bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Laboratory modeling of thermal and temporal cracking in swelling clays
Authors: Zhang Gang , Jaffar Syed Taseer Abbas , Israr Jahanzaib , Atta Muneeb , Jafri Turab 
Published: June 2023

Crack development in a changing environment is the controlling factor for the stability and strength of expansive soils. Expansive soils exhibit large volumetric changes with changes in their moisture conditions that may occasionally lead to reduced bearing capacity and foundation failures. This study purports to model crack initiation and its spatial progression in relation to the moisture content and drying period, respectively. Volumetric soil shrinkage is determined using high-definition digital camera imaging and Vernier scale methods, while the soil settlement under vertical shrinkage deformation could be captured through a tensile stress model for soils. It was revealed that a small change in suction could trigger crack initiation, which would propagate further under different environmental conditions. Furthermore, it was observed that the crack volume increased rapidly at specific moisture content and could penetrate as deep as 1 m after nearly 1.5 months that is fully consistent with the current model predictions. A comparison between the performance of the model proposed in this study and that of two existing models shows that the former predicts the vertical shrinkage strain values in closer agreement with those observed experimentally and is less conservative than those predicted by both models. Nevertheless, the findings from this study could be used to quantify the detrimental behavior of expansive soil present in pavement subgrades and shallow foundations for lightweight structures.
Surviving the storm: manual vs. mechanical chest compressions onboard a lifeboat during bad weather conditions
Authors: Venema Allart M. , Sahinovic Marko M. , Absalom Anthony R. , Wietasch J. K. Götz 
Published: June 2023

ObjectiveIt is challenging for rescuers to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) onboard lifeboats, particularly during rough weather. A mechanical chest compression device (MCD) may provide better quality chest compressions. The aim of this study was to compare the quality of chest compressions performed by lifeboat-crewmembers with those of a MCD during rough-sea conditions.MethodsLifeboat-crewmembers were scheduled to provide compression-only CPR on a resuscitation-mannequin during two sets of five 6-min epochs on a lifeboat at sea in two different weather-conditions. Simultaneously a MCD was used for compression-only CPR on another mannequin onboard the lifeboat. On a third occasion compressions by MCD only were measured due to COVID-19 restrictions. The primary outcome variable was the quality of chest compression, evaluated using published variables and standards (mean compression depth and compression frequency, percentage correct compression depth, percentage of not leaning on the thorax, percentage of correct hand placement on the thorax, hands-off-time).ResultsSix male lifeboat-crewmembers (mean age 35 years) performed CPR during two different weather conditions. In weather-conditions one (wind ~6–7 Beaufort/wave-height: 100–150 cm) quality of manual compressions was significantly worse than mechanical compressions for mean compression depth (p &lt; 0.05) and compression frequency (p &lt; 0.05), percentage correct compression depth (p &lt; 0.05), percentage of not leaning on the thorax (p &lt; 0.05), and hands off time (p &lt; 0.05). Crewmembers could only perform CPR for a limited time-period (sea-conditions/seasickness) and after one set of five epochs measurements were halted. In weather-condition two (wind ~9 Beaufort/wave-height ~200 cm) similar results were found during two epochs, after which measurements were halted (sea-conditions/seasickness). In weather-condition three (wind ~7 Beaufort/wave-height ~300–400 cm) MCD compressions were according to resuscitation-guidelines except for three epochs during which the MCD was displaced.ConclusionCrewmembers were only able to perform chest-compressions for a limited time because of the weather-conditions. The MCD was able to provide good quality chest compressions during all but three epochs during the study period. More research is needed to determine whether MCD-use in real-life circumstances improves outcome. Inclusion of data on use of a MCD on lifeboats should be considered in future revisions of the USFD and resuscitation guidelines.
Visual analytics identifies key miRNAs for differentiating peripancreatic paraganglioma and pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors
Authors: Enguita Jose María , Díaz Ignacio , García Diego , Cubiella Tamara , Chiara María-Dolores , Valdés Nuria 
Published: June 2023

IntroductionParagangliomas (PGL), a type of neuroendocrine tumor, pose a significant diagnostic challenge due to their potential for unpredictable locations and asymptomatic presentation. Misdiagnosis of peripancreatic PGLs, particularly as pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PANNETs), is a pressing issue as it can negatively impact both pre- and post-treatment decision-making. The aim of our study was to identify microRNA markers for the reliable differential diagnosis of peripancreatic PGLs and PANNETs, addressing a crucial unmet need in the field and advancing the standard of care for these patients.MethodsMorphing projections tool was used to analyze miRNA data from PGL and PANNET tumors present in the TCGA database. The findings were validated using two additional databases: GSE29742 and GSE73367.ResultsOur research uncovered substantial differences in the miRNA expression profiles of PGL and PANNET, leading to the identification of 6 key miRNAs (miR-10b-3p, miR-10b-5p, and the miRNA families miR-200c/141 and miR-194/192) that can effectively differentiate between the two types of tumors.DiscussionThese miRNA levels hold potential as biomarkers for improved diagnosis, offering a solution to the diagnostic challenge posed by these tumors and potentially improving the standard of care for patients.
The association between vitamin D supplementation and the long-term prognosis of differentiated thyroid cancer patients: a retrospective observational cohort study with propensity score matching
Authors: Ahn Jong-hyuk , Choi Hoonsung , Kim Su-jin , Cho Sun Wook , Lee Kyu Eun , Park Do Joon , Park Young Joo 
Published: June 2023

