bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Queen can do no Wrong: An Examination of the Reign of Queen Elizabeth II in Africa and the Position of the British Monarch with Regard to International Crimes
Authors: Aghem Hanson Ekori  
Published: October 2023

Queen Elizabeth II would be remembered by many as a great queen who ruled and reigned for more than seven decades. Her seventy years of reigned as the British Monarch has imparted the world and the African continent whom she has visited more any other continent even before she was crowned as the British Queen. Indeed, Queen Elizabeth II was even proclaimed as British Queen while in Africa. Although many African leaders have hailed the Queen for the roles she played as the leader of the Commonwealth besides being the crowned Monarch, others have accused her for colonial crimes and harsh British practises administered by British colonial administration in Africa. Accordingly, the Queen ascended into the throne during the peak of decolonisation of Africa. International law protects the Queen in her capacity as the British Monarch and as the head of state or leader of the Commonwealth nations. This article examines reign of Queen Elizabeth II and argued that the British Monarch is protected by international law rule on immunities as the head of state of the Commonwealth nations and as a Constitutional Monarch of the United Kingdom (UK), despite many accusations from the African continent. Consequently, the immunities accorded by customary international to senior state officials also protects the Queen in her capacity as the British Monarch and as head of state to the Commonwealth nations. It further maintains that the position of the Constitutional Monarch exempts them for committing crimes unlike the British Prime Minister who exercises political power and could be charged and prosecuted for international crimes.
El Impuesto a la Renta sobre Herencias, Legados y Donaciones en la Recaudación Tributaria del Ecuador periodo 2019-2021
Authors: Canchingre Álava Gema Odalia 
Published: October 2023

La investigación se enfocó en los datos estadísticos de la recaudación del impuesto a la renta sobre herencias, legados y donaciones, así como la actividad administrativa y operativa realizada por el ente regulador para aumentar la recaudación monetaria. El objetivo fue analizar la recaudación monetaria del impuesto a la renta sobre herencia, legados y donaciones registrados durante el periodo 2019-2021 en Ecuador. Para ello, se aplicó una metodología mixta: una de tipo de investigación descriptiva-analítica sobre los datos recolectados y la otra descriptiva-deductiva en la entrevista aplicada a experto. Los resultados permitieron encontrar que en el año 2021 existe una diferencia superior en 15 millones de dólares de la recaudación realizada durante el año 2019 y 2020; cabe destacar que estos periodos son los que tienen menor recaudación, a pesar de que existe un crecimiento progresivo, por otro lado, la recaudación del impuesto está destinada para becas de educación superior, cuyas provincias con mayor aporte son Pichincha y Guayas.Palabras claves: Donaciones, Herencia, Impuesto a la renta, Legados, Recaudación
Absract.he investigation focused on the statistical data of income tax collection on inheritances, legacies and donations, as well as the administrative and operational activity carried out by the regulatory entity to increase monetary collection. The objective was to analyze the monetary collection of income tax on inheritance, legacies and donations registered during the period 2019-2021 in Ecuador. For this, a mixed methodology was applied, a descriptive-analytical type of research on the data collected and a descriptive-deductive one in the interview applied to an expert. The results allowed us to find that in 2021 there is a difference greater than 15 million dollars from the collection made during 2019 and 2020; it should be noted that these periods are the ones with the lowest collection, despite the fact that there is progressive growth. On the other hand, the tax collection is destined for higher education scholarships, whose provinces with the greatest contribution are the provinces of Pichincha and Guayas. Keywords: Donations, Inheritance, Income tax, Legacies, Collection
Integrated genomic analysis of antibiotic resistance and virulence determinants in invasive strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae
Authors: Liu Lin , Wang Yanfei , Ge Lihong , Hu Dongping , Xiang Xi , Fu Ying , Lu Jun , Li Xi , Yu Yunsong , Tu Yuexing , Wu Xueqing 
Published: October 2023

