns were found. Upon to the treatment, CD3+ T lymphocytes were slightly increased in pCR patients, but markedly decreased in non-pCRs. In contrast, a noticeable increase and a less obvious decrease of CD86+ cell infiltration was depicted in non-pCRs and pCRs, respectively. Furthermore, opposite trends of the treatment-induced alterations of CD8+ and CD15+ cells were observed between pN0 and pN1 patients.
Conclusions: Collectively, our data demonstrate a comprehensive picture of tumor immune landscape before and after neoadjuvant ICB combined with chemoradiotherapy, and therefore provide rationale for the further improvement of neoadjuvant therapy in ESCC.
Going ballistic: a new method for interfacial energy gap determination
Authors: Zhou Xuehua , Chen Yushu , Li Qingxia , Yang Shixing , Han Chao 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

As a kernel attribute of molecular semiconductor, the energy gap fundamentally determines the working principle which is crucial to the device performance optimization, such as the photoelectric conversion efficiency of organic solar cells. Therefore, a precise quantification for energy gap of a molecular semiconductor is crucial. A three-terminal vertical structure (Al/AlOX/Au/ molecular semiconductor/Al), named hot electron transistor has been verified to be the most powerful method for energy gap determination. The Al/AlOX/Au tunneling junction is used for energy regulation and the Au/ molecular semiconductor/Al diode is applied for providing an authentic device. By monitoring the charge transport behaviors in the real device, the electron injected barrier (or LUMO) and hole injected barrier (or HOMO) could be obtained, which makes for the interfacial energy gap determination. This research develops a handy tool for the ordinary research groups working in molecular electronics. It will contribute to the rapid development of molecular electronics.
Understanding Lactation Policies and Resources Across a University System: Survey &amp; Document Review
Authors: Ashby Emily L. , Donepudi Sritha , Padilla Heather M. 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Background: In the U.S., working women often return to work within 8-12 weeks of giving birth, therefore, it is critical that workplaces provide support for female employees combining breastfeeding and work. The Affordable Care Act requires any organization with more than 50 employees to provide a space other than a restroom for women to express breastmilk and a reasonable amount of time during the workday for women to express breastmilk. States and worksites differ in the implementation of ACA requirements and may or may not provide additional supports for female employees combining breastfeeding and work. The purpose of this study was to conduct an analysis of 26 institutions within a state university system to evaluate the differences in breastfeeding policies and resources available on each campus.
Methods: Survey data was collected from well-being liaisons in the human resources departments at each institution. In addition, we conducted a document review of policies and online materials at each institution. We used univariate statistics to summarize survey results while a thematic analysis was used to analyze institutional resources available on websites and in policies provided by the liaisons.
Results: A total of 18 (65.3%) liaisons participated in the study and revealed an overall lack of familiarity with the policies in place and inconsistencies in the resources offered to breastfeeding employees across the university system. Only half of the participating liaisons reported a formal breastfeeding policy was in place on their campus. From the document review six major themes were identified: placing the burden on female employees, describing pregnancy or postpartum as “disability,” having a university specific policy, inclusion of break times for breastfeeding, supervisor responsibility, and information on lactation policies.
Conclusion: The review of each institutions online resources confirmed the survey findings and highlighted the burden placed on female employees to discover the available resources and advocate for their needs. This paper provides insight into how institutions support breastfeeding employees and provides implications on strategies to develop policies at universities to improve breastfeeding access for working mothers.
Molecular Evolution of Phytocyanin Gene and Analysis of Expression at Different Coloring Periods in Apple (Malus domestica)
Authors: Shao Miao , Feng Yongqing , Yang Shangwen , Feng Tong , Zeng Fanwei , Lu Shixiong , Ma ZongHuan , Chen Baihong , Mao Juan 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Background
PC (phytocyanin) is a class of copper-containing electron transfer proteins closely related to plant photosynthesis, abiotic stress responses growth and development in plants, and regulation of the expression of some flavonoids and phenylpropanoids, etc., however, compared with other plants, the PC gene family has not been systematically characterized in apple.
