bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Glottis recognition software development using artificial intelligence
Authors: マスモリ ヤスシ , いのue 宗一郎 , セイノ ユウスケ , 小西 マモル , 西川 ヒロユキ 
Published: January 2024

Abstract
Purpose
The use of video laryngoscopes has enhanced visualization of the vocal cords, thereby improving the accessibility of tracheal intubation. Employing artificial intelligence (AI) to recognize images obtained through video laryngoscopy, particularly when marking the epiglottis and vocal cords, may elucidate anatomical structures and enhance anatomical comprehension. This study investigated the ability of an AI model to accurately identify the glottis on video laryngoscopy images captured from a human anatomical model.
Methods
Tracheal intubation was conducted on a human anatomical model using a bronchoscope with recording capabilities, and image data of the glottis were gathered to create an AI model. Data preprocessing and annotation of the vocal cords, epiglottis, and glottis were performed. Based on the AI determinations, anatomical structures were color-coded for identification.
Results
The accuracy of the AI model was 0.9516, which exceeded 95%. AI successfully marked the glottis, epiglottis, and vocal cords during tracheal intubation. These markings aided in the visual identification of the respective structures with an accuracy of more than 95%.
Conclusion
AI demonstrated the ability to recognize the epiglottis, vocal cords, and glottis using an image recognition model of a human anatomical model.
Spatial distribution and health risks assessment of heavy metals in e-waste dumping sites from Pakistan
Authors: Hashmi Muhammad Zaffar , Khan Sohaib , Hasnain Ahmad , Shakil Sidra , Wang Shuhong , Ahmed Zulkifl 
Published: January 2024

Abstract
The current research work is done to determine the concentration of heavy metals (Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Hg, Cr) in the surface soil of recycling centres located in different provinces of Pakistan and to quantify and compare the environmental risk by using different geostatistical techniques. The impact of recycling activities on the soil microbial community is also investigated through soil enzyme activities and microbial community profiles. Recycling activities increased the levels of pH, EC, and decreased the levels of K, N, P, and organic matter compared to the soil without recycling activities. The Cr at all sites whereas Hg at only two sites (AL and AM) exceeds the World Health Organization standards (WHO) for soil. A fluctuating soil enzyme activity trend was observed among all the sites but the maximum enzyme activity was observed for urease followed by phosphatase and catalase. Contamination factor (Cf), Pollution load index (PLI), and geo-accumulation index (Igeo) results showed all the recycling sites are highly contaminated with Cu, Cd, and Pb. No non-carcinogenic health risk was observed for both children and adults as HI is less than 1. There was a strong probability of adverse health effects among children and adults living near recycling centers due to Cu and Cr poisoning (1.59 ×10− 5 to 4.28 × 10− 5). Therefore, there is a dire need to introduce sustainable e-waste recycling techniques as well as to make stringent e-waste management policies to reduce further environmental contamination.
Low-temperature oxidation of methane mediated by Al-doped ZnO cluster and nanowire: A first-principles investigation
Authors: Esrafili Mehdi D. 
Published: January 2024

Abstract

The oxidation of methane over aluminum (Al)-doped Zn12O12 cluster and (Zn12O12)2 nanowire is investigated using first-principles calculations. The impact of Al impurity on the geometry, electronic structure and surface reactivity of Zn12O12 and (Zn12O12)2 are thoroughly studied. It is found that N2O is highly activated on these systems to provide an activated *O species. Though, the oxidation of CH4 is almost impossible over pristine ZnO counterparts due to less activation of N2O or CH4 over these systems, however, the addition of an Al atom helps the dissociation of N‒O bond of N2O. The conversion of CH4 into CH3OH over AlZn11O12 and (AlZn11O12)2 requires an activation energy of 0.45 and 0.29 eV, respectively, indicating it can be easily performed at normal temperatures. Besides, the overoxidation of methanol into formaldehyde cannot take place over the AlZn11O12 and (AlZn11O12)2, due to the high energy barrier needed to dissociate C-H bond of the CH3O intermediate.
Numerical study on the dynamic response of gas explosion in uneven coal mine tunnels using LS DYNA CESE reaction dynamics model
Authors: Du Jiaqi , Chen Jian , Zhu Lingqi , Guo Liwen , Wang Fusheng , Hu Xiangming 
Published: January 2024

