bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Learning loss and psychosocial issues among Thai students amidst the COVID-19 pandemic: the perspectives of teachers in the online classroom
Authors: Suwathanpornkul Ittipaat , Sarnkhaowkhom Chawapon , Tulmethakaan Manaathar , Sakuntanak Panida , Charoensuk Orn-uma 
Published: August 2023

Abstract
Background
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a broad influence on health and society across the globe, especially on the education sector as its educators have had to continue the provision of teaching and learning opportunities to their students online in the midst of pandemic. This has led to learning loss and psychological health issues among students, which is now being recognized worldwide. This study aims to explore the perceptions, perspectives, and experiences of teachers with regards to learning loss and psychological health issues among students during the COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand.

Methods
Descriptive qualitative research was employed to gain a richer understanding of this interesting phenomenon. The experiences of twelve primary and secondary teachers were looked into by dividing them into several focus groups and interviewing them through video conferencing. All interviews were recorded, transcribed and analyzed through the use of content analysis.

Results
The findings that include the perceptions, perspectives, and experiences among teachers focused on three main themes, which are teaching and Learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, learning loss caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, and support to deal with the psychosocial issues during the COVID-19 pandemic. These are then divided into fifteen sub themes.

Conclusions
Through these findings, this study is able to provide an understanding of the perceptions, perspectives, and experiences of teachers regarding learning loss and psychosocial issues among students during the COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand. It also highlights the psychological issues that were met, the social and family support offered, ways how learning loss among students could have been prevented in the midst of the pandemic, and finally suggests what the education administrators and healthcare or public health sector administrators can do to enhance the quality of education and resilience skills of the students during and after the pandemic.
A novel and cost-effective method for high-throughput 3D culturing and rhythmic assessment of hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes using retroreflective Janus microparticles
Authors: Pham Huyen T. M. , Nguyen Duc Long , Kim Hyo-Sop , Yang Eun Kyeong , Kim Jae-Ho , Yoon Hyun C. , Park Hyun-Ji 
Published: August 2023

Abstract

Background
Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) gain attention as a potent cell source in regenerative medicine and drug discovery. With the necessity of the demands for experimental models to create a more physiologically relevant model of the heart in vitro we herein investigate a 3D culturing platform and a method for assessing rhythm in hiPSC-CMs.

Methods
The 3D cell culture PAMCELL™ plate is designed to enable cells to attach exclusively to adhesive patterned areas. These cell adhesive zones, named as micro-patterned pads, feature micron silica beads that are surface-modified with the well-known arginyl-glycyl-aspartic acid (RGD) peptide. RGD binding to the surface of hiPSC-CMs facilitates cell–cell attachment and the formation of uniform-size spheroids, which is controlled by the diameter of the micro-patterned pads. The assessment and evaluation of 3D hiPSC-CMs beating pattern are carried out using reflective properties of retroreflective Janus micro-particle (RJP). These RJPs are modified with an antibody targeting the gap junction protein found on the surface of hiPSC-CM spheroids. The signal assessment system comprises a camera attached to an optical microscope and a white light source.

Results
The 3D PAMCELL™ R100 culture plate efficiently generate approximately 350 uniform-sized hiPSC-CM spheroids in each well of a 96-well plate and supported a 20-day culture. Analysis of genes and protein expression levels reveal that iPSC-CM spheroids grown on PAMCELL™ R100 retain cardiac stem cell characteristics and functions, outperforming traditional 2D culture platform. Additionally, the RJPs enable monitoring and evaluation of in vitro beating properties of cardiomyocytes without using complex monitoring setup. The system demonstrates its capability to identify alteration in the rhythmic activity of cardiac cells when exposed to ion channel blockers, nifedipine and E4031.

Conclusions
The integration of the 3D culture method and RJPs in this study establishes a platform for evaluating the rhythmic properties of 3D hiPSC-CMs. This approach holds significant potential for identifying arrhythmias or other cardiac abnormalities, ultimately contributing to the development of more effective therapies for heart diseases.

