bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Explicit Knowledge Graph Reasoning for Conversational Recommendation
Authors: Ren Xuhui , Chen Tong , Nguyen Quoc Viet Hung , Cui Lizhen , Huang Zi , Yin Hongzhi 
Published: December 2023

Traditional recommender systems estimate user preference on items purely based on historical interaction records, thus failing to capture fine-grained yet dynamic user interests and letting users receive recommendation only passively. Recent conversational recommender systems (CRSs) tackle those limitations by enabling recommender systems to interact with the user to obtain her/his current preference through a sequence of clarifying questions. Recently, there has been a rise of using knowledge graphs (KGs) for CRSs, where the core motivation is to incorporate the abundant side information carried by a KG into both the recommendation and conversation processes. However, existing KG-based CRSs are subject to two defects: (1) there is a semantic gap between the learned representations of utterances and KG entities, hindering the retrieval of relevant KG information; (2) the reasoning over KG is mostly performed with the implicitly learned user interests, overlooking the explicit signals from the entities actually mentioned in the conversation.
To address these drawbacks, we propose a new CRS framework, namely, the Knowledge Enhanced Conversational Reasoning (KECR) model. As a user can reflect her/his preferences via both attribute- and item-level expressions, KECR jointly embeds the structured knowledge from two levels in the KG. A mutual information maximization constraint is further proposed for semantic alignment between the embedding spaces of utterances and KG entities. Meanwhile, KECR utilizes the connectivity within the KG to conduct explicit reasoning of the user demand, making the model less dependent on the user’s feedback to clarifying questions. As such, the semantic alignment and explicit KG reasoning can jointly facilitate accurate recommendation and quality dialogue generation. By comparing with strong baselines on two real-world datasets, we demonstrate that KECR obtains state-of-the-art recommendation effectiveness, as well as competitive dialogue generation performance.
Mechanism of Cistanche deserticola Ma in the Treatment of Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion (I/R) Injury Based on Network Pharmacology and in vitro Experiments
Authors: Yue Yuan-Jia , Li Yu , Wang Huimin , Ji Zhao , Rong Xing , Jiang Lin 
Published: December 2023

Objectives To investigate the mechanism of Cistanche deserticola Ma (CDA) in the treatment of myocardial ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury by network pharmacology and cell experiments. Materials and Methods The main active components of CDA were collected from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology Database and Analysis Platform (TCMSP). I/R-related targets were identified from DisGeNET, OMIMD, and TTD; the I/R protein–protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed using the STRING input. The targets of CDA that inhibit I/R injury in Matescape and Microshengxin were subjected to Gene Ontology (GO) analysis and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis. Cell viability, levels of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and malondialdehyde (MDA), and protein expression of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) and serine/threonine kinase 1 (Akt1) were determined. Results A total of 236 targets were identified, with PI3K, Akt, epithelial growth factor receptor (EGFR), and another kinase being the major targets, and according to GO and KEGG analysis, CDA was most likely to inhibit I/R through the PI3K-Akt pathway. The optimal concentration of 10% medicated serum of CDA was determined to be the most effective concentration. The levels of LDH and MDA were significantly decreased in the CDA and BEZ23 groups, but the levels of SOD were significantly increased, thereby alleviating cell damage. In addition, the expression of PI3K, Akt, and p-AKT proteins was significantly reduced in the CDA group. Conclusion CDA alleviates I/R injury through antioxidation and inhibition of the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.
Early- to mid-term outcome of a short, cementless, titanium, flat, tapered stem for primary total hip arthroplasty: an independent series
Authors: Bourget-Murray Jonathan , Biniam Brook , Bhullar Raman S , Kim Paul , Gofton Wade , Beaulé Paul E , Grammatopoulos George 
Published: December 2023

