bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Covid‐19 pandemic and European trade flows: Evidence from a dynamic panel model
Authors: Caporale Guglielmo Maria , Sova Anamaria Diana , Sova Robert 
Published: February 2023

AbstractThis paper investigates the impact of the Covid‐19 pandemic on trade flows in the case of the European countries. First, an ARDL dynamic panel model is estimated using the PMG method to analyse monthly data covering the most recent period (2019M1–2021M12); then, the GMM and PCSE approaches are applied to a much longer span of quarterly data (2000Q1–2021Q4), which also includes the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) of 2007–2009, in order to compare the trade impact of two different crises. The findings based on the monthly data provide clear evidence of the significant negative effects of the Covid‐19 pandemic on both exports and imports in both the short and the long run, and also suggest that digitalisation was instrumental in mitigating the impact of the crisis and speeding up the recovery. The quarterly analysis over a longer time period indicates that both the GFC and the Covid‐19 pandemic had negative effects on trade but of a different magnitude. The use of digital technology enabling remote work and e‐commerce are again some of the factors likely explaining why international trade fell by less and also rebounded much more quickly during the Covid‐19 pandemic compared to the GFC.
A CNN transfer learning‐based approach for segmentation and classification of brain stroke from noncontrast CT images
Authors: Kaya Buket , Önal Muhammed 
Published: February 2023

AbstractImaging is needed in stroke cases in order to understand what the type of stroke (ischemic, hemorrhagic) is, to rule out bleeding, to determine the infarct area and to plan treatment. Noncontrast CT is the primary imaging protocol used in the initial evaluation of patients with suspected stroke. As apart from studies in the literature, this paper proposes novel automated classification and segmentation approaches which are capable of extracting hemorrhage and ischemic lesions (infarcts) simultaneously from the noncontrasts brain CT images during the treatment of brain stroke patients. It is aimed to automate the detection of stroke lesions with a high accuracy rate using the U‐Net model for segmentation. In the experiments performed on the real data set, a precision value of 95.06% is obtained for the classification model. For segmentation, the IoU coefficient values from the experiments are 92.01% for hemorrhagic and 82.22% for ischemic, respectively.
Titanium dioxide nanostructures doped with nickel and its performance in photocatalytic reduction of 4‐nitrophenol
Authors: Alvarez Lemus Mayra A. , Rodríguez Ariana Lizbeth Jiménez , García Mendoza Cinthia , García Ruth Lezama , Zaleta David S. García , Frías Márquez Dora M. , Quintana Owen Patricia , López González Rosendo 
Published: February 2023

AbstractBackgroundIn this work, we investigated the effect of nickel on the photocatalytic properties of TiO2 nanostructures. The photocatalysts were obtained in a two‐stage procedure. First, the sol–gel method was used for obtaining TiO2 and Ni‐TiO2 at 1.0 wt% of Ni, which was then followed by hydrothermal treatment under highly alkaline conditions with NaOH at 110°C.ResultsThe obtained powders were thermally treated at 400°C. The main crystalline phase was anatase for all the samples, and a lower Eg value was estimated for the Ni/TiO2 sample (3.13 eV). The specific BET areas were obtained from N2 isotherms at 77 K, being 141 and 153 m2/g for pure TiO2 and 1.0% Ni‐TiO2 samples, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy confirmed the rod shape of the particles with diameters between 10 and 20 nm and length between 100 and 400 nm. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis showed the presence of oxygen vacancies and surface hydroxyl oxygen species in all samples, but in a higher ratio for the Ni/TiO2‐HT‐400 sample. The photocatalytic test was performed using two different radiation sources: 254 nm and a simulated solar lamp (300 W), for the photoreduction of 4‐nitrophenol to 4‐aminophenol, which was followed by UV–vis spectroscopy.ConclusionsThe Ni/TiO2‐HT‐400 sample showed a high efficiency, reaching 100% reduction after 15 min (simulated solar radiation) and 40 min (λ = 254 nm) after the first cycle, while for the second cycle these values decreased to 63% and 78%, respectively. The increase in the photocatalytic reduction of TiO2 nanostructures was achieved mainly through the presence of oxygen vacancies along with the decrease in electron–hole recombination. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).
Effect of troxerutin consumption during gestation period on reflexive motor behavior in mice offspring
Authors: Bahrami Arghavan , Hassanpour Shahin , Zendehdel Morteza 
Published: February 2023

