bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Lactate based caproate production with Clostridium drakei and process control of Acetobacterium woodii via lactate dependent in situ electrolysis
Authors: Herzog Jan , Mook Alexander , Utesch Tyll , Bengelsdorf Frank R. , Zeng An-Ping 
Published: June 2023

Syngas fermentation processes with acetogens represent a promising process for the reduction of CO2 emissions alongside bulk chemical production. However, to fully realize this potential the thermodynamic limits of acetogens need to be considered when designing a fermentation process. An adjustable supply of H2 as electron donor plays a key role in autotrophic product formation. In this study an anaerobic laboratory scale continuously stirred tank reactor was equipped with an All-in-One electrode allowing for in-situ H2 generation via electrolysis. Furthermore, this system was coupled to online lactate measurements to control the co-culture of a recombinant lactate-producing Acetobacterium woodii strain and a lactate-consuming Clostridium drakei strain to produce caproate. When C. drakei was grown in batch cultivations with lactate as substrate, 1.6 g·L−1 caproate were produced. Furthermore, lactate production of the A. woodii mutant strain could manually be stopped and reinitiated by controlling the electrolysis. Applying this automated process control, lactate production of the A. woodii mutant strain could be halted to achieve a steady lactate concentration. In a co-culture experiment with the A. woodii mutant strain and the C. drakei strain, the automated process control was able to dynamically react to changing lactate concentrations and adjust H2 formation respectively. This study confirms the potential of C. drakei as medium chain fatty acid producer in a lactate-mediated, autotrophic co-cultivation with an engineered A. woodii strain. Moreover, the monitoring and control strategy presented in this study reinforces the case for autotrophically produced lactate as a transfer metabolite in defined co-cultivations for value-added chemical production.
Polymer-coated hexagonal upconverting nanoparticles: chemical stability and cytotoxicity
Authors: Patsula Vitalii , Mareková Dana , Jendelová Pavla , Nahorniak Mykhailo , Shapoval Oleksandr , Matouš Petr , Oleksa Viktoriia , Konefał Rafał , Vosmanská Magda , Machová-Urdziková Lucia , Horák Daniel 
Published: June 2023

Large (120 nm) hexagonal NaYF4:Yb, Er nanoparticles (UCNPs) were synthesized by high-temperature coprecipitation method and coated with poly(ethylene glycol)-alendronate (PEG-Ale), poly (N,N-dimethylacrylamide-co-2-aminoethylacrylamide)-alendronate (PDMA-Ale) or poly(methyl vinyl ether-co-maleic acid) (PMVEMA). The colloidal stability of polymer-coated UCNPs in water, PBS and DMEM medium was investigated by dynamic light scattering; UCNP@PMVEMA particles showed the best stability in PBS. Dissolution of the particles in water, PBS, DMEM and artificial lysosomal fluid (ALF) determined by potentiometric measurements showed that all particles were relatively chemically stable in DMEM. The UCNP@Ale-PEG and UCNP@Ale-PDMA particles were the least soluble in water and ALF, while the UCNP@PMVEMA particles were the most chemically stable in PBS. Green fluorescence of FITC-Ale-modified UCNPs was observed inside the cells, demonstrating successful internalization of particles into cells. The highest uptake was observed for neat UCNPs, followed by UCNP@Ale-PDMA and UCNP@PMVEMA. Viability of C6 cells and rat mesenchymal stem cells (rMSCs) growing in the presence of UCNPs was monitored by Alamar Blue assay. Culturing with UCNPs for 24 h did not affect cell viability. Prolonged incubation with particles for 72 h reduced cell viability to 40%–85% depending on the type of coating and nanoparticle concentration. The greatest decrease in cell viability was observed in cells cultured with neat UCNPs and UCNP@PMVEMA particles. Thanks to high upconversion luminescence, high cellular uptake and low toxicity, PDMA-coated hexagonal UCNPs may find future applications in cancer therapy.
Metabolic pathway prediction of core microbiome based on enterotype and orotype
Authors: Lee Song Hee , Lee Han , You Hee Sang , Sung Ho-joong , Hyun Sung Hee 
Published: June 2023

