bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Preparation and isolation of hydrophilic mannosylerythritol lipids via chemical modification and stepwise extraction
Authors: Yu Fei , Yang Qining , Cui Tianyou , Luo Li , Zhao Mengqian , Long Xuwei 
Published: January 2024

AbstractMannosylerythritol lipids (MELs), a glycolipid biosurfactant, possess great potential in many high‐value‐added fields. However, its water‐insolubility is an important obstacle to its wide application, especially in home and personal care fields. In this study, a new strategy “killing two birds with one stone” based on the chemical modification of natural MELs was developed for the preparation of hydrophilic MELs. These newly prepared MELs can be efficiently isolated from the reacted solution via stepwise extraction with a methanol/n‐hexane system. 88% of hydrophilic MELs were recovered from natural MELs, with a corresponding yield of 50%. This is mainly attributed to the esterification of fatty acids, representing the main and relatively‐difficult‐to‐remove impurities in fermentative‐produced MELs, facilitating separation from the MEL product via extraction. Moreover, these new MELs presented comparable surface activities to natural MELs while exhibiting enhanced water solubility and biocompatibility. This originates from the generation of MEL‐D, resulting from the deacetylation of natural MELs and the formation of new hydrophilic MELs containing just one hydrophobic chain (named “MEL‐G”). Hence, the present strategy is not only beneficial for the removal of impurities (fatty acids) but also for the preparation of MELs with improved hydrophilicity.
Phytochemical analyses by LC‐HRMS, FTIR spectral analysis, antioxidant, antidiabetic and antityrosinase activity of Crataegus orientalis Pall. ex M. Bieb fruit extracted with various solvents
Authors: Cakmak Ummuhan 
Published: January 2024

AbstractBACKGROUNDCrataegus orientalis Pall. ex M. Bieb fruit (COPMB) is extensively used as a source of various products in the medicinal‐aromatic field and holds the potential for erosion control, ornamental purposes, food source, and economic benefits for forest villagers from its fruits. This study aims to determine the chemical components and biological activities of extracts prepared from COPMB using different solvents.RESULTSThe present work was designed to define the antioxidant activity [phosphomolybdenum (total antioxidant capacity), 2,2′‐azino‐bis(3‐ethylbenzothiazoline‐6‐sulfonic acid) (ABTS), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), cupric ion‐reducing antioxidant capacity (CUPRAC) and metal chelating activity (MCA)], phytochemical screening analysis, enzyme inhibitor (α‐amylase, α‐glucosidase and tyrosinase) potential, and liquid chromatography‐high resolution mass spectrometry (LC‐HRMS) secondary metabolite profiling in different extracts of COPMB. The results of LC‐HRMS revealed that fumaric acid was the main phenolic compound in all extracts. Among the extracts, ethyl acetate extract has the highest phytochemical and antioxidant properties [total phenolic content (TPC): 32.5 mg GAE/g, total flavonoid content (TFC): 12.2 mg QE/g, ABTS: 213.0 mg TE/g; CUPRAC: 126.0 mg TE/g, MCA: 145.0 mg EDTA/g; FRAP: 122.8 mg TE/g; TAC: 2.8 mmol TE/g]. Ethyl acetate and methanol extracts are more effective in α‐amylase (0.27 ± 0.01 mg/mL; 0.12 ± 0.00 mg/mL), α‐glucosidase (0.63 ± 0.02 mg/mL; 0.77 ± 0.02 mg/mL) and tyrosinase (0.03 ± 0.00 mg/mL; 0.03 ± 0.00 mg/mL) enzyme inhibition potentials compared to standard acarbose (0.75 ± 0.02 mg/mL for α‐amylase; 1.11 ± 0.03 mg/mL for α‐glucosidase) and kojic acid (0.04 ± 0.00 mg/mL).CONCLUSIONThe findings from this study suggest that COPMB could serve as a valuable source of natural agents for the food and pharmaceutical industry. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.
Underutilised palm stearin as hard stock for deep‐frying medium and its performance for oil uptake in instant noodles
Authors: Ooi Eldwin Ze Hao , Ab Karim Nur Azwani , Chan Eng‐Seng , Wang Yong , Tang Teck‐Kim , Tong Shi Cheng , Khor Yih Phing , Lee Yee‐Ying 
Published: January 2024

