bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Pre-pregnancy gene expression signatures are associated with subsequent improvement/worsening of rheumatoid arthritis during pregnancy
Authors: Wright Matthew , Smed Mette Kiel , Nelson J. Lee , Olsen Jørn , Hetland Merete Lund , Jewell Nicholas P. , Zoffmann Vibeke , Jawaheer Damini 
Published: October 2023

Abstract
Background
While many women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) improve during pregnancy and others worsen, there are no biomarkers to predict this improvement or worsening. In our unique RA pregnancy cohort that includes a pre-pregnancy baseline, we have examined pre-pregnancy gene co-expression networks to identify differences between women with RA who subsequently improve during pregnancy and those who worsen.

Methods
Blood samples were collected before pregnancy (T0) from 19 women with RA and 13 healthy women enrolled in our prospective pregnancy cohort. RA improvement/worsening between T0 and 3rd trimester was assessed by changes in the Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI). Pre-pregnancy expression profiles were examined by RNA sequencing and differential gene expression analysis. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was used to identify co-expression modules correlated with the improvement/worsening of RA during pregnancy and to assess their functional relevance.

Results
Of the 19 women with RA, 14 improved during pregnancy (RAimproved) while 5 worsened (RAworsened). At the T0 baseline, however, the mean CDAI was similar between the two groups. WGCNA identified one co-expression module related to B cell function that was significantly correlated with the worsening of RA during pregnancy and was significantly enriched in genes differentially expressed between the RAimproved and RAworsened groups. A neutrophil-related expression signature was also identified in the RAimproved group at the T0 baseline.

Conclusion
The pre-pregnancy gene expression signatures identified represent potential biomarkers to predict the subsequent improvement/worsening of RA during pregnancy, which has important implications for the personalized treatment of RA during pregnancy.
Efficient expansion and delayed senescence of hUC-MSCs by microcarrier–bioreactor system
Authors: Wang Xia , Ouyang Liming , Chen Wenxia , Cao Yulin , Zhang Lixin 
Published: October 2023

Abstract
Background
Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs) are widely used in cell therapy due to their robust immunomodulatory and tissue regenerative capabilities. Currently, the predominant method for obtaining hUC-MSCs for clinical use is through planar culture expansion, which presents several limitations. Specifically, continuous cell passaging can lead to cellular aging, susceptibility to contamination, and an absence of process monitoring and control, among other limitations. To overcome these challenges, the technology of microcarrier–bioreactor culture was developed with the aim of ensuring the therapeutic efficacy of cells while enabling large-scale expansion to meet clinical requirements. However, there is still a knowledge gap regarding the comparison of biological differences in cells obtained through different culture methods.

Methods
We developed a culture process for hUC-MSCs using self-made microcarrier and stirred bioreactor. This study systematically compares the biological properties of hUC-MSCs amplified through planar culture and microcarrier–bioreactor systems. Additionally, RNA-seq was employed to compare the differences in gene expression profiles between the two cultures, facilitating the identification of pathways and genes associated with cell aging.

Results
The findings revealed that hUC-MSCs expanded on microcarriers exhibited a lower degree of cellular aging compared to those expanded through planar culture. Additionally, these microcarrier-expanded hUC-MSCs showed an enhanced proliferation capacity and a reduced number of cells in the cell cycle retardation period. Moreover, bioreactor-cultured cells differ significantly from planar cultures in the expression of genes associated with the cytoskeleton and extracellular matrix.

Conclusions
The results of this study demonstrate that our microcarrier–bioreactor culture method enhances the proliferation efficiency of hUC-MSCs. Moreover, this culture method exhibits the potential to delay the process of cell aging while preserving the essential stem cell properties of hUC-MSCs.
On Roth’s “human fossil” from Baradero, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina: morphological and genetic analysis
Authors: Menéndez Lumila Paula , Barbieri Chiara , López Cruz Idalia Guadalupe , Schmelzle Thomas , Breidenstein Abagail , Barquera Rodrigo , Borzi Guido , Schuenemann Verena J. , Sánchez-Villagra Marcelo R. 
Published: October 2023

AbstractThe “human fossil” from Baradero, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, is a collection of skeleton parts first recovered by the paleontologist Santiago Roth and further studied by the anthropologist Rudolf Martin. By the end of the nineteenth century and beginning of the twentieth century it was considered one of the oldest human skeletons from South America's southern cone. Here, we present the results of an interdisciplinary approach to study and contextualize the ancient individual remains. We discuss the context of the finding by first compiling the available evidence associated with the historical information and any previous scientific publications on this individual. Then, we conducted an osteobiographical assessment, by which we evaluated the sex, age, and overall preservation of the skeleton based on morphological features. To obtain a 3D virtual reconstruction of the skull, we performed high resolution CT-scans on selected skull fragments and the mandible. This was followed by the extraction of bone tissue and tooth samples for radiocarbon and genetic analyses, which brought only limited results due to poor preservation and possible contamination. We estimate that the individual from Baradero is a middle-aged adult male. We conclude that the revision of foundational collections with current methodological tools brings new insights and clarifies long held assumptions on the significance of samples that were recovered when archaeology was not yet professionalized.
Anaesthetic management and complications of a Humboldt penguin (Spheniscus humboldti) undergoing diagnostic imaging
Authors: Romero Patricia , Restitutti Flavia , McGill Niamh , Hoey Seamus , Bennett Rachel C. 
Published: October 2023