Introduction: This study aims to: (1) describe perioperative complications amongst patients who underwent primary total hip arthroplasty (THA) using a short cementless, titanium, flat, tapered stem; (2) estimate this stem’s early- to mid-term survival; (3) identify factors associated with revision arthroplasty; and (4) describe femoral remodelling at minimum 6 years postoperatively. Methods: A retrospective review of consecutive patients who underwent THA using a Taperloc Microplasty stem (Zimmer-Biomet, Warsaw, Indiana, USA) with minimum 2-year follow-up was performed. Surgeries were performed by 1 of 6, non-designer, arthroplasty surgeons between 2014 and 2018. Outcomes included perioperative complications including revision arthroplasty, and survival. Cox analysis was used to analyse the effect of different factors on risk of revision arthroplasty. Radiographs with 6-year follow-up served to describe femoral remodelling. Results: In 1205 patients, followed for 5.1 ± 1.4 years, the incidence of perioperative complication was 5.2% for which 29 patients (2.4%) required revision arthroplasty. The 5- and 7-year survival rates were 97.8% (95% CI, 96.9–98.5) and 97.0% (95% CI, 95.6–98.0), respectively. The only factor associated with revision arthroplasty was proximal femur morphology, as per Dorr classification (HR 1.24 [95%CI, 1.09–1.41]; p = 0.005). During radiographic assessment, 12% of patients showed ⩾25% of relative change in cortical thickness in Gruen zones 3 or 5. We observed calcar remodelling in 50% of radiographs while 10% showed presence of a pedestal sign. Conclusions: The 7-year survivorship of the Taperloc Microplasty stem is within National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. Patients ⩽65 years with osteoarthritis and Dorr A/B femoral morphology may be ideal candidates for THA with this stem. Femoral remodelling is common and not associated with adverse outcome.
A score-based method of immune status evaluation for healthy individuals with complete blood cell counts
Authors: Zhang Min , Zhao Chengkui , Cheng Qi , Xu Jiayu , Xu Nan , Yu Lei , Feng Weixing 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Background
With the COVID-19 outbreak, an increasing number of individuals are concerned about their health, particularly their immune status. However, as of now, there is no available algorithm that effectively assesses the immune status of normal, healthy individuals. In response to this, a new score-based method is proposed that utilizes complete blood cell counts (CBC) to provide early warning of disease risks, such as COVID-19.

Methods
First, data on immune-related CBC measurements from 16,715 healthy individuals were collected. Then, a three-platform model was developed to normalize the data, and a Gaussian mixture model was optimized with expectation maximization (EM-GMM) to cluster the immune status of healthy individuals. Based on the results, Random Forest (RF), Light Gradient Boosting Machine (LightGBM) and Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) were used to determine the correlation of each CBC index with the immune status. Consequently, a weighted sum model was constructed to calculate a continuous immunity score, enabling the evaluation of immune status.

Results
The results demonstrated a significant negative correlation between the immunity score and the age of healthy individuals, thereby validating the effectiveness of the proposed method. In addition, a nonlinear polynomial regression model was developed to depict this trend. By comparing an individual’s immune status with the reference value corresponding to their age, their immune status can be evaluated.

Conclusion
In summary, this study has established a novel model for evaluating the immune status of healthy individuals, providing a good approach for early detection of abnormal immune status in healthy individuals. It is helpful in early warning of the risk of infectious diseases and of significant importance.
The association between different types of physical activity and smoking behavior
Authors: Zhang Jipeng , Cao Yiwen , Mo Hongfei , Feng Rui 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Background
Smoking is harmful, which has become a major public health burden. Physical activity may be related to smoking. Physical activity is one of the current methods for smoking control and smoking cessation. Different types of physical activity may have different effect on smoking behavior.

Objective
The purpose of this study was to identify the direction and extent of the impact of different types of physical activity above moderate intensity (including work physical activity, recreational physical activity, commuter physical activity and sedentary behavior) on smoking behavior.

Materials and methods
In this study, a total of 2,015 individuals (1,233 males and 782 females, mean age 54.02±17.31 years) was selected from the representative population aged 20 and above in the National Health and Nutrition Survey of the United States from 2017 to 2018. Physical activity was assessed using the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ) ; the tobacco use questionnaire (SMQ) was used to determine whether the sample had smoking behavior at this stage. Binary Logistic regression analysis was performed with various physical activities as independent variables and smoking behavior as dependent variables. All data were analyzed through Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) 26.0.

Results
After adjusted for all confounding variables, physical activity at work was close to significantly associated with smoking behavior (P=0.053), odds ratio (OR) =1.135 (95%Cl: 0.999-1.289). Recreational physical activity was significantly associated with smoking behavior (P < 0.001), OR=0.729 (95%Cl: 0.639-0.832). Commuting physical activity was significantly associated with smoking behavior (P < 0.001), OR=1.214 (95%Cl:1.048-1.405). Sedentary behavior was significantly associated with smoking behavior (P < 0.001), OR=1.363 (95%Cl: 1.154-1.611).

