bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
An improved method for evaluating LINAC isocenter
Authors: Zacharopoulos Nicholas G. , Fenyes David A. 
Published: March 2023

AbstractBackgroundThe traditional approach to medical linear accelerator (LINAC) isocenter quality assurance is to compare the radius of the LINAC isocenter, determined via analysis of Winston‐Lutz (WL) dataset, to a threshold in order to approve the LINAC for clinical use. This scalar metric provides little insight into beam‐to‐target accuracy with gantry and couch motion.PurposeTo develop a method for verifying isocenter with increased sensitivity over traditional WL techniques by accounting for geometric errors that could normally be overlooked.MethodsFrom WL images, we construct radiation beam axis and marker shift locations in a 3D coordinate system. These axes and shift positions are used to construct a new isocenter performance metric, the ‐matrix, which predicts direction and magnitude of beam‐to‐target errors across combinations of couch and gantry position. We introduce clinical isocenter as the location optimizing a cost function derived from the ‐matrix, which serves as an optimal target for tumor positioning. We demonstrated these techniques on a clinical LINAC with an initial randomly positioned marker which was subsequently repositioned based on the optimized clinical isocenter location. The marker shifts, radiation isocenter, and ‐matrix were compared before and after repositioning. We compared the new technique against typically used WL techniques using a monte carlo simulation modeling variations in LINAC geometry, marker position, and measurement noise.ResultsThe technique was successfully demonstrated on a Varian LINAC. Marker repositioning to clinical isocenter yielding an error matrix with magnitudes all below 0.81 mm. As expected, marker position had little impact on the radiation isocenter location and radius, and also had little impact on clinical isocenter location. The verification results show the accuracy of the ‐matrix to predict beam to tumor geometric inaccuracies. The Monte Carlo simulations demonstrate that the ‐matrix is more sensitive and specific for detecting potential treatment errors compared to the traditional WL techniques.ConclusionsWe have developed and demonstrated the usefulness of a framework for verifying isocenter based on a 3D model of the radiation beam axes and tumor movement from couch rotations, derived from 2D WL transmission images. The ‐matrix replaces the scalar isocenter radius as a metric of isocenter quality, providing insight into contribution of couch and radiation beams to isocenter quality, and exposing treatment errors ignored by the traditional method. The clinical isocenter provides an alternate to physical isocenter as a target for tumor positioning in cases of suboptimal LINAC geometry.
Guideline Adherence to Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo Treatment and Management in Primary Care
Authors: Del Risco Amanda , Cherches Alex , Smith Sherri L. , Riska Kristal M. 
Published: March 2023

AbstractObjectiveTo determine adherence to the 2017 American Academy of Otolaryngology‐Head and Neck Surgery (AAO‐HNS) guidelines for the management and treatment of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) in primary care (PC) and compare whether key recommendations differed by sex, race, or insurance status.Study DesignRetrospective chart review.SettingTwenty‐six clinic locations within a single healthcare system.MethodsCharts of 458 patients diagnosed with BPPV in PC between 2018 and 2022 were reviewed. Encounters where the diagnosis of BPPV was made were identified. From the clinical encounter note, demographics, symptomatology, management, and treatment were extracted. Nonparametric analyses were used to identify whether AAO‐HNS guidelines differed regarding sex, race, or insurance status.ResultsOf 458 patients, 249 (54.4%) did not receive a diagnostic exam, and only 4 (0.9%) patients received imaging. Regarding treatment, only 51 (11.1%) received the Epley maneuver, with 263 (57.4%) receiving vestibular suppressant medication and 12.4% receiving a referral to a specialist. In regard to sex, race, or insurance status, there was no significant difference in receiving a Dix‐Hallpike diagnostic maneuver, Epley maneuver, vestibular suppressant medication, imaging, or referral to a specialist.ConclusionOur data suggest that there continue to be gaps in the adherence to AAO‐HNS guidelines; however, these gaps did not differ by sex, race, or insurance status. Care should be taken to increase the use of diagnostic and treatment maneuvers but decrease the use of vestibular‐suppressant medications for the treatment of BPPV in PC.
A Self‐Configuring Deep Learning Network for Segmentation of Temporal Bone Anatomy in Cone‐Beam CT Imaging
Authors: Ding Andy S. , Lu Alexander , Li Zhaoshuo , Sahu Manish , Galaiya Deepa , Siewerdsen Jeffrey H. , Unberath Mathias , Taylor Russell H. , Creighton Francis X. 
Published: March 2023

