bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Morphological and morphometric features of the abnormal and normal saccular otoliths in flatfishes
Authors: Yedier Serdar , Bostanci Derya , Türker Dilek 
Published: October 2022

AbstractThe fish's inner ear consists of three interconnected semicircular canals and otolith organs located in these canals, which are responsible for balance and hearing. Abnormalities in these organs can affect the vital activities of the fish. The main purpose of this study was to determine the morphological and morphometric characteristics of abnormal and normal sagittal otoliths in the four flatfish species (Lepidorhombus boscii, Platichthys flesus, Solea solea, and Pegusa lascaris) sampled from three seas (Aegean Sea, Mediterranean Sea, and Black Sea). Abnormalities in otoliths are investigated using light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The otolith morphometric measurements and morphology are recorded for abnormal and normal otoliths for each species. It was determined that the four flatfish species examined in the present study showed differences in the morphological features of normal and abnormal otoliths in the blind and eyed sides. In addition, statistical differences were observed when the weight, length, width, perimeter, and area values of normal and abnormal otoliths of all species were compared (p < .05). The four types of saccular otoliths were defined, one normal (type 0) and three abnormal (type 1, type 2, and type 4) for four flatfish species. The current study presents for the first‐time abnormal otolith morphology information on blind and eyed side sagittal otoliths in these flatfish species. Abnormalities in the anatomical structures of bony parts such as otoliths in fish may be caused by pollution, nutritional problems, stress, and environmental factors as well as a combination of these.
Factors that influence preference for male or female urologist among underserved patients in New York City
Authors: Razdan Shirin , Ho Patrick , Bieber Christine , Sljivich Michaela , Anastos Harry , Busby Dallin , Simma‐Chiang Vannita 
Published: October 2022

AbstractObjectiveTo examine the prevalence of patient preference for male or female urologic provider and explore which patient characteristics influence this preference.Materials and MethodsAfter obtaining hospital Institutional Review Board approval, a 14‐question survey in English and Spanish was administered across four general urology clinic sites in a single hospital system in New York City. The survey asked demographic questions and preference for a male or a female urologist. The survey included questions pertaining to the nature of the clinic visit and subsequent provider preference as well. Statistics were performed using Stata 16 (StataCorp, College Station, TX).ResultsA total of 540 patients completed the 14‐question survey. The vast majority of survey respondents identified as male (90%). The largest proportion demographic groups were those aged 41–60 (47%), Hispanic or Latino (43%), Catholic (47%), unemployed (40%) and those with a high school level of education (34%). Most patients (60%) did not have a preference for a specific gender provider, whereas 37% preferred a male provider, and 3% preferred a female provider. On univariate analysis, patient age 25–40, less than high school education level and lack of employment were significant predictors of provider gender preference (p < 0.05), with most patients indicating a male provider preference. On multivariate analysis of gender, age, education level and employment status, gender and education level were not significant predictors of preference, whereas age 25–40 and being unemployed were significant predictors (p < 0.05).ConclusionPatient gender, race and religion do not appear to influence their preference to be seen by a male or a female urologist in the clinic setting. However, patient age, unemployment and potentially educational attainment were significantly associated with a provider gender preference.
Dimethyl Cardamonin from Fruits of Campomanesia reitziana D. Legrand Promotes Gastroprotection and Gastric Healing Effects in Rodents
Authors: Cury Benhur Judah , Boeing Thaise , Somensi Lincon Bordignon , Campos Adriana , Cechinel‐Filho Valdir , de Souza Priscila , da Silva Luisa Mota 
Published: October 2022

