bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Photonic spin Hall effect with high coupling efficiency in the combined structure of periodic dielectric waveguides and photonic crystal waveguide
Authors: Zhang Yi-Chen , Zhao Li-Ming , Zhou Yun-Song 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
In this paper, we discuss the photonic spin Hall effect (PSHE) in the combined structure of periodic dielectric waveguides (PDWs) and photonic crystal waveguide (PCW). By controlling the polarization of the dipole source, we have successfully achieved the arbitrary manipulation of PSHE for the PDW guided mode in our structure. The advantage of PDW is that it can be designed to different shapes without the geometric constraints, and still maintains a relatively high transmission rate. Therefore, by further changing the structure, including the adjustment of the intersection angle between PDW and PCW, and the alteration of the straight PDW to the bending or bifurcated shapes, we find that the output of highly unidirectional PSHE is mainly determined by the intersection angle between PDW and PCW and almost independent of the detailed shape of PDW.
Biorealistic hand prosthesis with compliance control and noninvasive somatotopic sensory feedback
Authors: Lan Ning , Zhang Jie , Zhang Zhuozhi , Chou Chih-Hong , Rymer William Zev , Niu Chuanxin M , Fang Peng 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
Significant advances have been made to improve control and to provide sensory functions for bionic hands. However, great challenges remain, limiting wide acceptance of bionic hands due to inadequate bidirectional neural compatibility with human users. Recent research has brought to light the necessity for matching neuromechanical behaviors between the prosthesis and the sensorimotor system of amputees. A novel approach to achieving greater neural compatibility leverages the technology of biorealistic modeling with real-time computation. These studies have demonstrated a promising outlook that this unique approach may transform the performance of hand prostheses. Simultaneously, a noninvasive technique of somatotopic sensory feedback has been developed based on evoked tactile sensation (ETS) for conveying natural, intuitive, and digit-specific tactile information to users. This paper reports the recent work on these two important aspects of sensorimotor functions in prosthetic research. A background review is presented first on the state of the art of bionic hand and the various techniques to deliver tactile sensory information to users. Progress in developing the novel biorealistic hand prosthesis and the technique of noninvasive ETS feedback is then highlighted. Finally, challenges to future development of the biorealistic hand prosthesis and implementing the ETS feedback are discussed with respect to shaping a next-generation hand prosthesis.
Study on novel steel slag foam concrete pore structure and bp neural network prediction model
Authors: Zhi Zeng , Xiaohua LI , Fan Huang , Wangxing Zhan , Huan SU , Wenjing LI , Xianglong LIU 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
In this paper, a new type of steel slag foamed concrete was prepared. Its pore structure was analyzed by MATLAB image processing technique, and the influence of steel slag on the compressive strength of foamed concrete was investigated. In addition, a BP neural network prediction model for the pore structure of foam concrete was established. The research results show that when the content of steel slag is 30%, the pore structure of steel slag foamed concrete is appropriate. The compressive strength of steel slag foamed concrete increases with the decrease of the density and the proportion of irregular pores. With the density remaining unchanged, the compressive strength of foamed concrete increases with the increase of the ratio of round and small pores. The prediction errors of the BP neural network model in the average pore diameter and average pore roundness factor were less than 8.5% and 5%, respectively.This research can provide a theoretical basis for the production of steel slag foam concrete.
Machine learning-based signal quality assessment for cardiac volume monitoring in electrical impedance tomography
Authors: Min Hyun Chang , Jun Jang Tae , Nam Jeongchan , Kwon Hyeuknam , Jeon Kiwan , Lee Kyounghun 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
Owing to recent advances in thoracic electrical impedance tomography (EIT), a patient’s hemodynamic function can be noninvasively and continuously estimated in real-time by surveilling a cardiac volume signal (CVS) associated with stroke volume and cardiac output. In clinical applications, however, a CVS is often of low quality, mainly because of the patient’s deliberate movements or inevitable motions during clinical interventions. This study aims to develop a signal quality indexing method that assesses the influence of motion artifacts on transient CVSs. The assessment is performed on each cardiac cycle to take advantage of the periodicity and regularity in cardiac volume changes. Time intervals are identified using the synchronized electrocardiography system. We apply divergent machine-learning methods, which can be sorted into discriminative-model and manifold-learning approaches. The use of machine-learning could be suitable for our real-time monitoring application that requires fast inference and automation as well as high accuracy. In the clinical environment, the proposed method can be utilized to provide immediate warnings so that clinicians can minimize confusion regarding patients’ conditions, reduce clinical resource utilization, and improve the confidence level of the monitoring system. Numerous experiments using actual EIT data validate the capability of CVSs degraded by motion artifacts to be accurately and automatically assessed in real-time by machine learning. The best model achieved an accuracy of 0.95, positive and negative predictive values of 0.96 and 0.86, sensitivity of 0.98, specificity of 0.77, and AUC of 0.96.
Use of Activated Platelet-Rich Plasma (A-PRP) on Alopecia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Morkuzu Suat , McLennan Alexandra Loren , Kanapathy Muholan , Mosahebi Afshin 
Published: March 2023