AbstractObjectivePreoperative planning for otologic or neurotologic procedures often requires manual segmentation of relevant structures, which can be tedious and time‐consuming. Automated methods for segmenting multiple geometrically complex structures can not only streamline preoperative planning but also augment minimally invasive and/or robot‐assisted procedures in this space. This study evaluates a state‐of‐the‐art deep learning pipeline for semantic segmentation of temporal bone anatomy.Study DesignA descriptive study of a segmentation network.SettingAcademic institution.MethodsA total of 15 high‐resolution cone‐beam temporal bone computed tomography (CT) data sets were included in this study. All images were co‐registered, with relevant anatomical structures (eg, ossicles, inner ear, facial nerve, chorda tympani, bony labyrinth) manually segmented. Predicted segmentations from no new U‐Net (nnU‐Net), an open‐source 3‐dimensional semantic segmentation neural network, were compared against ground‐truth segmentations using modified Hausdorff distances (mHD) and Dice scores.ResultsFivefold cross‐validation with nnU‐Net between predicted and ground‐truth labels were as follows: malleus (mHD: 0.044 ± 0.024 mm, dice: 0.914 ± 0.035), incus (mHD: 0.051 ± 0.027 mm, dice: 0.916 ± 0.034), stapes (mHD: 0.147 ± 0.113 mm, dice: 0.560 ± 0.106), bony labyrinth (mHD: 0.038 ± 0.031 mm, dice: 0.952 ± 0.017), and facial nerve (mHD: 0.139 ± 0.072 mm, dice: 0.862 ± 0.039). Comparison against atlas‐based segmentation propagation showed significantly higher Dice scores for all structures (p < .05).ConclusionUsing an open‐source deep learning pipeline, we demonstrate consistently submillimeter accuracy for semantic CT segmentation of temporal bone anatomy compared to hand‐segmented labels. This pipeline has the potential to greatly improve preoperative planning workflows for a variety of otologic and neurotologic procedures and augment existing image guidance and robot‐assisted systems for the temporal bone.
Development of trisiloxane surfactant vesicles ultrasonic extraction method combined with ultrahigh‐performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry for the rapid differentiation of Bupleuri Radix based on metabolomics
Authors: Wang Jianxin , Qiu Shuocheng , Shang Jiawei , Li Chaoyi , Du Linliu , He Zhuhan , Xue Guiren , Yan Pengfei , Su Shanshan , Xu Huijun 
Published: March 2023

AbstractIntroductionDue to the variety, chemical composition and complex structure, the quality control of Bupleuri Radix (BR) is a challenging task. There are still many trace compounds in BR that are difficult to extract and detect.ObjectiveTo develop an innovative method of trisiloxane surfactant vesicles ultrasonic extraction (TSVUE) combined with ultrahigh‐performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry for the identification from Bupleurum chinense DC. (BC) to Bupleurum scorzonerifolium Willd (BS) based on metabolomics.MethodsBased on extraction effect for BR, five different types of surfactants vesicles were prepared and compared. Then, a single‐factor test and a response surface methodology study were adopted to obtain the optimal conditions for the surfactant vesicles ultrasonic extraction method. Finally, a non‐targeted metabolomics method with information dependent acquisition mode was performed to analyse differential metabolites in BC and BS.ResultsSugar‐based surfactant containing trisiloxane [N‐3‐propyl‐methyltrisiloxane‐N‐glucoheptonamne (Si(3)N‐GHA)] displayed higher extraction efficiency compared to other types of surfactants when it comes to being used in pretreatment methods. And a TSVUE method was established and optimised. In total, 131 constituents were identified in two BR herbs, of which 35 were unreported, and 11 were characterised as chemical markers.ConclusionsThis method provides promising perspectives for rapidly identifying trace compounds in complex systems of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), as well as for laying the foundation in the identification of similar herbs from the same species. Meanwhile, these findings serve as a promising application of trisiloxane surfactant vesicles in the extraction field of TCM.
Utility of psychological and psychoeducational evaluation reports: A survey of teachers and school administrators
Authors: Hale Courtney , Brown‐Chidsey Rachel 
Published: March 2023

