bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Pegylated interferon‐α‐2b combined with tenofovir disoproxil fumarate, granulocyte‐macrophage colony‐stimulating factor, and hepatitis B vaccine treatment for naïve HBeAg‐positive chronic hepatitis B patients: A prospective, multicenter, randomized controlled study
Authors: Lian Jiangshan , Kuang Wei , Jia Hongyu , Lu Yingfeng , Zhang Xiaoli , Ye Chanyuan , Gu Jueqing , Lv Yan , Yu Jiong , Zhang Yimin , Lu Xiaoqing , Zhao Yingren , Yang Dongliang , Wang Kai , Zhao Ping , Yu Yanyan , Bai Lang , Zhang Jiming , Zhang Xinxin , Yang Yida 
Published: July 2022

AbstractHepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) loss or seroconversion is an ideal treatment endpoint for patients with chronic hepatitis B but is rarely achievable in hepatitis B e‐antigen (HBeAg)‐positive patients using existing treatment strategies. In this study, the effect of pegylated interferon (peg‐IFN) alfa‐2b plus tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF), granulocyte‐macrophage colony‐stimulating factor (GM‐CSF), and hepatitis B vaccine was evaluated. This randomized controlled trial was conducted at nine liver centers in Chinese university hospitals from May 2018 to July 2020. Patients (n = 303) enrolled were randomly administered peg‐IFN‐α‐2b combined with TDF, GM‐CSF, and hepatitis B vaccine (experimental group); peg‐IFN‐α‐2b plus TDF (control group 2); or interferon‐α‐2b alone (control group 1). The primary efficacy endpoint was HBsAg seroconversion at 48 weeks and the secondary endpoint included safety. No differences in baseline HBsAg levels were observed among the groups. The primary endpoint was achieved in three (3.0%), one (1.03%), and one (1.19%) patient in the experimental group, control group 2, and control group 1, respectively. The incidence of HBsAg seroconversion at week 48 was not significantly different among the three groups (p = 0.629). However, the decrease in serum levels of HBsAg at week 48 was significantly higher in the experimental and control group 2 compared with that in control group 1 (p = 0.008 and 0.006, respectively). No significant difference between the experimental and control group 2 was observed (p = 0.619). Adverse events were not significantly different among the groups except for the lower incidence of neutropenia in the experimental group. Peg‐IFN‐α‐2b combined with TDF, GM‐CSF, and hepatitis B vaccine is not superior to peg‐IFN‐α‐2b combined with TDF in HBeAg‐positive naïve patients. Clinical Trials Registration: ChiCTR1800016173.
Climatology of sea‐effect snow in Finland
Authors: Olsson Taru , Luomaranta Anna , Nyman Henri , Jylhä Kirsti 
Published: July 2022

AbstractConvective sea‐effect snowfall, in the form of snowbands, is observed over the northern Baltic Sea annually. Quasi‐stationary snowbands may last up to several days over the sea and, depending on the wind direction, move towards the coast. This study provides climatology of spatial and temporal occurrence of snowbands in Finland for a 48‐year period (1973–2020). We used a set of detection criteria together with ERA5 reanalysis at off‐shore areas and FMIClimGrid gridded observational data for on‐shore areas to find the days favouring snowband formation. Only those snowband days (SBD) when snow reached the Finnish coastal mainland were considered. The total annual number of SBDs in Finland varied from 6 to 40 with an average of 16. SBDs were detected most frequently over the Gulf of Bothnia near the western coast of the country. The largest increase in snow depth (SDI) during an SBD (67 cm/day) also took place on the western coast, although the long‐term mean of SDI (3–5 cm/day) was highest over the southern coast. Throughout the country, November and December showed the highest frequency of SBDs. However, between the periods 1973–1996 and 1997–2020, the seasonal cycle of SBDs shifted 1 month forward from late autumn to mid‐winter as the decrease in the number of SBDs during December as well as the increase during January and February were statistically significant in Finland. In northern Baltic Sea, long‐term increases in monthly means of sea surface temperature (SST) and air temperature at the atmospheric level of 850 hPa (T850) were in line with the decadal changes in the occurrence of SBDs. The increasing trend in SST favours the formation of snowbands but in late autumn the probability for snowband formation decreased because even larger increases in T850 resulted in diminishing differences between SST and T850.
Intranasal Anticholinergics for Treatment of Chronic Rhinitis: Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis
Authors: Pang Jonathan C. , Vasudev Milind , Du Amy T. , Nottoli Madeline M , Dang Katherine , Kuan Edward C. 
Published: July 2022