IntroductionIdentification of key microbiome components has been suggested to help address the maintenance of oral and intestinal health in humans. The core microbiome is similar in all individuals, whereas the diverse microbiome varies across individuals, based on their unique lifestyles and phenotypic and genotypic determinants. In this study, we aimed to predict the metabolism of core microorganisms in the gut and oral environment based on enterotyping and orotyping.Materials and methodsGut and oral samples were collected from 83 Korean women aged 50 years or older. The extracted DNA was subjected to next-generation sequencing analysis of 16S rRNA hypervariable regions V3–V4.ResultsGut bacteria were clustered into three enterotypes, while oral bacteria were clustered into three orotypes. Sixty-three of the core microbiome between the gut and oral population were correlated, and different metabolic pathways were predicted for each type. Eubacterium_g11, Actinomyces, Atopobium, and Enterococcus were significantly positively correlated between the gut and oral abundance. The four bacteria were classified as type 3 in orotype and type 2 in enterotype.ConclusionOverall, the study suggested that collapsing the human body’s multidimensional microbiome into a few categories may help characterize the microbiomes better and address health issues more deeply.
Differential cellular and humoral immune responses in immunocompromised individuals following multiple SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations
Authors: Meredith Rhys T. , Bermingham Max D. , Bentley Kirsten , Agah Sayeh , Aboagye-Odei Abigail , Yarham Ross A. R. , Mills Hayley , Shaikh Muddassir , Hoye Neil , Stanton Richard J. , Chadwick David R. , Oliver Maria A. 
Published: June 2023

IntroductionThe heterogeneity of the immunocompromised population means some individuals may exhibit variable, weak or reduced vaccine-induced immune responses, leaving them poorly protected from COVID-19 disease despite receiving multiple SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations. There is conflicting data on the immunogenicity elicited by multiple vaccinations in immunocompromised groups. The aim of this study was to measure both humoral and cellular vaccine-induced immunity in several immunocompromised cohorts and to compare them to immunocompetent controls.MethodsCytokine release in peptide-stimulated whole blood, and neutralising antibody and baseline SARS-CoV-2 spike-specific IgG levels in plasma were measured in rheumatology patients (n=29), renal transplant recipients (n=46), people living with HIV (PLWH) (n=27) and immunocompetent participants (n=64) post third or fourth vaccination from just one blood sample. Cytokines were measured by ELISA and multiplex array. Neutralising antibody levels in plasma were determined by a 50% neutralising antibody titre assay and SARS-CoV-2 spike specific IgG levels were quantified by ELISA.ResultsIn infection negative donors, IFN-γ, IL-2 and neutralising antibody levels were significantly reduced in rheumatology patients (p=0.0014, p=0.0415, p=0.0319, respectively) and renal transplant recipients (p&lt;0.0001, p=0.0005, p&lt;0.0001, respectively) compared to immunocompetent controls, with IgG antibody responses similarly affected. Conversely, cellular and humoral immune responses were not impaired in PLWH, or between individuals from all groups with previous SARS-CoV-2 infections.DiscussionThese results suggest that specific subgroups within immunocompromised cohorts could benefit from distinct, personalised immunisation or treatment strategies. Identification of vaccine non-responders could be critical to protect those most at risk.
Quantifying attention span across the lifespan
Authors: Simon Alexander J. , Gallen Courtney L. , Ziegler David A. , Mishra Jyoti , Marco Elysa J. , Anguera Joaquin A. , Gazzaley Adam 
Published: June 2023

IntroductionStudies examining sustained attention abilities typically utilize metrics that quantify performance on vigilance tasks, such as response time and response time variability. However, approaches that assess the duration that an individual can maintain their attention over time are lacking.MethodsHere we developed an objective attention span metric that quantified the maximum amount of time that a participant continuously maintained an optimal “in the zone” sustained attention state while performing a continuous performance task.ResultsIn a population of 262 individuals aged 7–85, we showed that attention span was longer in young adults than in children and older adults. Furthermore, declines in attention span over time during task engagement were related to clinical symptoms of inattention in children.DiscussionThese results suggest that quantifying attention span is a unique and meaningful method of assessing sustained attention across the lifespan and in populations with inattention symptoms.
Plasma homocysteine levels and associated factors in community-dwelling adolescents: the EVA-TYROL study
Authors: Gande Nina , Hochmayr Christoph , Staudt Anna , Bernar Benoît , Stock Katharina , Kiechl Sophia J. , Geiger Ralf , Griesmacher Andrea , Scholl-Bürgi Sabine , Knoflach Michael , Pechlaner Raimund , Kiechl-Kohlendorfer Ursula ,   the (Early Vascular Ageing) EVA Study Group
Published: June 2023

