bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
New species, new story: The impact of invasive non‐host predators on host‐trematode interactions
Authors: Stanicka Anna , Soldánová Miroslava , Migdalski Łukasz , Szopieray Katarzyna , Lesiak Kinga , Cichy Anna , Żbikowska Elżbieta , Jermacz Łukasz 
Published: July 2023

Abstract

Predation is considered one of the key drivers shaping the relationships between animals. There is increasing evidence that non‐host aquatic taxa use free‐living parasite stages as prey, including motile cercariae of digenean trematodes. However, species‐specific predator differences in cercarial consumption are poorly understood, especially when invasive consumers are involved.

We used experimental approaches to investigate the possible predator‐induced reduction in trematode‐host encounters in freshwater benthic communities. Four gammarid species, two native European (Gammarus jazdzewskii and G. pulex) and two invasive Ponto‐Caspian (Dikerogammarus villosus and Pontogammarus robustoides), were selected as predators of echinostomatid cercariae (Echinoparyphium aconiatum).

We hypothesised that (i) all predators will prey on cercariae, but the amount of prey consumed will vary, the invaders will be more voracious than native species, and (ii) the effect of predator‐induced dilution of cercariae will depend on the environmental condition, i.e., the presence of the natural target host (the planorbid snail Planorbarius corneus) and alternative food resource; the exposure of predators to these two basic environmental factors will reduce their consumption rates of cercariae.

The extent of the dilution effect caused by gammarids was highly predator species‐dependent and also varied depending on experimental conditions. Overall, all gammarids preyed on cercariae and reduced infection levels in the target snail host, but the invaders were more efficient than the native species. Furthermore, decreased consumption rates of cercarial prey were observed in the presence of both the target snail hosts and alternative food resources, except for invasive P. robustoides consuming more cercariae when a snail host was present.

The observed differences among predators in the consumption of cercariae may be a result of complex interaction traits of parasites, predators and target hosts, such as different predatory behaviour of invasive and native amphipods, change in parasite behaviour in response to the presence/chemical signals of the target host and a predator‐induced “ecology of fear” interfering with the dilution effect of parasites.

We provided evidence that gammarids can cause a significant reduction in parasite‐host encounters. The high consumption rates, especially in the presence of easily available alternative food resources, emphasise the importance of free‐living cercariae as an energy resource in aquatic food webs. The observed predator differences in the consumption of cercariae are further evidence of the higher competitive ability of invasive species. Simultaneously, our results indicate that the appearance of new predators in the environment may interfere with established host‐parasite interactions.
Impact of postmenopausal osteoporosis on the lives of Omani women and the use of cultural and religious practises to relieve pain: A hermeneutic phenomenological study
Authors: Zadjali Faiza Al , Brooks Jane , O'Neill Terence W. , Stanmore Emma 
Published: July 2023

AbstractIntroductionOsteoporosis is a significant clinical and public health concern worldwide. Despite the impact of this condition on women's lives, most studies have focused on its clinical manifestations, drug efficacy, and medical treatment. Furthermore, most studies have been conducted in the West. This study aimed to uncover the personal experiences of postmenopausal Omani women living with osteoporosis.MethodsIn this interpretive phenomenological study, a purposive sample of 15 postmenopausal Omani women with osteoporosis was recruited from primary and secondary care facilities in Muscat, Oman. Semi‐structured one‐to‐one interviews were conducted via Zoom and telephone because of coronavirus disease 2019 restrictions. The interviews were audio‐recorded, and the Ajjawi and Higgs framework was used to analyse the data thematically.ResultsThe following key themes were constructed from the interviews: the impact of osteoporosis on religious practices, cultural and social life, and financial status, and the benefits derived from religious and cultural practices and rituals, including Muslim prayer, recitation of Quranic verses, and herbal remedies to cope with osteoporosis‐related pain and suffering.ConclusionOsteoporosis and fragility fractures have a significant impact on the religious, cultural, and financial lives of postmenopausal Omani women with osteoporosis. Muslim prayers, recitation of Quranic verses, and herbal remedies are coping strategies for pain in this population.Patient or Public ContributionPostmenopausal Omani women with osteoporosis participated in this study through interviews and contributed their lived experiences. Orthopaedic doctors helped recruit patients with postmenopausal osteoporosis.
Development of a sustainable consumption measurement scale
Authors: Hamza Kavita Miadaira , de Melo Pereira Lhamas Fernando Antonio , Parackal Mathew 
Published: July 2023

