bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Brain dopamine receptor system is not altered in obesity: Bayesian and frequentist meta‐analyses
Authors: Pak Kyoungjune , Nummenmaa Lauri 
Published: November 2023

AbstractFeeding induces dopamine release in the striatum, and a dysfunction of the dopaminergic reward system can lead to overeating, and obesity. Studies have reported inconsistent findings of dopamine receptor (DR) positron emission tomography scans in obesity. Here we investigated the association between DR availability and overweight/obesity using Bayesian and frequentist meta‐analysis. We performed a systematic search of Embase, Medline, Scopus and Web of Science for studies that compared striatal DR availability between lean subjects and overweight/obese subjects. The standardized mean difference (Hedge's g) of DR availability was calculated after extraction of data from each study. Studies were divided into two groups according to the definition of overweight/obese subjects (body mass index [BMI] cutoff of 25 and 30 kg/m2). Both Bayesian and frequentist meta‐analysis was done in R Statistical Software version 4.2.2 (The R Foundation for Statistical Computing). Nine studies were eligible for inclusion in this study. Three studies with C11‐raclopride, one with C11‐PNHO, two with F18‐fallypride, one with I123‐IBZM, one with C11‐NMB and one with both C11‐raclopride and C11‐PNHO were included. In Bayesian meta‐analysis, the standardized mean difference of DR availability between lean and overweight/obese subjects markedly overlapped with zero regardless of BMI cutoff for obesity. In frequentist meta‐analysis, the pooled standardized mean difference of DR availability did not show the significant difference between lean and overweight/obese subjects. There was an effect of the radiopharmaceutical on the standardized mean difference of DR availability in meta‐analysis of BMI cutoff of 25 kg/m2. In conclusion, brain DR availability is not different between lean and overweight/obese subjects. However, the effect is dependent on the radiopharmaceutical and the degree of obesity. Further studies with multi‐radiopharmaceutical in the same individuals are needed to understand the association between DR and obesity.
Granule cells perform frequency‐dependent pattern separation in a computational model of the dentate gyrus
Authors: Singh Selena , Becker Suzanna , Trappenberg Thomas , Nunes Abraham 
Published: November 2023

AbstractMnemonic discrimination (MD) may be dependent on oscillatory perforant path input frequencies to the hippocampus in a “U”‐shaped fashion, where some studies show that slow and fast input frequencies support MD, while other studies show that intermediate frequencies disrupt MD. We hypothesize that pattern separation (PS) underlies frequency‐dependent MD performance. We aim to study, in a computational model of the hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG), the network and cellular mechanisms governing this putative “U”‐shaped PS relationship. We implemented a biophysical model of the DG that produces the hypothesized “U”‐shaped input frequency–PS relationship, and its associated oscillatory electrophysiological signatures. We subsequently evaluated the network's PS ability using an adapted spatiotemporal task. We undertook systematic lesion studies to identify the network‐level mechanisms driving the “U”‐shaped input frequency‐PS relationship. A minimal circuit of a single granule cell (GC) stimulated with oscillatory inputs was also used to study potential cellular‐level mechanisms. Lesioning synapses onto GCs did not impact the “U”‐shaped input frequency–PS relationship. Furthermore, GC inhibition limits PS performance for fast frequency inputs, while enhancing PS for slow frequency inputs. GC interspike interval was found to be input frequency dependent in a “U”‐shaped fashion, paralleling frequency‐dependent PS observed at the network level. Additionally, GCs showed an attenuated firing response for fast frequency inputs. We conclude that independent of network‐level inhibition, GCs may intrinsically be capable of producing a “U”‐shaped input frequency‐PS relationship. GCs may preferentially decorrelate slow and fast inputs via spike timing reorganization and high frequency filtering.
Impacts of a new diagnosis‐related group point payment system on children's medical services in China: Length of stay and costs
Authors: Wang Sisi , Wu Nuan , Wang Huiyi , Zhang Xiaotong , Li Fubang , Wang Xiaohao , Wang Wei 
Published: November 2023