IntroductionStreptococcus pneumoniae is an important human pathogen that may cause severe invasive pneumococcal diseases (IPDs) in young children and the elderly. A comprehensive comparative whole-genome analysis of invasive and non-invasive serotype strains offers great insights that are applicable to vaccine development and disease control.MethodsIn this study, 58 invasive (strains isolated from sterile sites) and 71 non-invasive (serotypes that have not been identified as invasive in our study) pneumococcal isolates were identified among the 756 pneumococcal isolates obtained from seven hospitals in Zhejiang, China (2010–2022). Serotyping, antimicrobial resistance tests, and genomic analyses were conducted to characterize these strains.Results and discussionThe three most invasive serotypes were 23F, 14, and 6B. The invasive pneumococcal isolates' respective resistance rates against penicillin, ceftriaxone, tetracycline, and erythromycin were 34.5%, 15.5%, 98.3%, and 94.7%. Whole-genome sequencing indicated that the predominant invasive clonal complexes were CC271, CC876, and CC81. The high rate of penicillin non-susceptible Streptococcus pneumoniae (PNSP) is related to the clonal distribution of resistance-conferring penicillin-binding proteins (PBP). Interestingly, we found a negative correlation between invasiveness and resistance in the invasive pneumococcal serotype strains, which might be due to the proclivity of certain serotypes to retain their β-lactam resistance. Moreover, the mutually exclusive nature of zmpC and rrgC+srtBCD suggests their intricate and potentially redundant roles in promoting the development of IPD. These findings reveal significant implications for pneumococcal vaccine development in China, potentially informing treatment strategies and measures to mitigate disease transmission.
Research on green innovation efficiency measurement and influencing factors in the three major coastal urban agglomerations in China
Authors: Ying Shuli , Fang Qiquan , Ji Yanting 
Published: October 2023

Introduction: Behind China’s booming economy lies a series of environmental and resource consumption issues. After continuous research and exploration, scholars generally agree that green innovation is a crucial way to solve this problem. As the core regions of China’s economic development, studying the green innovation level of the three major urban agglomerations can help understand China’s progress in this area. It can provide beneficial experience and inspiration for other urban agglomerations and the formulation of relevant policies in the future.Methods: This paper selects the panel data of 40 cities in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH), Yangtze River Delta (YRD), and Pearl River Delta (PRD) urban agglomerations from 2010 to 2020 as the research object. The super-efficiency SBM (slack-based measure) model and Malmquist-Luenberger (ML) index are used to measure the green innovation efficiency (GIE) and its dynamic evolution rules, and the Tobit regression model is constructed to analyze the influencing factors of GIE.Results: The PRD urban agglomeration has the highest GIE level, while the GIE level in BTH and YRD shifted around 2015. Technical efficiency and technological progress together lead to increased GIE, with technological progress having a higher impact than technical efficiency. The regression coefficients of urbanization level, industrial structure, and science and technology level are 0.0078, 0.0071, and 0.0616, respectively, significantly promoting GIE. The coefficients of economic development level, foreign direct investment, environmental regulations, and SO2 emissions are −0.2198, −0.1163, −0.005, and −0.011, respectively, significantly inhibiting GIE. The coefficient of vegetation cover of 0.0228 has no significant effect on GIE.Conclusions: The overall GIE of the three major urban agglomerations is relatively high. Still, there is spatial variability in GIE among different cities, accompanied by the phenomenon of two-level differentiation. The study suggests that improving GIE requires enhanced interventions at both the city level and the level of influencing factors. This study enriches the theoretical results on the meso-level of GIE and provides theoretical guidance and practical directions for promoting green innovation in urban agglomerations, achieving peaking carbon and carbon neutrality, and promoting green and high-quality development.
Medical students’ interest in research: changing trends during university training
Authors: Sanabria-de la Torre Raquel , Quiñones-Vico María I. , Ubago-Rodríguez Ana , Buendía-Eisman Agustín , Montero-Vílchez Trinidad , Arias-Santiago Salvador 
Published: October 2023