ObjectiveTopical intranasal anticholinergics are commonly prescribed for the relief of chronic rhinitis and associated symptoms, warranting thorough assessment of the supporting evidence. The present study aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of anticholinergic nasal sprays in the management of allergic and non‐allergic rhinitis symptom severity and duration.MethodsA search encompassing the Cochrane Library, PubMed/MEDLINE, and Scopus databases was conducted. Primary studies describing rhinorrhea, nasal congestion, and/or postnasal drip outcomes in rhinitis patients treated with an anticholinergic spray were included for review.ResultsThe search yielded 1,029 unique abstracts, of which 12 studies (n = 2,024) met inclusion criteria for qualitative synthesis and 9 (n = 1,920) for meta‐analysis. Median follow‐up was 4 weeks and ipratropium bromide was the most extensively trialed anticholinergic. Compared to placebo, anticholinergic treatment was demonstrated to significantly reduce rhinorrhea severity scores (standardized mean difference [95% CI] = −0.77 [−1.20, −0.35]; −0.43 [−0.72, −0.13]) and duration (−0.62 [−0.95, −0.30]; −0.29 [−0.47, −0.10]) in allergic and non‐allergic rhinitis patients respectively. Benefit was less consistent for nasal congestion, postnasal drip, and sneezing symptoms. Reported adverse effects included nasal mucosa dryness or irritation, epistaxis, headaches, and pharyngitis, though comparison to placebo found significantly greater risk for epistaxis only (risk ratio [95% CI] = 2.19 [1.22, 3.93]).ConclusionAlbeit treating other symptoms with less benefit, anticholinergic nasal sprays appear to be safe and efficacious in reducing rhinorrhea severity and duration in both rhinitis etiologies. This evidence supports their continued use in the treatment of rhinitis‐associated rhinorrhea.Level of Evidence1 Laryngoscope, 133:722–731, 2023
Induced Circular Dichroism and Circularly Polarized Luminescence for Block Copolymers with Chiral Communications
Authors: Puneet Puhup , Shao Sheng‐Wei , Ho Rong‐Ming 
Published: July 2022

AbstractMany sophisticated chiral materials are found in living organisms, giving specific functions and required complexity. Owing to the remarkable optical properties of chiral materials, they have drawn significant attention for the development of synthetic materials to give optical activities for appealing applications. In contrast to a top‐down approach, the bottom‐up approach from self‐assembled systems with chiral host–achiral guest and achiral guest–chiral host for induced circular dichroism and induced circularly polarized luminescence has greatly emerged because of its cost‐effective advantage with easy fabrication for mesoscale assembly. Self‐assembled hierarchical textures with chiral sense indeed give significant amplification of the dissymmetry factors of absorption and luminescence (gabs and glum), resulting from the formation of well‐ordered superstructures and phases with the building of chromophores and luminophores. By taking advantage of the microphase separation of block copolymers via self‐assembly, a variety of well‐defined chiral nanostructures can be formed as tertiary superstructures that can be further extended to quaternary phases in bulk or thin film. In this article, a conceptual perspective is presented to utilize the self‐assembly of chiral block copolymers with chiral communications, giving quaternary phases with well‐ordered textures at the nanoscale for significant enhancement of dissymmetry factors.
Environmental, Health, and Legislation Considerations for Rational Design of Nonreactive Flame‐Retardant Additives for Polymeric Materials: Future Perspectives
Authors: Reynolds Karina J. , Zagho Moustafa M. , Robertson Mark , Qiang Zhe , Nazarenko Sergei 
Published: July 2022