AbstractSustainable consumption has been recognized since the 1990s; however, advances in the studies have been modest and have not yielded significant breakthroughs. The urgent need to adopt sustainable consumption has been emphasized by consumers, practitioners, and researchers, but despite efforts by social and government agencies, progress in relation to adoption remains insufficient. The multivariate nature of sustainable consumption is one reason for this insufficient progress. Previously developed literature‐based instruments have been univariate or limited in their dimensions and inadequate for measuring the phenomena they purport to measure. Hence, in this study, we develop a measurement scale to address this gap. The scale encompasses dimensions relevant to contemporary society and is informed by prior research and primary data. Data were collected through in‐depth interviews with sustainability specialists, a nominal group technique with engaged consumers, a survey of 255 students, and a survey of 808 consumers from diverse regions of Brazil, all resulting in a heterogeneous sample. The final data analysis included an exploratory factor analysis and a confirmatory factor analysis, which resulted in a final model that comprised eight dimensions: activism, personal sacrifice, communitarianism, environmental concern, healthy food, perceived consumer effectiveness, search for information, and social concern. Of these dimensions, personal sacrifice, environmental concern, and social concern are the archetypes of the present generation. The variables of these dimensions have not been accounted for in previous scales, making our new scale more comprehensive and contributing to a better understanding of sustainable consumption. This new comprehensive scale will aid future studies in sustainable consumption, contributing to a better understanding of this construct. We expect that this scale will help improve the monitoring of the progress made in sustainable behavior and the assessment of management practices of sustainable consumption. Future studies should be carried out to validate the dimensions in different cultural contexts.
Topic tones of analyst reports and stock returns: A deep learning approach
Authors: Iwasaki Hitoshi , Chen Ying , Tu Jun 
Published: July 2023

AbstractWe present a novel approach that analyzes topics and tones of analyst reports using a deep neural network in a supervised learning approach. By letting trained classifiers evaluate topics and tones of the reports, we find that incorporation of topic tones significantly enhances the accuracy of predicting cumulative abnormal returns, increasing adjusted from 6.1% without considering textual information to 17.9% with detailed topic tones. This improvement is primarily driven by the inclusion of opinion and corporate fact type of topics. Our findings highlight importance of topic assessment to make the most use of analyst reports for informed investment decisions.
A tripartite evolutionary game model of ginger transaction under the “regulation + target price insurance ” policy
Authors: Huang Jianhua , Liu Ruihan , Zhang Tingting 
Published: July 2023

AbstractThis paper constructs a tripartite evolutionary game model of government, dealers, and ginger farmers under asymmetric price transmission and explores the impact of the target price insurance on the stabilization strategy of the tripartite evolutionary game. It is also demonstrated that farmers’ interests can be effectively protected under long‐term government regulation and issuance of reasonable insurance subsidy coefficients. Finally, the model is assigned according to the actual data to systematically reveal the factors affecting the decision of each actor. The research shows that: long‐term government regulation is necessary to effectively curb speculation, while the implementation of target price insurance can improve farmers’ trading position; the probability of government regulation and implementation is not only related to the cost and social benefits but also influenced by ginger trading volume, while the probability of ginger dealers choosing to hoard speculation increases with the increase of ginger trading volume.
Thermodynamics of surface and oxygen vacancy in rare earth stannates by first‐principles calculations
Authors: Zhao Juanli , Ching Wai‐Yim , Li Jiancheng , Fan Yun , Li Yiran , Li Wenxian , Liu Bin 
Published: July 2023