Results
A total of 59 MdPC gene members unevenly distributed across 12 chromosomes were identified at the genome-wide level. The proteins of the MdPC family were classified into four subfamilies based on differences in copper binding sites and glycosylation sites: Apple Early nodulin-like proteins (MdENODLs), Apple Uclacyanin-like proteins (MdUCLs), Apple Stellacyanin-like proteins (MdSCLs), and Apple Plantacyanin-like proteins (MdPLCLs). Some MdPC members with similar gene structures and conserved motifs belong to the same group or subfamily. The internal collinearity analysis revealed 14 collinearity gene pairs among members of the apple MdPC gene. Interspecific collinearity analysis showed that apple had 31 and 35 homologous gene pairs with strawberry and grape, respectively. Selection pressure analysis indicated that the MdPC gene was under purifying selection. Prediction of protein interactions showed that MdPC family members interacted strongly with the Nad3 protein. GO annotation results indicated that the MdPC gene also regulated the biosynthesis of phenylpropanoids. Chip data analysis showed that (MdSCL3, MdSCL7 and MdENODL27) were highly expressed in mature fruits and peels. Many cis-regulatory elements related to light response, phytohormones, abiotic stresses and flavonoid biosynthetic genes regulation were identified 2000 bp upstream of the promoter of the MdPC gene, and qrt-PCR results showed that gene members in Group IV (MdSCL1/3, MdENODL27) were up-regulated at all five stages of apple coloring, but the highest expression was observed at the DAF13 (day after fruit bag removal) stage. The gene members in Group II (MdUCL9, MdPLCL3) showed down-regulated or lower expression in the first four stages of apple coloring but up-regulated and highest expression in the DAF 21 stage.
Conclusion
Herein, one objective of these findings is to provide valuable information for understanding the structure, molecular evolution, and expression pattern of the MdPC gene, another major objective in this study was designed to lay the groundwork for further research on the molecular mechanism of PC gene regulation of apple fruit coloration.
Fusion method for digital twin model of a production line
Authors: Liu Xiaojun , Wang Chongxin , Huang Jiasheng , Ni Zhonghua , Salam Musharaf , Yan Yuehui , Feng Jindan 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Digital twins have attracted more and more attention in the past few years. To put digital twins into practice, a large number of modeling approaches have been proposed, vast amounts of data have been collected, and their accuracy has been improving. However, current research has paid insufficient attention to the multi-scale features of the shop floor, which hinders the effective application of the digital twin shop floor. To address the problem of how to achieve effective multi-level and multi-dimensional fusion of digital twin models with production process data, this paper first proposes a structured data modeling framework for sorting out all the production process data collected in real-time; and then proposes a multi-level fusion framework for supporting the fusion of real-time data and twin models from the unit level to the system level. The method judges the parsed received data streams through the full-factor semanticization framework, and at the same time fuses the parsed data streams with the constructed full-factor twin model from multiple dimensions and layers, forming a twin model fusion method with real-time data streams as the blood and twin model as the skeleton. Finally, the micro-assembly-based production shop environment is selected as a case study to verify the correctness and feasibility of the proposed data grooming framework, data, and model fusion method.
Multi-objective optimization design of integrated pump station based on NSGA - III
Authors: Li Rui , Wang He , Xin Kunlun , Tao Tao 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Safe water supply and energy conservation are two goals that the water supply industry has always focused on. Integrated pump station adopts a dual mode water supply system which has adjustable water storage capacity and can utilize the pressure of inlet water effectively, hence, it is a new type of solution in optimizing the operation of urban water supply systems. In order to solve the problem of insufficient water supply pressure during peak hours in the railway station and municipal party committee area of S city, the author constructed a pipe network hydraulic model, conducted a systematic analysis of the water supply pipe network, and optimized the design of IPSs using NSGA-III combined with EPANET. Finally, the hydraulic model of the pipe network is used to verify the feasibility of the scheme. The results show that under the premise of ensuring safe water supply, energy conservation and water age optimization can be achieved simultaneously, and the fluctuation intensity of the total water supply from the water plants is effectively reduced.