AbstractBackgroundPaediatric healthcare is always highlighted in medical and health care system reform in China. Zhejiang Province established a new diagnosis‐related group (DRG) point payment reform in 2020 to regulate provider behaviours and control medical costs. We conducted this study to evaluate impacts of the DRG point payment policy on provider behaviours and resource usage in children's medical services.MethodsData from patients' discharge records from July 2019 to December 2020 in Children's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine were collected for analysis. We employed the interrupted time series approach to reveal the trend before and after the DRG point payment reform and the difference‐in‐differences analysis to estimate the independent outcome changes attributed to the reform.ResultsWe found that the upward trend of length of stay slightly slowed, and the total costs began to decrease at the post‐policy stage. Although independent effects of the reform were not presented among the whole sample, the length of stay and hospitalisation costs of moderate‐hospital‐stay paediatric patients, non‐surgical patients, and infant patients were found to decrease rapidly after the reform.ConclusionDRG point payments can changed the provider behaviours and eventually reduce healthcare resource usage in children's medical services.
Systematic study and design of multimodal MRI image augmentation for brain tumor detection with loss aware exchange and residual networks
Authors: Bhuyan Ranadeep , Nandi Gypsy 
Published: November 2023

AbstractOne of the most difficult problems that develop when brain cells start to grow out of control is a brain tumor, which is regarded as the most lethal disease of the century. Finding and identifying malignant brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images is the major challenge before therapy. Researchers have been putting a lot of effort into creating the best method for more accurate real‐world medical image recognition. For manual categorization, it is quite time‐consuming to segment large quantities of MRI data. To mitigate these issues, this paper suggests the information exchange gateway‐based residual UNet (IEGResUNet) model, which uses the ResUNet model as a base model. Additionally, including principal component analysis (PCA) data augmentation will increase the model's efficiency while also enhancing its speed. The IEGResUNet model shows an ablation investigation on three Brats datasets, with and without PCA augmentation. The results demonstrate that IEGResUNet will improve segmentation effectiveness and can also manage the imbalance in input data when PCA data augmentation models are included. The dice score on BraTS 2019 for whole tumor, region of core tumor, and region of enhancing tumor were 0.9083, 0.883, and 0.8106 respectively. Also, on BraTS 2020, the dice score for WT, CT, and ET 0.9083, 0.883, and 0.8106 was respectively. Similarly, on BraTS 2021, the dice score for WT, CT, and ET was 0.8737, 0.8866, and 0.7963 respectively. Comparing against baseline models, the IEGResUNet scored well in terms of dice score and intersection over union.
Relevant edge probability‐based adaptively weighted active contour for medical image segmentation
Authors: Sa Bijay Kumar , Panda Rutuparna , Agrawal Sanjay 
Published: November 2023

AbstractThe level‐set based active contours have been found popular for medical image segmentation tasks, because of their inherent support for the topological changes—splitting and merging. Meanwhile, contour's leakage through the weak edges and premature convergence due to intensity inhomogeneity diminish its accuracy. Adjusting energy weights according to image features, local to the contour can be helpful. However, weight adjusted as deterministic function of the features is not adequate, limiting the segmentation accuracy. To address the problem, a new relevant edge probability based adaptively weighted level‐set evolution (REP‐WLSE) method for medical image segmentation is investigated. The weights used in this proposal are adaptive to an image relative value, obtained statistically from the feature‐explorations during the contour's evolution. The value is basically an estimate of contour's probability of finding relevant boundary edges on the image plane. Spatial intensity‐range filtering provides the feature space. An adaptive time‐step management scheme is also implemented, which controls the speed variation of the contour evolution. Time‐step is adjusted as a function of contour's alignment with the edges. The merits of the suggested methodology are—(i) reduced leakage through the weak edges, (ii) ability to handle the inhomogeneity, and (iii) increased chances of convergence around the foreground/region of interest (ROI). Experimental results using brain MR, abdominal ultrasound, and breast ultrasound images are presented. State‐of‐the‐art methods are compared using different metrics. The suggested methodology achieved better results.
Extractive distillation of tetrahydrofuran–ethanol azeotropic mixture with ionic liquid as extractant
Authors: Li Wenxiu , Zhang Linzi , Guo Hongfan , Ni Qingfeng , Feng Huisheng , Wang Lida , Zhang Tao 
Published: November 2023

