bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The trail-following communication in Stylotermes spp. (Blattodea, Isoptera, Stylotermitidae)
Authors: Thakur Himanshu , Agarwal Surbhi , Hradecký Jaromír , Sharma Garima , Li Hou-Feng , Yang Shang-En , Sehadová Hana , Chandel Ravinder S. , Hyliš Mirek , Mathur Vartika , Šobotník Jan , Sillam-Dussès David 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Stylotermitidae appear peculiar among all termites, feeding in trunks of living trees in South Asia only. The difficulty to collect them limits our ability to study them, and they thus still belong to critically unknown groups in respect to their biology. We used a combined approach of microscopic observations, chemical analysis and behavioural tests, to understand the source and chemical nature of the trail-following pheromone of Stylotermes faveolus from India and S. halumicus from Taiwan. The sternal gland is the exclusive source of the trail-following pheromone in both Stylotermes species. It is located at the 5th abdominal sternite in workers, made of class I, II and III secretory cells. Gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry showed a minor peak corresponding to (Z)-dodec-3-en-1-ol (DOE). This compound elicits strong behavioural responses in workers, with a trail-following activity threshold around 10− 4 ng/cm in both species. Based on both chemical analysis and behavioural experiments, we estimated the amount of DOE around 0.1 ng/gland in S. faveolus and we conclude that DOE is the only active component of the trail-following pheromone of both Stylotermes species, like in all Kalotermitidae studied so far. Our results confirm the switch from complex aldehyde trail-following pheromones occurring in the basal groups to simpler linear alcohols in the ancestor of Kalotermitidae and Neoisoptera.
Oral microbiota may affect osteoradionecrosis following radiotherapy for head and neck cancer
Authors: Li Zhengrui , Fu Rao , Huang Xufeng , Wen Xutao , Zhang Ling 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Background: Osteoradionecrosis (ORN) is a serious complication of radiotherapy for head and neck cancer (HNC). However, its etiology and pathogenesis have not been completely elucidated. Recent studies suggest the involvement of the oral microbiota in the development of ORN. The aim of this study was to assess the correlation between oral microbiota and the extent of bone resorption in ORN patients.
Materials and methods: Thirty patients who received high-dose radiotherapy for HNC were enrolled. Tissue specimens were collected from the unaffected and affected sides. The diversity, species differences and marker species of the oral microbial community were determined by 16S rRNA sequencing and bioinformatics analysis.
Results: The ORN group had greater microbial abundance and species diversity. The relative abundance of f_Prevotellaceaeand, f_Fusobacteriaceae, f_Porphyromonadaceae, f_Actinomycetaceae, f_Staphylococcaceae, g_Prevotella, g_Staphylococcus, s_Endodontalis and s_Intermedia were particular;y increased in ORN, suggesting a potential association between the oral microbiota and ORN. Furthermore, g_Prevotella, g_Streptococcus, s_parvula and s_mucilaginosa were identified as potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers of ORN. Association network analysis also suggested an overall imbalance in species diversity and ecological diversity in the oral microbiota of ORN patients. In addition, pathway analysis indicated that the dominant microbiota in ORN may disrupt bone regeneration by regulating specific metabolic pathways that increase osteoclastic activity.
Conclusion: Radiation-induced ORN is associated with significant changes in the oral microbiota, and the latter may play a potential role in the etiopathology of post-radiation ORN. The exact mechanisms through which the oral microbiota influence osteogenesis and osteoclastogenesis remain to be elucidated.