AbstractCampomanesia reitziana D. Legrand (Myrtaceae) displays antiulcer properties when given to rodents. The major active chemical components of C. reitziana are chalcones, including 4′,6′‐dihydroxy‐2′‐methoxy‐3′,5′‐dimethylchalcone or dimethyl cardamonin (DMC); therefore, we hypothesized that this compound could have antiulcer effects and the present study aimed to evaluate its gastroprotective and gastric healing properties. DMC was isolated from the fruits of C. reitziana, and its gastroprotective effect was evaluated by ethanol and indomethacin‐induced gastric ulcer models in mice (0.1 mg/kg, i.p. and 1 and 3 mg/kg, p.o.). Oxidative stress and inflammatory parameters were analyzed in the gastric tissue. Moreover, its gastric healing effect was evaluated in rats. In addition, the compound's mode of action was evaluated in vivo and in vitro by measuring H+‐K+‐ATPase activity. Finally, the cytotoxic potential of DMC was tested in fibroblasts and human gastric adenocarcinoma cells. The DMC reduced the ethanol‐induced gastric ulcer in mice by 77 %, increased the adhered mucus, and reduced lipoperoxides levels. The block of nonprotein sulfhydryls (NP‐SH) compounds by pretreatment with N‐ethylmaleimide (NEM), the inhibition of nitric oxide synthase with Nω‐nitro‐L‐arginine methyl ester hydrochloride (L‐NAME), or the antagonism of α2 receptor using yohimbine reversed the gastroprotective effects of DMC. Furthermore, DMC reduced the acidity of gastric content in pylorus‐ligated rats but did not change H+, K+‐ATPase (isolated from rabbit) activity in vitro. DMC reduced the lesion area in acetic acid‐induced ulcers and decreased myeloperoxidase activity. DMC did not change the viability of fibroblast cells (L929) but reduced the viability of human gastric adenocarcinoma cells (AGS). The results confirmed that DMC could significantly enhance the gastric healing process and prevent ulcers due to improving protective factors on the gastric mucosa and reducing gastric acid secretion.
Ultrathin Ti3C2Tx nanosheets modified separators for lithium–sulphur batteries
Authors: Chen Dong , Mao Yangyang , Cao Yongan , Wang Wenju 
Published: October 2022

AbstractCurrently, among the various emerging energy storage systems, the lithium–sulphur (Li‐S) battery is expected to be one of the next‐generation lithium secondary batteries with high efficiency. However, the practical application of Li‐S batteries still faces many obstacles. To solve the shuttle effect of lithium polysulphides, ultrathin Ti3C2Tx nanosheets were prepared through the in‐situ acid etching method and applied to separator modification to suppress the shuttle effect of lithium polysulphides. Ultrathin Ti3C2Tx nanosheets with enlarged interlayer spacing accelerated the migration of Li+. The abundant termination groups on the surface of Ti3C2Tx played the role of the lithium polysulphide capture centre. When the mass loading of separator modification materials was set as 0.025 mg cm−2, the as‐prepared battery exhibited a reversible specific capacity as high as 780 mAh g−1 after 200 cycles at 0.2 C, and the single‐cycle capacity decay rate was only 0.09%.
LRP‐based network pruning and policy distillation of robust and non‐robust DRL agents for embedded systems
Authors: Luan Siyu , Gu Zonghua , Xu Rui , Zhao Qingling , Chen Gang 
Published: October 2022

SummaryReinforcement learning (RL) is an effective approach to developing control policies by maximizing the agent's reward. Deep reinforcement learning uses deep neural networks (DNNs) for function approximation in RL, and has achieved tremendous success in recent years. Large DNNs often incur significant memory size and computational overheads, which may impede their deployment into resource‐constrained embedded systems. For deployment of a trained RL agent on embedded systems, it is necessary to compress the policy network of the RL agent to improve its memory and computation efficiency. In this article, we perform model compression of the policy network of an RL agent by leveraging the relevance scores computed by layer‐wise relevance propagation (LRP), a technique for Explainable AI (XAI), to rank and prune the convolutional filters in the policy network, combined with fine‐tuning with policy distillation. Performance evaluation based on several Atari games indicates that our proposed approach is effective in reducing model size and inference time of RL agents. We also consider robust RL agents trained with RADIAL‐RL versus standard RL agents, and show that a robust RL agent can achieve better performance (higher average reward) after pruning than a standard RL agent for different attack strengths and pruning rates.
Efficient Activation of 6‐Nitropiperonyloxymethylene (NPOM)‐Caged Nucleosides with Visible Light
Authors: Bardhan Anirban , Deiters Alexander 
Published: October 2022