IntroductionResearch is an important aspect of medical training and plays a vital role in the advancement of evidence-based medicine. However, little is known about medical students’ attitudes towards research. So, the aim of this study was to assess the opinion of medical students on scientific research.MethodsA cross-sectional study was designed that included students from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Granada (UGR), Granada, Spain. A survey was distributed to assess their interest about research during undergraduate studies (1) and following graduation (2), participation in research activities (3), barriers towards research (4), expectation values and self-perceived skills (5). The opinions of students who had not taken clinical subjects (2nd year students) and students who had taken clinical subjects (4th and 6th year students) were compared.Results91 students were included in the study (32 were 2nd year students and 59 were 4th and 6th year students). More 4th and 6th year students showed no interest in research (50.4% vs. 28.1%, p = 0.042) or in pursuing a doctoral thesis (75% vs. 50.9%, p = 0.079) than 2nd year students. In addition, more 4th and 6th year students felt that they did not have sufficient skills to engage in scientific research (52.4% vs. 18.9%, p = 0.002). Likewise a greater number of 4th and 6th year students considered that the professors did not encourage scientific research activities (74.6% vs. 40.6%, p = 0.002). Generally, students do not participate in scientific dissemination events. The main barriers to research identified were lack of funding and lack of awareness of opportunities.ConclusionInterest in research among medical students seems to decrease as the academic years progress. More research promotion could be implemented during the years of university studies.
Phylogenomics of Acinetobacter species and analysis of antimicrobial resistance genes
Authors: Migliaccio Antonella , Bray James , Intoccia Michele , Stabile Maria , Scala Giovanni , Jolley Keith A. , Brisse Sylvain , Zarrilli Raffaele 
Published: October 2023

IntroductionNon-baumannii Acinetobacter species are increasingly isolated in the clinical setting and the environment. The aim of the present study was to analyze a genome database of 837 Acinetobacter spp. isolates, which included 798 non-baumannii Acinetobacter genomes, in order to define the concordance of classification and discriminatory power of 7-gene MLST, 53-gene MLST, and single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) phylogenies.MethodsPhylogenies were performed on Pasteur Multilocus Sequence Typing (MLST) or ribosomal Multilocus Sequence Typing (rMLST) concatenated alleles, or SNPs extracted from core genome alignment.ResultsThe Pasteur MLST scheme was able to identify and genotype 72 species in the Acinetobacter genus, with classification results concordant with the ribosomal MLST scheme. The discriminatory power and genotyping reliability of the Pasteur MLST scheme were assessed in comparison to genome-wide SNP phylogeny on 535 non-baumannii Acinetobacter genomes assigned to Acinetobacter pittii, Acinetobacter nosocomialis, Acinetobacter seifertii, and Acinetobacter lactucae (heterotypic synonym of Acinetobacter dijkshoorniae), which were the most clinically relevant non-baumannii species of the A. baumannii group. The Pasteur MLST and SNP phylogenies were congruent at Robinson-Fould and Matching cluster tests and grouped genomes into four and three clusters in A. pittii, respectively, and one each in A. seifertii. Furthermore, A. lactucae genomes were grouped into one cluster within A. pittii genomes. The SNP phylogeny of A. nosocomialis genomes showed a heterogeneous population and did not correspond to the Pasteur MLST phylogeny, which identified two recombinant clusters. The antimicrobial resistance genes belonging to at least three different antimicrobial classes were identified in 91 isolates assigned to 17 distinct species in the Acinetobacter genus. Moreover, the presence of a class D oxacillinase, which is a naturally occurring enzyme in several Acinetobacter species, was found in 503 isolates assigned to 35 Acinetobacter species.ConclusionIn conclusion, Pasteur MLST phylogeny of non-baumannii Acinetobacter isolates coupled with in silico detection of antimicrobial resistance makes it important to study the population structure and epidemiology of Acinetobacter spp. isolates.
Optimal systolic and diastolic blood pressure threshold that associated with lower risk of white matter hyperintensity progression
Authors: Liu Sibo , Wang Mengxing , Gu De’an , Li Yanzhao , Zhang Xin , Li Hang , Ji Chenhua , Nie Ximing , Liu Jinjie 
Published: October 2023