Abstract
Background
The presence of a tracheal septum dividing the trachea into two makes intubation one of the main challenges of penguin anaesthesia. Differences in the length and location of the aforementioned tracheal septum have been described in some penguin species. However, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, it has not been reported in Humboldt penguins (Spheniscus humboldti). Therefore, one of the aims of this publication is to report the septal position in this Humboldt penguin. Furthermore, this publication describes the anaesthetic protocol and complications encountered and discusses some of the more important features of penguin anaesthesia. It is anticipated that this case report will aid in future procedures requiring anaesthesia of this penguin species.

Case presentation
A 25-year-old female Humboldt penguin was anaesthetized at the University College Dublin Veterinary Hospital for radiographs and computed tomography (CT) following three weeks of inappetence. After assessing the health status of the penguin from the clinical history and performing a physical examination, an American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status score of II was assigned and a combination of butorphanol 1 mg/kg and midazolam 1 mg/kg was administered intramuscularly to sedate the penguin. Induction of anaesthesia was performed via a face mask using sevoflurane in oxygen. The airway was intubated with a 4.0 mm Cole tube and anaesthesia was maintained with sevoflurane in oxygen during the entire procedure. Anaesthetic monitoring consisted of an electrocardiogram, pulse oximetry, non-invasive blood pressure, capnography, and body temperature.

Conclusions
Tracheal bifurcation was identified as the start of the tracheal septum 4.67 cm from the glottis using CT. Most of the anticipated complications of penguin anaesthesia, such as hyperthermia, hypothermia, regurgitation, hypoventilation, and difficulties in intubation were present in this case. However, no major sequalae occurred following the anaesthetic protocol described.
Time lag effect of vegetation response to seasonal precipitation in the Mara River Basin
Authors: Feng Shouming , Zhang Zhenke , Zhao Shuhe , Guo Xinya , Zhu Wanyi , Das Priyanko 
Published: October 2023

Abstract
Background
Mara River Basin is an ecologically fragile area in East Africa, with a pattern of alternating wet and dry seasons shaped by periodic precipitation. Considering the regional biological traits and climatic change, the vegetation's response to seasonal variation is complicated and frequently characterized by time lags. This study analyzed the variation of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and investigated its time lag to precipitation at the monthly scale. NDVI characteristic peaks were proposed from the perspective of seasonal mechanisms and were quantified to assess the lag effect.

Results
The results showed that the Anomaly Vegetation Index could identify low precipitation in 2006, 2009, and 2017. The NDVI showed an increasing trend in 75% of areas of the basin, while showed a decreased significance in 3.5% of areas, mainly in savannas. As to the time lag, the 1-month lag effect dominated most months, and the spatiotemporal disparities were noticeable. Another method considering the alternations of wet and dry seasons found that the time lag was approximately 30 days. Based on the time distribution of NDVI characteristic peaks, the average time lag was 35.5 days and increased with the range of seasons.

Conclusions
The findings confirmed an increasing trend of NDVI in most regions from 2001 to 2020, while the trends were most obvious in the downstream related to human activities. The results could reflect the time lag of NDVI response to precipitation, and the 1-month lag effect dominated in most months with spatial heterogeneity. Four NDVI characteristic peaks were found to be efficient indicators to assess the seasonal characteristics and had a great potential to quantify vegetation variation.
Antiseptics and mupirocin resistance in clinical, environmental, and colonizing coagulase negative Staphylococcus isolates
Authors: Hefzy Enas Mamdouh , Radwan Tharwat E. E. , Hozayen Basma M. M. , Mahmoud Eman E. , Khalil Mahmoud A. F. 
Published: October 2023

Abstract
Background
Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci (CoNS) are opportunistic and nosocomial pathogens. The excessive use of antimicrobial agents, including antiseptics, represents one of the world’s major public health problems. This study aimed to test the susceptibility of CoNS to antiseptics.

Methods
Out of 250 specimens collected from different sections of the hospital, 55 samples were identified as CoNS, categorized into three groups based on their sources: environmental samples (n = 32), healthcare worker carriers samples (n = 14), and clinical infection samples (n = 9). Isolates were examined for susceptibility to antibiotics and antiseptics, such as benzalkonium chloride (BC), cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), and chlorhexidine digluconate (CHDG). Mupirocin and antiseptic resistance genes, as well as the mecA gene, were detected using polymerase chain reaction. CoNS isolates with notable resistance to antiseptics and antibiotics were identified using the API-Staph system.