Identification and validation of three risk models in skin melanoma based on bioinformatics analysis
Authors: Yang Ronghua , Li Shengbo , Wang Xiaoxiang , Li Jiehua , Pi Xiaobing , Wang Zhengguang , Yang Xiaofan , Chen Zhenbing , Chen Xiaodong , Zhou Sitong 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Background Skin cutaneous melanoma (SKCM) remains the deadliest form of skin cancer. However, mechanism of prognosis of SKCM is not yet clear, and accurate prediction of the prognosis remains difficult. Here, we developed and validated three prognostic risk models based on immune cell infiltration, DNA methylation features, and immune-related genes for SKCM patients.Methods We downloaded the datasets from high-dimensional public databases. Univariate and multivariable Cox regression analysis was performed to develop models based on prognostic tumor-infiltrating immune cells, methylation related DEGs (mrDEGs), and immune-related genes (IRGs). Functional enrichment analysis was performed using clusterProfiler and GSVA R package. Prediction of sensitivity to drugs was conducted using pRRophetic R package. The prognostic value of these models was assessed using survival analysis and receiver operating characteristic curve analysis.Results The immune cell model was constructed based on 5 immune cell subtypes. Nine mrDEGs were identified to develop the methylation model. Furthermore, the prognostic IS model based on 5 IRGs was established. These models showed good performance to predict the prognosis of SKCM patients. The IS and methylation score were demonstrated to be associated with immune cell infiltration, microsatellite instability, and tumor mutational burden in SKCM. Moreover, the IS could predict the sensitivity to drugs and the responsiveness to immunotherapy. Finally, IHC staining of the clinical samples confirmed the increased expression of the prognostic IRGs.Conclusions These risk models based on immune cell infiltration, DNA methylation, and IS could be used to predict the survival of SKCM patients and further to guide treatment decisions.
Pharmacotherapy for hypertension in very old people with frailty: A systematic review
Authors: Shantsila Eduard , Lip Gregory , Shantsila Alena , Maden Michelle , Hill Ruaraidh ,   Nefyn Williams5, Beevers Gareth 
Published: April 2023

Abstract

Frailty status in elderly people represents a stage of life when homeostatic reserves become exhausted leading to vulnerability to endogenous and exogenous stressors. Whilst elevated blood pressure is a major risk factor for poor health in the general population, this may be different in very old people whose health has deteriorated to the stage of frailty. This systematic review aims to establish whether antihypertensive pharmacotherapy improve survival, morbidity and quality of life in very old people (i.e., aged 80 years or more) with frailty. We searched Ovid MEDLINE(R) 2000, ClinicalTrials.gov and WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) up until 12/03/2021 for clinical trials and observational studies of pharmacotherapy with antihypertensive agents compared to placebo or no treatment that include people aged 80 years or older described as being frail or separately reported outcomes for people aged 80 years or older described as frail. No eligible studies have been identified. There is no reliable evidence to prove benefits or safety of antihypertensive drug therapy in very old people with frailty. PROSPERO ID CRD42020183422
Experimental study on basic engineering properties of loess improved by burnt rock
Authors: Chen Kai , Shao Dan , Liu Zhiqi , Chen Lifeng , He Genyi 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Engineering construction hazards and geological disasters in loess areas were severe due to the extraordinary nature of loess and its complex internal structure. However, burnt rock-solid waste was often used as filling material and light aggregate, while there were few studies on the engineering mechanical properties of modified soil. This paper proposed a method of burnt rock solid waste-modified loess. Therefore, we conducted compression-consolidation and direct shear tests on burnt rock solid waste-modified loess under different burnt rock contents to explore its improved loess’s deformation and strength characteristics. Then, we used an SEM to investigate the modified loess’s micro-structures under different burnt rock contents. The results showed that as the burnt rock-solid waste particle content continued to increase, the void ratio and compressibility coefficient of the samples with different ranges of burnt rock-solid waste particles gradually decreased with rising vertical pressure, while the compressive modulus increased first, then reduced and then increased with the increase of vertical pressure; the shear strength indexes all showed an increasing trend with the increased content of burnt rock-solid waste particles; when the content of burnt rock-solid waste particles was 50%, the compressibility of mixed soil was the lowest, the shear strength was the largest, and the compaction effect and shear resistance were the best. However, when the content of burnt rock particles was 10 ~ 20%, the shear strength of the soil improved significantly within the content range. The mechanism of burnt rock-solid waste to enhance the strength of the loess structure was mainly to reduce the porosity and average area of soil, significantly improve the strength and stability of mixed soil particles, and thus significantly improve the mechanical properties of soil. The results of this research will provide technical support for safe engineering construction and geological disaster prevention and control in loess areas.