AbstractBACKGROUNDThe tetrahydrofuran–ethanol azeotrope cannot be separated by common distillation, but can be effectively separated by extractive distillation. Extractive distillation can be simulated by Aspen Plus software. The minimum annual cost of the process can be calculated to assess ionic liquid separation ability. The interaction energy can be used to explain the separation mechanism.RESULTSThe non‐random two‐liquid model parameters of ternary mixtures for tetrahydrofuran and ethanol containing tributylmethylammonium acetate or 1‐octyl‐3‐methylimidazolium acetate were obtained. Thermodynamic property databases of tributylmethylammonium acetate, 1‐hexyl‐2,3‐dimethylimidazolium acetate and 1‐octyl‐3‐methylimidazolium acetate were established. Based on the thermodynamic model parameters and properties, the sequential iterative method was used to determine the best operating conditions and minimum total annual cost the of extractive distillation process. The interaction energy was calculated to explain the separation mechanism.CONCLUSIONSThe separation performance of tributylmethylammonium acetate is better than that of 1‐hexyl‐2,3‐dimethylimidazolium acetate or 1‐octyl‐3‐methylimidazolium acetate. The selection and design of the ionic liquids can be conducted in terms of the interaction energy. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).
Multiscale spatiotemporal variability of fecal indicator bacteria and associated particle size distributions in the sandy bottom sediments of a Pennsylvania creek
Authors: Pachepsky Yakov , Harriger M. D. , Panko Graff Christina , Wyatt‐Brown Lauren , Stocker Matthew Daniel , Smith Jaclyn Elizabeth 
Published: November 2023

AbstractConcentrations of the fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) Escherichia coli and enterococci are used to assess microbial impairment in irrigation and recreation water sources. Although the FIB concentrations’ variability at large temporal scales, such as seasons, and large spatial scales encompassing different land use has been studied, the knowledge about smaller scale variability remains sparse. This work aimed to research the small‐scale variability of E. coli and enterococci in a montane creek with sandy bottom sediments. Sediment samples were collected weekly for a year in triplicate at sampling sites in a forested headwater, an agricultural area, and a mixed urban‐agricultural area. The average weekly change in concentrations was from two times at the forested site to five times at the urban‐agricultural site. Mean relative deviations from averages across sampling locations increased from −25% at the forested site to 45% at the urban‐agricultural site. This trend was also observed separately over the cold and warm seasons. Over a week without precipitation, E. coli concentrations decreased on average by 20% in warm period and by 45% in cold period; the enterococci concentration declined by 12% in both cold and warm periods. The sediment particle size distributions were significantly different among the three sites and between the cold and warm seasons. Rankings of sediment fine mass fractions and FIB concentrations were positively correlated at two of three sampling sites in more than 70% of observation dates. The results of this work indicate the need to evaluate the uncertainty of sediment FIB concentrations before designing sediment FIB monitoring quality.
Patient decisions regarding cancer gene panel testing: An exploratory study
Authors: Emmet Margaret M. , Chang Yuchiao , Chung Daniel C. , Caruso Alyson R. , Shannon Kristen M. 
Published: November 2023