Results
A high frequency of multidrug resistance among CoNS clinical infection isolates was observed. Approximately half of the CoNS isolates from healthcare workers were susceptible to CHDG, but 93% were resistant to BC and CTAB. The frequency of antiseptics and antibiotics resistance genes in CoNS isolates was as follows: qacA/B (51/55; 92.7%), smr (22/55; 40.0%), qacG (1/55; 1.8%), qacH (6/55; 10.9%), qacJ (4/55; 7.3%), mecA (35/55; 63.6%), mupB (10/55; 18.2%), and mupA (7/55; 12.7%). A significant difference in the prevalence of smr gene and qacJ genes between CoNS isolates from healthcare workers and other isolates was reported (P value = 0.032 and ˂0.001, respectively). Four different CoNS species; S. epidermidis, S. chromogene, S. haemolyticus, and S. hominis, were identified by API.

Conclusions
CoNS isolates colonizing healthcare workers showed a high prevalence of antiseptic resistance genes, while clinical infection samples were more resistant to antibiotics. CHDG demonstrated greater efficacy than BC and CTAB in our hospital.
Steel Fiber Reinforced Self-Compacting Concrete: A Comprehensive Review
Authors: Ahmad Jawad , Zhou Zhiguang , Deifalla Ahmed Farouk 
Published: October 2023

AbstractSelf-compacting concrete (SCC), which flows under its own weight without being compacted or vibrating, requires no outside mechanical force to move. But like normal concrete, SCC has a brittle character (weak in tension) that causes sudden collapse with no advance notification. The tensile capacity of SCC has increased owing to the addition of steel fiber (SF). Various research concentrates on increasing the tensile strength (TS) of SCC by incorporating SF. To collect information on past research, present research developments, and future research directions on SF-reinforced SCC, however, a detailed review of the study is necessary. The main aspects of this review are the general introduction of SCC, fresh properties namely slump flow, slump T50, L box, and V funnel, and strength properties such as compressive, tensile, flexure, and elastic modulus. Furthermore, failure modes of steel fiber-reinforced SCC are also reviewed. Results suggest that the SF decreased the filling and passing ability. Furthermore, improvement in strength properties was also observed. However, some studies reported that SF had no effect or even decreased compressive capacity. Additionally, SF improved the tensile capacity of SCC and avoid undesirable brittle failure. Finally, the review recommends the substitution of secondary cementitious materials in SF-reinforced SCC to improve its compressive capacity.
Dietary supplementation of zinc oxide modulates intestinal functionality during the post-weaning period in clinically healthy piglets
Authors: Schokker Dirkjan , Kar Soumya K. , Willems Els , Bossers Alex , Dekker Ruud A. , Jansman Alfons J. M. 
Published: October 2023

Abstract
Background
To improve our understanding of host and intestinal microbiome interaction, this research investigated the effects of a high-level zinc oxide in the diet as model intervention on the intestinal microbiome and small intestinal functionality in clinically healthy post-weaning piglets. In study 1, piglets received either a high concentration of zinc (Zn) as zinc oxide (ZnO, Zn, 2,690 mg/kg) or a low Zn concentration (100 mg/kg) in the diet during the post weaning period (d 14–23). The effects on the piglet’s small intestinal microbiome and functionality of intestinal tissue were investigated. In study 2, the impact of timing of the dietary zinc intervention was investigated, i.e., between d 0–14 and/or d 14–23 post weaning, and the consecutive effects on the piglet’s intestinal functionality, here referring to microbiota composition and diversity and gene expression profiles.

Results
Differences in the small intestinal functionality were observed during the post weaning period between piglets receiving a diet with a low or high concentration ZnO content. A shift in the microbiota composition in the small intestine was observed that could be characterized as a non-pathological change, where mainly the commensals inter-changed. In the immediate post weaning period, i.e., d 0–14, the highest number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in intestinal tissue were observed between animals receiving a diet with a low or high concentration ZnO content, i.e., 23 DEGs in jejunal tissue and 11 DEGs in ileal tissue. These genes are involved in biological processes related to immunity and inflammatory responses. For example, genes CD59 and REG3G were downregulated in the animals receiving a diet with a high concentration ZnO content compared to low ZnO content in both jejunum and ileum tissue. In the second study, a similar result was obtained regarding the expression of genes in intestinal tissue related to immune pathways when comparing piglets receiving a diet with a high concentration ZnO content compared to low ZnO content.