Reverse transcription-quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) without the need for prior removal of DNA
Authors: Đermić Damir , Ljubić Sven , Matulić Maja , Procino Alfredo , Feliciello Maria Chiara , Ugarković Đurđica , Feliciello Isidoro 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
The procedure illustrated in this paper represents a new method for transcriptome analysis by PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction), which circumvents the need for elimination of potential DNA contamination. Compared to the existing methodologies, our method is more precise, simpler and more reproducible because it preserves the RNA’s integrity, does not require materials and/or reagents that are used for elimination of DNA and it also reduces the number of samples that should be set up as negative controls. This novel procedure involves the use of a specifically modified primer during reverse transcription step, which contains mismatched bases, thus producing cDNA molecules that differ from genomic DNA. By using the same modified primer in PCR amplification, only cDNA template is amplified since genomic DNA template is partially heterologous to the primer. In this way, amplification by PCR is unaffected by any potential DNA contamination since it is specific only for the cDNA template. Furthermore, it accurately reflects the initial RNA concentration of the sample, which is prone to changes due to various physical or enzymatic treatments commonly used by the current methodologies for DNA elimination. The method is particularly suitable for quantification of highly repetitive DNA transcripts, such as satellite DNA.
Designing and evaluating the performance of full scale bioretention cells in Indian conditions
Authors: Shah Aamir Ishaq , Siag Mukesh , Kaur Samanpreet , Thaman Sudhir , Sharda Rakesh 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Urbanization leads to an increase in impervious area percentage and significantly alters the predevelopment hydrology. Bioretention cells are sustainable stormwater management techniques that mimic the natural soil system of an area and help in restoring the hydrological balance. Present study involved construction of full- scale bioretention cells and filling with engineered filter media derived from rice and maize residues. The filter media was derived from coarse sand and topsoil mixed with rice straw derived biochar and maize straw derived compost. The bioretention cells were planted with plant varieties- Thumbergia erecta, Haemelia patens and Tabernaemontana Divaricata. The bioretention cells were observed for pre and post plantation hydraulic conductivity and hydrologic performance. Full-scale bioretention cells reported a pre-plantation average hydraulic conductivity between 118 mm/hr-324 mm/hr. Post-plantation average hydraulic conductivity ranged between 341.6-562.0 mm/hr. The minimum and maximum pre-plantation hydraulic conductivity for bioretention cell 1 filled with compost were 112.5 and 136.5 mm/hr, respectively. The average hydraulic conductivity of 120.5, 211.1 and 241.4 mm/hr were observed for bioretention cells 1, 3 and 5 respectively. In the case of biochar-filled bioretention cells, the average hydraulic conductivity recorded for various rainfall events were 162.3, 175.5 and 190.3 mm/hr for bioretention cells 2, 4 and 6, respectively. Given the design parameters adopted for the field-scale bioretention cells, the time to empty based on minimum hydraulic conductivity values was 22 times faster than the recommended hydraulic conductivity for bioretention cells. The volume and peak flow reduction of the full-scale bioretention cells ranged between 82.95-90.28% and 86.1-92.3%, respectively. The total contribution of 6 bioretention cells to the groundwater recharge in three recorded events was 15.77 m3.