BackgroundHomocysteine (Hcy) has been associated with an adverse cardiovascular risk profile in adolescents. Assessment of the association between plasma Hcy levels and clinical/laboratory factors might improve our understanding of the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease.MethodsHcy was measured in 1,900 14- to 19-year-old participants of prospective population-based EVA-TYROL Study (44.3% males, mean age 16.4 years) between 2015 and 2018. Factors associated with Hcy were assessed by physical examination, standardized interviews, and fasting blood analysis.ResultsMean plasma Hcy was 11.3 ± 4.5 µmol/L. Distribution of Hcy was characterized by extreme right skew. Males exhibited higher Hcy and sex differences increased with increasing age. Univariate associations with Hcy emerged for age, sex, body mass index, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and for factors pertaining to blood pressure, glucose metabolism, renal function, and diet quality, whereas the most important multivariate predictors of Hcy were sex and creatinine.DiscussionClinical and laboratory factors associated with Hcy in adolescents were manifold, with sex and high creatinine identified as strongest independent determinants. These results may aid when interpreting future studies investigating the vascular risk of homocysteine.
Cardiac T1 mapping enables risk prediction of LV dysfunction after surgery for aortic regurgitation
Authors: Sinn Martin , Petersen Johannes , Lenz Alexander , von Stumm Maria , Sequeira Groß Tatiana Maria , Huber Lukas , Reichenspurner Hermann , Adam Gerhard , Lund Gunnar , Bannas Peter , Girdauskas Evaldas 
Published: June 2023

BackgroundTo assess whether cardiac T1 mapping for detecting myocardial fibrosis enables preoperative identification of patients at risk for early left ventricular dysfunction after surgery of aortic regurgitation.Methods1.5 Tesla cardiac magnetic resonance imaging was performed in 40 consecutive aortic regurgitation patients before aortic valve surgery. Native and post-contrast T1 mapping was performed using a modified Look-Locker inversion-recovery sequence. Serial echocardiography was performed at baseline and 8 ± 5 days after aortic valve surgery to quantify LV dysfunction. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was performed to determine the diagnostic accuracy of native T1 mapping and extracellular volume for predicting postoperative LV ejection fraction decrease &gt;−10% after aortic valve surgery.ResultsNative T1 was significantly increased in patients with a postoperatively decreased LVEF (n = 15) vs. patients with a preserved postoperative LV ejection fraction (n = 25) (i.e., 1,071 ± 67 ms vs. 1,019 ± 33 ms, p = .001). Extracellular volume was not significantly different between patients with preserved vs. decreased postoperative LV ejection fraction. With a cutoff-of value of 1,053 ms, native T1 yielded an area under the curve (AUC) of .820 (95% CI: .683–.958) for differentiating between patients with preserved vs. reduced LV ejection fraction with 70% sensitivity and 84% specificity.ConclusionIncreased preoperative native T1 is associated with a significantly higher risk of systolic LV dysfunction early after aortic valve surgery in aortic regurgitation patients. Native T1 could be a promising tool to optimize the timing of aortic valve surgery in patients with aortic regurgitation to prevent early postoperative LV dysfunction.
Determination of lethal electric field threshold for pulsed field ablation in ex vivo perfused porcine and human hearts
Authors: Kos Bor , Mattison Lars , Ramirez David , Cindrič Helena , Sigg Daniel C. , Iaizzo Paul A. , Stewart Mark T. , Miklavčič Damijan 
Published: June 2023