Abstract
A numerical simulation method combining detailed chemical reaction mechanism of methane deflagration with approximate real tunnel structure was proposed to confirm whether the unevenness of the tunnel wall during coal mine gas explosion can be ignored. The approximate real tunnel model and smooth wall tunnel model were developed using 3D modeling methods. The propagation and attenuation processes of shock waves in the two tunnel models, as well as the different dynamic responses of the two tunnel walls, are compared and analyzed. Research results show that the non-uniformity of the tunnel wall decreases the shock wave overpressure and propagation velocity. the peak overpressure reduction value of the shock wave reached 81.91 kPa, and the shock wave overpressure reaches its peak at an extended maximum time of 7.4 ms. The stress distribution on the approximate real tunnel wall is discontinuous, the propagation speed of stress waves in the bend tunnel is slower, and the duration of high load is relatively low. The displacement of the approximate real tunnel after gas explosion is lower than that of tunnels with smooth walls, and the displacement of most measuring points on the tunnel on the right is only 1/3–1/2 that of the smooth tunnel.
Prediction of PD-L1 tumor positive score in lung squamous cell carcinoma with H&amp;E staining whole slide images and deep learning
Authors: Wang Qiushi , Deng Xixiang , Huang Pan , Ma Qiang , Zhao Lianhua , Feng Yangyang , Wang Yiying , Zhao Yuan , Chen Yan , Zhong Peng , He Peng , Feng Peng , Xiao Hualiang 
Published: January 2024

Abstract
Purpose
Detecting programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression based on immunohistochemical (IHC) staining is an important guide for the treatment of lung cancer with immune checkpoint inhibitors. However, this method has problems such as high staining costs, tumor heterogeneity, and subjective differences among pathologists. Therefore, the application of deep learning models to segment and quantitatively predict PD-L1 expression in digital sections of Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stained lung squamous cell carcinoma is of great significance.
Materials and Methods
We constructed a dataset comprising H&E-stained digital sections of lung squamous cell carcinoma and used a Transformer Unet (TransUnet) deep learning network with an encoder-decoder design to segment PD-L1 negative and positive regions and quantitatively predict the tumor cell positive score (TPS).
Results
The results showed that the dice similarity coefficient (DSC) and intersection overunion(IoU) of deep learning for PD-L1 expression segmentation of H&E-stained digital slides of lung squamous cell carcinoma were 80% and 72%, respectively, which were better than the other seven cutting-edge segmentation models. The root mean square error (RMSE) of quantitative prediction TPS was 26.8, and the intra-group correlation coefficients with the gold standard was 0.92 (95% CI: 0.90–0.93), which was better than the consistency between the results of five pathologists and the gold standard.
Conclusion
The deep learning model is capable of segmenting and quantitatively predicting PD-L1 expression in H&E-stained digital sections of lung squamous cell carcinoma, which has significant implications for the application and guidance of immune checkpoint inhibitor treatments.
Efficacy and Safety of Orlistat in Patients With Overweight/Obese and Hyperuricemia: Results of a Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial
Authors: Liu Shuang , Lin Xiaojing , Chen Qi , Sun Hang , Han Yali , Yang Shaoling , Gao Yining , Qu Shen , Chen Haibing 
Published: January 2024