Memory-efficient low-compute segmentation algorithms for edge ultrasound devices: continuous bladder monitoring
Authors: Song Zhiye , Asiedu Mercy , Wang Shuhang , Li Qian , Ozturk Arinc , Mittal Vipasha , Schoen Scott , Ramaswamy Srinath , Pierce Theodore T. , Samir Anthony E. , Eldar Yonina C. , Chandrakasan Anantha , Kumar Viksit 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Post-operative urinary retention is a medical condition where patients cannot urinate despite having a full bladder. Ultrasound imaging of the bladder is intermittently used to estimate urine volume for early diagnosis and management of urine retention. Moreover, the use of bladder ultrasound can reduce the need for an indwelling urinary catheter and the risk of catheter-associated urinary tract infection. Wearable ultrasound devices combined with machine-learning based bladder volume estimation algorithms reduce the burdens of nurses in hospital settings and improve outpatient care. However, existing algorithms are memory and computation intensive, thereby demanding the use of expensive GPUs. In this paper, we develop and validate a low-compute memory-efficient deep learning model for accurate bladder region segmentation and urine volume calculation. B-mode ultrasound bladder images of 360 patients were divided into training and validation sets; another 74 patients were used as the test dataset. Our 1-bit quantized models with 4-bits and 6-bits skip connections achieved an accuracy within 3.8% and 2.6%, respectively, of a full precision state-of-the-art neural network (NN) without any floating-point operations and with an 11.5× and 9.0× reduction in memory requirements to fit under 150 kB. The means and standard deviations of the volume estimation errors, relative to estimates from ground-truth clinician annotations, were 5.0±33 ml and 6.8±29 ml, respectively. This lightweight NN can be easily integrated on the wearable ultrasound device for automated and continuous monitoring of urine volume. Our approach can potentially be extended to other clinical applications such as monitoring blood pressure and fetal heart rate.
Modulation of ENSO on the annual cycle in the equatorial eastern Pacific
Authors: Xue Manrui , Li Tim 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
The annual cycle of sea surface temperature (SST) in the equatorial eastern Pacific (EEP) shows a distinctive change between the warm and cold phases of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), with a much-enhanced cold tongue in boreal fall during La Niña than during El Niño. The specific dynamic and thermodynamic processes through which ENSO modulates the annual cycle during the various phase of the annual cycle were investigated through an analytical heat budget model. It is found that the modulation of ENSO is primarily through ocean dynamic heating processes, including anomalous temperature advection by mean vertical and meridional currents and mean temperature advection by anomalous zonal and vertical currents. While El Niño induced increase of column water vapor causes the increase of downward longwave radiation and thus the weakening of the cold tongue, an enhanced surface latent heat flux due to the increase of surface wind speed tends to strengthen the cold tongue and thus oppose the ocean dynamic effect. Such ENSO impacts persist from boreal fall to boreal winter and weaken substantially during the subsequent spring.
Various infections in patients with autoimmune bullous diseases: a retrospective case-control study
Authors: Zhou Feiran , Zheng Xiaoping , Yang Yixuan , Li Zhonghua , Yang Qingluan , Zhou JingYu , Xu Haoxin , Luo Xiaoqun , Shao Lingyun , Zhang Wenhong , Ruan Qiaoling 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Background:Infection will cause adverse outcomes in autoimmune bullous diseases (AIBD). We aimed to analyze pathogen spectrum and location characteristics of infection in AIBD, risk factors of infection and provide probable suggestion to infection prevention.
Methods:This is a retrospective case-control study on medical records of inpatients diagnosed as AIBD in Huashan Hospital from 2017 to 2021.
Results: A total of 263 patients diagnosed with AIBD were enrolled. Total infection rate was 42.2%. Infection rate was 52.1% in pemphigus and 30.6% in bullous pemphigoid.Of patients with infections, 49.5% had bacterial infections, 13.5% had fungal infections, 2.7% had virus infection and 34.2% had mixed infections. 17.1% patients had localized infections and 24.7% had systemic infections. The most common pathogens were Staphylococcus aureus and Candida in localized infection, and were Cryptococcusand Candida in systemic infection. In multivariate logistic model, pemphigus compared to bullous pemphigoid (OR=2.56, 95% CI 1.41-4.63), hypoalbuminemia (OR=3.78, 95% CI 1.68-8.50) and systemic glucocorticoids treatment (OR=4.67, 95% CI 2.51-8.68) were infection risk factors. Bullous pemphigoid compared to pemphigus (OR=3.99, 95% CI 1.03-15.45), high dose systemic glucocorticoids treatment compared to low (OR=19.31, 95% CI 3.32-112.28) or medium dose (OR=5.71, 95% CI 1.37-23.79) were risk factors of systemic infection in infected patients with systemic glucocorticoids treatments.