AbstractThis study aimed to determine the effects of troxerutin consumption during gestation on reflexive motor behavior in mice offspring. Forty pregnant female mice were allocated into four groups. In the control group, mice received water, while in groups 2–4, female mice p.o. administered troxerutin (50, 100, and 150 mg/kg) at 5, 8, 11, 14, and 17 days of gestation (GD). Following delivery, pups were selected based on their experimental group, and reflexive motor behaviors were determined. Also, serum malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and total antioxidant status (TAS) were determined. Based on the findings, maternal exposure to troxerutin (100 and 150 mg/kg) increased ambulation scores in offspring's compared with control group (P < 0.05). Also, prenatal exposure to troxerutin increased front‐ and hind‐limb suspension scores in newborns compared with control group (P < 0.05). Maternal exposure to troxerutin increased grip strength and negative geotaxis in newborns in comparison with control mice (P < 0.05). Prenatal exposure to troxerutin (100 and 150 mg/kg) decreased hind‐limb foot angle and surface righting in pups compared with control group (P < 0.05). Maternal exposure to troxerutin decreased MDA production and increased SOD, GPx, and TAS levels in offspring (P < 0.05). These results suggested that prenatal consumption of the troxerutin improves reflexive motor behaviors in mice pups.
Live‐virus neutralization of the omicron variant in children and adults 14 months after SARS‐CoV‐2 wild‐type infection
Authors: Stich Maximilian , Benning Louise , Speer Claudius , Garbade Sven F. , Bartenschlager Marie , Kim Heeyoung , Jeltsch Kathrin , Tabatabai Julia , Niesert Moritz , Janda Aleš , Renk Hanna , Elling Roland , Hoffmann Georg Friedrich , Kräusslich Hans‐Georg , Müller Barbara , Bartenschlager Ralf , Tönshoff Burkhard 
Published: February 2023

AbstractData on cross‐neutralization of the SARS‐CoV‐2 omicron variant more than 1 year after SARS‐CoV‐2 infection are urgently needed, especially in children, to predict the likelihood of reinfection and to guide vaccination strategies. In a prospective observational cohort study, we evaluated live‐virus neutralization of the SARS‐CoV‐2 omicron (BA.1) variant in children compared with adults 14 months after mild or asymptomatic wild‐type SARS‐CoV‐2 infection. We also evaluated immunity to reinfection conferred by previous infection plus COVID‐19 mRNA vaccination. We studied 36 adults and 34 children 14 months after acute SARS‐CoV‐2 infection. While 94% of unvaccinated adults (16/17) and children (32/34) neutralized the delta (B.1.617.2) variant, only 1/17 (5.9%) unvaccinated adults, 0/16 (0%) adolescents and 5/18 (27.8%) children <12 years of age had neutralizing activity against omicron (BA.1). In convalescent adults, one or two doses of mRNA vaccine increased delta and omicron neutralization 32‐fold, similar to a third mRNA vaccination in uninfected adults. Neutralization of omicron was 8‐fold lower than that of delta in both groups. In conclusion, our data indicate that humoral immunity induced by previous SARS‐CoV‐2 wild‐type infection more than 1 year ago is insufficient to neutralize the current immune escape omicron variant.
Clinical Value of Artificial Intelligence‐Based Computer‐Aided Diagnosis System Versus Contrast‐Enhanced Ultrasound for Differentiation of Benign From Malignant Thyroid Nodules in Different Backgrounds
Authors: Liu Ting , Wu Chuang , Wang Guojuan , Jia Yingying , Zhu Yangyang , Nie Fang 
Published: February 2023

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to compare the value of the AI‐SONIC ultrasound‐assisted diagnosis system versus contrast‐enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) for differential diagnosis of thyroid nodules in diffuse and non‐diffuse backgrounds.MethodsA total of 555 thyroid nodules with pathologically confirmed diagnosis were included in this retrospective study. The diagnostic efficacies of AI‐SONIC and CEUS for differentiating benign from malignant nodules in diffuse and non‐diffuse backgrounds were evaluated, with pathological diagnosis as the gold standard.ResultsThe agreement between AI‐SONIC diagnosis and pathological diagnosis was moderate in diffuse backgrounds (κ = 0.417) and almost perfect in non‐diffuse backgrounds (κ = 0.81). The agreement between CEUS diagnosis and pathological diagnosis was substantial in diffuse backgrounds (κ = 0.684) and moderate in non‐diffuse backgrounds (κ = 0.407). In diffuse backgrounds, AI‐SONIC had slightly higher sensitivity (95.7 vs 89.4%,P = .375), but CEUS had significantly higher specificity (80.0 vs 40.0%,P = .008). In non‐diffuse background, AI‐SONIC had significantly higher sensitivity (96.2 vs 73.4%,P < .001), specificity (82.9 vs 71.2%,P = .007), and negative predictive value (90.3 vs 53.3%,P < .001).ConclusionIn non‐diffuse backgrounds, AI‐SONIC is superior to CEUS for differentiating malignant from benign thyroid nodules. In diffuse backgrounds, AI‐SONIC could be useful for screening of cases to detect suspicious nodules requiring further examination by CEUS.
Intersectionality of Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in the Otolaryngology Match From 2013 to 2019
Authors: Konuthula Neeraja , Epstein Sherise , Wang Xing , Whipple Mark E. , Bly Randall A. , Bowe Sarah N. 
Published: February 2023