Abstract

Alopecia affects perceptions of age, beauty, success, and adaptability. Hair loss can be caused by genetic, physiological, environmental, and immunologic factors. The current treatment for alopecia is varied. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluates activated platelet rich plasma (A-PRP) for alopecia treatment. The objective of this review was to assess the clinical efficacy and safety of A-PRP injections in alopecia patients. We compared the safety, limitations, and outcomes of A-PRP use with those of previous research on alopecia. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Database, and Google Scholar for relevant articles. We included all primary clinical studies involving patients that evaluated A-PRP. Twenty-nine articles, which included 864 patients, met the eligibility criteria and were analyzed for qualitative review. Our review found 27 studies that indicated A-PRP was significantly effective in treating alopecia, especially for improving hair density before and after therapy (n = 184, mean difference [MD] = 46.5, I2 = 88%, 95% CI: 29.63, 63.37, P &lt; .00001), as well as when comparison was made between treatment and control groups (n = 88, MD = 31.61, I2 = 80%, 95% CI: 6.99, 56.22, P = .01), and of terminal hair density between treatment and control groups (n = 55, MD = 26.03, I2 = 25%, 95% CI: 8.08, 43.98, P = .004); hair counts after therapy (n = 85, MD = 12.79, I2 = 83%, 95% CI: -5.53, 31.12, P = .0006); promoting hair regrowth; folliculogenesis; reducing hair loss; combining with follicular unit extraction (FUE) surgery; and initiating the hair cycle. Two studies did not report significant results. This is the first systematic review and meta-analysis of A-PRP as a treatment option for alopecia. A-PRP appears to be a promising and safe method for treating alopecia.

Level of Evidence: 4
α-Tomatine degradation to tomatidine by food-related Aspergillus species belonging to the section Nigri
Authors: Hui Chun-Wai , Kishino Shigenobu , Nakatani Yuki , Ogawa Jun 
Published: March 2023

ABSTRACT
α-Tomatine is a steroidal glycoalkaloid in tomato plants and degrades with ripening. The aglycone form, tomatidine, is reported to have beneficial effects. In this study, the ability of food-related microorganisms to produce tomatidine from α-tomatine was evaluated. A total of 11 strains of Aspergillus species belonging to the section Nigri exhibited tomatinase activity, and Aspergillus luchuensis JCM 22302 was selected for optimization due to its high activity in its mycelia, conidia, and non-mycotoxin-producing property. Next, using A. luchuensis JCM22302 conidia, the highest yield was obtained in a 24-h reaction with 50 m m of acetic acid–sodium acetate buffer (pH 5.5) at 37 °C. Similar to the tomato pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f. lyceopersici, the time course analysis suggested that A. luchuensis JCM 22302 removed the entire sugar moiety in a single step. Future research will focus on utilizing conidia for large-scale tomatidine production because of their high tolerance and manageability.
The hidden factor: accounting for covariate effects in power and sample size computation for a binary trait
Authors: Zhang Ziang , Sun Lei 
Published: March 2023

AbstractMotivationAccurate power and sample size estimation is crucial to the design and analysis of genetic association studies. When analyzing a binary trait via logistic regression, important covariates such as age and sex are typically included in the model. However, their effects are rarely properly considered in power or sample size computation during study planning. Unlike when analyzing a continuous trait, the power of association testing between a binary trait and a genetic variant depends, explicitly, on covariate effects, even under the assumption of gene–environment independence. Earlier work recognizes this hidden factor but the implemented methods are not flexible. We thus propose and implement a generalized method for estimating power and sample size for (discovery or replication) association studies of binary traits that (i) accommodates different types of nongenetic covariates E, (ii) deals with different types of G–E relationships, and (iii) is computationally efficient.ResultsExtensive simulation studies show that the proposed method is accurate and computationally efficient for both prospective and retrospective sampling designs with various covariate structures. A proof-of-principle application focused on the understudied African sample in the UK Biobank data. Results show that, in contrast to studying the continuous blood pressure trait, when analyzing the binary hypertension trait ignoring covariate effects of age and sex leads to overestimated power and underestimated replication sample size.Availability and implementationThe simulated datasets can be found on the online web-page of this manuscript, and the UK Biobank application data can be accessed at https://www.ukbiobank.ac.uk. The R package SPCompute that implements the proposed method is available at CRAN. The genome-wide association studies are carried out using the software PLINK 2.0 [Purcell et al. (Plink: a tool set for whole-genome association and population-based linkage analyses. Am J Hum Genet 2007;81:559–75.)].
Phenonaut: multiomics data integration for phenotypic space exploration
Authors: Shave Steven , Dawson John C , Athar Abdullah M , Nguyen Cuong Q , Kasprowicz Richard , Carragher Neil O 
Published: March 2023

AbstractSummaryData integration workflows for multiomics data take many forms across academia and industry. Efforts with limited resources often encountered in academia can easily fall short of data integration best practices for processing and combining high-content imaging, proteomics, metabolomics, and other omics data. We present Phenonaut, a Python software package designed to address the data workflow needs of migration, control, integration, and auditability in the application of literature and proprietary techniques for data source and structure agnostic workflow creation.Availability and implementationSource code: https://github.com/CarragherLab/phenonaut, Documentation: https://carragherlab.github.io/phenonaut, PyPI package: https://pypi.org/project/phenonaut/.
Seqpac: a framework for sRNA-seq analysis in R using sequence-based counts
Authors: Skog Signe , Örkenby Lovisa , Kugelberg Unn , Öst Anita , Nätt Daniel 
Published: March 2023

Abstract

Motivation
Feature-based counting is commonly used in RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) analyses. Here, sequences must align to target features (like genes or non-coding RNAs) and related sequences with different compositions are counted into the same feature. Consequently, sequence integrity is lost, making results less traceable against raw data.
Small RNA (sRNA) often maps to multiple features and shows an incredible diversity in form and function. Therefore, applying feature-based strategies may increase the risk of misinterpretation. We present a strategy for sRNA-seq analysis that preserves the integrity of the raw sequence making the data lineage fully traceable. We have consolidated this strategy into Seqpac: An R package that makes a complete sRNA analysis available on multiple platforms. Using published biological data, we show that Seqpac reveals hidden bias and adds new insights to studies that were previously analyzed using feature-based counting.
We have identified limitations in the concurrent analysis of RNA-seq data. We call it the traceability dilemma in alignment-based sequencing strategies. By building a flexible framework that preserves the integrity of the read sequence throughout the analysis, we demonstrate better interpretability in sRNA-seq experiments, which are particularly vulnerable to this problem. Applying similar strategies to other transcriptomic workflows may aid in resolving the replication crisis experienced by many fields that depend on transcriptome analyses.