Conclusions
Given that different types of physical activity have different associations with smoking behavior. Therefore, when physical activity is used as a tobacco control measurement, it is necessary to pay attention to the type and environment of physical activity. Recreational physical activities should be appropriately increased, sedentary behavior should be reduced, and smoking prohibit environment should be expanded as far as possible to achieve better clinical intervention effects.
COVID-19 vaccination strategies in settings with limited rollout capacity: a mathematical modelling case study in Sierra Leone
Authors: Bilgin Gizem Mayis , Lokuge Kamalini , Jabbie Ernest , Munira Syarifah Liza , Glass Kathryn 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Background
COVID-19 vaccine coverage in low- and middle-income countries continues to be challenging. As supplies increase, coverage is increasingly becoming determined by rollout capacity.

Methods
We developed a deterministic compartmental model of COVID-19 transmission to explore how age-, risk-, and dose-specific vaccine prioritisation strategies can minimise severe outcomes of COVID-19 in Sierra Leone.

Results
Prioritising booster doses to older adults and adults with comorbidities could reduce the incidence of severe disease by 23% and deaths by 34% compared to the use of these doses as primary doses for all adults. Providing a booster dose to pregnant women who present to antenatal care could prevent 38% of neonatal deaths associated with COVID-19 infection during pregnancy. The vaccination of children is not justified unless there is sufficient supply to not affect doses delivered to adults.

Conclusions
Our paper supports current WHO SAGE vaccine prioritisation guidelines (released January 2022). Individuals who are at the highest risk of developing severe outcomes should be prioritised, and opportunistic vaccination strategies considered in settings with limited rollout capacity.
The MEDITAGING study: protocol of a two-armed randomized controlled study to compare the effects of the mindfulness-based stress reduction program against a health promotion program in older migrants in Luxembourg
Authors: Teixeira-Santos Ana C. , Gomes Leandro , Pereira Diana R. , Ribeiro Fabiana , Silva-Fernandes Anabela , Federspiel Carine , Steinmetz Jean-Paul , Leist Anja K. 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Background
Migration is a phenomenon worldwide, with older migrants, particularly those with fewer socioeconomic resources, having an increased risk of developing adverse cognitive and health outcomes and social isolation. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to validate interventions that promote healthy aging in this population. Previous studies have shown a positive impact of mindfulness based-stress reduction (MBSR) on outcomes such as cognition and sleep. However, only a few studies verified its potential in older adults, especially with vulnerable populations such as migrants. This article presents the protocol of the MEDITAGING study, which is the first to investigate the MBSR effects in migrants aged ≥55 in comparison to a health promotion program.

Methods
MEDITAGING is a two-arm randomized, double-blinded, controlled study, which will include older Portuguese-speaking migrants (n = 90). Participants are randomized to the MBSR or a health promotion program. Both interventions are conducted in groups over a total of 8 weeks, incorporating weekly meetings, an additional 4-hour class, and extra at-home tasks. The health promotion program has the same structure as the MBSR but comprises different activities related to dementia prevention, healthy habits, cognitive stimulation, sleeping, nutrition, watercolor painting, and physical activity. The assessment of executive functioning, physiological stress measures, self-reported questionnaires, and qualitative interviews are conducted at baseline, after 8 weeks (post-intervention), and at a follow-up session (from one to 3 months thereafter). Analyzes will be conducted using a modified intention-to-treat approach (all participants with at least 3 days of participation in the group-sessions and one post-intervention observation).

Discussion
This study will test effects of a mindfulness-based intervention against an active control condition in older adult migrants, which few studies have addressed.

Trial registration
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05615337 (date of registration: 27 September 2022; date of record verification: 14 November 2022).
A novel 268 kb deletion combined with a splicing variant in IL7R causes of severe combined immunodeficiency in a Chinese family: a case report
Authors: Yan Lulu , He Yan , Zhang Yuxin , Liu Yingwen , Xu Limin , Han Chunxiao , Zhao Yudan , Li Haibo 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Background
Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) is a group of fatal primary immunodeficiencies characterized by the severe impairment of T-cell differentiation. IL7R deficiency is a rare form of SCID that usually presents in the first months of life with severe and opportunistic infections, failure to thrive, and a high risk of mortality unless treated. Although recent improvements in early diagnosis have been achieved through newborn screening, few IL7R-related SCID patients had been reported in the Chinese population.