ObjectivesRacial, ethnic, and gender disparities in the otolaryngology‐head and neck surgery (OHNS) match have been described individually, but not intersectionally. Intersectionality recognizes how multiple forms of discrimination (e.g., sexism, racism) can have a combined effect. The objective of this study was to analyze racial, ethnic, and gender disparities in the OHNS match using an intersectional approach.MethodsCross‐sectional evaluation of data from otolaryngology applicants from the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS) and of corresponding otolaryngology residents from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) from 2013 to 2019. Data were stratified by race, ethnicity, and gender. The Cochran‐Armitage tests assessed trends over time in the proportions of applicants and corresponding residents. Chi‐square tests with Yates' continuity correction were performed to evaluate differences between the aggregate proportions of applicants and corresponding residents.ResultsThe proportion of White men in the resident pool was increased compared to the applicant pool (ACGME 0.417, ERAS 0.375; Δ + 0.042; 95% CI 0.012 to 0.071; p = 0.03). This was also the case for White women (ACGME 0.206, ERAS 0.175; Δ + 0.031; 95% CI 0.007 to 0.055; p = 0.05). In contrast, there was a smaller proportion of residents compared to applicants among Multiracial men (ACGME 0.014, ERAS 0.047; Δ − 0.033; 95% CI −0.043 to −0.023; p < 0.001) and Multiracial women (ACGME 0.010, ERAS 0.026; Δ − 0.016; 95% CI −0.024 to −0.008; p < 0.001).ConclusionThe findings of this study imply that White men have a persistent advantage, while several racial, ethnic, and gender minorities are disadvantaged in the OHNS match. Further research is necessary to examine why these differences exist in residency selection, including evaluation during the screening, reviewing, interviewing, and ranking stages. Laryngoscope, 133:2558–2563, 2023
LANDSAT multispectral image analysis of bedrock exposure rate in highly heterogeneous karst areas through mixed pixel decomposition considering spectral variability
Authors: Ruan Ou , Liu Suihua , Zhou Xu , Luo Jie , Hu Haitao , Yin Xia , Yuan Na 
Published: February 2023

AbstractMixed pixels and spectral variations commonly occur in images of karst areas because these areas have rugged topography and high surface heterogeneity. Consequently, the bedrock exposure rate cannot be accurately estimated using the existing rock index method based on remote sensing and the fixed endmember mixed pixel decomposition model. In order to solve this problem, using LANDSAT operational land imager/thematic mapper (OLI/TM) images as the data source, this study estimated the bedrock exposure rate based on a generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) considering spectral variability. In addition, this approach was compared with existing commonly used methods for estimating bedrock exposure rate. The results show that: (1) GLMM showed the highest performance in estimating bedrock exposure rate, with a total accuracy of 88.05% and a kappa coefficient of 0.845, and the accuracy exceeded 70% for different levels of bedrock exposure rate. However, the total accuracy of other commonly used bedrock exposure methods is was below 66%, being higher only in areas with bedrock exposure rates less than 20% and more than 70%. (2) By applying each method to different terrain scenes, GLMM was found to be more stable than other methods, and the estimated bedrock exposure rate is the closest to the ground reference value with a root mean square error less than 0.093. Other methods, including fully constrained least squares unmixing (FCLSU) and karst bare‐rock index (KBRI), have a certain gap in different scenes, and their accuracy is not high. (3) Without any ground reference data, the accuracy of the direct unmixing result of GLMM is very close to that calculated by the regression model, and the accuracy difference among different grades of bedrock exposure rate is less than 5%, thus outperforming the other methods. GLMM can effectively estimate the bedrock exposure rate at different times using different data. Therefore, GLMM has great potential in extracting rocky desertification information in karst areas. It can also be a reference method for the rapid, accurate, and long‐term evaluation of rocky desertification in karst areas.
Highly Elastic, Healable, and Durable Anhydrous High‐Temperature Proton Exchange Membranes Cross‐Linked with Highly Dense Hydrogen Bonds
Authors: Wang Wenjie , Tai Guitian , Li Yixuan , Sun Junqi 
Published: February 2023

