bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cortical changes in patients with schizophrenia across two ethnic backgrounds
Authors: Langenbach Benedikt P. , Kohl Waldemar , Murai Toshiya , Suslow Thomas , Ohrmann Patricia , Bauer Jochen , Matsukawa Noriko , Son Shuraku , Pedersen Anya , Lichtenstein Theresa , Miyata Jun , Koelkebeck Katja 
Published: June 2022

AbstractWhile it is known that cultural background influences the healthy brain, less is known about how it affects cortical changes in schizophrenia. Here, we tested whether schizophrenia differentially affected the brain in Japanese and German patients. In a sample of 155 patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia and 191 healthy controls from Japan and Germany, we acquired 3 T-MRI of the brain. We subsequently compared cortical thickness and cortical surface area to identify whether differences between healthy controls and patients might be influenced by ethnicity. Additional analyses were performed to account for effects of duration of illness and medication. We found pronounced interactions between schizophrenia and cultural background in the cortical thickness of several areas, including the left inferior and middle temporal gyrus, as well as the right lateral occipital cortex. Regarding cortical surface area, interaction effects appeared in the insula and the occipital cortex, among others. Some of these brain areas are related to the expression of psychotic symptoms, which are known to differ across cultures. Our results indicate that cultural background impacts cortical structures in different ways, probably resulting in varying clinical manifestations, and call for the inclusion of more diverse samples in schizophrenia research.
Birds adapted to cold conditions show greater changes in range size related to past climatic oscillations than temperate birds
Authors: Carrera Lisa , Pavia Marco , Varela Sara 
Published: June 2022

AbstractInvestigation of ecological responses of species to past climate oscillations provides crucial information to understand the effects of global warming. In this work, we investigated how past climate changes affected the distribution of six bird species with different climatic requirements and migratory behaviours in the Western Palearctic and in Africa. Species Distribution Models and Marine Isotopic Stage (MIS) 2 fossil occurrences of selected species were employed to evaluate the relation between changes in range size and species climatic tolerances. The Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) range predictions, generally well supported by the MIS 2 fossil occurrences, suggest that cold-dwelling species considerably expanded their distribution in the LGM, experiencing more pronounced net changes in range size compared to temperate species. Overall, the thermal niche proves to be a key ecological trait for explaining the impact of climate change in species distributions. Thermal niche is linked to range size variations due to climatic oscillations, with cold-adapted species currently suffering a more striking range reduction compared to temperate species. This work also supports the persistence of Afro-Palearctic migrations during the LGM due to the presence of climatically suitable wintering areas in Africa even during glacial maxima.
Loss of starch synthase IIIa changes starch molecular structure and granule morphology in grains of hexaploid bread wheat
Authors: Fahy Brendan , Gonzalez Oscar , Savva George M. , Ahn-Jarvis Jennifer H. , Warren Frederick J. , Dunn Jack , Lovegrove Alison , Hazard Brittany A. 
Published: June 2022

AbstractStarch synthase III plays a key role in starch biosynthesis and is highly expressed in developing wheat grains. To understand the contribution of SSIII to starch and grain properties, we developed wheat ssIIIa mutants in the elite cultivar Cadenza using in silico TILLING in a mutagenized population. SSIIIa protein was undetectable by immunoblot analysis in triple ssIIIa mutants carrying mutations in each homoeologous copy of ssIIIa (A, B and D). Loss of SSIIIa in triple mutants led to significant changes in starch phenotype including smaller A-type granules and altered granule morphology. Starch chain-length distributions of double and triple mutants indicated greater levels of amylose than sibling controls (33.8% of starch in triple mutants, and 29.3% in double mutants vs. 25.5% in sibling controls) and fewer long amylopectin chains. Wholemeal flour of triple mutants had more resistant starch (6.0% vs. 2.9% in sibling controls) and greater levels of non-starch polysaccharides; the grains appeared shrunken and weighed ~ 11% less than the sibling control which was partially explained by loss in starch content. Interestingly, our study revealed gene dosage effects which could be useful for fine-tuning starch properties in wheat breeding applications while minimizing impact on grain weight and quality.
Determination of roughness coefficient in 3D digital representations of rocks
Authors: Scalco Leonardo , Tonietto Leandro , Velloso Raquel Quadros , Racolte Graciela , Gonzaga Luiz , Veronez Mauricio Roberto 
Published: June 2022

AbstractThe roughness property of rocks is significant in engineering studies due to their mechanical and hydraulic performance and the possibility of quantifying flow velocity and predicting the performance of wells and rock mass structures. However, the study of roughness in rocks is usually carried out through 2D linear measurements (through mechanical profilometer equipment), obtaining a coefficient that may not represent the entire rock surface. Thus, based on the hypothesis that it is possible to quantify the roughness coefficient in rock plugs reconstructed three-dimensionally by the computer vision technique, this research aims to an alternative method to determine the roughness coefficient in rock plugs. The point cloud generated from the 3D model of the photogrammetry process was used to measure the distance between each point and a calculated fit plane over the entire rock surface. The roughness was quantified using roughness parameters ($$R_a$$

R
a

) calculated in hierarchically organized regions. In this hierarchical division, the greater the quantity of division analyzed, the greater the detail of the roughness. The main results show that obtaining the roughness coefficient over the entire surface of the three-dimensional model has peculiarities that would not be observed in the two-dimensional reading. From the 2D measurements, mean roughness values ($$R_a$$

R
a

) of $$0.35\,\upmu \hbox {m}$$

0.35

μ
m

and $$0.235\,\upmu \hbox {m}$$

0.235

μ
m

were obtained for samples 1 and 2, respectively. By the same method, the results of the $$R_a$$

R
a

coefficient applied three-dimensionally over the entire rocky surface were at most $$0.165\,\upmu \hbox {m}$$

0.165

μ
m

and $$0.166\,\upmu \hbox {m}$$

0.166

μ
m

, respectively, showing the difference in values along the surface and the importance of this approach.
Investigating the association between infertility and psychological distress using Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (ALSWH)
Authors: Bagade Tanmay , Thapaliya Kailash , Breuer Erica , Kamath Rashmi , Li Zhuoyang , Sullivan Elizabeth , Majeed Tazeen 
Published: June 2022

AbstractInfertility affects millions of people globally. Although an estimated 1 in 6 couples in Australia are unable to conceive without medical intervention, little is known about the mental health impacts of infertility. This study investigated how infertility impacts the mental health of women. The study used nationally representative Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (ALSWH) data. We analysed data from survey periods 2–8 conducted every three years between 2000 and 2018 for 6582 women born in 1973–78. We used a Generalised Equation Modelling (GEE) method to investigate the association of primary, secondary and resolved fertility status and psychological distress over time. Multiple measures were used to measure psychological distress: the (1) the mental health index subscale of the 36-item short form survey (SF-36), (2) the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CESD-10), (3) the Goldberg Anxiety and Depression Scale (GADanx) anxiety subscale; and a (4) composite psychological distress variable. About a third (30%) of women reported infertility at any of the survey rounds; a steady increase over 18 years from 1.7% at round 2 to 19.3% at round 8. Half of the women reporting primary or secondary infertility reported psychological distress, with the odds of having psychological distress was higher in women reporting primary (odds ratio (OR) 1.24, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.06–1.45), secondary (OR 1.27, 95% CI 1.10–1.46) or resolved infertility (OR 1.15, 95% CI 1.05–1.26) compared to women reporting normal fertility status. Women with partners, underweight or higher BMI, smoking, and high-risk alcohol use had higher odds of psychological distress, whereas women in paid work had significantly lower odds of psychological distress (p < 0.001). Diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma, and other chronic physical illness were independently associated with higher odds of psychological distress. Infertility has a significant impact on mental health even after it is resolved. Frequent mental health assessment and a holistic approach to address the lifestyle factors should be undertaken during the treatment of infertility.
Cerebral oxygenation and body mass index association with cognitive function in chronic kidney disease patients without dialysis: a longitudinal study
Authors: Ookawara Susumu , Ito Kiyonori , Sasabuchi Yusuke , Miyahara Mayako , Miyashita Tomoka , Takemi Nana , Nagamine Chieko , Nakahara Shinobu , Horiuchi Yuko , Inose Nagisa , Shiina Michiko , Murakoshi Miho , Sanayama Hidenori , Hirai Keiji , Morishita Yoshiyuki 
Published: June 2022

AbstractIn chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients, the prevalence of cognitive impairment increases with CKD progression; however, longitudinal changes in cognitive performance remain controversial. Few reports have examined the association of cerebral oxygenation with cognitive function in longitudinal studies. In this study, 68 CKD patients were included. Cerebral regional oxygen saturation (rSO2) was monitored. Cognitive function was evaluated using mini-mental state examination (MMSE) score. Clinical assessments were performed at study initiation and 1 year later. MMSE score was higher at second measurement than at study initiation (p = 0.022). Multivariable linear regression analysis showed that changes in MMSE were independently associated with changes in body mass index (BMI, standardized coefficient: 0.260) and cerebral rSO2 (standardized coefficient: 0.345). This was based on clinical factors with p < 0.05 (changes in BMI, cerebral rSO2, and serum albumin level) and the following confounding factors: changes in estimated glomerular filtration rate, hemoglobin level, proteinuria, salt and energy intake, age, presence of diabetes mellitus, history of comorbid cerebrovascular disease, and use of renin–angiotensin system blocker. Further studies with a larger sample size and longer observational period are needed to clarify whether maintaining BMI and cerebral oxygenation improve or prevent the deterioration of cognitive function.
Morphology of en face Haller vessel and macular neovascularization at baseline and 3 months as predictive factors in age-related macular degeneration
Authors: Lee Hyungwoo , Kim SoHyeon , Kim Myung Ae , Chung Hyewon , Kim Hyung Chan 
Published: June 2022

AbstractThe clinical implication of en face imaging of Haller vessels and macular neovascularization (MNV) in neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) is not well established. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether the early-phase morphology of en face Haller vessel and MNV is related to the injection frequency and visual outcome in treatment-naïve nAMD. En face images of Haller vessel and MNV were acquired from 52 eyes at baseline, after three loading doses and at 12 months later using optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography. Vessel area, diameter, length, intersection number, fractal dimension, and lacunarity were calculated. Patients were classified according to the injection frequency (< 5 as the infrequent group) and visual gain (≥ 0.3 logMAR) over 12 months. The infrequent group was associated with a longer Haller vessel length after loading doses (OR 3.05, P = 0.01), while visual gain was associated with a smaller maximal MNV diameter after loading doses (OR 0.22, P = 0.03). A predictive model for frequent injection based on the Haller vessel length demonstrated an AUC of 0.71. In conclusion, the en face Haller vessel and MNV morphology after loading doses can be used as biomarkers for the injection frequency and visual gain during the first year in treatment-naïve nAMD patients.
Cell-repellent polyampholyte for conformal coating on microstructures
Authors: Suzuki Kohei , Hiroi Yoshiomi , Abe-Fukasawa Natsuki , Nishino Taito , Shouji Takeaki , Katayama Junko , Kageyama Tatsuto , Fukuda Junji 
Published: June 2022

AbstractRepellent coatings are critical for the development of biomedical and analytical devices to prevent nonspecific protein and cell adhesion. In this study, prevelex (polyampholytes containing phosphate and amine units) was synthesized for the fine coating of microdevices for cell culture. The dip-coating of the prevelex on hydrophobic substrates altered their surfaces to be highly hydrophilic and electrically neutral. The range of prebake temperature (50–150 °C) after dip-coating was moderate and within a preferable range to treat typical materials for cell culture such as polystyrene and polydimethylsiloxane. Scanning electron microscopy revealed a conformal and ultra-thin film coating on the micro/nano structures. When compared with poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) and poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine), prevelex exhibited better characteristics for coating on microwell array devices, thereby facilitating the formation of spheroids with uniform diameters using various cell types. Furthermore, to examine cellular functionalities, mouse embryonic epithelial and mesenchymal cells were seeded in a prevelex-coated microwell array device. The two types of cells formed hair follicle germ-like aggregates in the device. The aggregates were then transplanted to generate de novo hair follicles in nude mice. The coating material provided a robust and fine coating approach for the preparation of non-fouling surfaces for tissue engineering and biomedical applications.
Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in Sweden, April 26 to May 9, 2021
Authors: Beser Jessica , Galanis Ilias , Enkirch Theresa , Kühlmann Berenzon Sharon , van Straten Edward , Duracz Jan , Rapp Marie , Zakikhany Katherina , Mansjö Mikael , Wigren Byström Julia , Forsell Mattias N. E. , Groenheit Ramona , Tegmark Wisell Karin , Bråve Andreas 
Published: June 2022

AbstractA national point seroprevalence study of SARS-CoV-2 was conducted in Sweden in April–May 2021. In total, 2860 individuals 3 to 90 years old from a probability-based web panel were included. Results showed that an estimated 32.6% of the population in Sweden had detectable levels of antibodies, and among non-vaccinated 20.1% had detectable levels of antibodies. We tested for differences in seroprevalence between age groups and by sex and estimated seroprevalence among previously infected participants by time since reporting.
Ribonuclease 4 is associated with aggressiveness and progression of prostate cancer
Authors: Vanli Nil , Sheng Jinghao , Li Shuping , Xu Zhengping , Hu Guo-Fu 
Published: June 2022

AbstractProstate specific antigen screening has resulted in a decrease in prostate cancer-related deaths. However, it also has led to over-treatment affecting the quality of life of many patients. New biomarkers are needed to distinguish prostate cancer from benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) and to predict aggressiveness of the disease. Here, we report that ribonuclease 4 (RNASE4) serves as such a biomarker as well as a therapeutic target. RNASE4 protein level in the plasma is elevated in prostate cancer patients and is positively correlated with disease stage, grade, and Gleason score. Plasma RNASE4 level can be used to predict biopsy outcome and to enhance diagnosis accuracy. RNASE4 protein in prostate cancer tissues is enhanced and can differentiate prostate cancer and BPH. RNASE4 stimulates prostate cancer cell proliferation, induces tumor angiogenesis, and activates receptor tyrosine kinase AXL as well as AKT and S6K. An RNASE4-specific monoclonal antibody inhibits the growth of xenograft human prostate cancer cell tumors in athymic mice.
Sensitivity of subregional distribution of socioeconomic conditions to the global assessment of water scarcity
Authors: Modi Prakat , Hanasaki Naota , Yamazaki Dai , Boulange Julien Eric Stanislas , Oki Taikan 
Published: June 2022

AbstractWater availability per capita is among the most fundamental water-scarcity indicators used extensively in global grid-based water resources assessments. Recently, it has extended to include the economic aspect, a proxy of the capability for water management which we applied globally under socioeconomic-climate scenarios using gridded population and economic conditions. We found that population and economic projection choices significantly influence the global water scarcity assessment, particularly the assumption of urban concentrated and dispersed population. Using multiple socioeconomic-climate scenarios, global climate models, and two gridded population datasets, capturing extremities, we show that the water-scarce population ranges from 0.32–665 million in the future. