bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Fatal toxoplasmosis in a captive squirrel monkey (Saimiri boliviensis) in Portugal
Authors: Salas-Fajardo Martha Ynés , Benavides Julio , Azevedo Alexandre , Figueiras Paulo , Monteiro Madalena , Orge Leonor , Mendonça Paula , Carvalho Paulo , Waap Helga , Ortega-Mora Luis Miguel , Calero-Bernal Rafael 
Published: July 2023

AbstractNew World monkeys are especially vulnerable to develop severe clinical manifestations and succumb to acute toxoplasmosis. This study aimed to describe the histopathological findings and genotypic characterization of the Toxoplasma gondii strain involved in a lethal case occurring in a zoo-housed black-capped squirrel monkey (Saimiri boliviensis) in Portugal. Cyst-like structures suggestive of Sarcocystidae parasites and acute injuries in liver and brain were observed by light microscopy examination. By immunohistochemistry, calprotectin, T. gondii antigen and Iba1 antigen had a positive signaling in lung, liver and brain tissues. Toxoplasma gondii B1, ITS1 and 529 repetitive element fragments amplifications together with the genotyping of 13 microsatellite markers confirmed a systemic T. gondii infection linked to a non-clonal type II strain. This description is consistent to the majority T. gondii strains circulating in Europe.
The race of ecological vehicles: consumer behavior and generation impact in the Portuguese market
Authors: Campino José , Mendes Francisca Pereira , Rosa Álvaro 
Published: July 2023

AbstractThe impacts of climate change are becoming increasingly severe and noticeable. Consumers are becoming more cognizant of the environmental challenges that affect the planet. A major contributor to carbon emissions and the resulting warming climate and pollution is transportation. As a result, the selection of environmentally friendly options in this industry is becoming a pressing matter. This study aims to examine the reasons that motivate consumers to choose eco-friendly vehicles. The study specifically aims to understand what factors drive consumers to purchase such vehicles. A questionnaire was administered to the Portuguese population to determine which factors influence the decision to purchase eco-friendly vehicles, and what type of vehicles are preferred. The study includes all types of eco-friendly vehicles, including early-stage solutions such as fuel cell vehicles. Furthermore, the study examines whether there is any difference in purchasing habits between generations. The study is based on several theories, including the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), Diffusion of Innovation (DOI), Norm Activation Model (NAM), and Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Our research concludes that attitude (influenced by the advantages, compatibility, and non-complexity) and personal norms (influenced by the efficiency) are the two factors that affect positively and significantly the intention of purchase. The preferred eco-friendly vehicle among participants was found to be the hybrid electric vehicle, and the hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle was also considered. The study did not find a significant impact of generation on purchasing decisions, but different generations were found to value different factors when making a vehicle purchase.
Estimating agriculture technologies’ impact on maize yield in rural South Africa
Authors: Boakye Alex 
Published: July 2023

AbstractNew technologies and digital infrastructures are enabling smart farming with high productivity levels across countries. Yet, there is dearth of evidence on how they are enabling smallholder farmers in Africa to increase their farm produce. By focussing on smallholder maize crop producers in South Africa and relying on a panel data for the period 2011–2021, this study applied a stochastic production frontier framework and Cobb–Douglas production function to estimate the relationship between variance of yield increase in relation to aggregate modern technologies adopted. The stochastic production frontier model was estimated using simple ordinary least square, maximum likelihood estimation and probit regressions. The analysis adopted a three-stage procedure which began with the specification of regression model, the calculation of least residuals squares of the explanatory variables and finally the estimation of the variances in the functional forms of output levels. The results revealed a positive relation between the application of digital agriculture technologies and increased crop performance for rural maize cultivators in South Africa. The policy inference from this study is that accelerating investment in digital agriculture infrastructure offers the promise of a quadruple return for South Africa’s agriculture sector.
Transcriptome analysis reveals the role of Zelda in the regulation of embryonic and wing development ofTribolium castaneum
Authors: Gao Shanshan , Xue Shuang , Gao Tian , Lu Ruixue , Zhang Xinyi , Zhang Yonglei , Zhang Kunpeng , Li Ruimin 
Published: July 2023

AbstractZinc finger protein (Zelda) ofTribolium castaneum(TcZelda) has been showed to play pivotal roles in embryonic development and metamorphosis. However, the regulatory mechanism ofTcZeldaassociated with these physiology processes is unclear. Herein, the developmental expression profile showed thatZeldaofT. castaneumwas highly expressed in early eggs. Tissue expression profiling revealed thatTcZeldawas mainly expressed in the larval head and adult ovary of late adults and late larvae.TcZeldaknockdown led to a 95% mortality rate in adults. These results suggested thatTcZeldais related to the activation of the zygote genome in early embryonic development. Furthermore, 592 differentially expressed genes were identified from the dsZeldatreated group. Compared with the control group,altered disjunction(ALD) andAGAP005368-PA(GAP) in the dsZeldagroup were significantly down-regulated, whileTGF-beta, propeptide(TGF) was significantly up-regulated, suggesting thatTcZeldamay be involved in insect embryonic development. In addition, the expression ofUbx ultrabithorax(UBX),Cx cephalothorax(CX),En engrailed(EN), and twoEndocuticle structural glycoprotein sgabd(ABD) genes were significantly down-regulated, suggesting that they may cooperate withTcZeldato regulate the development of insect wings. Additionally,Elongation(ELO),fatty acid synthase(FAS), andfatty acyl-CoA desaturase(FAD) expression was inhibited in dsZeldainsects, which could disturb the lipase signaling pathways, thus, disrupting the insect reproductive system and pheromone synthesis. These results may help reveal the function ofTcZeldain insects and the role of certain genes in the gene regulatory network and provide new ideas for the prevention and control ofT. castaneum.
Looting and learning: Teaching about the illicit antiquities trade and professional responsibilities in higher education
Authors: Lundén Staffan 
Published: July 2023

AbstractThe illicit antiquities trade relies on various academic experts for its operations and legitimization. To counter this involvement, academics need to be made aware of how their services might support the trade. A suitable venue for future generations of professionals to obtain this knowledge is their university education. Hence, it is of interest to ask what is taught in university programs in relevant disciplines about the illicit antiquities trade and the forms of academic entanglement within it. This article focuses on course literature in university programs for conservators. It looks at both the official curriculum (explicit and intended teaching) and the hidden curriculum (implicit and unintended teaching) concerning illicit antiquities trade and conservators’ responsibilitiesvis-à-visthis trade. It finds that the coverage is limited and partly outdated. Further, textbooks might signal that it is acceptable to undertake the treatment of unprovenanced archaeological objects. The study suggests that it is relevant to ask not only if, but also how, the topic of professional responsibility is taught, and it argues that higher education, apart from teaching how to keep clear of activities that promote the trade, should provide the knowledge and skills to actively oppose it.
Cumulative exposure to fast speech conditions duration of content words in English
Authors: Brown Earl Kjar 
Published: July 2023

AbstractThis paper tests the idea that the speech rate with which surrounding words are spoken affects the mental representation of words and conditions production of words. This possibility is operationalized by measuring a word's ratio of occurrence in speaker-relative fast speech. Other variables shown in the literature to influence speech rate are controlled for in a 10,000-iteration bootstrapping procedure of a mixed-effect linear regression model. The results of the analysis of 39,397 tokens of content words from 1,232 word types in English display a significant effect for a word's ratio of conditioning in speaker-relative fast speech, although the effect size is small or very small. Other variables shown in the literature to condition speech rate also significantly condition speech rate here. This paper suggests that in addition to other aspects of the context of use of words, contextual speech rate also influences the mental representation of words.
Intergenerational transmission of mental health risk in refugee families: The role of maternal psychopathology and emotional availability
Authors: Scharpf Florian , Paulus Markus , Christner Natalie , Beerbaum Luisa , Kammermeier Marina , Hecker Tobias 
Published: July 2023

AbstractTo prevent an intergenerational cycle of malfunction, it is crucial to understand how mothers’ exposure to traumatic war experiences contributes to their children’s vulnerability to mental health problems. This study examined the role of maternal psychopathology and mother–child emotional availability (EA) in the association between mothers’ trauma exposure and children’s mental health problems in a sample of 222 Burundian mother–child dyads living in refugee camps in Tanzania. Maternal and child EA were assessed through recorded observations of mother–child interactions. In structured clinical interviews, mothers reported on their lifetime exposure to traumatic events and their psychopathology and both mothers and fathers reported on children’s emotional and behavioral problems. Structural equation modeling showed that mothers’ higher trauma exposure was indirectly associated with higher levels of children’s mental health problems through higher levels of maternal psychopathology. Mothers’ higher trauma exposure was also directly associated with lower maternal EA in mother–child interactions, which was in turn related to higher levels of children’s mental health problems. The findings suggest that trauma exposure independently affects mothers’ mental health and their EA, which can contribute to children’s mental health problems. Interventions aiming to reduce mothers’ psychopathology and strengthen their EA may be beneficial for children’s well-being.
Assessing Convective‐Stratiform Precipitation Regimes in the Tropics and Extratropics With the GPM Satellite Radar
Authors: Schumacher Courtney , Funk Aaron 
Published: July 2023

AbstractAn 8‐year climatology of raintype observations from the Global Precipitation Measurement dual‐frequency precipitation radar highlights two stratiform rain producing storm regimes differentiated by the relative importance of convection. The more convectively active regime occurs in the tropics and over warm‐season midlatitude land, where warm‐ and cold‐topped convection accounts for 55% (40%) of the rain (rain area). The less convectively active regime dominates over midlatitude ocean and cold‐season midlatitude land, where convective rain only accounts for 15% (8%) of the rain (rain area). The ratio between cold‐topped convective and stratiform rain area is highly distinct between the two regimes (22% vs. 5.5%), with different precipitation amounts (and thus heating) for similar stratiform rain areas. A third tropics‐only warm‐topped convection regime exists, but is not associated with major stratiform rain production.
Cold Season Rain Event Has Impact on Greenland's Firn Layer Comparable to Entire Summer Melt Season
Authors: Harper J. , Saito J. , Humphrey N. 
Published: July 2023

AbstractRainfall high on the Greenland Ice Sheet is an emerging phenomenon with consequences for the thermal and structural makeup of the surface layer. We document changes to Greenland's firn column due to a 4‐day cold‐season warm/rain event. Heavy precipitation occurred with a sudden 30°C increase in air temperature, reaching 0°C at 2,000 m elevation. Thermistor strings within the firn layer across a 35 km transect show rapid warming of 6°–23°C reaching depths of 2–10 m. Antecedent conditions governed the magnitude, duration, and depth‐distribution of sensible and latent heat added to the firn column. Heat fluxes from the firn layer required up to 8 weeks to recover to baseline, a significant fraction of the winter period. The amount of liquid water refrozen in the firn column was ∼20%–100% of the prior summer demonstrating the impact of extreme weather events on the ice sheet's evolution and runoff characteristics.
Quantifying the Efficiency of Stratospheric Aerosol Geoengineering at Different Altitudes
Authors: Lee Walker R. , Visioni Daniele , Bednarz Ewa M. , MacMartin Douglas G. , Kravitz Ben , Tilmes Simone 
Published: July 2023

AbstractStratospheric aerosol injection (SAI) of reflective sulfate aerosols has been proposed to temporarily reduce the impacts of global warming. In this study, we compare two SAI simulations which inject at different altitudes to provide the same amount of cooling, finding that lower‐altitude SAI requires 64% more injection. SAI at higher altitudes cools the surface more efficiently per unit injection than lower‐altitude SAI through two primary mechanisms: the longer lifetimes of SO2 and SO4 at higher altitudes, and the water vapor feedback, in which lower‐altitude SAI causes more heating in the tropical cold point tropopause region, thereby increasing water vapor transport into the stratosphere and trapping more terrestrial infrared radiation that offsets some of the direct aerosol‐induced cooling. We isolate these individual mechanisms and find that the contribution of lifetime effects to differences in cooling efficiency is approximately five to six times larger than the contribution of the water vapor feedback.
Pituitary T1 signal intensity at magnetic resonance imaging is reduced in patients with obesity: results from the CHIASM study
Authors: Puliani Giulia , Sbardella Emilia , Cozzolino Alessia , Sada Valentina , Tozzi Rossella , Andreoli Chiara , Fiorelli Marco , Di Biasi Claudio , Corallino Diletta , Balla Andrea , Paganini Alessandro M. , Venneri Mary Anna , Lenzi Andrea , Lubrano Carla , Isidori Andrea M. 
Published: July 2023

Abstract
Background
Despite obesity being well known to be associated with several pituitary hormone imbalances, pituitary appearance in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with obesity is understudied.

Objective
To evaluate the pituitary volume and signal intensity at MRI in patients with obesity.

Methods
This is a prospective study performed in an endocrine Italian referral center (ClinicalTrial.gov Identifier: NCT03458533). Sixty-nine patients with obesity (BMI > 30 kg/m2) and twenty-five subjects without obesity were enrolled. Thirty-three patients with obesity were re-evaluated after 3 years of diet and lifestyle changes, of whom 17 (51.5%) achieved a > 5% loss of their initial body weight, whereas the remaining 16 (48.5%) had maintained or gained weight. Evaluations included metabolic and hormone assessments, DEXA scan, and pituitary MRI. Pituitary signal intensity was quantified by measuring the pixel density using ImageJ software.

Results
At baseline, no difference in pituitary volume was observed between the obese and non-obese cohorts. At the 3-year follow-up, pituitary volume was significantly reduced (p = 0.011) only in participants with stable-increased body weight. Furthermore, a significant difference was noted in the mean pituitary intensity of T1-weighted plain and contrast-enhanced sequences between the obese and non-obese cohorts at baseline (p = 0.006; p = 0.002), and a significant decrease in signal intensity was observed in the subgroup of participants who had not lost weight (p = 0.012; p = 0.017). Insulin-like growth factor-1 levels, following correction for BMI, were correlated with pituitary volume (p = 0.001) and intensity (p = 0.049), whereas morning cortisol levels were correlated with pituitary intensity (p = 0.007). The T1-weighted pituitary intensity was negatively correlated with truncal fat (p = 0.006) and fibrinogen (p = 0.018).

Conclusions
The CHIASM study describes a quantitative reduction in pituitary intensity in T1-weighted sequences in patients with obesity. These alterations could be explained by changes in the pituitary stromal tissue, correlated with low-grade inflammation.
Haploidentical transplant with posttransplant cyclophosphamide vs matched related and unrelated donor transplant in acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic neoplasm
Authors: Rieger Max J. , Stolz Sebastian M. , Müller Antonia M. , Schwotzer Rahel , Nair Gayathri , Schneidawind Dominik , Manz Markus G. , Schanz Urs 
Published: July 2023

AbstractHematopoietic cell transplantation from haploidentical donors (haploHCT) has facilitated treatment of AML and MDS by increasing donor availability and became more feasible since the introduction of post-transplant cyclophosphamide (ptCY). In our single-center retrospective analysis including 213 patients with AML or MDS, we compare the outcome of haploHCT (n = 40) with ptCY with HCT from HLA-identical MRD (n = 105) and MUD (n = 68). At 2 years after transplantation, overall survival (OS) after haploHCT was not significantly different (0.59; 95% confidence interval 0.44–0.79) compared to MRD (0.77; 0.67–0.88) and MUD transplantation (0.72; 0.64–0.82, p = 0.51). While progression-free survival (PFS) was also not significantly different (haploHCT: 0.60; 0.46–0.78, MRD: 0.55; 0.44–0.69, MUD: 0.64; 0.55–0.74, p = 0.64), non-relapse mortality (NRM) was significantly higher after haploHCT (0.18; 0.08–0.33) vs. MRD (0.029; 0.005–0.09) and MUD (0.06; 0.02–0.12, p < 0.05). Higher NRM was mainly caused by a higher rate of fatal infections, while deaths related to GvHD or other non-relapse reasons were rare in all groups. As most fatal infections occurred early and were bacterial related, one potential risk factor among many was identified in the significantly longer time to neutrophil engraftment after haploHCT with a median of 16 days (interquartile range; 14.8–20.0) vs. 12 days (10.0–13.0) for MRD and 11 days (10.0–13.0) for MUD (p = 0.01).
Boosting ridge for the extreme learning machine globally optimised for classification and regression problems
Authors: Peralez-González Carlos , Pérez-Rodríguez Javier , Durán-Rosal Antonio M. 
Published: July 2023

AbstractThis paper explores the boosting ridge (BR) framework in the extreme learning machine (ELM) community and presents a novel model that trains the base learners as a global ensemble. In the context of Extreme Learning Machine single-hidden-layer networks, the nodes in the hidden layer are preconfigured before training, and the optimisation is performed on the weights in the output layer. The previous implementation of the BR ensemble with ELM (BRELM) as base learners fix the nodes in the hidden layer for all the ELMs. The ensemble learning method generates different output layer coefficients by reducing the residual error of the ensemble sequentially as more base learners are added to the ensemble. As in other ensemble methodologies, base learners are selected until fulfilling ensemble criteria such as size or performance. This paper proposes a global learning method in the BR framework, where base learners are not added step by step, but all are calculated in a single step looking for ensemble performance. This method considers (i) the configurations of the hidden layer are different for each base learner, (ii) the base learners are optimised all at once, not sequentially, thus avoiding saturation, and (iii) the ensemble methodology does not have the disadvantage of working with strong classifiers. Various regression and classification benchmark datasets have been selected to compare this method with the original BRELM implementation and other state-of-the-art algorithms. Particularly, 71 datasets for classification and 52 for regression, have been considered using different metrics and analysing different characteristics of the datasets, such as the size, the number of classes or the imbalanced nature of them. Statistical tests indicate the superiority of the proposed method in both regression and classification problems in all experimental scenarios.
Heterogeneous traffic intersections control design based on reinforcement learning
Authors: Shen Jiajing , Hu Jiaxing , Zhao Qinpei , Rao Weixiong 
Published: July 2023

AbstractTraffic light control is a cost‐effective method to alleviate traffic congestion and deep reinforcement learning (DRL) that is increasingly favored as a method for real‐time traffic light control. However, the complexities of modern urban intersections, including crossroads and T‐junctions, pose challenges for DRL‐based traffic light control systems that do not work well for such heterogeneous intersections. To address this problem, a Heterogeneous Advantage Actor‐Critic (HA2C) model is proposed to control traffic lights for heterogeneous intersections. First, HA2C employs an intersection structure transformation scheme to mask intersection heterogeneity. Second, it develops a two‐stage approach on top of an Advantage Actor‐Critic (A2C) reinforcement learning model to learn both general and structure‐specific policies, leading to more accurate decisions. The extensive simulations on both synthetic and real‐world maps demonstrate that HA2C outperforms the state‐of‐the‐art models in terms of higher throughput and faster travel time, while using a smaller model size in most scenarios.