AbstractProton exchange membranes (PEMs) with excellent durability and working stability are important for PEM fuel cells with extended service life and enhanced reliability. In this study, highly elastic, healable, and durable electrolyte membranes are fabricated by the complexation of poly(urea–urethane), ionic liquids (ILs), and MXene nanosheets (denoted as PU–IL–MX). The resulting PU–IL–MX electrolyte membranes have a tensile strength of ≈3.86 MPa and a strain at break of ≈281.89%. The PU–IL–MX electrolyte membranes can act as high temperature PEMs to conduct protons under an anhydrous condition of the temperatures above 100 °C. Importantly, the ultrahigh density of hydrogen‐bond‐cross‐linked network renders PU–IL–MX membranes excellent IL retention properties. The membranes can maintain more than ≈98% of their original weight and show no decline of proton conductivity after being placed under highly humid conditions of ≈80 °C and relative humidity of ≈85% for 10 days. Moreover, due to the reversibility of hydrogen bonds, the membranes can heal damage under the working conditions of fuel cells to restore their original mechanical properties, proton conductivities, and cell performances.
Effect of deformation temperature and degree on tensile properties of the extruded 2024Al/Al18B4O33w composite with extrusion – forging multistage hot deformation
Authors: Shi W. C. , Chen A. , Cui B. S. , Gong D. M. , Xue C. M. , Xu F. 
Published: February 2023

AbstractThe effect of extrusion – forging multistage hot deformation on tensile properties of the 2024Al/Al18B4O33w composites is investigated. The extruded 2024Al/Al18B4O33w composites are used as blanks. The tensile properties of the extruded 2024Al/Al18B4O33w composite followed by secondary deformation are studied. The effects of holding temperature and deformation degree on tensile properties of the extruded composite are discussed. The results show that due to the reduction in stress concentration and dislocations, ultimate tensile strength of the extruded 2024Al/Al18B4O33w composite held at 400 °C for 1 h is lower than that of the extruded composite without holding. Increasing holding temperature from 300 °C to 450 °C, ultimate tensile strength of the extruded 2024Al/Al18B4O33w composite increases firstly and then decreases. The extruded 2024Al/Al18B4O33w composite held at 400 °C for 1 h followed by secondary forging with the larger length to width ratio of 4 : 1 has the ultimate tensile strength of 456.1 MPa, higher than that of the extruded 2024Al/Al18B4O33w composite without secondary forging.
ECEL1 novel mutation in arthrogryposis type 5D: A molecular dynamic simulation study
Authors: Ahangari Najmeh , Gholampour‐Faroji Nazanin , Doosti Mohammad , Ghayour Mobarhan Majid , Shahrokhzadeh Sima , Karimiani Ehsan Ghayoor , Hasani‐sabzevar Bahareh , Torbati Paria Najarzadeh , Haddad‐Mashadrizeh Aliakbar 
Published: February 2023

AbstractBackgroundECEL1 has been presented as a causal gene of an autosomal recessive form distal arthrogryposis (DA) which affects the distal joints. The present study focused on bioinformatic analysis of a novel mutation in ECEL1, c.535A>G (p. Lys179Glu), which was reported in a family with 2 affected boys and fetus through prenatal diagnosis.MethodsWhole‐exome sequencing data analyzed followed by molecular dynamic (MD) simulation of native ECEL1 protein and mutant structures using GROMACS software. One variant c.535A>G, p. Lys179Glu (homozygous) on gene ECEL1 has been detected in proband which was validated in all family members through Sanger sequencing.ResultsWe demonstrated remarkable constructional differences by MD simulation between wild‐type and novel mutant of ECEL1 gene. The reason for the lack of the Zn ion binding in mutation in the ECEL1 protein has been identified by average atomic distance and SMD analysis among the wild‐type and mutant.ConclusionOverall, in this study, we present knowledge of the effect of the studied variant on the ECEL1 protein leading to neurodegenerative disorder in humans. This work may hopefully be supplementary to classical molecular dynamics to dissolve the mutational effects of cofactor‐dependent protein.
BUS‐Set: A benchmark for quantitative evaluation of breast ultrasound segmentation networks with public datasets
Authors: Thomas Cory , Byra Michal , Marti Robert , Yap Moi Hoon , Zwiggelaar Reyer 
Published: February 2023