Graphical Abstract
Implementation intensification to disseminate a skills-based caregiver training program: protocol for a type III effectiveness-implementation hybrid trial
Authors: Decosimo Kasey , Drake Connor , Coffman Cynthia J. , Sperber Nina R. , Tucker Matthew , Hughes Jaime M. , Zullig Leah L. , Chadduck Trisha , Christensen Leah , Kaufman Brystana , Allen Kelli D. , Hastings S. Nicole , Van Houtven Courtney H. 
Published: August 2023

Abstract
Background
Family caregiver training decreases caregiver psychological burden and improves caregiver depressive symptoms and health-related quality of life. Caregivers FIRST is an evidence-based group skills training curriculum for family caregivers and was announced for national dissemination in partnership with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) National Caregiver Support Program (CSP). Previous evaluations of Caregivers FIRST implementation highlighted that varying support was needed to successfully implement the program, ranging from minimal technical assistance to intensive assistance and support. However, we do not know the optimal level of support needed to inform cost-effective national scaling of the program. We describe a protocol for randomizing 24 non-adopting VA medical centers 1:1 to a tailored, high-touch implementation support or a standard, low-touch implementation support to test the primary hypothesis that high-touch support increases Caregivers FIRST penetration, fidelity, and adoption. Additionally, we describe the methods for evaluating the effect of Caregivers FIRST participation on Veteran outcomes using a quasi-experimental design and the methods for a business case analysis to examine cost of delivery differences among sites assigned to a low or high-touch implementation support.

Methods
We use a type III hybrid implementation-effectiveness study design enrolling VA medical centers that do not meet Caregivers FIRST adoption benchmarks following the announcement of the program as mandated within the CSP. Eligible medical centers will be randomized to receive a standard low-touch implementation support based on Replicating Effective Programs (REP) only or to an enhanced REP (high-touch) implementation support consisting of facilitation and tailored technical assistance. Implementation outcomes include penetration (primary), fidelity, and adoption at 12 months. Mixed methods will explore sites’ perceptions and experiences of the high-touch intensification strategy. Additional analyses will include a patient-level effectiveness outcome (Veteran days at home and not in an institution) and a business case analysis using staffing and labor cost data.

Discussion
This pragmatic trial will lead to the development and refinement of implementation tools to support VA in spreading and sustaining Caregivers FIRST in the most efficient means possible.

Trial registration
This study was registered on April 8, 2022, at ClinicalTrials.gov (identifier NCT05319535).
Mouse Testicular Mkrn3 Expression Is Primarily Interstitial, Increases Peripubertally, and Is Responsive to LH/hCG
Authors: Pereira Sidney A , Oliveira Fernanda C B , Naulé Lydie , Royer Carine , Neves Francisco A R , Abreu Ana Paula , Carroll Rona S , Kaiser Ursula B , Coelho Michella S , Lofrano-Porto Adriana 
Published: August 2023

AbstractStudies in humans and mice support a role for Makorin RING finger protein 3 (MKRN3) as an inhibitor of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) secretion prepubertally, and its loss of function is the most common genetic cause of central precocious puberty in humans. Studies have shown that the gonads can synthesize neuropeptides and express MKRN3/Mkrn3 mRNA. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the spatiotemporal expression pattern of Mkrn3 in gonads during sexual development, and its potential regulation in the functional testicular compartments by gonadotropins. Mkrn3 mRNA was detected in testes and ovaries of wild-type mice at all ages evaluated, with a sexually dimorphic expression pattern between male and female gonads. Mkrn3 expression was highest peripubertally in the testes, whereas it was lower peripubertally than prepubertally in the ovaries. Mkrn3 is expressed primarily in the interstitial compartment of the testes but was also detected at low levels in the seminiferous tubules. In vitro studies demonstrated that Mkrn3 mRNA levels increased in human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG)–treated Leydig cell primary cultures. Acute administration of a GnRH agonist in adult mice increased Mkrn3 expression in testes, whereas inhibition of the hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal axis by chronic administration of GnRH agonist had the opposite effect. Finally, we found that hCG increased Mkrn3 mRNA levels in a dose-dependent manner. Taken together, our developmental expression analyses, in vitro and in vivo studies show that Mkrn3 is expressed in the testes, predominantly in the interstitial compartment, and that Mkrn3 expression increases after puberty and is responsive to luteinizing hormone/hCG stimulation.
Social Isolation and Breast Cancer
Authors: Hilakivi-Clarke Leena , de Oliveira Andrade Fabia 
Published: August 2023

Abstract
Although the role of life stressors in breast cancer remains unclear, social isolation is consistently associated with increased breast cancer risk and mortality. Social isolation can be defined as loneliness or an absence of perceived social connections. In female mice and rats, social isolation is mimicked by housing animals 1 per cage. Social isolation causes many biological changes, of which an increase in inflammatory markers and disruptions in mitochondrial and cellular metabolism are commonly reported. It is not clear how the 2 traditional stress-induced pathways, namely, the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenocortical axis (HPA), resulting in a release of glucocorticoids from the adrenal cortex, and autonomic nervous system (ANS), resulting in a release of catecholamines from the adrenal medulla and postganglionic neurons, could explain the increased breast cancer risk in socially isolated individuals. For instance, glucocorticoid receptor activation in estrogen receptor positive breast cancer cells inhibits their proliferation, and activation of β-adrenergic receptor in immature immune cells promotes their differentiation toward antitumorigenic T cells. However, activation of HPA and ANS pathways may cause a disruption in the brain–gut–microbiome axis, resulting in gut dysbiosis. Gut dysbiosis, in turn, leads to an alteration in the production of bacterial metabolites, such as short chain fatty acids, causing a systemic low-grade inflammation and inducing dysfunction in mitochondrial and cellular metabolism. A possible causal link between social isolation–induced increased breast cancer risk and mortality and gut dysbiosis should be investigated, as it offers new tools to prevent breast cancer.
From Unitary Plurality to Plural Unity
Authors: Li Huaiyin 
Published: August 2023

Abstract
The writings by Chinese historians and archeologists about the origins of Chinese civilization in the past century have transitioned from the old construct of “unitary plurality,” or a shared assumption of the mythical Huangdi (the Yellow Emperor) as the progenitor of the only civilization in the land of Huaxia (proto China) while admitting its coexistence with other heterogeneous but inferior cultures, to the new paradigm of “plural unity” or a consensus on Huaxia's interaction with all other cultures to form a unitary Chinese civilization that has lasted into the twenty-first century. Substantiated by the archeological findings of the twentieth century, this transition was ultimately propelled by three interweaving forces, namely, Chinese researchers' ideological undertakings, their factional struggle for academic supremacy, and commitment to local interest and identity.
Settler Sensibilities and Environmental Change
Authors: Johnson Amy 
Published: August 2023

Abstract
Malaria eradication arrived in Nepal in the 1950s as part of a global initiative to make malarial landscapes available for land reclamation and universal settlement. This article situates period reports from World Health Organization personnel involved in the Nepal Malaria Eradication Organization alongside testimonies from two malaria eradication workers from the country's Farwestern Tarai region to disentangle the socioecological and political effects of Nepal's malaria eradication project in its formative years. By concentrating on the labor of malaria eradication—focused on geographic reconnaissance and indoor residual spraying and the employment of laborers of diverse caste and ethnic backgrounds—the author argues that the project helped generate a settler sensibility toward the Nepal Tarai, transforming the forests and grasslands into a domesticated, development-ready village landscape. Applying insights from settler studies to a formally non-colonized nation-state, Nepal, the article highlights settlerism as a practice extending beyond the geography of European-American imperialism and embeds Nepal's malaria eradication program within the colonial landscape of Northern South Asia.
Characteristics Predicting Short-Term and Long-Term Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Esophageal Cancer After Neoadjuvant Chemoradiotherapy and Esophagectomy
Authors: van der Wilk Berend J. , Eyck Ben M. , Noordman Bo J. , Kranenburg Leonieke W. , Oppe Mark , Lagarde Sjoerd M. , Wijnhoven Bas P. L. , Busschbach Jan J. , van Lanschot J. Jan B. 
Published: August 2023

Abstract
Background
Esophagectomy is associated with lasting effect on health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Patients desire detailed information on the expected impact of treatment on their postoperative HRQOL. The aim of the present study is to identify clinicopathological characteristics predictive for changes in short-term and long-term HRQOL after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) and surgery.

Methods
HRQOL was measured using EORTC-QLQ-C30 and QLQ-OES24 questionnaires prior to nCRT, three, six, nine and twelve months postoperatively and at a minimum of six years postoperatively. Based on previous experience and available literature, several subgroups were predefined for different clinicopathological characteristics: baseline global HRQOL, WHO performance status, histology, tumor stage and tumor location. The primary endpoints of the present study were the change compared to baseline in the HRQOL dimensions physical functioning and eating problems. Secondary endpoints were global HRQOL, fatigue and emotional problems.

Results
In total, 134 (76%) of 177 patients who received HRQOL questionnaires, responded at baseline. Patients who reported a high baseline global HRQOL had a more severe deterioration in eating problems (+14.5 to + 18.0), global HRQOL (-16.0 to -28.0) and fatigue (+10.5 to +14.9) up to six years postoperatively compared to patients who reported a low baseline global HRQOL. Patients who had stage 2 tumor (UICC 6th edition) had a more severe deterioration in eating problems (+14.6 to +19.0) and global HRQOL (-10.1 to -17.1) than patients who had stage 3 tumor.

Conclusions
The results suggest that patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer in favorable condition at baseline decline more in terms of various HRQOL outcomes.
A Superlinearly Convergent Subgradient Method for Sharp Semismooth Problems
Authors: Charisopoulos Vasileios , Davis Damek 
Published: August 2023

Subgradient methods comprise a fundamental class of nonsmooth optimization algorithms. Classical results show that certain subgradient methods converge sublinearly for general Lipschitz convex functions and converge linearly for convex functions that grow sharply away from solutions. Recent work has moreover extended these results to certain nonconvex problems. In this work, we seek to improve the complexity of these algorithms by asking the following question. Is it possible to design a superlinearly convergent subgradient method? We provide a positive answer to this question for a broad class of sharp semismooth functions. Funding: The research of D. Davis was supported by the Division of Mathematical Sciences [Grant 2047637] and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
In Congestion Games, Taxes Achieve Optimal Approximation
Authors: Paccagnan Dario , Gairing Martin 
Published: August 2023

The Power of Traffic Tolls The paper “In Congestion Games, Taxes Achieve Optimal Approximation” by Paccagnan and Gairing investigates the power and limitations of taxes as interventions in congestion games. Perhaps surprisingly, they find that efficiently computed taxes can achieve the same performance as the best polynomial time algorithm, even when the algorithm has full control over the agents’ actions. The authors establish three main results to support this claim. First, they prove that minimizing congestion is NP-hard to approximate within a given factor based on the latency functions. Second, they demonstrate how convex optimization tools can be used to design optimal taxes. Third, they provide a polynomial time algorithm with an approximation factor matching the hardness barrier. The upshot of their contribution can be summarized as follows: Judiciously designed taxes achieve optimal approximation, and no other tractable intervention can improve upon this result.
How Entrepreneurs Achieve Purpose Beyond Profit: The Case of Women Entrepreneurs in Nigeria
Authors: Barkema Harry G. , Bindl Uta K. , Tanveer Lamees 
Published: August 2023

This paper investigates how entrepreneurs achieve a sense of purpose or, more precisely, eudaimonic well-being—the experience of a good and meaningful life. We explore this in the context of women entrepreneurs participating in a business training program in Nigeria. Specifically, we conduct mixed-methods research, starting with an inductive qualitative Study 1 of what eudaimonic well-being means for these entrepreneurs. We find that, in the context of their enterprises, eudaimonic well-being implies opportunities to experience self-cultivation, mastery, social recognition, and to benefit others in the community. Unexpectedly, the women in our study also experience eudaimonic well-being related to their households. These initial insights inform theory in Study 2 on how enterprise-related learning (i.e., acquiring and assimilating knowledge regarding the enterprise) and household-related learning (acquiring and assimilating knowledge regarding the household) influence their eudaimonic well-being, itself driven by strong social ties with other women entrepreneurs in the training program. Hypotheses testing through a quantitative study of 484 women entrepreneurs in Nigeria over time corroborates the theory. Our research provides a contextualized perspective of “purpose” in entrepreneurship and how to achieve it: by developing strong social ties, enabling enterprise- and household-related learning, women entrepreneurs in our context initiate greater eudaimonic well-being, beyond improving firm performance. Supplemental Material: The online appendices are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2021.15341 .
Multi-ancestry GWAS analysis identifies two novel loci associated with diabetic eye disease and highlights APOL1 as a high risk locus in patients with diabetic macular edema
Authors: Stockwell Amy D. , Chang Michael C. , Mahajan Anubha , Forrest William , Anegondi Neha , Pendergrass Rion K. , Selvaraj Suresh , Reeder Jens , Wei Eric , Iglesias Victor A. , Creps Natalie M. , Macri Laura , Neeranjan Andrea N. , van der Brug Marcel P. , Scales Suzie J. , McCarthy Mark I. , Yaspan Brian L. 
Published: August 2023

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is a common complication of diabetes. Approximately 20% of DR patients have diabetic macular edema (DME) characterized by fluid leakage into the retina. There is a genetic component to DR and DME risk, but few replicable loci. Because not all DR cases have DME, we focused on DME to increase power, and conducted a multi-ancestry GWAS to assess DME risk in a total of 1,502 DME patients and 5,603 non-DME controls in discovery and replication datasets. Two loci reached GWAS significance (p<5x10-8). The strongest association was rs2239785, (K150E) inAPOL1. The second finding was rs10402468, which co-localized toPLVAPandANKLE1in vascular / endothelium tissues. We conducted multiple sensitivity analyses to establish that the associations were specific to DME status and did not reflect diabetes status or other diabetic complications. Here we report two novel loci for risk of DME which replicated in multiple clinical trial and biobank derived datasets. One of these loci, containing the geneAPOL1, is a risk factor in African American DME and DKD patients, indicating that this locus plays a broader role in diabetic complications for multiple ancestries.Trial Registration:NCT00473330,NCT00473382,NCT03622580,NCT03622593,NCT04108156.
Using the health belief model to understand the factors influencing the perceptions of people of Chinese ancestry about reducing salt consumption for hypertension prevention: A cross-sectional study
Authors: Chan Alex , Wai-chi Chan Sally , Kinsman Leigh 
Published: August 2023

Background
High-salt diets are linked to hypertension. Chinese people in Australia, are at increased risk of hypertension due to the combination of routine addition of high quantities of salt to food during cooking and high salt levels in processed western foods. There is a scarcity of salt-related behavioural studies on this population group. This study aimed to explore the habitual salt consumption of Chinese Australians and factors that influence their perceptions about sustaining salt-related behavioural changes for hypertension prevention.

Method
A cross-sectional descriptive study using an adapted Determinants of Salt-Restriction Behaviour Questionnaire was conducted on 188 Chinese Australians. A non-probability sampling method was used to attract participants from different parts of Australia. Statistical analyses such as descriptive analysis, t-tests and Pearson correlation tests were performed in the study.

Results
Over 97% of participants did not measure the amount of salt added to their meals. Many participants reported that salt was added to their meals based on their experience (39.4%) and food taste (31.9%). Over 80% of participants did not know the recommended level of daily salt consumption. Although salt-related knowledge had no significant correlation with individuals’ salty food taste preferences, there were significant correlations with the perceptions of the severity of disease and health benefits of reducing salt consumption (p = .001 and < .001 respectively). People with stronger salty taste preferences perceived a higher level of health threat than people with lighter salty taste preferences (p = .003).

Conclusion
Findings from this study show that knowledge about salt-reduction alone had no significant effects on salt-related behaviours. Adequate culturally relevant practice-based education in salt-reduction strategies may facilitate salt-related behavioural changes in Chinese Australians. Overall, single young Chinese Australian men with stronger salty taste preferences is the group who needs salt reduction interventions the most.