AbstractThis study examined factors associated with the selection of a specific multi‐gene panel test by patients in a cancer genetic counseling clinic. We surveyed patients who received pre‐test genetic counseling at the Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Cancer Risk Assessment (CCRA) in 2019 and their genetic counselors to assess demographic and clinical characteristics, patient concerns, and session outcome. Ultimately, 228 eligible participants completed the survey, of whom 85.1% consented to genetic testing. Of those who chose testing, 56.2% selected the largest panel type available, a pan‐cancer panel that included both actionable and inactionable genes. White patients were more likely than non‐white patients to pursue testing. Among testers, number of testing options offered, participant educational attainment, age, and NCCN Guidelines status were associated with patient choice between four panel options. Some patient concerns, including impact of results on future cancer screening and family dynamics, were also linked to test choice. Several other participant characteristics including income, cancer diagnosis, and family structure did not appear to be predictive of testing choice. Our results confirmed the patient preference for large gene panels and identified a limited number of associations between patient characteristics and concerns and testing choice. We noted however that a significant number of participants did not choose the most commonly selected test, and that test choice is difficult to predict based on clinical and demographic factors. Our results also provide further evidence of well‐documented disparities in cancer genetic testing. Study limitations do not allow our findings to be generalized to all cancer genetic counseling patients. Further research is needed to examine how and why patients choose between multiple genetic test options in the cancer setting. This study was one of the first to examine patient choice between a full spectrum of multi‐gene panel options.
Long‐term clinical and socioeconomic outcomes of children with biliary atresia
Authors: Sadiq Javaid , Lloyd Carla , Hodson James , Trapero Marugan Maria , Ferguson James , Sharif Khalid , Mirza Darius F , Hirschfield Gideon , Kelly Deirdre 
Published: November 2023

AbstractBackgroundBiliary atresia (BA) is rare liver disease of unknown etiology, and is a major indication for liver transplant (LT). Previous data indicate improved outcomes with early referral for Kasai portoenterostomy (KPE).ObjectiveEvaluate the long‐term outcomes in BA, with particular focus on those transitioned to adult care with native livers.Subjects and MethodsPatients with BA treated between1980 and 2012 were identified. Data were collected from the time of referral, transition to adult care, and the most recent clinic notes, from which patient and native liver survival were calculated.ResultsFour hundred and fifty‐four patients with BA were identified, who were followed up for median of 16.4 years from birth; 74 died (41 of whom had a LT), giving a 20‐year survival rate of 83.6%. Two hundred and seventy‐two patients received an LT, with the median native liver survival being 35 months. Of patients who transitioned to adult care, 54 of 180 (30.0%) retained their native liver. Of these, 72% (39 of 54) had evidence of chronic liver disease at transition, of whom 8 were subsequently lost to follow‐up, 9 were transplanted, and 22 remained stable with compensated liver disease. Of the 15 of 54 patients (28%) with no evidence of chronic disease in their native liver disease at transition, 3 were subsequently lost to follow‐up; none received transplants, although 3 patients developed new‐onset liver disease. All patients transitioned to adult care completed secondary school education (N = 180), with 49% having attended college/university and 87% being in employment or education at the last follow‐up. Of female patients, 34% had at least one pregnancy (27 children in 21 women), while 22% of males had fathered a child.ConclusionLong‐term outcomes in BA are good, with patients surviving into adult life. Progression of chronic liver disease and associated morbidity is common in those who retained their native livers, suggesting that these patients require monitoring of liver disease throughout adult life, and early recognition of the need for LT.
Diagnostic radiographers' perceptions of professional identity in Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
Authors: Mtombeni Keleabetswe , Hazell Lynne , Mokoena Louisa 
Published: November 2023

AbstractIntroductionThe study explored and described the professional identity of diagnostic radiographers in Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa.MethodsThe methodology employed for the study was qualitative, exploratory and descriptive design. Face‐to‐face interviews were conducted with thirteen diagnostic radiographers from private, public practices and individually owned practices. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted, and the responses underwent thematic analysis and used Braun and Clarke's six steps for analysing qualitative data.ResultsThe thematic analysis revealed three themes and six categories. The three themes identified were: perceptions of identity, environment influences and organisational institutions.ConclusionThis study provided an insight into the current perspectives of the professional identity of diagnostic radiographers in Johannesburg, South Africa, which reflected a positive professional identity. The three themes identified could inform guidelines for education in diagnostic radiographers' professional identity in the future.
Ionization behaviors of nitrotoluenes and dinitrotoluenes by reactions with acetone‐related reactant ion
Authors: Choi He‐Ryun , Choi Sung‐Seen 
Published: November 2023