Availability and implementation
Seqpac is available on Bioconductor (https://bioconductor.org/packages/seqpac) and GitHub (https://github.com/danis102/seqpac).
SOX8 is essential for male sexual differentiation in the Chinese soft-shelled turtle Pelodiscus sinensis
Authors: Yang Bangsai , Sun Wei , Jin Lin , Li Pan , Zhou Yingjie , Qian Guoying , Ge Chutian , Xiao Ling 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
SOX8, which belongs to SOXE transcription factor subfamily together with SOX9, participates in sex differentiation and testicular development by enhancing the function of SOX9 in mammals. However, the functional role of SOX8 in sex differentiation has not yet been identified in any non-mammalian vertebrates. Here, we found in the Chinese soft-shelled turtle Pelodiscus sinensis that SOX8 exhibited male-specific higher expression from stage 14 to 18, the critical period of sex determination, prior to the onset of gonadal differentiation. In addition, SOX8 was rapidly down-regulated during male-to-female sex reversal induced by estradiol. Moreover, knockdown of SOX8 led to complete feminization of ZZ P. sinensis, determined by gonadal morphology and distribution of germ cells, as well as the down-regulation of testicular marker DMRT1 and the up-regulation of ovarian regulator FOXL2. In conclusion, this study provides evidence that SOX8 is a key regulator of early male differentiation in P. sinensis, highlighting the significance of the SOX family in reptile sex determination.
A case of hermaphroditism in the gonochoristic sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus, reveals key mechanisms of sex determination
Authors: Pieplow Cosmo A , Furze Aidan R , Wessel Gary M 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
Sea urchins are usually gonochoristic, with all of their five gonads either testes or ovaries. Here, we report an unusual case of hermaphroditism in the purple sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus. The hermaphrodite is self-fertile, and one of the gonads is an ovotestis; it is largely an ovary with a small segment containing fully mature sperm. Molecular analysis demonstrated that each gonad producedviable gametes, and we identified for the first time a somatic sex-specific marker in this phylum: Doublesex and mab-3 related transcription factor 1 (DMRT1). This finding also enabled us to analyze the somatic tissues of the hermaphrodite, and we found that the oral tissues (including gut) were out of register with the aboral tissues (including tube feet) enabling a genetic lineage analysis. Results from this study support a genetic basis of sex determination in sea urchins, the viability of hermaphroditism, and distinguish gonad determination from somatic tissue organization in the adult.
Telling Stories of Practice in the Neo-liberal Context of English Social Work
Authors: Amas Deborah , Fox Joanna 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
The authors contend that the rise of neo-liberal codified management systems within English social work increasingly restricts social workers freedom to be creative in their practice reducing them to social administrators. We are two registered social work professionals and academics who believe managerial contexts encroach on our professional values. As insider researchers, we engaged in conversations and case storytelling to examine how our knowledge and practice as social workers positively influenced outcomes for people who have lived experiences. The two stories articulated in this article magnify how professional use of self can enact emancipatory empathy in the minutiae of practice. Collaborating as insider ethnographers supported us to deconstruct practice using critical reflection and reflexivity in post-modernist contexts. We highlight how micro examinations in collaborative autoethnography have potential for engaging wider philosophical conversations about social work identity.
The Privatisation of Private (and) International Law
Authors: Mills Alex 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
Privatisation is much studied and debated as a general phenomenon, including in relation to its legal effects and the challenges it presents to the boundaries of public and private law. Outside the criminal context there has however been relatively limited focus on privatisation of the governmental functions which are perhaps of most interest to lawyers—law making, law enforcement and dispute resolution—or on the international legal implications of privatisation. This article argues that modern legal developments in the context of private law and cross-border private legal relations—generally known as party autonomy in private international law—can be usefully analysed as two distinct forms of privatisation. First, privatisation of certain allocative functions of public and private international law, in respect of both institutional and substantive aspects of private law regulation, through the legal effect given to choice of court and choice of law agreements. Second, privatisation of the institutional and substantive regulation of private legal relationships themselves, through arbitration and the recognition of non-state law. Together, these developments have established a global marketplace of state and non-state dispute resolution institutions and private laws, which detaches private law authority from its traditional jurisdictional anchors. Analysing these developments through the lens of privatisation highlights a number of important critical questions which deserve greater consideration—this article further examines in particular whether this form of privatisation in fact increases efficiency in either private international law decision-making or private law dispute resolution, as well as its distributive and regulatory effects.
Cryptanalysis of Reduced-Round SipHash
Authors: He Le , Yu Hongbo 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
SipHash is a family of ARX-based MAC algorithms optimized for short inputs. So far, a lot of implementations and applications for SipHash have been proposed, whereas the cryptanalysis of SipHash still lags behind. In this paper, we study the property of truncated differential in reduced-round SipHash. By exhaustively testing all kinds of 1-bit input differences, we find out the greatest differential biases from corresponding output bits through 3 or 4 SipRounds. Making use of these results, we construct distinguishers for SipHash-2-1 and SipHash-2-2 with practical complexities of $2^{12}$ and $2^{36}$, respectively. However, one limitation of the latter is that it begins with 1-bit input differences on the most significant message bit, which means it can only work when neglecting the padding rules of SipHash. Furthermore, we reveal the relations between the value of output bias and the difference after the first modular addition step, which is directly determined by corresponding key bits. Based on these relations, we propose a key recovery method for SipHash-2-1 that can obtain a significantly nonuniform distribution of the 128-bit secret key. It is summarized that about $97\%$ of random keys can be fully recovered under this method within a complexity of $2^{83}$.
Time use, time pressure and sleep: is gender an effect modifier?
Authors: Scovelle Anna J , Hewitt Belinda , Lallukka Tea , O’Neil Adrienne , King Tania L 
Published: March 2023

Abstract

Background
The gendered division of labour contributes to differences in the way time is spent and experienced by women and men. Time spent in paid and unpaid labour is associated with sleep outcomes, therefore, we examined (i) the relationships between time use and time pressure, and sleep, and (ii) whether these relationships were modified by gender.

Methods
Adults from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey were included in the analysis (N = 7611). Two measures of time use (total time commitments, ≥50% of time spent in paid work) were calculated based on estimates of time spent in different activities. One measure of time pressure was also included. Three sleep outcomes (quality, duration and difficulties) were examined. Logistic regression and effect measure modification analyses were employed.

Results
Total time commitments were associated with sleep duration, whereby more hours of total time commitments were associated with an increase in the odds of reporting &lt;7 h sleep. Gender was an effect modifier of the association between ≥50% of time spent in paid work and (i) sleep duration on the multiplicative scale, and (ii) sleep difficulties on the multiplicative and additive scales. Men who spent &lt;50% of time in paid work reported more sleep difficulties than men who spent ≥50% of time spent in paid work. Feeling time pressured was associated with poor sleep quality, short sleep duration and sleep difficulties.

Conclusions
Time use and time pressure were associated with sleep, with some effects experienced differently for men and women.