Abstract

Background Obesity is associated with elevated serum uric acid (SUA) and frequent gout flares. Losing weight can lower SUA and reduce gout flares. The effect of orlistat on SUA and gout flares in patients with overweight/obese and hyperuricemia (HUA) has not been extensively studied. In this study, we investigated the effects of orlistat on SUA and gout flares compared to placebo in overweight or obese patients with HUA. Methods A total of 72 Chinese patients with overweight/obese and HUA were randomly divided into placebo group and orlistat group for 12 weeks. The primary endpoints were relative changes in body weight and SUA, as well as gout flares. Results 72 patients with overweight/obesity and HUA were randomly assigned to placebo group (35, 48.61%) and orlistat group (37, 51.39%). Orlistat was associated with a lower proportion of patients with gout flares (log-rank p = 0.023, hazard rate = 0.31, 95% CI 0.11–0.85). There was no significant difference in SUA level between the two groups. The average weight loss of orlistat group was 2.85kg, which was significantly better than that of control group (P < 0.05). Conclusions This study is the first to demonstrate that orlistat has no direct effect on SUA levels in patients with overweight/obese and HUA. The value of orlistat as an adjunct therapy to prevent gout flares during weight loss in patients with HUA was emphasized. Trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov NCT05496075
Efficacy of Pericapsular Nerve Group (PENG) Block in Preoperative Rehabilitation (Prehabilitation) for Patients with Femoral Neck Fractures: Study Protocol for a Randomized, Placebo-controlled, Double-blinded Trial
Authors: Jin Zhuan , Sugiyama Daisuke , Higo Fumiya , Hirata Takahiro , Kobayashi Osamu , Morimatsu Hiroshi , Ueda Kenichi 
Published: January 2024

Abstract

Background
Despite surgery intervention for femoral neck fractures is recommended within 48 hours of admission, achieving timely surgery presents challenges for patients with severe comorbidities, or in resource-limited settings. Preoperative rehabilitation (prehabilitation) reduces bedridden time, enhances mobility, and improves postoperative outcomes for patients scheduled for hip arthroplasty due to femoral neck fractures. However, prehabilitation is hindered by insufficient pain control. The pericapsular nerve group (PENG) block provides effective analgesia while preserving motor function. We designed a study to assess the efficacy of PENG block in facilitating prehabilitation for patients with femoral neck fractures who are scheduled for hip arthroplasty.
Methods
This prospective randomized placebo-controlled double-blinded trial aims to enroll 100 patients with Garden 3 or 4 femoral neck fractures who are scheduled for hip arthroplasty. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive a PENG block with 0.375% ropivacaine (PENG group) or with normal saline (placebo group) before the initial prehabilitation session. The prehabilitation program comprises five items: Bed-sitting, Edge-sitting, Stand-up, Maintaining-standing, and Wheelchair-transfer, performed with the assistance of a single physical therapist. The primary outcome is the percentage of patients completing the entire prehabilitation program. Secondary outcomes during the initial prehabilitation session are the achievement of each program item and the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) pain score. Other secondary outcomes include intraoperative bleeding amounts, thromboembolic events during postoperative day 0 to 7, postoperative 3-day cumulative Cumulated Ambulation Score (CAS), and discharge destination. The postoperative outcomes will be compared between subgroups of patients undergoing surgery within 48 hours of admission and those undergoing surgery more than 48 hours of admission.
Discussion
This is the first study aiming to assess the efficacy of PENG block in prehabilitation for patients with femoral neck fractures who are scheduled for hip arthroplasty. PENG block could be beneficial, especially for patients facing delayed surgery, providing a potential treatment option during the waiting period.
Trial registration
jRCT1031220294
RNA-Sequencing Reveals Candidate Genes/Pathways Associated with Resistance to MDM2 Antagonist Idasanutlin in TP53 Wild-Type Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
Authors: Lunec John , Aptullahoglu Erhan , Nakjang Sirintra , Wallis Jonathan , Marr Helen , Marshall Scott , Willmore Elaine 
Published: January 2024

Abstract

There is a growing body of investigation currently underway on MDM2 inhibitors in clinical trials, reflecting the increasing interest in including these drugs in cancer treatment regimens. One of the developed compounds, idasanutlin (RG7388), has shown promise in early-stage clinical trials. It is a second-generation MDM2-p53 binding antagonist with enhanced potency, selectivity, and bioavailability. In addition toTP53status, which is an important determinant of the response, we have shown in our previous studies thatSF3B1mutational status is also an independent predictive biomarker ofex vivoCLL patient sample treatment response to RG7388. The objective of this study was to identify novel biomarkers associated with resistance to RG7388. Gene set enrichment analysis of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between RG7388-sensitive and resistant CLL samples showed that the increased p53 activity led to upregulation of pro-apoptosis pathway genes while DNA damage response pathway genes were additionally up-regulated in resistant samples. Furthermore, differential expression of certain genes was detected, which could serve as the backbone for novel combination treatment approaches. This research provides preclinical data to guide the exploration of drug combination strategies with MDM2 inhibitors, leading to future clinical trials and associated biomarkers to improve outcome for CLL patients.
Endoscopic ultrasound-guided tissue acquisition using Fork-tip needle for subepithelial lesions: A single-center validation study
Authors: Watanabe Masafumi , Okuwaki Kosuke , Iwai Tomohisa , Kida Mitsuhiro , Imaizumi Hiroshi , Adachi Kai , Tamaki Akihiro , Ishizaki Junro , Hanaoka Taro , Kusano Chika 
Published: January 2024