AbstractCaging groups are photoremovable protecting groups that render a molecule biologically inactive until light illumination, thereby allowing for temporal and spatial control of activity. While nitrobenzyl‐based caging groups have advantageous synthetic and photochemical properties, red shifting of the absorption spectrum through chemical modification has led to reduced decaging efficiency. 6‐Nitropiperonyloxymethylene (NPOM), a group with broad applicability in the caging of heterocyclic structures, in particular nucleic acids, traditionally requires ultraviolet (UV) irradiation for decaging. Herein, we investigated the decaging properties of NPOM under near visible light (400–450 nm) using N3‐caged 5’‐dimethoxytrityl (DMTr)‐thymidine as a substrate. To our surprise, we discovered highly efficient decaging at wavelengths outside the UV range, in particular when compared to other nitrobenzyl chromophores. These results have implications in the selection of light sources for photoactivation and for sequential photolysis to achieve selective control of biological processes.
The prognostic value and molecular properties of tertiary lymphoid structures in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Ling Yihong , Zhong Jian , Weng Zelin , Lin Guangrong , Liu Caixia , Pan Chuqing , Yang Hong , Wei Xiaolong , Xie Xiuying , Wei Xiaoli , Zhang Huizhong , Wang Geng , Fu Jianhua , Wen Jing 
Published: October 2022

AbstractBackgroundTertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) play key roles in tumour adaptive immunity. However, the prognostic value and molecular properties of TLSs in oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) patients have not been studied.MethodsThe prognostic values of the presence and maturation status of tumour‐associated TLSs were determined in 394 and 256 ESCC patients from Sun Yat‐sen University Cancer Center (Centre A) and the Cancer Hospital of Shantou University Medical College (Centre B), respectively. A deep‐learning (DL) TLS classifier was established with haematoxylin and eosin (H&E)‐stained slides using an inception‐resnet‐v2 neural network. Digital spatial profiling was performed to determine the cellular and molecular properties of TLSs in ESCC tissues.ResultsTLSs were observed in 73.1% of ESCCs from Centre A via pathological examination of H&E‐stained primary tumour slides, among which 42.9% were TLS‐mature and 30.2% were TLS‐immature tumours. The established DL TLS classifier yielded favourable sensitivities and specificities for patient TLS identification and maturation evaluation, with which 55.1%, 39.5% and 5.5% of ESCCs from Centre B were identified as TLS‐mature, TLS‐immature and TLS‐negative tumours. Multivariate analyses proved that the presence of mature TLSs was an independent prognostic factor in both the Centre A and Centre B cohorts (p < .05). Increased proportions of proliferative B, plasma and CD4+ T helper (Th) cells and increased B memory and Th17 signatures were observed in mature TLSs compared to immature ones. Intratumoural CD8+ T infiltration was increased in TLS‐mature ESCC tissues compared to mature TLS‐absent tissues. The combination of mature TLS presence and high CD8+ T infiltration was associated with the best survival in ESCC patients.ConclusionsMature TLSs improve the prognosis of ESCC patients who underwent complete resection. The use of the DL TLS classifier would facilitate precise and efficient evaluation of TLS maturation status and offer a novel probability of ESCC treatment individualization.
A secure and privacy‐preserved delegate‐based blockchain and federated learning for 6G networks
Authors: Liu Jihua , Dong Hongsong , Xue Yanfeng 
Published: October 2022

SummaryThe 6G networks are envisioned to provide Artificial Intelligence (AI) for distributed devices through deploying machine learning on base stations. However, due to the concern of data privacy, devices are not willing to transmit their raw data to base stations (BSs) for machine learning training. Federated learning (FL) is a promising paradigm that can enable distributed machine learning while protecting data privacy by collaboratively training AI models without sharing raw data. But the traditional FL requires a central node to complete global model update which makes the traditional FL facing single point attack. Further, the traditional FL cannot allow the distributed model sharing among untrusted devices which results in low training efficiency on devices. Blockchain is a promising approach to address the above issues since it can establish a secure decentralized and transaction sharing environment for untrusted devices. In this paper, we integrate blockchain into FL to build a distributed model training and sharing platform, where distributed mobile devices execute local model training and base stations maintain blockchain‐based model sharing. Moreover, in order to accelerate the establishment of blockchain, we design a lightweight consensus strategy based on a delegate committee. To select high‐quality nodes to form delegate committee, we design a deep reinforcement learning (DRL)‐based selection algorithm. Numerical results demonstrate that the proposed framework can achieve a higher precision compared with the traditional FL, and the proposed DRL selection algorithm can reduce consensus latency compared with the benchmarks.
Large‐scale waves of activity in the neonatal mouse brain in vivo occur almost exclusively during sleep cycles
Authors: Tabuena Dennis R. , Huynh Randy , Metcalf Jenna , Richner Thomas , Stroh Albrecht , Brunton Bingni W. , Moody William J. , Easton Curtis R. 
Published: October 2022