ObjectiveBenefits of vitamin D in various cancers have been reported, but its effects on differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) have not been established. We aimed to analyze the effect of vitamin D supplementation on the prognosis of DTC.MethodsA retrospective observational cohort study was conducted on 9,739 DTC patients who underwent thyroidectomy from January 1997 to December 2016. Mortality was classified as all-cause, cancer-related, or thyroid cancer-related. Patients were divided into the “VD group” (supplemented with vitamin D) and the “control group” (without vitamin D supplementation). Propensity score matching was performed in a 1:1 ratio according to age, sex, tumor size, extrathyroidal extension (ETE), and lymph node metastasis (LNM) status, and 3,238 patients were assigned to each group. Kaplan-Meier curves, log-rank test and Cox proportional hazards regression analysis were performed.ResultsThe follow-up period was 10.7 ± 4.2 years. Clinicopathological variables between two groups were similar except for all-cause (p&lt;0.001) and total cancer death (p=0.001). From the Kaplan−Meier curve and log-rank test, “VD group” had significantly favorable all-cause (p&lt;0.001) and total cancer mortality (p=0.003), but similar thyroid cancer mortality (p=0.23). In Cox regression, vitamin D intake reduced the risk of all-cause (hazard ratio [HR], 0.617, p=0.001) and total cancer mortality (HR, 0.668, p=0.016) but had no effect on thyroid cancer mortality.Discussion/conclusionVitamin D supplementation was positively associated with all-cause and total cancer mortality in DTC and might be a modifiable prognostic factor for improved survival. Further research will be needed to clarify the effect of vitamin D supplementation on DTC.
A signature based on anoikis-related genes for the evaluation of prognosis, immunoinfiltration, mutation, and therapeutic response in ovarian cancer
Authors: Duan Yiqi , Xu Xiao 
Published: June 2023

BackgroundOvarian cancer (OC) is a highly lethal and aggressive gynecologic cancer, with an overall survival rate that has shown little improvement over the decades. Robust models are urgently needed to distinguish high-risk cases and predict reliable treatment options for OC. Although anoikis-related genes (ARGs) have been reported to contribute to tumor growth and metastasis, their prognostic value in OC remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to construct an ARG pair (ARGP)-based prognostic signature for patients with OC and elucidate the potential mechanism underlying the involvement of ARGs in OC progression.MethodsThe RNA-sequencing and clinical information data of OC patients were obtained from The Center Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) databases. A novel algorithm based on pairwise comparison was utilized to select ARGPs, followed by the Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator Cox analysis to construct a prognostic signature. The predictive ability of the model was validated using an external dataset, a receiver operating characteristic curve, and stratification analysis. The immune microenvironment and the proportion of immune cells were analyzed in high- and low-risk OC cases using seven algorithms. Gene set enrichment analysis and weighted gene co-expression network analysis were performed to investigate the potential mechanisms of ARGs in OC occurrence and prognosis.ResultsThe 19-ARGP signature was identified as an important prognostic predictor for 1-, 2-, and 3-year overall survival of patients with OC. Gene function enrichment analysis showed that the high-risk group was characterized by the infiltration of immunosuppressive cells and the enrichment of adherence-related signaling pathway, suggesting that ARGs were involved in OC progression by mediating immune escape and tumor metastasis.ConclusionWe constructed a reliable ARGP prognostic signature of OC, and our findings suggested that ARGs exerted a vital interplay in OC immune microenvironment and therapeutic response. These insights provided valuable information regarding the molecular mechanisms underlying this disease and potential targeted therapies.
Performance of artificial intelligence in diabetic retinopathy screening: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies
Authors: Wang Zhibin , Li Zhaojin , Li Kunyue , Mu Siyuan , Zhou Xiaorui , Di Yu 
Published: June 2023