AbstractThe research of nanocrystalline pyrochlores highlights the importance of the surface structure, composition and segregated point defect in their thermal, electrical, optical, magnetic, and catalytic performances. In order to provide a basic view on the surface‐related phenomena, thermodynamic stabilities of three low‐index (100), (110), and (111) surfaces for A2Sn2O7 (A = La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Pm, Sm, Eu, or Gd), together with their configurations, electronic structures and related oxygen vacancies are investigated using first‐principles calculations. The (111) surfaces with A3SnO8 and ASn3O6 terminations are predicted to be stable due to their low surface energies. Meanwhile, the (110) surfaces with A2Sn2O8 and A2Sn2O6 terminations are found to may also form. For these surface structures, the amount of broken bonds play the main role in their structural stability, and the local coordination environment variation also has minor contribution to it. Moreover, oxygen vacancies are observed to segregate on the surface layer, owing to lower energy of breaking bonds accompanying with oxygen vacancy formation and the larger relaxation space comparing to the counterpart in bulk. These results are expected to provide guidance on optimizing the performances of these compounds through surface engineering.
Direct current cardioversion practices following percutaneous left atrial appendage closure
Authors: Bhuta Sapan , Shaaban Adnan , Binda Nkongho C. , Antaki James , Augostini Ralph S. , Kalbfleisch Steven J. , Savona Salvatore J. , Okabe Toshimasa , Houmsse Mahmoud , Afzal Muhammad R. , Daoud Emile G. , Hummel John D. 
Published: July 2023

AbstractIntroductionAmong patients with non‐valvular atrial fibrillation (AF) and percutaneous left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) undergoing direct current cardioversion (DCCV), the need for and use of LAA imaging and oral anticoagulation (OAC) is unclear.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study is to evaluate the real‐world use of transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) or cardiac computed tomography angiography (CCTA) before DCCV and use of OAC pre‐ and post‐DCCV in patients with AF status post percutaneous LAAC.MethodsThis retrospective single center study included all patients who underwent DCCV after percutaneous LAAC from 2016 to 2022. Key measures were completion of TEE or CCTA pre‐DCCV, OAC use pre‐ and post‐DCCV, incidence of left atrial thrombus (LAT) or device‐related thrombus (DRT), incidence of peri‐device leak (PDL), and DCCV‐related complications (stroke, systemic embolism, device embolization, major bleeding, or death) within 30 days.ResultsA total of 76 patients with AF and LAAC underwent 122 cases of DCCV. LAAC consisted of 47 (62%), 28 (37%), and 1 (1%) case of Watchman 2.5, Watchman FLX, and Lariat, respectively. Among the 122 DCCV cases, 31 (25%) cases were identified as “non‐guideline based” due to: (1) no OAC for 3 weeks and no LAA imaging within 48 h before DCCV in 12 (10%) cases, (2) no OAC for 4 weeks following DCCV in 16 (13%) cases, or (3) both in 3 (2%) cases. Among the 70 (57%) cases that underwent TEE or CCTA before DCCV, 16 (23%) cases had a PDL with a mean size of 3.0 ± 1.1 mm, and 4 (6%) cases had a LAT/DRT on TEE resulting in cancellation. There were no DCCV‐related complications within 30 days.DiscussionThere is a widely varied practice pattern of TEE, CCTA, and OAC use with DCCV after LAAC, with a 6% rate of LAT/DRT. LAA imaging before DCCV appears prudent in all cases, especially within 1 year of LAAC, to assess for device position, PDL, and LAT/DRT.
Optimization of superior vena cava isolation with aid of ablation index guidance
Authors: Liu Jun , Guan Wenchi , Guo Jinrui , Li Xiaofeng , Xia Yu , Niu Guodong , Yao Yan 
Published: July 2023