Conclusions:Infection rate in AIBD patients was high. Pathogen spectrum and location of infection were broad. Systemic glucocorticoid treatment, especially with high dose in previous 3 months had been shown as an important risk factor of infection.
Fruit annual changes in morphological characteristic and essential oil accumulation of Litsea cubeba
Authors: Yang Yingyu , Gu Zhanying , Huang Peng , Gong Jialiang , Li Ping 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers. is an important spice plant in southern China. The whole plant of Litsea cubeba contains essential oils, among which the fruit has the highest essential oil content. And there is a significant market demand and widespread use of essential oil of Litsea cubeba fruit. However, there are few systematic studies on the growth and development of the Litsea cubeba fruit. This study aims to determine the regularity of annual changes in fruit morphology, essential oil content, and components of Litsea cubeba essential oil to determine the optimal harvest period and improve the utilization efficiency of Litsea cubeba resource. The results show that the annual change of fruit morphology of Litsea cubeba was consistent with the double "S" curve, which shows a general trend of rapid growth first, then slow growth, and finally rapid growth again. While the annual change of the essential oil of Litsea cubeba fruits was consistent with a single "S" curve, which shows a general trend of slow growth first, then rapid growth, and finally decreasing rapidly. Correlation analysis showed a significant negative correlation between morphological changes and essential oil accumulation in Litsea cubeba fruit. Combining the growing periods of fruit morphology and essential oil accumulation, the growth and development of Litsea cubeba fruit can be divided into four general periods: the first rapid growth period (rapid growth in fruit diameter and fruit weight with slow accumulation of essential oil), the essential oil accumulation period (rapid accumulation of essential oil with slow growth in fruit diameter and fruit weight), the second rapid growth period (fruit diameter and fruit weight increased rapidly for the second time while the essential oil content started to decrease), and the shriveling period (fruit diameter and weight and essential oil content all decreased rapidly). This study further confirmed that citral was the highest component in the essential oil of Litsea cubeba. When citral extraction is needed, the fruit can be harvested 139–149 days after anthesis.
Early Diabetic Outcomes in Obese Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Type of Metabolic Surgery may be Irrelevant
Authors: Pang Wei Soon , Loo Guo Hou , Tan Guo Jeng , Mardan Mardiana , Rajan Reynu , Kosai Nik Ritza 
Published: April 2023

Abstract
Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) is an alarming problem globally and a growing epidemic. Metabolic surgery has been shown to be successful in treating both obesity and T2DM, usually after other treatments have failed. This study aims to compare Roux-Y gastric bypass and sleeve gastrectomy in determining early diabetic outcomes in obese Malaysian patients with T2DM following surgery.
A total of 172 obese patients with T2DM who were assigned to either laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) or laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) were analysed up to a year post-procedure. The patients’ T2DM severity were stratified using the Individualized Metabolic Surgery (IMS) score into mild, moderate and severe. Remission rates of diabetes were compared between surgical techniques and within diabetic severity categories.
T2DM remission for patients who underwent either surgical technique for mild, moderate or severe disease was 92.9%, 56.2% and 14.7% respectively. Both surgical techniques improved T2DM control for patients in the study. Comparing baseline with results 1 year postoperatively, median HbA1c reduced from 7.40% (IQR 2.60) to 5.80% (IQR 0.80) (p<0.001), mean total antidiabetic medications use reduced from 1.48 (SD 0.99) to 0.60 (SD 0.86) [p<0.001], insulin usage reduced from 27.9% to 10.5% (p<0.001), and T2DM control improved from 27.9% to 82% (p<0.001). The patients had a median excess BMI loss of 69.4% (IQR 34%) and 53.2% (IQR 36.0%) for RYGB and SG respectively (p=0.016). At one year following surgery, there is no difference between LRYGB and LSG in terms of diabetic remission.
LSG is not inferior to LRYGB in terms of early diabetic outcomes. Milder T2DM shows a better response. LSG is a simpler procedure with a lower risk profile and should be considered as an early treatment option for obese patients with T2DM.