AbstractBACKGROUNDAs a by‐product of the palm oil industry, palm stearin is often overlooked despite having several beneficial properties, such as excellent stability, which is critically essential to meet the demand of the global food trend in producing safer processed food. Specifically, deep frying of food is often associated with the production of toxic compounds that could potentially migrate into the food system when oils are degraded under continuous heating. The incorporation of palm stearin is regarded as a cost‐effective and efficient method to modify the fatty acid composition of oils, enhance the frying qualities and lower the degradation rate.RESULTSThis study blended 5% and 10% palm stearin into palm oil to investigate the deep‐frying performance and impact on food quality. Increasing the palm stearin content improved the frying oil's oxidative and hydrolytic stability, evidenced by reduction of total polar material, free fatty acid and total oxidation value. Addition of palm stearin increased the slip melting point which improved the oil's oxidative stability but no significant increase in oil content of instant noodles was observed. Scanning electron microscopy and fluorescence microscopy showed the formation of larger pores in the noodle structure that facilitated oil retention.CONCLUSIONBlending palm stearin into frying oil enhanced the frying stability and minimally affected the oil uptake in instant noodles. This article presents the viability of blending palm stearin into frying oils to develop longer‐lasting frying oils. © 2024 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.
High temperature‐size exclusion chromatography with triple detection to assess the molecular architecture of low‐density polyethylene: Insight into branching and processability correlations
Authors: Subbaiah Yogesha , Shanmugam Senthilkumar , Hau Qua Eng 
Published: January 2024

In this study, three commercially available low‐density polyethylene (LDPE) polymers produced via a tubular reactor process, with varying melt flow rates at 190°C/2.16 kg (4.0, 1.9, and 0.75 g/10 min), have been selected and subjected to high temperature‐size exclusion chromatography (SEC) analysis coupled with an infrared‐5 (IR‐5), viscometer (VISCO), and multiangle laser light‐scattering detectors. The molecular weight (MW), MW distribution, short‐chain branching (SCB), and long‐chain branching parameters were investigated. It was found that MW obtained by the universal technique (∼1.57–1.7 times) and multiangle laser light‐scattering detection technique is (∼1.43–1.55 times) higher than that of the conventional calibration technique, which could be attributed to structural complexity associated with LDPEs which is not clearly understood by conventional SEC mode alone. The bulk SCB per 1000 total carbon atoms estimated by IR‐5 detection was found to range from 16.50 to 17.80. On the other hand, long chain branching frequency per 1000 total carbon atoms obtained by online VISCO and multiangle laser light‐scattering detection ranged from 0.46 to 0.54 and 0.65 to 0.94, respectively. Further, the significance of long chain branching parameters on the polymer processing behavior was studied in correlation with rheological property (Die swell ratio).
The Application of Shear Wave Elastography to Determine the Elasticity of the Levator Ani Muscle and Vaginal Tissue in Patients With Pelvic Organ Prolapse
Authors: García‐Mejido José Antonio , García‐Jimenez Rocío , Fernández‐Conde Cristina , García‐Pombo Sara , Fernández‐Palacín Fernando , Sainz‐Bueno José Antonio 
Published: January 2024

ObjectivesThe changes of the extracellular matrix of the connective tissue have significantly contributed to the incidence of pelvic organ prolapse (POP). It seems reasonable that sonoelastography could be a useful tool to evaluate the elasticity of pelvic floor tissue in patients with POP and compare it to those without POP. The main aim of this pilot study was to determine if there are differences in the elasticity of the levator ani muscle (LAM) and vaginal tissue between patients with and without POP.MethodsProspective observation study, including 60 patients (30 with POP and 30 without POP). Sonoelastography was performed to evaluate the elasticity (in kilopascals, kPa) of the following regions of interest: vagina at the level of middle third of the urethra; vagina at the level of the bladder trigone; vagina in the anterior and posterior fornix; vagina at the level of middle third of the anorectal canal; posterior third of the LAM.ResultsA total of 60 patients completed the study (30 with POP, 30 without POP). In the POP group, 18/30 (60%) had an anterior vaginal wall prolapse, 3/30 (10%) a uterine prolapse, 15/30 (50%) a rectocele, and 6/30 (20%) a enterocele. Patients with POP had higher elasticity in all anatomical study areas, with statistically significant differences in the anterior fornix (13.6 vs 11.2 kPa; P: .012). A multiple regression (controlling age, menopausal stage, and parity) allowed to detect statistically significant differences in the elasticity of the middle third of the urethra (P: .03) and the middle third of the anorectal canal (P: .019).ConclusionIt is possible to evaluate the elasticity of the LAM and vaginal tissue using sonoelastography, detecting a higher elasticity in patients with POP than in those without POP.
The Predictive Power of Bosniak 3 and 4 Cystic Renal Lesion Categorization Using Contrast‐Enhanced Ultrasound
Authors: Járay Ákos , Farkas Péter István , Semjén Dávid , Botz Bálint 
Published: January 2024