Lower respiratory microbiome in patients with stable bronchiectasis in North and South China
Authors: Bingrui Gao , Cong Feng , Shanshan Huang , Haiyan Chen , Manrui Wang , Yinghua Guo , Lixin Xie 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Objective: To compare microbiome in the lower respiratory tract of patients with stable bronchiectasis in North and South China.
Methods: Demographic and Sequencing data were collected from patients who underwent bronchoalveolar lavage fluid macro-genomic sequencing testing between September 2021 to September 2022 at Hainan Hospital of the General Hospital of the People's Liberation Army (Sanya, Hainan, South) and the Eighth Medical Center of the General Hospital of the People's Liberation Army (Haidian, Beijing, North). The patients were grouped according to the clinical test results, and the sequencing data were analyzed twice to compare the microbiome differences among different groups.
Results We enrolled 75 patients, 42 in the North and 33 in the South. The number of smokers in the Northern group was higher than that in the Southern group and the FEV1/FVC (%) value was lower than that in the Southern group; otherwise, the groups had no significant differences. The most abundance bacteria in the lower respiratory tract of the Northern group were Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Nocardia wilsonii, while the Southern group were H. influenzae, P. aeruginosa, and Prevotella intermedia. According to the severity of the patients with bronchiectasis (BSI), there was also a difference in the abundance of microbiome in the lower respiratory tract in patients with stable bronchiectasis from the North and South.
Conclusion The lower respiratory tract microbiome of patients with stable bronchiectasis differed significantly between the North and South in China. The microbiome of the Southern group was more similar to that reported in the international literature, while the Northern group was significantly different from the results of other studies. P. aeruginosa and Klebsiella pneumoniae were most abundant in the Northern group, while H. influenzae and P. aeruginosa were most abundant in the Southern group, These findings can guide antibiotic treatment of exacerbations.
The role of community health workers in non-communicable diseases in Cape Town, South Africa: descriptive exploratory qualitative study
Authors: Williams Doresha , Mash Robert 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Background Community health workers (CHW) are an integral part of primary health care re-engineering in South Africa. Cape Town is developing community-orientated primary care, with a central role for CHWs. Their role in HIV, TB, maternal and child health has been articulated, but is less clear for non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Non-communicable diseases are now a major contributor to the burden of disease. The aim was to explore the current role of CHWs regarding NCDs in the Eastern sub-district of Cape Town, South Africa.Methods An exploratory descriptive qualitative study made use of non-participant observation and qualitative interviews with community health workers, their managers, and coordinators. Data from nine semi-structured interviews and ten observations were analysed with the framework method and Atlas-ti.Results CHWs were embedded in their communities and provided services via support groups, household visits and delivery of medication. They linked people to care with assistance of nurse coordinators. They could also provide physical care in the home. They lacked the ability to counsel people on the risk factors for NCDs and their role in rehabilitation and palliative care was unclear. More nurse coordinators were needed to provide supportive supervision. Inter-sectoral collaboration was weak and hindered CHWs from addressing social issues. More standardised and comprehensive training should equip CHWs for health promotion and disease prevention during household visits. Data collected in the community needed to be analysed, reported on and integrated with data from the primary care facility. This should also contribute to a community diagnosis. Their relationship with facility-based members of the primary health care team needed to be improved. Attention needed to be given to the requirements for and conditions of employment, as well as working hours and remuneration. Some equipment was absent and hindered their services for NCDs.Conclusions CHWs have the potential to provide a comprehensive approach to NCDs, but community-orientated primary care needs to be strengthened in many of the key areas to support their activities. In relation to NCDs, they need training in basic and brief behaviour change counselling and risk factors as well as in the areas of rehabilitation and palliative care.