AbstractIntroductionTo investigate the optimal range of quantitative ablation index (AI) value during superior vena cava (SVC) electrical isolation by radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA).MethodsFirst, in a development cohort of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF), the RFCA with 40 W was performed to complete SVC isolation guided by the conduction breakthrough point from the right atrium to SVC. Then, the range of AI value was calculated by offline analysis on different segments of SVC. Lastly, for the validation of AF patients, the safety and effectiveness of SVC isolation with the optimized target range of AI value were evaluated with an additional adenosine test.ResultsA total of 101 patients with AF were included in the study (44 patients in the development cohort/57 in the validation cohort). The segmental ablation strategy was applied in 70% of the patients. According to the offline analysis of the AI values in the development cohort, the target AI value range was set as 350–400. The success rate of SVC isolation in the validation cohort was significantly higher than that in the exploration cohort (100% vs. 90.9%, p = .02), and no complications occurred in the exploration cohort. During the adenosine test, the recovery rate of electrical conduction in SVC was significantly lower than that in the pulmonary vein (3.5% vs. 17.5%).ConclusionThe target AI value with a range from 350 to 400 is safe and effective for high‐power RFCA to complete SVC isolation.
Data‐driven decisions about individual patients: The case of medical AI
Authors: Holm Sune 
Published: July 2023

AbstractThere are high hopes that clinical decisions can be improved by adopting algorithms trained to estimate the likelihood that a patient suffers a condition C. Introducing work on the epistemic value of purely statistical evidence in legal epistemology I show that a certain type of AI devices for making medical decisions about persons rely on purely statistical evidence and that it raises an important question about the appropriateness of relying on such devices for allocating health resources. If the argument I present is sound, then it suggests a radical rethinking of the use of prevalent types of AI devices as well as the use of statistical evidence in medical practice more generally.
Feeding of mussel‐associated leeches Hemiclepsis kasmiana on bitterling embryos: Novel interaction between parasites in a shared host
Authors: Nishino Daiki , Nishida Takayoshi , Yoshiyama Kohei 
Published: July 2023

AbstractWe investigated an interaction between bitterlings and a parasitic leech Hemiclepsis kasmiana in freshwater mussel hosts. We found that leeches fed on bitterling eggs and embryos; this may exert a considerable negative effect on bitterling fitness. Host choices by females of three bitterling species may be differently affected by the presence of leeches within mussels; Tanakia limbata apparently avoided laying eggs in infested mussels while T. lanceolata and Acheilognathus rhombeus did not. Our novel findings suggest that relationships between the parasitic leech and the host mussel may be context dependent.
Crack identification of Yunnan walnuts based on acoustic vibration and feature fusion
Authors: Zhang Hao , Li Lixia , Tian Liquan , Zhang Fujie , Shi Lei , Wu Wenqiang , Zhan Zicheng 
Published: July 2023