Conclusions
Supplementing a diet with a pharmaceutical level of Zn as ZnO for clinically healthy post weaning piglets influences various aspects intestinal functionality, in particular in the first two weeks post-weaning. The model intervention increased both the alpha diversity of the intestinal microbiome and the expression of a limited number of genes linked to the local immune system in intestinal tissue. The effects do not seem related to a direct antimicrobial effect of ZnO.
Multi-scale movement syndromes for comparative analyses of animal movement patterns
Authors: Kays Roland , Hirsch Ben , Caillaud Damien , Mares Rafael , Alavi Shauhin , Havmøller Rasmus Worsøe , Crofoot Margaret 
Published: October 2023

Abstract
Background
Animal movement is a behavioral trait shaped by the need to find food and suitable habitat, avoid predators, and reproduce. Using high-resolution tracking data, it is possible to describe movement in greater detail than ever before, which has led to many discoveries about the behavioral strategies of particular species. Recently, enough data been become available to enable a comparative approach, which has the potential to uncover general causes and consequences of variation in movement patterns, but which must be scale specific.

Methods
Here we introduce a new multi-scale movement syndrome (MSMS) framework for describing and comparing animal movements and use it to explore the behavior of four sympatric mammals. MSMS incorporates four hierarchical scales of animal movement: (1) fine-scale movement steps which accumulate into (2) daily paths which then, over weeks or months, form a (3) life-history phase. Finally, (4) the lifetime track of an individual consists of multiple life-history phases connected by dispersal or migration events. We suggest a series of metrics to describe patterns of movement at each of these scales and use the first three scales of this framework to compare the movement of 46 animals from four frugivorous mammal species.

Results
While subtle differences exist between the four species in their step-level movements, they cluster into three distinct movement syndromes in both path- and life-history phase level analyses. Differences in feeding ecology were a better predictor of movement patterns than a species’ locomotory or sensory adaptations.

Conclusions
Given the role these species play as seed dispersers, these movement syndromes could have important ecosystem implications by affecting the pattern of seed deposition. This multiscale approach provides a hierarchical framework for comparing animal movement for addressing ecological and evolutionary questions. It parallels scales of analyses for resource selection functions, offering the potential to connect movement process with emergent patterns of space use.
Exploring the fermentation quality, bacterial community and metabolites of alfalfa ensiled with mugwort residues and Lactiplantibacillus pentosus
Authors: Guo Linna , Wang Xuekai , Chen Huilong , Li Xiaomei , Xiong Yi , Zhou Hongzhang , Xu Gang , Yang Fuyu , Ni Kuikui 
Published: October 2023

Abstract
Background
The inefficient utilization of plant residues leads to serious environmental pollution and loss of plant nutrition. Nevertheless, the herbal residues including valuable mugwort have been rarely explored. Ensiling has been considered as a promising technique to reuse plant residues. Thus, this study investigated the effect of mugwort residues (M) and Lactiplantibacillus pentosus (LAB) on the fermentation quality, bacterial diversity, and metabolites of alfalfa silage after 60 days of ensiling.

Results
The results showed that compared with control, adding LAB, M and their combination significantly decreased pH (P < 0.05). Among all treatments, LAB + M had the lowest pH, butyric acid and ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N) concentrations (P < 0.05). Besides, lactic acid concentration of LAB + M treatment was increased nearly by 3 times compared with control. A shift on the bacterial profile was clearly observed, of which Lactiplantibacillus pentosus abundance increased to beyond 90% of total bacteria in LAB + M and all additives decreased Enterobacter hormaechei abundance than control (P < 0.05). Meanwhile, metabolite analysis indicated that mugwort residues addition enhanced the metabolites of apiin and apigenin 8-C-[xylosyl-(1- > 2)-galactoside] relevant to flavonoids (P < 0.05).

Conclusion
The addition of mugwort residues combined with Lactiplantibacillus pentosus significantly improved fermentation quality with the high relative abundance of Lactiplantibacillus pentosus. Moreover, mugwort residues addition could contribute to the upregulation of specific metabolites such as flavonoids, which would provide a new insight for facilitating fermentation with herbal residues.

Graphical Abstract
An analysis of Hong Kong high school curriculum with implications for United Nations sustainable development goals
Authors: Lei Chi-Un , Tang Shan 
Published: October 2023

AbstractThe United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Target 4.7 stated that by 2030, all learners should acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development. However, only scattered studies outline how SDG knowledge has been taught in public K12 curricula. This study aims to identify SDG topics in 13 subjects in the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education curriculum and the perceptions of teachers in relation to SDG education. Data were collected through a machine learning approach and semi-structured interviews. Analysis of the module, subject, and curriculum level was conducted. By examining how teachers perceive in relation to the results of SDG classification and implementation of SDG education, the findings showed that teachers and administrators have adopted positive attitudes towards SDG classification, and supportive government can positively influence teachers and administrators in implementing SDG education. Such findings can be useful for policymakers to develop strategies to facilitate SDG education.