ObjectivesContrast‐enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) is increasingly utilized for the noninvasive assessment of renal cystic lesions, using the Bosniak grading system. Bosniak 3–4 lesions require surgical referral, which allows correlation with the histopathological outcome.MethodsIn this single‐center, retrospective study we evaluated renal CEUS exams conducted with SonoVue® with a diagnosis of a Bosniak 3 or 4 lesion between 2019 and 2022. A total of 49 patients and 50 lesions met the inclusion criteria, 31 lesions had available histopathological results. Patient demographics, cyst morphology, and dominant imaging features were registered. The histopathological diagnosis was considered a reference standard.ResultsPositive predictive power (PPV) for neoplastic lesions was comparable in the Bosniak 3 and 4 categories (75 vs 93.3%, P = .33), while PPV for histopathologically malignant lesion was considerably higher in the latter group (25 vs 93.33%, P = .0002). None of the lesions which had vividly enhancing thin septa as their dominant CEUS feature were malignant. Oncocytoma, multilocular cystic renal neoplasm of low malignant potential, and cystic nephroma were the major benign entities among Bosniak 3 lesions. Localized cystic kidney disease and hemorrhagic cysts were found to be the primary mimickers leading to false positive imaging findings.ConclusionsCEUS has a high predictive power for malignancy in the Bosniak 4 category, which is not maintained in the Bosniak 3 group due to the large proportion of benign lesions. Adherence to rigorous rule‐in criteria and active surveillance strategies need to be considered for equivocal CEUS Bosniak 3 lesions.
Spatial variability of the hydrochemistry of shallow groundwaters and surface waters of the Rensdyrbekken: A case study of a permafrost catchment in Bellsund (SW Spitsbergen, Svalbard)
Authors: Lehmann‐Konera Sara , Zagórski Piotr , Nowiński Kamil , Raczyński Krzysztof , Frankowski Marcin , Franczak Łukasz , Dobek Mateusz , Szumińska Danuta , Ruman Marek , Al Bakain Ramia , Polkowska Żaneta 
Published: January 2024

AbstractProgressive climate change may have unpredictable consequences for the Arctic environment. Permafrost catchments off the west coast of Svalbard, described as “thin” and “warm,” are particularly sensitive to climate change. The interdisciplinary research on the hydrochemical response of surface and underground water functioning within a small permafrost catchment area focused on the determination of the impact of meteorological conditions (temperature (T), precipitation (P)) on the mean daily discharge (Q), and the lowering of the groundwater table (H). We determined physical and chemical properties (pH and SEC) and concentrations of major elements (Ca, Mg, Na, K) and 23 trace elements (i.a. Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb, Zn) in 280 water samples. The results of the correlation matrix showed that an increase in the average air temperature in the summer of 2021 had a significant impact on the hydrochemistry of both types of waters operating in the catchment. In response to increase in T, the lowering of the H (0.52 < r < 0.66) and a decrease in Q (−0.66 < r < −0.68) were observed what in consequence also leads to changes in water chemistry. The principal component analysis (CA) indicates that chemical weathering and binding of elements to DOC are processes influencing water chemistry. Results of statistical analysis showed that the resultant of the hydrometeorological conditions that prevailed in that season and the type of geological formations on which they were located had a significant impact on the water chemistry at individual measurement points. Significant differences in the concentrations of elements between points on the same geological formations were also found.
Comparison of 755‐nm picosecond alexandrite laser versus 1064‐nm Q‐switched Nd:YAG laser for melasma: A randomized, split‐face controlled, 2‐year follow‐up study
Authors: Zhou Yanjun , Li Yong , Hamblin Michael R. , Wen Xiang 
Published: January 2024