AbstractPurposeBUS‐Set is a reproducible benchmark for breast ultrasound (BUS) lesion segmentation, comprising of publicly available images with the aim of improving future comparisons between machine learning models within the field of BUS.MethodFour publicly available datasets were compiled creating an overall set of 1154 BUS images, from five different scanner types. Full dataset details have been provided, which include clinical labels and detailed annotations. Furthermore, nine state‐of‐the‐art deep learning architectures were selected to form the initial benchmark segmentation result, tested using five‐fold cross‐validation and MANOVA/ANOVA with Tukey statistical significance test with a threshold of 0.01. Additional evaluation of these architectures was conducted, exploring possible training bias, and lesion size and type effects.ResultsOf the nine state‐of‐the‐art benchmarked architectures, Mask R‐CNN obtained the highest overall results, with the following mean metric scores: Dice score of 0.851, intersection over union of 0.786 and pixel accuracy of 0.975. MANOVA/ANOVA and Tukey test results showed Mask R‐CNN to be statistically significant better compared to all other benchmarked models with a p‐value >0.01. Moreover, Mask R‐CNN achieved the highest mean Dice score of 0.839 on an additional 16 image dataset, that contained multiple lesions per image. Further analysis on regions of interest was conducted, assessing Hamming distance, depth‐to‐width ratio (DWR), circularity, and elongation, which showed that the Mask R‐CNN's segmentations maintained the most morphological features with correlation coefficients of 0.888, 0.532, 0.876 for DWR, circularity, and elongation, respectively. Based on the correlation coefficients, statistical test indicated that Mask R‐CNN was only significantly different to Sk‐U‐Net.ConclusionsBUS‐Set is a fully reproducible benchmark for BUS lesion segmentation obtained through the use of public datasets and GitHub. Of the state‐of‐the‐art convolution neural network (CNN)‐based architectures, Mask R‐CNN achieved the highest performance overall, further analysis indicated that a training bias may have occurred due to the lesion size variation in the dataset. All dataset and architecture details are available at GitHub: https://github.com/corcor27/BUS‐Set, which allows for a fully reproducible benchmark.
Model‐based prediction of effective target exposure for MEN1611 in combination with trastuzumab in HER2‐positive advanced or metastatic breast cancer patients
Authors: Tosca Elena M. , Borella Elisa , Piana Chiara , Bouchene Salim , Merlino Giuseppe , Fiascarelli Alessio , Mazzei Paolo , Magni Paolo 
Published: February 2023

AbstractMEN1611 is a novel orally bioavailable PI3K inhibitor currently in clinical development for patients with HER2‐positive (HER2+) PI3KCA mutated advanced/metastatic breast cancer (BC) in combination with trastuzumab (TZB). In this work, a translational model‐based approach to determine the minimum target exposure of MEN1611 in combination with TZB was applied. First, pharmacokinetic (PK) models for MEN1611 and TZB in mice were developed. Then, in vivo tumor growth inhibition (TGI) data from seven combination studies in mice xenograft models representative of the human HER2+ BC non‐responsive to TZB (alterations of the PI3K/AkT/mTOR pathway) were analyzed using a PK‐pharmacodynamic (PD) TGI model for co‐administration of MEN1611 and TZB. The established PK‐PD relationship was used to quantify the minimum effective MEN1611 concentration, as a function of TZB concentration, needed for tumor eradication in xenograft mice. Finally, a range of minimum effective exposures for MEN1611 were extrapolated to patients with BC, considering the typical steady‐state TZB plasma levels in patients with BC following three alternative regimens (i.v. 4 mg/kg loading dose +2 mg/kg q1w, i.v. 8 mg/kg loading dose +6 mg/kg q3w or s.c. 600 mg q3w). A threshold of about 2000 ng·h/ml for MEN1611 exposure associated with a high likelihood of effective antitumor activity in a large majority of patients was identified for the 3‐weekly and the weekly i.v. schedule for TZB. A slightly lower exposure (i.e., 25% lower) was found for the 3‐weekly s.c. schedule. This important outcome confirmed the adequacy of the therapeutic dose administered in the ongoing phase 1b B‐PRECISE‐01 study in patients with HER2+ PI3KCA mutated advanced/metastatic BC.