AbstractIncreasing polymer usage has demanded functional additives that decrease fire hazards for end users. While traditional flame‐retardant (FR) additives, such as halogenated, phosphorus, and metal hydroxides, greatly reduce flammability and associated fire hazards, research has continually exposed a litany of health and environmental safety concerns. This perspective aims to identify the key components of a successful FR additive and address material, environmental, and health concerns of existing additives. Legislation surrounding FRs and persistent organic pollutants is also discussed to highlight political perception that has resulted in the increased chemical regulations and subsequent banning of FR additives. Finally, future directions of this field regarding nonreactive additives, focusing on the use of bioinspired materials and transition metal chemistries to produce alternatives for polymers with efficacies surpassing traditional additives are presented.
The SARS‐CoV‐2 main protease (Mpro): Structure, function, and emerging therapies for COVID‐19
Authors: Hu Qing , Xiong Yuan , Zhu Guang‐Hao , Zhang Ya‐Ni , Zhang Yi‐Wen , Huang Ping , Ge Guang‐Bo 
Published: July 2022

AbstractThe main proteases (Mpro), also termed 3‐chymotrypsin‐like proteases (3CLpro), are a class of highly conserved cysteine hydrolases in β‐coronaviruses. Increasing evidence has demonstrated that 3CLpros play an indispensable role in viral replication and have been recognized as key targets for preventing and treating coronavirus‐caused infectious diseases, including COVID‐19. This review is focused on the structural features and biological function of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) main protease Mpro (also known as 3CLpro), as well as recent advances in discovering and developing SARS‐CoV‐2 3CLpro inhibitors. To better understand the characteristics of SARS‐CoV‐2 3CLpro inhibitors, the inhibition activities, inhibitory mechanisms, and key structural features of various 3CLpro inhibitors (including marketed drugs, peptidomimetic, and non‐peptidomimetic synthetic compounds, as well as natural compounds and their derivatives) are summarized comprehensively. Meanwhile, the challenges in this field are highlighted, while future directions for designing and developing efficacious 3CLpro inhibitors as novel anti‐coronavirus therapies are also proposed. Collectively, all information and knowledge presented here are very helpful for understanding the structural features and inhibitory mechanisms of SARS‐CoV‐2 3CLpro inhibitors, which offers new insights or inspiration to medicinal chemists for designing and developing more efficacious 3CLpro inhibitors as novel anti‐coronavirus agents.
A tunable reflection‐type filtering phase shifter using SISL technology
Authors: Yang Jianteng , Ma Kaixue , Fu Haipeng , Wang Yongqiang , Chen Xiong , Yan Ningning 
Published: July 2022

AbstractThis letter proposed a novel tunable reflection‐type phase shifter (RTPS) with a filtering function using substrate‐integrated suspended line (SISL) technology. First, a novel 3‐dB branch‐line coupler with a filtering function is designed by using broadside coupling lines. On this basis, the filtering RTPS is realized by combining with a series varactor network. The proposed SISL filtering RTPS can obtain a continuous phase shift range of 104° under 0–30 V DC bias control, which enables multifunctional integration of phase shifters. All circuits are implemented on the SISL platform, which has the advantages of double‐sided wiring, self‐packaging, and low loss.
Prediction of potential severe coronavirus disease 2019 patients based on CT radiomics: A retrospective study
Authors: Xiao Feng , Sun Rongqing , Sun Wenbo , Xu Dan , Lan Lan , Li Huan , Liu Huan , Xu Haibo 
Published: July 2022

AbstractPurposeCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) is a recently declared worldwide pandemic. Triaging of patients into severe and non‐severe could further help in targeted management. “Potential severe patients” is a category of patients who did not have severe symptoms at their initial diagnosis, but eventually progressed to be severe patients and are easily overlooked in the early stage. This work aimed to develop and evaluate a CT‐based radiomics signature for the prediction of these potential severe COVID‐19 patients.MethodsOne hundred fifty COVID‐19 patients were enrolled and randomly divided into cross‐validation and independent test sets. First, their clinical characteristics were screened using the univariate and multivariate logistic regression step by step. Then, radiomics features were extracted from the lesions on their chest CT images. Subsequently, the inter‐ and intra‐class correlation coefficients (ICC) analysis, minimum‐redundancy maximum‐relevance (mRMR) selection, and the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) algorithm were used step by step for feature selection and construction of a radiomics signature. Finally, the screened clinical risk factors and constructed radiomics signature were combined for the combined model and Radiomics+Clinics nomogram construction. The predictive performance of the Radiomics and Combined models were evaluated and compared using receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis, Hosmer–Lemeshow test and Delong test.ResultsClinical characteristics analysis resulted in the screening of five clinical risk factors. The combination of ICC, mRMR, and LASSO methods resulted in the selection of ten radiomics features, which made up of the radiomics signature. The differences in the radiomics signature between the potential severe and non‐severe groups in cross‐validation set and test sets were both p < 0.001. All Radiomics and Combined models showed a very good predictive performance with the accuracy and AUC of nearly or above 0.9. Additionally, we found no significant difference in the predictive performance between these two models.ConclusionsA CT‐based radiomics signature for the prediction of potential severe COVID‐19 patients was constructed and evaluated. Constructed Radiomics and Combined model showed good feasibility and accuracy. The Radiomics+Clinical nomogram, acted as a useful tool, may assist clinicians to better identify potential severe cases to target their management in the COVID‐19 pandemic prevention and control.
Automatic segmentation of hyperreflective dots via focal priors and visual saliency
Authors: Zhang Bo , Ma Lin , Zhao Hui , Hao Yanlei , Fu Shujun , Wang Hong , Li Yuliang , Han Hongbin 
Published: July 2022

AbstractPurposeHyperreflective dots (HRDs) can be observed in spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD‐OCT), which can provide a sensitive marker in the treatment decision process. Quantitative analyses of HRDs are the key to make appropriate decisions on observation, treatment, and retreatment. The purpose of this study is to automatically and accurately segment HRDs in SD‐OCT B‐scans with diabetic retinopathy (DR).MethodsThe authors propose an automatic segmentation algorithm of HRDs via focal priors and visual saliency. The algorithm is divided into three stages: segmentation of retinal layers, calculation of the multiscale local contrast saliency map, and adaptive threshold segmentation. First, a method based on improved graph search is used to segment retinal layers to obtain the region of interest (ROI) and the reflectivity estimation of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) layer; then, the multiscale local contrast saliency map is obtained by using a local contrast measure, which measures the dissimilarity between the current pixels and corresponding neighborhoods; finally, an adaptive threshold is applied to segment HRDs.ResultsExperimental results on 20 SD‐OCT B‐scans demonstrate that our method is effective for HRDs segmentation. The average dice similarity coefficient (DSC) and detection accuracy are 71.12% and 85.07%, respectively.ConclusionsThe proposed method can accurately segment HRDs in SD‐OCT B‐scans with DR and outperforms current state‐of‐the‐art methods. Our method can provide reliable HRDs segmentation to assist ophthalmologists in clinical diagnosis, treatment, disease monitoring, and progression.
A multi‐modality physical phantom for mimicking tumor heterogeneity patterns in PET/CT and PET/MRI
Authors: Valladares Alejandra , Beyer Thomas , Papp Laszlo , Salomon Elisabeth , Rausch Ivo 
Published: July 2022