AbstractDinitrotoluenes (DNTs) and nitrotoluenes (NTs) are found in the environment as metabolites of trinitrotoluene (TNT). When acetone is used as the solvent/eluent in atmospheric pressure chemical ionization‐mass spectrometry (APCI‐MS), the reactant ion is [2Acetone + O2]•− for the negative ion mode. The reactant ion reacts with an analyte to produce M•− and/or [M – H]− under atmospheric pressure. In this study, ionization behaviors of NT (2‐, 3‐, and 4‐NTs) and DNT isomers (2,3‐, 2,4‐, and 2,6‐DNTs) by reactions with [2Acetone + O2]•− were investigated. The energy‐minimized structures of the product ions and their energies were calculated to explain the differences in the ionization behaviors. Typical NT‐ and DNT‐related ions were produced by reactions with [2Acetone + O2]•−; NT•−, [NT – H]−, DNT•−, [DNT – H]−, and [DNT – NO]− ions. The ionization efficiencies of NT‐ and DNT‐related ions increased by increasing the source fragmentor voltage, and those of DNT‐related ions were higher than those of the NT‐related ions owing to the presence of an additional nitro group. The ionization efficiency of 3‐NT•− was higher than that of [NT – H]−, while that of [DNT – H]− was higher than those of DNT•− and [DNT – NO]−. The ionization efficiency order of NT•− was 3‐NT > 4‐NT > 2‐NT, while that of [DNT – H]− was 2,4‐DNT > 2,6‐DNT > 2,3‐DNT. The [NT – H]− and [DNT – H]− ions were stabilized by resonance structures containing nitro groups. The [DNT – NO]− ions were formed through the transition state.
Solid‐state 35/37Cl NMR detection of chlorine atoms directly bound to paramagnetic cobalt(II) ions in powder samples
Authors: Bauder Lukas , Wu Gang 
Published: November 2023

AbstractWe report high‐quality solid‐state 35/37Cl NMR spectra for chlorine atoms directly bonded to paramagnetic cobalt(II) ions (high spin S = 3/2) in powered samples of CoCl2, CoCl2·2H2O, CoCl2·6H2O, and CoCl2(terpy) (terpy = 2,2′:6′,2″‐terpyridine). Because solid‐state 35/37Cl NMR spectra for paramagnetic cobalt(II) compounds often cover an extremely wide spectral range, they were recorded in this work in the form of variable‐offset cumulative spectra. Solid‐state 35/37Cl NMR measurements were performed at three magnetic fields (11.7, 14.1, and 16.5 T) and analysis of data yielded information about 35/37Cl quadrupole coupling and hyperfine coupling tensors in these paramagnetic cobalt(II) compounds. Experimental 35/37Cl NMR tensors were found to be in reasonable agreement with quantum chemical calculations based on a periodic DFT method implemented in BAND.
Children's Oncology Group's 2023 blueprint for research: Surgery
Authors: Gow Kenneth W. , Lautz Timothy B. , Malek Marcus M. , Cost Nicholas G. , Newman Erika A. , Dasgupta Roshni , Christison‐Lagay Emily R. , Tiao Gregory M. , Davidoff Andrew M. ,   the COG Surgery Discipline Committee
Published: November 2023

AbstractSurgery plays a crucial role in the treatment of children with solid malignancies. A well‐conducted operation is often essential for cure. Collaboration with the primary care team is important for determining if and when surgery should be performed, and if performed, an operation must be done in accordance with well‐established standards. The long‐term consequences of surgery also need to be considered. Indications and objectives for a procedure vary. Providing education and developing and analyzing new research protocols that include aims relevant to surgery are key objectives of the Surgery Discipline of the Children's Oncology Group. The critical evaluation of emerging technologies to ensure safe, effective procedures is another key objective. Through research, education, and advancing technologies, the role of the pediatric surgeon in the multidisciplinary care of children with solid malignancies will continue to evolve.