BackgroundThe optimal control thresholds for systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in patients with white matter hyperintensity (WMH) are still unclear.MethodA longitudinal retrospective study of patients with brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans with intervals of more than 3  years was conducted. Blood pressure records during hospitalization and from outpatient visits between baseline and the last MRI scan were collected. The outcome was the change in total WMH from baseline to the final visit.ResultsAmong the 965 patients with MRI scans, 457 patients with detailed longitudinal blood pressure records were ultimately included and classified into the WMH absent group (n = 121), mild WMH group (n = 126), and moderate to severe WMH group (n = 210). Both baseline and longitudinal mean SBP, DBP, and SBP SD were significantly associated with WMH severity (p &lt; 0.05). An average SBP of 130-140 mmHg [vs. &lt;130 mmHg, aOR, 1.80, (95% CI, 1.05–3.07), p = 0.03] was associated with a higher risk of WMH progression. DBP ≥ 90 mmHg [vs. &lt;80 mmHg, OR, 1.81, (95% CI, 0.88–3.74), p = 0.02, aOR, 1.54, (95% CI, 0.66–3.53), p = 0.32] was associated with a higher risk of WMH progression, but was not after adjusted for other covariates. Longitudinal BP variability was not significantly associated with WMH progression.ConclusionBoth SBP and DBP had a stronger relationship with the severity of WMH. A target mean SBP of &lt;130 mmHg and mean DBP of &lt;80 mmHg was associated with a lower risk of WMH progression.
Prefrontal event-related potential markers in association with mild cognitive impairment
Authors: Eyamu Joel , Kim Wuon-Shik , Kim Kahye , Lee Kun Ho , Kim Jaeuk U. 
Published: October 2023

BackgroundAlzheimer’s disease (AD) is among the leading contributors of dementia globally with approximately 60–70% of its cases. Current research is focused on the mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which is associated with cognitive decline but does not disrupt routine activities. Event-related potential (ERP) research is essential in screening patients with MCI. Low-density channel electroencephalography (EEG) is frequently used due to its convenience, portability, and affordability, making it suitable for resource-constrained environments. Despite extensive research on neural biomarkers for cognitive impairment, there is a considerable gap in understanding the effects on early stages of cognitive processes, particularly when combining physiological and cognitive markers using portable devices. The present study aimed to examine cognitive shortfalls and behavioral changes in patients with MCI using prefrontal selective attention ERP recorded from a prefrontal two-channel EEG device.MethodsWe assessed cognitive decline using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Seoul Neuropsychological Screening Battery (SNSB). We administered auditory selective attention tasks to 598 elderly participants, including those with MCI (160) and cognitively normal (CN) individuals (407). We conducted statistical analyses such as independent t-tests, Pearson’s correlations, and univariate and multiple logistic regression analyses to assess group differences and associations between neuropsychological tests, ERP measures, behavioral measures, and MCI prevalence.ResultsOur findings revealed that patients with MCI demonstrated slower information-processing abilities, and exhibited poorer task execution, characterized by reduced accuracy, increased errors, and higher variability in response time, compared to CN adults. Multiple logistic regression analyses confirmed the association between some ERP and behavioral measures with MCI prevalence, independent of demographic and neuropsychological factors. A relationship was observed between neuropsychological scores, ERP, and behavioral measures.DiscussionThe slower information processing abilities, and poor task execution in the MCI group compared to the CN individuals suggests flawed neurological changes and reduced attentional maintenance during cognitive processing, respectively. Hence, the utilization of portable EEG devices to capture prefrontal selective attention ERPs, in combination with behavioral assessments, holds promise for the identification of mild cognitive deficits and neural alterations in individuals with MCI. This approach could potentially augment the traditional neuropsychological tests during clinical screening for MCI.
Multifractality in stride-to-stride variations reveals that walking involves more movement tuning and adjusting than running
Authors: Wilson Taylor J. , Mangalam Madhur , Stergiou Nick , Likens Aaron D. 
Published: October 2023