Abstract

Background
The cutoff value for stereomicroscopic on-site evaluation (SOSE) in endoscopic ultrasound-guided tissue acquisition (EUS-TA) has high diagnostic sensitivity when a Franseen needle is employed for upper gastrointestinal subepithelial lesions (SELs) (stereomicroscopically visible white core [SVWC] ≥ 4 mm).
Aim
We aimed to determine whether high diagnostic sensitivity could be obtained when EUS-TA was performed using a Fork-tip needle.
Methods
Twenty-one patients were prospectively registered. Patients underwent EUS-TA using a Fork-tip needle for upper gastrointestinal SELs at Kitasato University Hospital between January and November 2022. Punctures were made twice using the needle, and SOSE was conducted for each specimen. Blood and physical examination were performed to assess adverse events. Pathological diagnosis was made using hematoxylin and eosin-stained sections and immunohistochemical staining. Statistical comparisons were completed using Fisher’s exact tests.
Results
The diagnostic rate of EUS-TA was 100% (21/21 cases). The final diagnosis was gastrointestinal stromal tumor in 17 (81.0%) and leiomyoma in 4 (19.0%) patients. SOSE was conducted on all 42 punctures, and the tissue sampling rate was 100% (42/42 punctures). Specimens with SVWC ≥ 4 mm were collected in 97.6% punctures (41/42 punctures) and the diagnostic sensitivity for these specimens was 100% (41/41 punctures), which is significantly higher (p < 0.0238) compared to the absence of cutoff value (diagnostic sensitivity of 0%). No EUS-TA-related adverse events occurred.
Conclusions
EUS-TA combined with SOSE for upper gastrointestinal SEL using a fork-tip needle had a high diagnostic rate, and the cutoff value of SVWC ≥ 4 mm had high diagnostic sensitivity.
SocialCU: Integrating Commonalities and Uniqueness of Users and Items for Social Recommendation
Authors: Li Shuo , Gan Mingxin 
Published: January 2024

Abstract

Social recommendation (SR) based on Graph Neural Networks (GNN) presents a promising avenue to significantly improve user experience by leveraging historical behavior and social data, which benefits from capturing user preferences through higher-order relationships. Although two socially connected users will prefer certain specific items, their preferences in other items are likely to be inconsistent. We argue that current GNN-based social recommendation methods only focus on the commonalities of user preferences, but ignore the uniqueness. In addition, GNN also suffers from the data sparsity problem commonly observed in recommender system. To address these limitations, we propose the Integrating Commonalities and Uniqueness of users and items method, namely SocialCU, which combines GNN and contrastive learning to gain commonalities and uniqueness for SR. To be specific, we firstly model the original data as the user-item interaction graph and user-user social graph and use GNN to obtain the commonalities of nodes (users or items). Then, we design the adaptive data augmentation to build dual contrastive learning to refine the uniqueness of nodes and mitigate data sparsity by extracting supervised signals. We have conducted extensive experiments on three real-world datasets to demonstrate the performance advantages of SocialCU over current state-of-the-art recommendation methods and the rationality of the model design.
Mechanisms of hunting native megafauna to extinction by Palaeolithic humans on Cyprus
Authors: Bradshaw Corey , Saltre Frederik , Crabtree Stefani , Reepmeyer Christian , Moutsiou Theodora 
Published: January 2024