AbstractSpontaneous electrical activity plays major roles in the development of cortical circuitry. This activity can occur highly localized regions or can propagate over the entire cortex. Both types of activity coexist during early development. To investigate how different forms of spontaneous activity might be temporally segregated, we used wide‐field trans‐cranial calcium imaging over an entire hemisphere in P1–P8 mouse pups. We found that spontaneous waves of activity that propagate to cover the majority of the cortex (large‐scale waves; LSWs) are generated at the end of the first postnatal week, along with several other forms of more localized activity. We further found that LSWs are segregated into sleep cycles. In contrast, cortical activity during wake states is more spatially restricted and the few large‐scale forms of activity that occur during wake can be distinguished from LSWs in sleep based on their initiation in the motor cortex and their correlation with body movements. This change in functional cortical circuitry to a state that is permissive for large‐scale activity may temporally segregate different forms of activity during critical stages when activity‐dependent circuit development occurs over many spatial scales. Our data also suggest that LSWs in early development may be a functional precursor to slow sleep waves in the adult, which play critical roles in memory consolidation and synaptic rescaling.
Plant–soil feedback from eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana) inhibits the growth of grasses in encroaching range
Authors: Bennion Leland D. , Ward David 
Published: October 2022

AbstractThe encroachment of woody plants into grasslands is an ongoing global problem that is largely attributed to anthropogenic factors such as climate change and land management practices. Determining the mechanisms that drive successful encroachment is a critical step towards planning restoration and long‐term management strategies. Feedbacks between soil and aboveground communities can have a large influence on the fitness of plants and must be considered as potentially important drivers for woody encroachment. We conducted a plant–soil feedback experiment in a greenhouse between eastern redcedar Juniperus virginiana and four common North American prairie grass species. We assessed how soils that had been occupied by redcedar, a pervasive woody encroacher in the Great Plains of North America, affected the growth of Andropogon gerardi, Schizachyrium scoparium, Bromus inermis, and Pascopyrum smithii over time. We evaluated the effect of redcedar on grass performance by comparing the height and biomass of individuals that were grown in live or sterilized conspecific or redcedar soil. We found redcedar created a negative plant–soil feedback that limited the growth of the cool season grasses B. inermis and P. smithii, reducing their overall biomass by >60%. These effects were found in both live and sterilized redcedar soils. In live soils, some growth suppression can be attributed to the negative effects of soil microbes. The limitation of grass growth in sterile soils indicates redcedar may exude an allelochemical into the soil that limits grass growth. Our results demonstrate that plant–soil feedback created by redcedar inhibits the growth of certain grass species. By creating a plant–plant interaction that negatively affects competitors, redcedars increase the probability of seedling survival until they can grow to overtop their neighbors. These results indicate plant–soil feedback is a mechanism of native woody plant encroachment which could be important in many systems yet is understudied.
Epidemiological‐clinical and paraclinical particularities of acute coronary syndrome without persistent ST‐segment elevation in type 2 diabetes mellitus: Retrospective comparative study in a Malagasy population
Authors: Raharinavalona Sitraka Angelo , Raherison Rija Eric , Razanamparany Thierry , Randrianomanana Tsikinirina Valisoa , Rakotomalala Andrianirina Dave Patrick 
Published: October 2022