Case presentation
Here, we retrospectively analyzed a case of SCID in a 5-month-old girl with symptoms, including severe T-cell depletion, recurrent fever, oral ulcers, pneumonia, hepatosplenomegaly, bone marrow hemophagocytosis, and bacterial and viral infections. Whole-exome sequencing (WES), quantitative PCR (qPCR), and chromosome microarray analysis (CMA) were performed to identify the patient’s genetic etiology. We identified a 268 kb deletion and a splicing variant, c.221 + 1G > A, in the proband. These two variants of IL7R were inherited from the father and mother.

Conclusions
To our knowledge, this is the first report of whole IL7R gene deletion in combination with a pathogenic splicing variant in a patient with SCID. This deletion also expands the pathogenic variation spectrum of SCID caused by IL7R. The incorporation of exome-based copy number variant analysis makes WES a powerful molecular diagnostic technique for the clinical diagnosis of pediatric patients.
Implementation of a PCR-based strategy to control an outbreak by Serratia marcescens in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Authors: Rodríguez-Villodres Ángel , Ortiz de la Rosa José Manuel , Valencia-Martin Raquel , Jiménez Parrilla Francisco , Martín-Gutiérrez Guillermo , Márquez Patiño Natividad , Perea Cruz Estela , Sánchez Jiménez María Teresa , Pavón Delgado Antonio , Cisneros José Miguel , Lepe José Antonio 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Objectives
To evaluate the clinical and epidemiological impact of a new molecular surveillance strategy based on qPCR to control an outbreak by Serratia marcescens in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).

Methods
We design a specific qPCR for the detection of S. marcescens in rectal swabs of patients admitted to a NICU. We divided the surveillance study into two periods: (a) the pre-PCR, from the outbreak declaration to the qPCR introduction, and (b) the PCR period, from the introduction of the qPCR until the outbreak was solved. In all cases, S. marcescens isolates were recovered and their clonal relationship was analysed by PFGE. Control measures were implemented during the outbreak. Finally, the number of bloodstream infections (BSI) was investigated in order to evaluate the clinical impact of this molecular strategy.

Results
Nineteen patients colonized/infected by S. marcescens were detected in the pre-PCR period (October 2020–April 2021). On the contrary, after the PCR implementation, 16 new patients were detected. The PFGE revealed 24 different pulsotypes belonging to 7 different clonal groups, that were not overlapping at the same time. Regarding the clinical impact, 18 months after the qPCR implementation, no more outbreaks by S. marcescens have been declared in the NICU of our hospital, and only 1 episode of BSI has occurred, compared with 11 BSI episodes declared previously to the outbreak control.

Conclusions
The implementation of this qPCR strategy has proved to be a useful tool to control the nosocomial spread of S. marcescens in the NICU.
Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors alleviate cognitive dysfunction in type 2 diabetes mellitus
Authors: Meng Jie , Yan Rui , Zhang Chen , Bai Xueyan , Yang Xingsheng , Yang Yu , Feng Tao , Liu Xin 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Background
Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are commonly at high risk for developing cognitive dysfunction. Antidiabetic agents might be repurposed for targeting cognitive dysfunction in addition to modulation on glucose homeostasis. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP-4i) on cognitive function in T2DM.

Methods
PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library and Web of Science were systematically searched from inception to September 30, 2023. Weighted mean differences were calculated using the Mantel-Haenszel (M-H) fixed or random effects model based on the degree of heterogeneity among studies. Heterogeneity was evaluated using a Chi-squared test and quantified with Higgins I2. Sensitivity analysis was performed with the leave-one-out method, and publication bias was evaluated according to Begg’s and Egger’s tests.