Introduction: The seemingly periodic human gait exhibits stride-to-stride variations as it adapts to the changing task constraints. The optimal movement variability hypothesis (OMVH) states that healthy stride-to-stride variations exhibit “fractality”—a specific temporal structure in consecutive strides that are ordered, stable but also variable, and adaptable. Previous research has primarily focused on a single fractality measure, “monofractality.” However, this measure can vary across time; strideto-stride variations can show “multifractality.” Greater multifractality in stride-tostride variations would highlight the ability to tune and adjust movements more.Methods: We investigated monofractality and multifractality in a cohort of eight healthy adults during self-paced walking and running trials, both on a treadmill and overground. Footfall data were collected through force-sensitive sensors positioned on their heels and feet. We examined the effects of self-paced walking vs. running and treadmill vs. overground locomotion on the measure of monofractality, α-DFA, in addition to the multifractal spectrum width, W, and the asymmetry in the multifractal spectrum, WAsym, of stride interval time series.Results: While the α-DFA was larger than 0.50 for almost all conditions, α-DFA was higher in running and locomoting overground than walking and locomoting on a treadmill. Similarly, W was greater while locomoting overground than on a treadmill, but an opposite trend indicated that W was greater in walking than running. Larger WAsym values in the negative direction suggest that walking exhibits more variation in the persistence of shorter stride intervals than running. However, the ability to tune and adjust movements does not differ between treadmill and overground, although both exhibit more variation in the persistence of shorter stride intervals.Discussion: Hence, greater heterogeneity in shorter than longer stride intervals contributed to greater multifractality in walking compared to running, indicated by larger negative WAsym values. Our results highlight the need to incorporate multifractal methods to test the predictions of the OMVH.
Comparative analysis of group information-guided independent component analysis and independent vector analysis for assessing brain functional network characteristics in autism spectrum disorder
Authors: Jing Junlin , Klugah-Brown Benjamin , Xia Shiyu , Sheng Min , Biswal Bharat B. 
Published: October 2023

IntroductionGroup information-guided independent component analysis (GIG-ICA) and independent vector analysis (IVA) are two methods that improve estimation of subject-specific independent components in neuroimaging studies. These methods have shown better performance than traditional group independent component analysis (GICA) with respect to intersubject variability (ISV).MethodsIn this study, we compared the patterns of community structure, spatial variance, and prediction performance of GIG-ICA and IVA-GL, respectively. The dataset was obtained from the publicly available Autism Brain Imaging Data Exchange (ABIDE) database, comprising 75 healthy controls (HC) and 102 Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) participants. The greedy rule was used to match components from IVA-GL and GIG-ICA in order to compare the similarities between the two methods.ResultsRobust correspondence was observed between the two methods the following networks: cerebellum network (CRN; |r| = 0.7813), default mode network (DMN; |r| = 0.7263), self-reference network (SRN; |r| = 0.7818), ventral attention network (VAN; |r| = 0.7574), and visual network (VSN; |r| = 0.7503). Additionally, the Sensorimotor Network demonstrated the highest similarity between IVA-GL and GIG-ICA (SOM: |r| = 0.8125). Our findings revealed a significant difference in the number of modules identified by the two methods (HC: p &lt; 0.001; ASD: p &lt; 0.001). GIG-ICA identified significant differences in FNC between HC and ASD compared to IVA-GL. However, in correlation analysis, IVA-GL identified a statistically negative correlation between FNC of ASD and the social total subscore of the classic Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS: pi = −0.26, p = 0.0489). Moreover, both methods demonstrated similar prediction performances on age within specific networks, as indicated by GIG-ICA-CRN (R2 = 0.91, RMSE = 3.05) and IVA-VAN (R2 = 0.87, RMSE = 3.21).ConclusionIn summary, IVA-GL demonstrated lower modularity, suggesting greater sensitivity in estimating networks with higher intersubject variability. The improved age prediction of cerebellar-attention networks underscores their importance in the developmental progression of ASD. Overall, IVA-GL may be appropriate for investigating disorders with greater variability, while GIG-ICA identifies functional networks with distinct modularity patterns.