AbstractCracks in walnuts during processing and storage can adversely affect their quality and cause economic losses. To achieve efficient identification of cracked walnuts, this study proposed a method of walnut crack identification based on acoustic vibration and feature fusion. First, the sound signals of intact and cracked walnuts were collected using an acoustic signal acquisition system, and 44 time‐domain features, 13 frequency‐domain features, and 768 Mel spectrogram features (the number of pixel frequencies corresponding to the gray‐scale values of R, G, and B channels) of the sound signals were extracted. Then, the classification models of support vector machines (SVM), least squares support vector machines (LSSVM), and extreme learning machines (ELM) were established based on single class features data and fusion of different feature groups data respectively. The results indicated that the LSSVM model with the fusion of the three feature sets was optimal, with an accuracy of 85% in the testing set. Next, three feature selection methods were employed to reduce the dimensionality of the best fused feature data. Subsequently, the LSSVM classification model was established based on the feature selection data. Finally, arithmetic optimization algorithm (AOA), particle swarm optimization (PSO), and gray wolf optimization (GWO) were introduced to optimize the parameters c and of the classification model. The results indicated that the best classification model was VISSA‐IRIV‐GWO‐LSSVM, with 95% accuracy in the testing set. This study provides theoretical support for the research and development of online detection equipment for walnut crack in Yunnan Yangbi.Practical applicationsCracks in walnut during harvesting, transportation and peeling may lead to economic losses and food safety problems. Aiming at the difficulty and low accuracy of crack identification in Yunnan walnut, this paper proposed a method for crack detection based on acoustic vibration identification combine with feature fusion. The features of time domain, frequency domain and Mel spectrogram were extracted from the effective sound signal, and the features were fused. The influence of three feature selection methods, three models and three optimization algorithms on walnut sound signal recognition was analyzed and compared. The results indicated that the best classification model was VISSA‐IRIV‐GWO‐LSSVM, and the method proposed in this study provides theoretical support for the research and development of online detection equipment for walnut crack in Yunnan Yangbi.
Ontogeny reveals the origin of Gemminger bones in Mormyridae
Authors: Koch Ann‐Katrin , Kirschbaum Frank , Moritz Timo 
Published: July 2023

AbstractMormyridae are well known and intensively studied for their weak electric organ discharges, which facilitate communication and orientation. The Gemminger bones of Mormyridae are located next to the electrical organ in the caudal peduncle; however, they have not attracted much interest until recently. Therefore, we investigated the diversity of Gemminger bones in mormyrids and studied their ontogenetic development in Mormyrus rume proboscirostris. Gemminger bones are paired, thin, elongated ossifications lying on the dorsal and ventral sides of the caudal peduncle, and usually reach anterior well below the dorsal and anal fin bases. Ontogeny revealed that they are not intermuscular ossifications, as suspected based on the anatomical position of this structure and the systematic position of the mormyrids. Instead, they are membrane ossifications that originate from the fin stays of the dorsal and anal fins.
Efficacy, mechanism, and safety of melatonin‐loaded on thermosensitive nanogels for rabbit VX2 tumor embolization: A novel design
Authors: Chen Lei , Sun Tao , Lv Yongning , Lu Xin , Li Xixuan , Zhang Hongsen , Qian Kun , Guo Xiaopeng , Sun Bo , Zhang Weihua , Zhu Licheng , Huang Jia , Liu Yiming , Zhao Huangxuan , Zhao Yanbin , Liang Bin , Zheng Chuansheng 
Published: July 2023

AbstractTransarterial chemoembolization (TACE) has been widely used for hepatocellular carcinoma. Reducing hypoxia in the tumor microenvironment after TACE remains a challenge as tumor progression is common in post‐TACE patients due to the hypoxic tumor microenvironment. In this study, melatonin loaded on p(N‐isopropyl‐acrylamide‐co‐butyl methylacrylate) (PIB‐M) was used for tumor embolism. Two types of human hepatoma cell lines were used to explore the mechanism by which melatonin prevents the growth and metastasis of cancer cells in vitro. A VX2 rabbit tumor model was used to evaluate the efficacy, mechanism, and safety of PIB‐M in vivo. We found that under hypoxic condition, melatonin could inhibit tumor cell proliferation and migration by targeting hypoxia inducible factor‐1α (HIF‐1α) and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF‐A) in vitro. In vivo, PIB‐M inhibited tumor growth and metastasis in rabbit VX2 tumors by promoting apoptosis of tumor cells and targeting related angiogenic proteins and vascular permeability proteins. A high concentration of melatonin in the PIB‐M group could be maintained in tumor tissue for 72 h after embolization. The liver and kidney functions were most damaged on the first day but recovered to normal on the seventh day after embolization in the PIB‐M group. This novel method may open avenues for reduction of tumor growth and metastasis after TACE and is efficacy and safety, which may be used for treatment for other solid tumors and clinical translation.