Results
Six clinical trials involving 5,178 participants were included in the pooled analysis. Administration of DPP-4i generally correlated with an increase of Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores (1.09, 95% CI: 0.22 to 1.96). DPP-4i alleviated cognitive impairment in the copying skill subdomain of MMSE (0.26, 95% CI: 0.12 to 0.40). Treatment with DPP-4i also resulted in an increase of Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) scores (0.82, 95% CI: 0.30 to 1.34). However, DPP-4i produced no significant effects on Barthel Activities of Daily Living (BADL) scores (0.37, 95% CI: -1.26 to 1.99) or other test scores.

Conclusions
DPP-4i treatment favourably improved cognitive function in patients with T2DM. Further trials with larger samples should be performed to confirm these estimates and investigate the association of different DPP-4i with cognitive function among diabetic patients.

Trial registration in PROSPERO
CRD42023430873.
Characterization of a novel model for atherosclerosis imaging: the apolipoprotein E-deficient rat
Authors: Sijbesma Jürgen W. A. , van Waarde Aren , Kristensen Sebastiaan , Kion Ilse , Tietge Uwe J. F. , Hillebrands Jan-Luuk , Bulthuis Marian L. C. , Buikema Hendrik , Nakladal Dalibor , Westerterp Marit , Liu Fan , Boersma Hendrikus H. , Dierckx Rudi A. J. O. , Slart Riemer H. J. A. 
Published: December 2023

Abstract
Background
The apolipoprotein E-deficient (apoE−/−) mouse is a well-established model for studying atherosclerosis. However, its small size limits its use in longitudinal positron emission tomography (PET) imaging studies. Recently, the apoE−/− rat has emerged as an alternative. With this study, we investigate the feasibility of using apoE−/− rats as an in vivo model for longitudinal atherosclerotic PET/CT imaging.

Results
ApoE−/− rats showed significantly higher [18F]FDG uptake than controls in the aortic arch (+ 18.5%, p < 0.001) and abdominal aorta (+ 31.0%, p < 0.001) at weeks 12, 26, and 51. ApoE−/− rats exhibited hypercholesterolemia, as evidenced by plasma cholesterol levels that were up to tenfold higher, and total hepatic cholesterol levels that were up to threefold higher than the control rats at the end of the study. Fast protein liquid chromatography cholesterol profiling indicated very high levels of pro-atherogenic apoB-containing very low-density lipoprotein and low-density lipoprotein fractions in the apoE−/− rats. Atherosclerotic lesions cover 19.9% of the surface of the aortic arch (p = 0.0013), and there was a significantly higher subendothelial accumulation of ED1-positive macrophages in the abdominal aorta of the apoE−/− rats compared to control rats (Ctrl) (p = 0.01). No differences in neutral sterols were observed but higher levels of bile acids were found in the apoE−/− rats.

Conclusion
These data demonstrate early signs of hypercholesterolemia, high levels of bile acids, the development of atherosclerotic lesions, and macrophage accumulation in apoE−/− rats. Therefore, this model shows promise for atherosclerosis imaging studies.
Estimation of q for $\ell _{q}$-minimization in signal recovery with tight frame
Authors: Liang Kaihao , Zhang Chaolong , Zhang Wenfeng 
Published: December 2023

AbstractThis study aims to reconstruct signals that are sparse with a tight frame from undersampled data by using the $\ell _{q}$

ℓ
q

-minimization method. This problem can be cast as a $\ell _{q}$

ℓ
q

-minimization problem with a tight frame subjected to an undersampled measurement with a known noise bound. We proved that if the measurement matrix satisfies the restricted isometry property with $\delta _{2s}\leq 1/2$

δ

2
s

≤
1
/
2
, there exists a value $q_{0}$

q
0

such that for any $q\in (0,q_{0}]$
q
∈
(
0
,

q
0

]
, any signal that is s-sparse with a tight frame can be robustly recovered to the true signal. We estimated $q_{0}$

q
0

as $q_{0} = 2/3$

q
0

=
2
/
3
in the case of $\delta _{2s}\leq 1/2$

δ

2
s

≤
1
/
2
and discussed that the value of $q_{0}$

q
0

can be much higher. We also showed that when $\delta _{2s}\leq 0.3317$

δ

2
s

≤
0.3317
, for any $q\in (0,1]$
q
∈
(
0
,
1
]
, robust recovery for signals via $\ell _{q}$

ℓ
q

-minimization holds, which is consistent with the case of $\ell _{q}$

ℓ
q

-minimization without a tight frame.