AimsTo systematically evaluate the diagnostic value of an artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm model for various types of diabetic retinopathy (DR) in prospective studies over the previous five years, and to explore the factors affecting its diagnostic effectiveness.Materials and methodsA search was conducted in Cochrane Library, Embase, Web of Science, PubMed, and IEEE databases to collect prospective studies on AI models for the diagnosis of DR from January 2017 to December 2022. We used QUADAS-2 to evaluate the risk of bias in the included studies. Meta-analysis was performed using MetaDiSc and STATA 14.0 software to calculate the combined sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, and negative likelihood ratio of various types of DR. Diagnostic odds ratios, summary receiver operating characteristic (SROC) plots, coupled forest plots, and subgroup analysis were performed according to the DR categories, patient source, region of study, and quality of literature, image, and algorithm.ResultsFinally, 21 studies were included. Meta-analysis showed that the pooled sensitivity, specificity, pooled positive likelihood ratio, pooled negative likelihood ratio, area under the curve, Cochrane Q index, and pooled diagnostic odds ratio of AI model for the diagnosis of DR were 0.880 (0.875-0.884), 0.912 (0.99-0.913), 13.021 (10.738-15.789), 0.083 (0.061-0.112), 0.9798, 0.9388, and 206.80 (124.82-342.63), respectively. The DR categories, patient source, region of study, sample size, quality of literature, image, and algorithm may affect the diagnostic efficiency of AI for DR.ConclusionAI model has a clear diagnostic value for DR, but it is influenced by many factors that deserve further study.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/, identifier CRD42023389687.
Research on force model and characteristics of large wind turbine pitch system based on SCADA data
Authors: Li Mimi , Dai Juchuan , Zhang Fan , Liu Deshun 
Published: June 2023

In large-scale wind turbines, the force state of the pitch system greatly influences safe operation and service life. This paper provides a novel method to estimate blade pitch load, bearing friction torque, and motor pitch torque. In this method, the force equilibrium equations are established by investigating the force of the pitch system under multiple operating conditions. The multidimensional BIN method is employed to classify the supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) data of wind turbines into several intervals. The multidimensional scatter data is processed in a single-valued way. Then, the estimating model of the pitch system forces is established by combining the obtained data and the equilibrium equations. Taking a 2 MW wind turbine as an example, the variation characteristics of blade pitch load, bearing friction torque, and motor pitch torque under multiple operating conditions are analyzed. Some interesting and valuable conclusions are obtained. For example, when the wind speed increases, the blade pitch load increases significantly in the maximum wind energy tracking region, but there is no obvious change in the observed constant power output region. The wind speed and azimuth have little effect on the bearing friction torque. The variation trend of motor pitch torque is consistent with that of blade pitch load in the maximum wind energy tracking region.
Determining sources of reactive mercury compounds in Reno, Nevada, United States
Authors: Gustin Mae Sexauer , Dunham-Cheatham Sarrah M. , Choma Nicole , Shoemaker Kevin T. , Allen Natalie 
Published: June 2023

There is much uncertainty regarding the sources of reactive mercury (RM) compounds and atmospheric chemistry driving their formation. This work focused on assessing the chemistry and potential sources of reactive mercury measured in Reno, Nevada, United States, using 1 year of data collected using Reactive Mercury Active System. In addition, ancillary meteorology and criteria air pollutant data, Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) analyses, and a generalized linear model were applied to better understand reactive mercury observations. During the year of sampling, a fire event impacted the sampling site, and gaseous elemental Hg and particulate-bound mercury concentrations increased, as did HgII-S compounds. Data collected on a peak above Reno showed that reactive mercury concentrations were higher at higher elevation, and compounds found in Reno were the same as those measured on the peak. HYSPLIT results demonstrated RM compounds were generated inside and outside of the basin housing Reno. Compounds were sourced from San Francisco, Sacramento, and Reno in the fall and winter, and from long-range transport and the marine boundary layer during the spring and summer. The generalized linear model produced correlations that could be explained; however, when applying the model to similar data collected at two other locations, the Reno model did not predict the observations, suggesting that sampling location chemistry and concentration cannot be generalized.
Contribution of the Fenton reaction to the degradation of carbon nanotubes by enzymes
Authors: Takahashi Seira , Taguchi Fumiko , Hori Katsutoshi 
Published: June 2023