AbstractIntroductionThis study aimed at determining the epidemiological‐clinical and paraclinical particularities of non‐ST‐segment elevation acute coronary syndrome (NSTE‐ACS) in Malagasy with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).MethodsThis was a retrospective, descriptive and comparative study between patients with and without T2DM, carried out over a period of 38 months. The diagnosis of NSTE‐ACS was retained in front of the association of chest discomfort, electrical abnormalities and elevations beyond fivefold the upper reference limit of high‐sensitivity cardiac troponin.ResultWith 130 patients included, the overall prevalence of NSTE‐ACS was 4.1%, of which 68 patients (52.3%) had T2DM. Compared to without T2DM, NSTE‐ACS in T2DM was characterized by young age (p = .0002), high‐frequency hypertension (OR 2.92 [1.23–7.25]; p = .0041), overweight/obesity (OR 4.39 [1.72–12.4]; p = .0002) and microalbuminuria (p < .0001), accelerated heart rate (p = .0104), atypical chest discomfort (OR 5.57 [2.21–15.7]; p < .0001), pulmonary crepitations (OR 2.25 [1.02–5.14]; p = .0224), high GRACE score (p = .0016), damage of extensive anterior leads (OR 2.11 [1.02–4.98]; p = .0402) and septal lead (OR 3.64 [1.41–10.3]; p = .0015), significant increase in cardiac troponin (p < .0001), high left ventricular filling pressure (OR 3.39 [1.51–7.90]; p = .001).ConclusionNSTE‐ACS in T2DM is frequent, with an atypical clinical and severe paraclinical presentations. Adequate and multidisciplinary management of cardiovascular risk factors, including T2DM, could thus minimize the occurrence of NSTE‐ACS and improve this profile.
Revising immune cell coordination: Origins and importance of single‐cell variation
Authors: Van Eyndhoven Laura C. , Tel Jurjen 
Published: October 2022

AbstractMoving from the optimalization of single‐cell technologies to the interpretation of the multi‐complex single‐cell data, the field of immunoengineering is granted with numerous important insights into the coordination of immune cell activation and how to modulate it for therapeutic purposes. However, insights come with additional follow‐up questions that challenge our perception on how immune responses are generated and fine‐tuned to fight a wide array of pathogens in ever‐changing and often unpredictable microenvironments. Are immune responses really either being tightly regulated by molecular determinants, or highly flexible attributed to stochasticity? What exactly makes up the basic rules by which single cells cooperate to establish tissue‐level immunity? Taking the type I IFN system and its newest insights as a main example throughout this review, we revise the basic concepts of (single) immune cell coordination, redefine the concepts of noise, stochasticity and determinism, and highlight the importance of single‐cell variation in immunology and beyond.
Modelling post‐earthquake cascading hazards: Changing patterns of landslide runout following the 2015 Gorkha earthquake, Nepal
Authors: Kincey Mark E. , Rosser Nick J. , Densmore Alexander L. , Robinson Tom R. , Shrestha Ram , Singh Pujara Dammar , Horton Pascal , Swirad Zuzanna M. , Oven Katie J. , Arrell Katherine 
Published: October 2022

AbstractCoseismic landslides represent the first stage of a broader cascading sequence of geohazards associated with high‐magnitude continental earthquakes, with the subsequent remobilization of coseismic landslide debris posing a long‐term post‐seismic legacy in mountain regions. Here, we quantify the controls on the hazard posed by landslide remobilization and debris runout, and compare the overlap between areas at risk of runout and the pattern of post‐seismic landslides and debris flows that actually occurred. Focusing on the 2015 Mw 7.8 Gorkha earthquake in Nepal, we show that the extent of the area that could be affected by debris runout remained elevated above coseismic levels 4.5 years after the event. While 150 km2 (0.6% of the study area) was directly impacted by landslides in the earthquake, an additional 614 km2 (2.5%) was left at risk from debris runout, increasing to 777 km2 (3.2%) after the 2019 monsoon. We evaluate how this area evolved by comparing modelled predictions of runout from coseismic landslides to multi‐temporal post‐seismic landslide inventories, and find that 14% (85 km2) of the total modelled potential runout area experienced landslide activity within 4.5 years after the earthquake. This value increases to 32% when modelled runout probability is thresholded, equivalent to 10 km2 of realized runout from a remaining modelled area of 32 km2. Although the proportion of the modelled runout area from coseismic landslides that remains a hazard has decreased through time, the overall runout susceptibility for the study area remains high. This indicates that runout potential is changing both spatially and temporally as a result of changes to the landslide distribution after the earthquake. These findings are particularly important for understanding evolving patterns of cascading hazards following large earthquakes, which is crucial for guiding decision‐making associated with post‐seismic recovery and reconstruction.