AbstractPsychological and psychoeducational evaluation reports are often criticized for being too long and difficult to understand. Nonetheless, these reports inform, and are often required for, high‐stakes educational decisions. Very little prior research has documented whether general and special educators read the entirety of such reports. This study utilized a survey of 349 general and special education teachers and administrators to learn about their report reading habits and preferences. About one‐third of participants indicated that they typically read the entire report. In cases where selected sections were read, the recommendations and summary were the most common. A majority of participants indicated a preference for shorter reports, bullet points, and visual summaries. Together the findings suggest that certain report characteristics are more useful to educators than others. Implications for reporting practices and future research are discussed.
Co‐administration of curcumin with other phytochemicals improves anticancer activity by regulating multiple molecular targets
Authors: Ghobadi Niloofar , Asoodeh Ahmad 
Published: March 2023

AbstractNatural plant phytochemicals are effective against different types of diseases, including cancer. Curcumin, a powerful herbal polyphenol, exerts inhibitory effects on cancer cell proliferation, angiogenesis, invasion, and metastasis through interaction with different molecular targets. However, the clinical use of curcumin is limited due to poor solubility in water and metabolism in the liver and intestine. The synergistic effects of curcumin with some phytochemicals such as resveratrol, quercetin, epigallocatechin‐3‐gallate, and piperine can improve its clinical efficacy in cancer treatment. The present review specifically focuses on anticancer mechanisms related to the co‐administration of curcumin with other phytochemicals, including resveratrol, quercetin, epigallocatechin‐3‐gallate, and piperine. According to the molecular evidence, the phytochemical combinations exert synergistic effects on suppressing cell proliferation, reducing cellular invasion, and inducing apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. This review also emphasizes the significance of the co‐delivery vehicles‐based nanoparticles of such bioactive phytochemicals that could improve their bioavailability and reduce their systemic dose. Further high‐quality studies are needed to firmly establish the clinical efficacy of the phytochemical combinations.
Wide‐Field and Real‐Time Super‐Resolution Optical Imaging By Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticle‐Assembled Solid Immersion Lens
Authors: Wang Weicheng , Yan Bing , Wang Haiyan , Chen Yue , Nie Xiuyu , Yi Changfeng , Wang Zengbo , Xu Zushun , Zeng Jing , Fan Wen 
Published: March 2023

AbstractSuper‐resolution optical imaging techniques can break the optical diffraction limit, thus providing unique opportunities to visualize the microscopic world at the nanoscale. Although near‐field optical microscopy techniques have been proven to achieve significantly improved imaging resolution, most near‐field approaches still suffer from a narrow field of view (FOV) or difficulty in obtaining wide‐field images in real time, which may limit their widespread and diverse applications. Here, the authors experimentally demonstrate an optical microscope magnification and image enhancement approach by using a submillimeter‐sized solid immersion lens (SIL) assembled by densely‐packed 15 nm TiO2 nanoparticles through a silicone oil two‐step dehydration method. This TiO2 nanoparticle‐assembled SIL can achieve both high transparency and high refractive index, as well as sufficient mechanical strength and easy‐to‐handle size, thus providing a fast, wide‐field, real‐time, non‐destructive, and low‐cost solution for improving the quality of optical microscopic observation of a variety of samples, including nanomaterials, cancer cells, and living cells or bacteria under conventional optical microscopes. This study provides an attractive alternative to simplify the fabrication and applications of high‐performance SILs.
Bioinspired Hydrophobicity Coupled with Single Fe‐N4 Sites Promotes Oxygen Diffusion for Efficient Zinc‐Air Batteries
Authors: Xu Chuanlan , Guo Chaozhong , Liu Jianping , Hu Bihao , Chen Hongdian , Li Guijun , Xu Xinru , Shu Chenyang , Li Honglin , Chen Changguo 
Published: March 2023