Mean and dispersion regression model for extremes with application in humidity
Authors: Costa Lara Roberta da Silva , Nascimento Fernando Ferraz do , Pereira Marcelo Bourguignon 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
The generalized extreme value (GEV) distribution has been widely used in the prediction of extreme events in the most diverse areas of knowledge, being possible calculate accurately extreme quantiles of maximum data. Although the mean and variance of the GEV can be written as a function of the parameters, making a reparametrization where the parameters themselves become the mean and the standard deviation produces interpretive advantages, especially in models where these parameters are written as a function of regression models, being able to directly show how covariates affect the mean and standard deviation of the data. The proposed modelsare fitted by applying the Bayesian paradigm and assuming normal prior distribution for theregression parameters. This work proposes a reparameterization of the GEV distribution as a function of the mean and standard deviation, applied to minimum humidity data in the Northeast region of Brazil. Results obtained showed the advantage of the proposed methodology, where we can punctuate in detail how seasonal and locality variables affect the average and the variance of the minimum humidity.
Local Coordinates on Lie Groups for Half-Explicit Time Integration of Cosserat Rod Models with Constraints
Authors: Tumiotto Denise , Arnold Martin 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Explicit Runge-Kutta methods are the gold standard of time integration methods for non-stiff problems in system dynamics since they combine a small numerical effort per time step with high accuracy, error control and straightforward implementation. For the analysis of beam dynamics, we couple them with a local coordinates approach in a Lie group setting to address large rotations. Stiff shear forces and inextensibility conditions are enforced by internal constraints in a coarse grid discretization of a geometrically exact beam model. The resulting non-stiff constrained systems are handled by a half-explicit approach that relies on the constraints at velocity level and avoids all kinds of Newton-Raphson iteration. We construct half-explicit Runge-Kutta Lie group methods of order up to five that are equipped with an adaptive step size strategy using embedded Runge-Kutta pairs for error estimation. The methods are tested successfully for a roll-up maneuver of a flexible beam and for the classical flying spaghetti benchmark.
Standardization of Dental Vulnerability Scale Scores (EVO-BR)
Authors: Oliveira Daniele Boina , Belotti Lorrayne , Eshriqui Ilana , Rebustini Flávio , Palácio Danielle Costa , Bonfim Daiana , Paresque Marcio Anderson Cardozo , Ribeiro Danielle Viana , Barbieri Wander , Tedesco Tamara Kerber 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Background: Dental Vulnerability Scale (also known as EVO-BR) is an instrument developed to help identifying oral health-vulnerable individuals. This scale comprises 15 items distributed into 4 dimensions. It is the first instrument with the potential to guide clinical and managerial decisions in the oral health field. The aim is to validate a score to enable using EVO-BR in PCC practice.
Method: The investigated sample included Primary Care Center users in five Brazilian regions. Data were collected at two different stages: in 2019 (São Paulo) and in 2022 (Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso, Roraima, Pernambuco e Paraná). Exploratory descriptive study of this scale scores was carried out to create classification ranges. Subsequently, discriminant analysis was performed to assess the accuracy of the established classification. Boosting regression was carried out to check items’ weight for the instrument score.
Results: EVO-BR score ranged from 0 (highest vulnerability) to 15 (lowest vulnerability). Four (4) classification configurations were tested. Score equal to 12 points was the one presenting the best classification of the assessed individuals (100% were correctly classified). Boosting regression has evidenced that items 1 and 2 (Overall health domain) and 14 and 15 (Health Services domain) had the strongest influence on this instrument’s score.
Conclusion: The process to standardize the EVO-BR score and, consequently, to develop assessment ranges, is an important step in the fight against health inequalities, since it provides a tool to help planning actions and interventions aimed at meeting specific needs of the population in the Primary Care Health context.