AbstractBackgroundHybrid imaging (e.g., positron emission tomography [PET]/computed tomography [CT], PET/magnetic resonance imaging [MRI]) helps one to visualize and quantify morphological and physiological tumor characteristics in a single study. The noninvasive characterization of tumor heterogeneity is essential for grading, treatment planning, and following‐up oncological patients. However, conventional (CONV) image‐based parameters, such as tumor diameter, tumor volume, and radiotracer activity uptake, are insufficient to describe tumor heterogeneities. Here, radiomics shows promise for a better characterization of tumors. Nevertheless, the validation of such methods demands imaging objects capable of reflecting heterogeneities in multi‐modality imaging. We propose a phantom to simulate tumor heterogeneity repeatably in PET, CT, and MRI.MethodsThe phantom consists of three 50‐ml plastic tubes filled partially with acrylic spheres of S1: 1.6 mm, S2: 50%(1.6 mm)/50%(6.3 mm), or S3: 6.3‐mm diameter. The spheres were fixed to the bottom of each tube by a plastic grid, yielding one sphere free homogeneous region and one heterogeneous (S1, S2, or S3) region per tube. A 3‐tube phantom and its replica were filled with a fluorodeoxyglucose (18F) solution for test–retest measurements in a PET/CT Siemens TPTV and a PET/MR Siemens Biograph mMR system. A number of 42 radiomic features (10 first order and 32 texture features) were calculated for each phantom region and imaging modality. Radiomic features stability was evaluated through coefficients of variation (COV) across phantoms and scans for PET, CT, and MRI. Further, the Wilcoxon test was used to assess the capability of stable features to discriminate the simulated phantom regions.ResultsThe different patterns (S1–S3) did present visible heterogeneity in all imaging modalities. However, only for CT and MRI, a clear visual difference was present between the different patterns. Across all phantom regions in PET, CT, and MR images, 10, 16, and 21 features out of 42 evaluated features in total had a COV of 10% or less. In particular, CONV, histogram, and gray‐level run length matrix features showed high repeatability for all the phantom regions and imaging modalities. Several of repeatable texture features allowed the image‐based discrimination of the different phantom regions (p < 0.05). However, depending on the feature, different pattern discrimination capabilities were found for the different imaging modalities.ConclusionThe proposed phantom appears suitable for simulating heterogeneities in PET, CT, and MRI. We demonstrate that it is possible to select radiomic features for the readout of the phantom. Most of these features had been shown to be relevant in previous clinical studies.
Area‐selective atomic layer deposition on HOPG enabled by writable electron beam functionalization
Authors: Koerner Gordon , Wyatt Quinton K. , Bateman Brady , Boyle Camden , Young Matthias J. , Maschmann Matthew R. 
Published: July 2022

AbstractArea‐selective atomic layer deposition (AS‐ALD) techniques are an emerging class of bottom‐up nanofabrication techniques that selectively deposit patterned ALD films without the need for conventional top‐down lithography. To achieve this patterning, most reported AS‐ALD techniques use a chemical inhibitor layer to proactively block ALD surface reactions in selected areas. Herein, an AS‐ALD process is demonstrated that uses a focused electron beam (e‐beam) to dissociate ambient water vapor and “write” highly resolved hydroxylated patterns on the surface of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG). The patterned hydroxylated regions then support subsequent ALD deposition. The e‐beam functionalization technique facilitates precise pattern placement through control of beam position, dwell time, and current. Spatial resolution of the technique exceeded 42 nm, with a surface selectivity of between 69.9% and 99.7%, depending on selection of background nucleation regions. This work provides a fabrication route for AS‐ALD on graphitic substrates suitable for fabrication of graphene‐based nanoelectronics.
Fabrication and characteristics of flexible thermoplastic polyurethane filament for fused deposition modeling three‐dimensional printing
Authors: Shin Eun Joo , Park Yuyoung , Jung Yang Sook , Choi Hyeong Yeol , Lee Sunhee 
Published: July 2022

AbstractIn the era of artificial intelligence (AI), materials with soft and strong properties are becoming increasingly important. Various three‐dimensional (3D) fused deposition modeling (FDM) filaments have been developed as soft actuator materials. In the present study, a soft actuator‐grade thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) was developed and then processed into a filament for FDM 3D printers during a melt‐extrusion process using commercial (65, 75, 80, and 85 Shore A) pellets. Rheological, chemical, thermal, and mechanical properties of the manufactured TPU filaments were characterized. Auxetic re‐entrant TPU samples were then printed with the manufactured filament. Results showed that the 75 Shore A pellet was the most suitable for auxetic re‐entrant FDM 3D printing.