AbstractThe poor oxygen diffusion and sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) kinetics at multiphase interfaces in the cathode suppress the practical application of zinc‐air batteries. Developing effective strategies to tackle the issue is of great significance for overcoming the performance bottleneck but remains challenging. Here, a multiscale hydrophobic surface is designed on the iron single‐atom catalyst via a gas‐phase fluorination‐assisted method inspired by the structure of gas‐trapping mastoids on lotus leaves. The hydrophobic Fe‐FNC attains a higher peak power density of up to 226 mW cm−2, a long durability of up close to 140 h, and better cyclic durability of up to 300 cycles compared to the corresponding Pt/C‐based Zn‐air battery. Experiments and theoretical calculations indicate that the formed more triple‐phase interfaces and exposed isolated Fe‐N4 sites are proposed as the governing factors in boosting electrocatalytic ORR activity and remarkable cycling durability for Zn‐air batteries.
Entropically Driven Fabrication of Binary Superlattices Assembled from Polymer‐Tethered Nanocubes and Nanospheres
Authors: Yue Xuan , Li Jinlan , Yan Nan , Jiang Wei 
Published: March 2023

AbstractThe spontaneous organization of two types of nanoparticles (NPs) with different shapes or properties into binary nanoparticle superlattices (BNSLs) with different configurations has recently attracted significant attention due to the coupling or synergistic effect of the two types of NPs, providing an efficient and general route for designing new functional materials and devices. Here, this work reports the co‐assembly of polystyrene (PS) tethered anisotropic gold nanocubes (AuNCs@PS) and isotropic gold NPs (AuNPs@PS) via an emulsion‐interface self‐assembly strategy. The distributions and arrangements of the AuNCs and spherical AuNPs in the BNSLs can be precisely controlled by adjusting the effective size ratio (λeff) of the effective diameter (deff) of the embedded spherical AuNPs to the polymer gap size (L) between the neighboring AuNCs. λeff determines not only the change of the conformational entropy of the grafted polymer chains (∆Scon) but also the mixing entropy (∆Smix) of the two types of NPs. During the co‐assembly process, ∆Smix tends to be as high as possible, and the −∆Scon tends to be as low as possible, leading to free energy minimization. As a result, well‐defined BNSLs with controllable distributions of spherical and cubic NPs can be obtained by tuning λeff. This strategy can also be applied for other NPs with different shapes and atomic properties, thus largely enriching the BNSL library and enabling the fabrication of multifunctional BNSLs, which have potential applications in photothermal therapy, surface‐enhanced Raman scattering, and catalysis.
Microstructure Design Strategy for Molecularly Dispersed Cobalt Phthalocyanine and Efficient Mass Transport in CO2 Electroreduction
Authors: Yue Pengtao , Zhong Liyang , Deng Yuhe , Li Jun , Zhang Liang , Ye Dingding , Zhu Xun , Fu Qian , Liao Qiang 
Published: March 2023

AbstractCobalt phthalocyanine (CoPc) has attracted particular interest owing to its excellent activity during the electrochemical CO2 conversion to CO. However, the efficient utilization of CoPc at industrially relevant current densities is still a challenge owing to its nonconductive property, agglomeration, and unfavorable conductive substrate design. Here, a microstructure design strategy for dispersing CoPc molecules on a carbon substrate for efficient CO2 transport during CO2 electrolysis is proposed and demonstrated. The highly dispersed CoPc is loaded on a macroporous hollow nanocarbon sheet to act as the catalyst (CoPc/CS). The unique interconnected and macroporous structure of the carbon sheet forms a large specific surface area to anchor CoPc with high dispersion and simultaneously boosts the mass transport of reactants in the catalyst layer, significantly improving the electrochemical performance. By employing a zero‐gap flow cell, the designed catalyst can mediate CO2 to CO with a high full‐cell energy efficiency of 57% at 200 mA cm−2.
Declarative static analysis for multilingual programs using CodeQL
Authors: Youn Dongjun , Lee Sungho , Ryu Sukyoung 
Published: March 2023