IntroductionPulsed field ablation is an emerging modality for catheter-based cardiac ablation. The main mechanism of action is irreversible electroporation (IRE), a threshold-based phenomenon in which cells die after exposure to intense pulsed electric fields. Lethal electric field threshold for IRE is a tissue property that determines treatment feasibility and enables the development of new devices and therapeutic applications, but it is greatly dependent on the number of pulses and their duration.MethodsIn the study, lesions were generated by applying IRE in porcine and human left ventricles using a pair of parallel needle electrodes at different voltages (500–1500 V) and two different pulse waveforms: a proprietary biphasic waveform (Medtronic) and monophasic 48 × 100 μs pulses. The lethal electric field threshold, anisotropy ratio, and conductivity increase by electroporation were determined by numerical modeling, comparing the model outputs with segmented lesion images.ResultsThe median threshold was 535 V/cm in porcine ((N = 51 lesions in n = 6 hearts) and 416 V/cm in the human donor hearts ((N = 21 lesions in n = 3 hearts) for the biphasic waveform. The median threshold value was 368 V/cm in porcine hearts ((N = 35 lesions in n = 9 hearts) cm for 48 × 100 μs pulses.DiscussionThe values obtained are compared with an extensive literature review of published lethal electric field thresholds in other tissues and were found to be lower than most other tissues, except for skeletal muscle. These findings, albeit preliminary, from a limited number of hearts suggest that treatments in humans with parameters optimized in pigs should result in equal or greater lesions.
Identification of two novel ferroptosis-associated targets in sepsis-induced cardiac injury: Hmox1 and Slc7a11
Authors: Xu Yushun , Bu Gang 
Published: June 2023

PurposeSepsis-induced cardiac injury is a severe complication of sepsis and has a high mortality. Recent research has implicated ferroptosis as a contributing factor to myocardial cell death. This study is aimed at finding novel ferroptosis-associated targets in sepsis-induced cardiac injury.Methods and resultsIn our study, a total of two Gene expression omnibus datasets (GSE185754 and GSE171546) were obtained for bioinformatics analysis. GSEA enrichment analysis demonstrated that ferroptosis pathway Z-score rapidly increased in the first 24 h and decreased gradually in the following 24–72 h. Fuzzy analysis was then used to obtain distinct clusters of temporal patterns and find genes in cluster 4 that exhibited the same trend with ferroptosis progression during the time points. After intersecting the differentially expressed genes, genes in cluster 4, and ferroptosis-related genes, three ferroptosis-associated targets were finally selected: Ptgs2, Hmox1, and Slc7a11. While Ptgs2 has been previously reported to be involved in the regulation of septic cardiomyopathy, this study is the first to demonstrate that downregulation of Hmox1 and Slc7a11 can alleviate ferroptosis in sepsis-induced cardiac injury.ConclusionThis study reports Hmox1 and Slc7a11 as ferroptosis-associated targets in sepsis-induced cardiac injury, and both of them may become key therapeutic and diagnostic targets for this complication in the future.
Tracking timescales of magma reservoir recharge through caldera cycles at Santorini (Greece). Emphasis on an explosive eruption of Kameni Volcano
Authors: Polo-Sánchez Antonio , Flaherty Taya , Hervé Garance , Druitt Tim , Fabbro Gareth N. , Nomikou Paraskevi , Balcone-Boissard Helène 
Published: June 2023

Pre-eruptive processes and their timescales are critical information for risk management at explosive volcanoes, and Santorini caldera (Greece) provides an excellent context in which to approach this subject. We ask two questions. First, are pre-eruptive processes the same for small and big eruptions? To investigate, we performed a multi-mineral diffusion timescale study of a small explosive eruption of Kameni Volcano and compared the results with those published for larger caldera-forming eruptions at Santorini. The Kameni dacite resembles products of larger eruptions in being crystal-poor, containing plagioclase with antecrystic cores and autocrystic rims, bearing orthopyroxene with sector zoning and phantom skeletal morphologies, and showing evidence for mixing of different silicic magmas prior to eruption. Diffusion timescales from Mg-Fe profiles in orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene phenocrysts are &lt;1–23 years, and Mg diffusion modelling in plagioclase gives &lt;10 years. Our physical model for the Kameni eruption is similar to those proposed for larger eruptions, where silicic melt produced in gabbroic to dioritic lower to middle crustal mush bodies is transferred (along with entrained mafic magma) to an upper crustal reservoir. Crystals grow in the hydrous silicic melts due to decompression, cooling, and magma mixing during ascent and injection into upper crust. We propose that large eruptions are preceded by similar processes as small ones, but on a larger scale. Our second question: do diffusion timescales relate to eruptive volume or position in a caldera cycle? For this, we obtained orthopyroxene Mg-Fe diffusion timescales for three additional eruptions, growing our orthopyroxene timescale database to seven eruptions of different sizes and cycle timings. No clear relationship exists between diffusion timescale and volume; however, timescales are systematically shorter (&lt;0.01–10 years) early in a cycle and longer (1–5,000 years) late in a cycle. Thermal maturation and H2O-flushing of the crustal magma reservoir through the caldera cycle could explain this, as the reservoir would change from a rigid to more mushy state as the cycle progresses. This would change the mechanical response to melt input and allow accumulation of progressively larger melt layers in the upper crust, resulting in increasing crystal residence times.
GIS-based landslide susceptibility modeling using data mining techniques
Authors: Xia Liheng , Shen Jianglong , Zhang Tingyu , Dang Guangpu , Wang Tao 
Published: June 2023