Abstract

The hypothesised main drivers of megafauna extinctions in the late Quaternary have wavered between over-exploitation by humans and environmental change, with recent investigations demonstrating more nuanced synergies between these drivers depending on taxon, spatial scale, and region. However, most studies still rely on comparing archaeologically based chronologies of timing of initial human arrival into naïve ecosystems and palaeontologically inferred dates of megafauna extinctions. Conclusions arising from comparing chronologies also depend on the reliability of dated evidence, dating uncertainties, and correcting for the low probability of preservation (Signor-Lipps effect). While some models have been developed to test the susceptibility of megafauna to theoretical offtake rates, none has explicitly linked human energetic needs, prey choice, and hunting efficiency to examine the plausibility of human-driven extinctions. Using the island of Cyprus in the terminal Pleistocene as an ideal test case because of its late human settlement (~ 14.2 ka–13.2 ka), small area (~ 11,000 km2), and low megafauna diversity (2 species), we developed stochastic models of megafauna population dynamics, with offtake dictated by human energetic requirements, prey choice, and hunting-efficiency functions to test whether the human population at the end of the Pleistocene could have caused the extinction of dwarf hippopotamus (Phanourios minor) and dwarf elephants (Palaeoloxodon cypriotes). Our models reveal not only that the estimated human population sizes (N = 3,000–7,000) in Late Pleistocene Cyprus could have easily driven both species to extinction within < 1,000 years, the model predictions match the observed, Signor-Lipps-corrected chronological sequence of megafauna extinctions inferred from the palaeontological record (Phanourios at ~ 12 ka–11.1 ka, followed by Palaeoloxodon at ~ 10.3 ka–9.1 ka).
Improving Agricultural Productivity through IoT – Based Hydroponic Systems: Literature Review &amp; Prototype Study
Authors: Sagar Lalit Kumar , Gupta Rolly 
Published: January 2024

Abstract
The global population is projected to reach above 10 billion by 2100, leading to increased demand for food production (United Nations, 2019). The traditional agricultural sector has been adversely affected by climate change, further exacerbating the challenge of feeding the world's population (FAO, 2021). Hydroponic farming has emerged as a solution and a revolution in the agricultural field, as it allows for carefully monitored and automated cultivation of crops with various other benefits (Wang et al., 2020). IoT-based hydroponic systems offerseveralbenefits,includingreal-timemonitoringofessentialgrowing variables, such as temperature, humidity, pH level, and nutrient concentration, leading to improved crop yield (Al-Fatihahetal., 2020).Additionally, IoT- based hydroponics systems are highly automated, which reduces the workload on farmers and minimizes water usage with up to 90% savings.(Ibrahimetal.,2020).This paper aims to review the existing literature on IoT- based hydroponics systems and present a prototype to illustrate the potency of this particular approach. The study presented also provides a basic prototype of the IoT-based hydroponic system which senses various factors like temperature, humidity, and pH value and provides control over the modules attached using these factors.
Determination of modes of interactions of lanosterol with bovine serum albumin (BSA) using different spectroscopic techniques and molecular docking
Authors: Khurshid Sahar , Akbar Zeeshan , Raza Rameen , Ahmad Malik 
Published: January 2024

Abstract

Graphical abstract
Abstract
Lanosterol is a natural steroidal molecule which is used as an anti-cataract agent. In the present work, binding interactions of lanosterol with bovine serum albumin (BSA) were determined with different spectroscopic techniques, including UV-spectrophotometry, fluorimetry, circular dichroism spectroscopy, nanoDSF, and molecular docking. UV absorption spectroscopy showed the formation of a ground-state complex between lanosterol and bovine serum albumin (BSA). Fluorimetric analysis showed that lanosterol quenched the intrinsic fluorescence of BSA through a static quenching mechanism with a binding constant of 6.19×107 M-1 at 297 K. Thermodynamic parameters showed that the reaction was spontaneous, and the main interacting forces of this complex were found to be hydrophobic. Circular dichroism showed stable changes in the secondary structural contents of BSA while binding with lanosterol. This indicated the conformational changes in the structure of the protein during the binding of this compound. NanoDSF studies showed an increase in protein stability in the presence of 9.75 µM to 78 µM concentration of lanosterol. Docking studies showed the binding of lanosterol in site I through hydrophobic interactions. Since no information is available so far regarding binding studies between lanosterol and BSA, this study may provide initial insights about lanosterol-BSA interactions that can be used for further to investigate pharmacological properties.