SummaryDeclarative static program analysis has become one of the widely‐used program analysis techniques. Declarative static analyzers perform three steps: creating databases of facts from program source code, evaluating rules to generate new facts, and running queries over facts to extract all information related to specific properties via query systems. Declarative static analyzers can easily target diverse programming languages by modifying only databases and rules for new languages. Because query systems are independent of programming languages, they are reusable for new languages. However, even when declarative analyzers support multiple programming languages they do not currently support the analysis of multilingual programs written in two or more programming languages. We propose a systematic methodology that extends a declarative static analyzer supporting multiple languages to support multilingual programs as well. The main idea is to reuse existing components of the analyzer. Our approach first generates a merged database of facts, consisting of multiple logical language spaces. It allows existing language‐specific rules to derive new facts for the corresponding language from the facts in the corresponding language space. Then, it defines language‐interoperation rules that handle the language interoperation semantics. Finally, it uses the same query system to get analysis results leveraging the language interoperation semantics. We develop a proof‐of‐concept declarative static analyzer for multilingual programs by extending CodeQL, which can track dataflows across language boundaries. Our evaluation shows that the analyzer successfully tracks dataflows across Java‐C and Python‐C language boundaries and detects genuine interoperation bugs in real‐world multilingual
programs.
Assessment of lipid metabolism‐disrupting effects of non‐phthalate plasticizer diisobutyl adipate through in silico and in vitro approaches
Authors: Wei Rong , Zhang Weigao , Pu Chunlin , Shao Qianchao , Xu Qian , Li Peiqi , Zhao Xunan , Sun Tingzhe , Weng Dan 
Published: March 2023

AbstractDiisobutyl adipate (DIBA), as a novel non‐phthalate plasticizer, is widely used in various products. However, little effort has been made to investigate whether DIBA might have adverse effects on human health. In this study, we integrated an in silico and in vitro strategy to assess the impact of DIBA on cellular homeostasis. Since numerous plasticizers could activate peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor γ (PPARγ) pathway to interrupt metabolism systems, we first utilized molecular docking to analyze interaction between DIBA and PPARγ. Results indicated that DIBA had strong affinity with the ligand‐binding domain of PPARγ (PPARγ‐LBD) at Histidine 499. Afterwards, we used cellular models to investigate in vitro effects of DIBA. Results demonstrated that DIBA exposure increased intracellular lipid content in murine and human hepatocytes, and altered transcriptional expression of genes related to PPARγ signaling and lipid metabolism pathways. At last, target genes regulated by DIBA were predicted and enriched for Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis. Protein–protein interaction (PPI) network and transcriptional factors (TFs)‐genes network were established accordingly. Target genes were enriched in Phospholipase D signaling pathway, phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/Akt) and Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling pathway which were related to lipid metabolism. These findings suggested that DIBA exposure might disturb intracellular lipid metabolism homeostasis via targeting PPARγ. This study also demonstrated that this integrated in silico and in vitro methodology could be utilized as a high throughput, cost‐saving and effective tool to assess the potential risk of various environmental chemicals on human health.
Homozygosity mapping identified loci and candidate genes responsible for freezing tolerance in Camelina sativa
Authors: Shaikh TM , Rahman Mukhlesur , Smith Timothy , Anderson James V. , Chao Wun S. , Horvath David P. 
Published: March 2023

AbstractHomozygosity mapping is an effective tool for detecting genomic regions responsible for a given trait when the phenotype is controlled by a limited number of dominant or co‐dominant loci. Freezing tolerance is a major attribute in agricultural crops such as camelina. Previous studies indicated that freezing tolerance differences between a tolerant (Joelle) and susceptible (CO46) variety of camelina were controlled by a small number of dominant or co‐dominant genes. We performed whole genome homozygosity mapping to identify markers and candidate genes responsible for freezing tolerance difference between these two genotypes. A total of 28 F3 RILs were sequenced to ∼30× coverage, and parental lines were sequenced to >30–40× coverage with Pacific Biosciences high fidelity technology and 60× coverage using Illumina whole genome sequencing. Overall, about 126k homozygous single nucleotide polymorphism markers were identified that differentiate both parents. Moreover, 617 markers were also homozygous in F3 families fixed for freezing tolerance/susceptibility. All these markers mapped to two contigs forming a contiguous stretch of chromosome 11. The homozygosity mapping detected 9 homozygous blocks among the selected markers and 22 candidate genes with strong similarity to regions in or near the homozygous blocks. Two such genes were differentially expressed during cold acclimation in camelina. The largest block contained a cold‐regulated plant thionin and a putative rotamase cyclophilin 2 gene previously associated with freezing resistance in arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). The second largest block contains several cysteine‐rich RLK genes and a cold‐regulated receptor serine/threonine kinase gene. We hypothesize that one or more of these genes may be primarily responsible for freezing tolerance differences in camelina varieties.