Introduction: Landslide is one of the most widespread geohazards around the world. Therefore, it is necessary and meaningful to map regional landslide susceptibility for landslide mitigation. In this research, landslide susceptibility maps were produced by four models, namely, certainty factors (CF), naive Bayes (NB), J48 decision tree (J48), and multilayer perceptron (MLP) models.Methods: In the first step, 328 landslides were identified via historical data, interpretation of remote sensing images, and field investigation, and they were divided into two subsets that were assigned different uses: 70% subset for training and 30% subset for validating. Then, twelve conditioning factors were employed, namely, altitude, slope angle, slope aspect, plan curvature, profile curvature, TWI, NDVI, distance to rivers, distance to roads, land use, soil, and lithology. Later, the importance of each conditioning factor was analyzed by average merit (AM) values, and the relationship between landslide occurrence and various factors was evaluated using the certainty factor (CF) approach. In the next step, the landslide susceptibility maps were produced based on four models, and the effect of the four models were quantitatively compared by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, area under curve (AUC) values, and non-parametric tests.Results: The results demonstrated that all the four models can reasonably assess landslide susceptibility. Of these four models, the CF model has the best predictive performance for the training (AUC=0.901) and validating data (AUC=0.892).Discussion: The proposed approach is an innovative method that may also help other scientists to develop landslide susceptibility maps in other areas and that could be used for geo-environmental problems besides natural hazard assessments.
A novel mutation in CFAP47 causes male infertility due to multiple morphological abnormalities of the sperm flagella
Authors: Liu Mohan , Dai Siyu , Zhang Jiying , Yang Yihong , Shen Ying , Liu Hongqian , Yang Yanting , Jiang Chuan , Tian Erpo 
Published: June 2023

IntroductionA previous study suggested that loss of CFAP47 function is involved in multiple morphological abnormalities of the sperm flagella (MMAF) in humans and mice. However, the comprehensive role of CFAP47 in spermatogenesis is largely unknown.MethodsWhole-exome sequencing (WES) was conducted to identify pathogenic variant in two patients with MMAF. The functional effect of the identified mutations was investigated by immunofluorescence staining and western blotting. Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) was used to assist fertilization for the patient with MMAF.ResultsIn this study, we identified a novel missense mutation (c.1414G&gt;A; p.V472M) in CFAP47 in two unrelated patients with oligoasthenoteratozoospermia. Intriguingly, in addition to the MMAF phenotype very analogous to the previous report, the two patients notably presented abnormal morphology of sperm heads, the sperm mitochondrial sheath was obviously disorganized, and the sperm annulus were almost defective. Further functional experiments confirmed that the expression of CFAP47 was markedly reduced in the spermatozoa of the patients. Mechanism analysis suggested that CFAP47 might regulate the expression of CFAP65, CFAP69 and SEPTIN4 through their physical interactions and thus modulating sperm morphogenesis.Conclusionwe revealed a novel mutation in CFAP47 and further expanded the phenotype and mutation spectrum of CFAP47, as well as the potential mechanism of CFAP47 manipulating spermatogenesis, finally providing important guidance for genetic counseling and targeted treatment for CFAP47 mutation-related male infertility.