The widespread use of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) has raised concerns about the human health and ecological effects of CNTs released into the environment. Bacteria play an important role in bioremediation and waste treatment, and their enzymes are mostly responsible for the degradation of contaminants. However, there are still only a few reports about the bacterial degradation of CNTs, and evidence showing the involvement of bacterial enzymes in CNT degradation with their mechanisms has never been reported. The purpose of this study is to clarify whether CNTs can be degraded by bacterial enzymes. In this study, the degradation of oxidized (carboxylated) single-walled CNTs (O-SWCNTs) by mt2DyP, a dye-decolorizing peroxidase of Pseudomonas putida mt-2, a common soil bacterium, was investigated. After incubation of O-SWCNTs with recombinant mt2DyP and its substrate H2O2 for 30 d, the optical absorbance and Raman spectra revealed the degradation of O-SWCNTs. However, inactivation of the enzyme was observed within 60 min of the start of incubation, suggesting that the degradation of O-SWCNTs occurred nonenzymatically. The inactivation of mt2DyP was accompanied by the release of iron, the active center metal, and degradation of O-SWCNTs was significantly inhibited in the presence of diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid, a chelating agent, indicating that O-SWCNTs were degraded by the Fenton reaction with iron released from mt2DyP and H2O2. The same phenomenon was observed with P450, which is also a heme enzyme. Furthermore, we investigated the contribution of the Fenton reaction to the O-SWCNT degradation by horseradish peroxidase (HRP), which was reported to enzymatically and rapidly degrade O-SWCNTs. Our results revealed that the degradation of O-SWCNTs in the presence of HRP is also mainly due to the Fenton reaction, with negligible enzymatic degradation. This contradicts the report showing enzymatic degradation of O-SWCNTs by HRP but supports the subsequent report quantitatively showing very slow transformation of O-SWCNTs by HRP. The current results emphasize that the Fenton reaction, which has received little attention in CNT degradation by heme enzymes, must be taken into consideration and will contribute to the development of a simple disposal method for CNTs, utilizing the Fenton reaction with bacteria/bacterial enzymes and H2O2.
Immune profiling in multiple sclerosis: a single-center study of 65 cytokines, chemokines, and related molecules in cerebrospinal fluid and serum
Authors: Berek Klaus , Bauer Angelika , Rudzki Dagmar , Auer Michael , Barket Robert , Zinganell Anne , Lerch Magdalena , Hofer Livia , Grams Astrid , Poskaite Paulina , Wurth Sebastian , Berger Thomas , Di Pauli Franziska , Deisenhammer Florian , Hegen Harald , Reindl Markus 
Published: June 2023

IntroductionThe understanding of the pathophysiology of multiple sclerosis (MS) has evolved alongside the characterization of cytokines and chemokines in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum. However, the complex interplay of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines in different body fluids in people with MS (pwMS) and their association with disease progression is still not well understood and needs further investigation. Therefore, the aim of this study was to profile a total of 65 cytokines, chemokines, and related molecules in paired serum and CSF samples of pwMS at disease onset.MethodsMultiplex bead-based assays were performed and baseline routine laboratory diagnostics, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and clinical characteristics were assessed. Of 44 participants included, 40 had a relapsing–remitting disease course and four a primary progressive MS.ResultsThere were 29 cytokines and chemokines that were significantly higher in CSF and 15 in serum. Statistically significant associations with moderate effect sizes were found for 34 of 65 analytes with sex, age, CSF, and MRI parameters and disease progression.DiscussionIn conclusion, this study provides data on the distribution of 65 different cytokines, chemokines, and related molecules in CSF and serum in newly diagnosed pwMS.
Infection with hypervirulent Mycobacterium tuberculosis triggers emergency myelopoiesis but not trained immunity
Authors: Maceiras Ana Raquel , Silvério Diogo , Gonçalves Rute , Cardoso Marcos S. , Saraiva Margarida 
Published: June 2023

IntroductionDuring infection, bone marrow (BM) hematopoiesis is reprogrammed toward myeloid cell production, a mechanism named emergency myelopoiesis. In addition to replenishing myeloid cells, emergency myelopoiesis has been linked to trained immunity, a process that allows enhanced innate immune responses to secondary challenges. Although hematopoietic alterations during tuberculosis (TB) have been described and Mycobacterium tuberculosis may colonize the BM, studies using the mouse model of infection and the laboratory reference strain M. tuberculosis H37Rv have demonstrated limited emergency myelopoiesis and trained immunity.MethodsTo further address this issue, we aerosol- infected C57BL/6 mice with high doses of the hypervirulent M. tuberculosis isolate HN878 and monitored alterations to the BM. This experimental model better resembles the human blood immune signature of TB.Results and discussionWe found increased frequencies of lineage-Sca-1+cKit+ (LSK) cells and the granulocyte/macrophage progenitor (GMP) population. At the mature cell level, we observed an increase of monocytes and neutrophils in the blood and lung, likely reflecting the increased BM myeloid output. Monocytes or monocyte-derived macrophages recovered from the BM of M. tuberculosis HN878-infected mice did not show signs of trained immunity, suggesting an uncoupling of emergency myelopoiesis and trained immunity in the BM. Surprisingly, M. tuberculosis HN878-induced emergency myelopoiesis was not fully dependent on IFNγ, as mice lacking this cytokine and infected under the same conditions as wild-type mice still presented BM alterations. These data expand our understanding of the immune response to M. tuberculosis and raise awareness of pathogen strain-imposed differences to host responses.