AbstractObjectivesPulsed laser treatment of melasma has shown some promising results. To compare the effectiveness and safety of 755‐nm picosecond alexandrite laser (PSAL) fitted with diffractive lens array (DLA) versus 1064‐nm Q‐switched neodynimum:yttrium aluminum garnet laser (QSNYL) for the treatment of melasma.MethodsWe conducted a randomized, split face controlled, 2‐year follow‐up study. Each face was divided into two parts, each side receiving three treatments with either PSAL or QSNYL at 1 month intervals. Modified Melasma Area Severity Index scores (mMASI), pain scores, patient satisfaction and adverse events were recorded. In vivo reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) images were acquired.ResultsTwenty subjects were enrolled and three dropped out. At 6 months, mMASI scores were significantly lower than baseline for QSNYL sides (p = 0.022), with no statistically significant difference between PSAL sides before and after treatment, PSAL sides versus QSNYL sides, or patient satisfaction scores. QSNYL treatment was associated with less pain (p = 0.014). No serious adverse events were reported. In the PSAL sides RCM showed a large number of dendritic melanocytes infiltrated in the dermis at 2 weeks and 4 weeks after treatment. Ten patients (58.82%) reported recurrence or exacerbation at 2‐year follow‐up with no statistically significant difference between the two lasers.ConclusionsQSNYL demonstrated short term clinical efficacy for melasma, but did not provide any additional benefit compared to PSAL with DLA. QSNYL was associated with less pain. There was a high recurrence rate at 2‐year follow‐up. RCM allowed the detection of cellular changes in melasma lesions.
Evaluation of the amelioration effect of Ganoderma formosanum extract on delaying PM2.5 damage to lung macrophages
Authors: Hou Chih‐Yao , Hsieh Chen‐Che , Hung Yin‐Ci , Hsu Cheng‐Chih , Hsieh Chang‐Wei , Yu Shu‐Han , Cheng Kuan‐Chen 
Published: January 2024

ScopeParticulate matter (PM) contains toxic organic matter and heavy metals that enter the entire body through blood flow and may cause mortality. Ganoderma formosanum mycelium, a valuable traditional Chinese medicine that has been used since ancient times, contains various active ingredients that can effectively impede inflammatory responses on murine alveolar macrophages induced by PM particles.Methods and ResultsAn experimental study assessing the effect of G. formosanum mycelium extract's water fraction (WA) on PM‐exposed murine alveolar macrophages using ROS measurement shows that WA reduces intracellular ROS by 12% and increases cell viability by 16% when induced by PM particles. According to RNA‐Sequencing, western blotting, and real‐time qPCR are conducted to analyze the metabolic pathway. The WA reduces the protein ratio in p‐NF‐κB/NF‐κB by 18% and decreases the expression of inflammatory genes, including IL‐1β by 38%, IL‐6 by 29%, and TNF‐α by 19%. Finally, the identification of seven types of anti‐inflammatory compounds in the WA fraction is achieved through UHPLC‐ESI‐Orbitrap‐Elite‐MS/MS analysis. These compounds include anti‐inflammatory compounds, namely thiamine, adenosine 5ʹ‐monophosphate, pipecolic acid, L‐pyroglutamic acid, acetyl‐L‐carnitine, D‐mannitol, and L‐malic acid.ConclusionsThe study suggests that the WA has the potential to alleviate the PM ‐induced damage in alveolar macrophages, demonstrating its anti‐inflammatory properties.
Slice through the water—Exploring the fundamental challenge of water suppression for benchtop NMR systems
Authors: Pellizzari Jacob , Soong Ronald , Downey Katelyn , Biswas Rajshree Ghosh , Kock Flavio C. , Steiner Katrina , Goerling Benjamin , Haber Agnes , Decker Venita , Busse Falko , Simpson Myrna , Simpson Andre 
Published: January 2024

AbstractBenchtop NMR provides improved accessibility in terms of cost, space, and technical expertise. In turn, this encourages new users into the field of NMR spectroscopy. Unfortunately, many interesting samples in education and research, from beer to whole blood, contain significant amounts of water that require suppression in 1H NMR in order to recover sample information. However, due to the significant reduction in chemical shift dispersion in benchtop NMR systems, the sample signals are much closer to the water resonance compared to those in a corresponding high‐field NMR spectrum. Therefore, simply translating solvent suppression experiments intended for high‐field NMR instruments to benchtop NMR systems without careful consideration can be problematic. In this study, the effectiveness of several popular water suppression schemes was evaluated for benchtop NMR applications. Emphasis is placed on pulse sequences with no, or few, adjustable parameters making them easy to implement. These fall into two main categories: (1) those based on Pre‐SAT including Pre‐SAT, PURGE, NOESY‐PR, and g‐NOESY‐PR and (2) those based on binomial inversion including JRS and W5‐WATERGATE. Among these schemes, solvent suppression sequences based on Pre‐SAT offer a general approach for easy solvent suppression for samples with higher analyte concentrations (sucrose standard and Redbull™). However, for human urine, binomial‐like sequences were required. In summary, it is demonstrated that highly efficient water suppression approaches can be implemented on benchtop NMR systems in a simple manner, despite the limited spectral dispersion, further illustrating the potential for widespread implementation of these approaches in education and research.
Proteomic analysis of boar seminal plasma: Putative markers for fertility based on capacity of semen preservation at 17°C
Authors: Lucca Matheus S. , Bustamante‐Filho Ivan C. , Ulguim Rafael R. , Gianluppi Rafael D. F. , Evaristo Joseph A. M. , Nogueira Fábio C. S. , Timmers Luís F. S. M. , Mellagi Ana P. G. , Wentz Ivo , Bortolozzo Fernando P. 
Published: January 2024

AbstractBoar seminal plasma (SP) proteins were associated with differences on sperm resistance to cooling at 17°C. However, information about seminal plasma proteins in boars classified by capacity of semen preservation and in vivo fertility remains lacking. Thus, the objective was to evaluate the SP proteome in boars classified by capacity of semen preservation and putative biomarkers for fertility. The ejaculates from high‐preservation (HP) showed higher progressive motility during all 5 days than the low‐preservation (LP) boars. There was no difference for farrowing rate between ejaculates from LP (89.7%) and HP boars (88.4%). The LP boars presented lower total piglets born (14.0 ± 0.2) than HP (14.8 ± 0.2; p < 0.01). A total of 257 proteins were identified, where 184 were present in both classes of boar, and 41 and 32 were identified only in LP and HP boars, respectively. Nine proteins were differently expressed: five were more abundant in HP (SPMI, ZPBP1, FN1, HPX, and C3) and four in LP boars (B2M, COL1A1, NKX3‐2, and MPZL1). The HP boars had an increased abundance of SP proteins related to sperm resistance and fecundation process which explains the better TPB. LP boars had a higher abundance of SP proteins associated with impaired spermatogenesis.
Predictive uncertainty in deep learning–based MR image reconstruction using deep ensembles: Evaluation on the fastMRI data set
Authors: Küstner Thomas , Hammernik Kerstin , Rueckert Daniel , Hepp Tobias , Gatidis Sergios 
Published: January 2024

AbstractPurposeTo estimate pixel‐wise predictive uncertainty for deep learning–based MR image reconstruction and to examine the impact of domain shifts and architecture robustness.MethodsUncertainty prediction could provide a measure for robustness of deep learning (DL)–based MR image reconstruction from undersampled data. DL methods bear the risk of inducing reconstruction errors like in‐painting of unrealistic structures or missing pathologies. These errors may be obscured by visual realism of DL reconstruction and thus remain undiscovered. Furthermore, most methods are task‐agnostic and not well calibrated to domain shifts. We propose a strategy that estimates aleatoric (data) and epistemic (model) uncertainty, which entails training a deep ensemble (epistemic) with nonnegative log‐likelihood (aleatoric) loss in addition to the conventional applied losses terms. The proposed procedure can be paired with any DL reconstruction, enabling investigations of their predictive uncertainties on a pixel level. Five different architectures were investigated on the fastMRI database. The impact on the examined uncertainty of in‐distributional and out‐of‐distributional data with changes to undersampling pattern, imaging contrast, imaging orientation, anatomy, and pathology were explored.ResultsPredictive uncertainty could be captured and showed good correlation to normalized mean squared error. Uncertainty was primarily focused along the aliased anatomies and on hyperintense and hypointense regions. The proposed uncertainty measure was able to detect disease prevalence shifts. Distinct predictive uncertainty patterns were observed for changing network architectures.ConclusionThe proposed approach enables aleatoric and epistemic uncertainty prediction for DL‐based MR reconstruction with an interpretable examination on a pixel level.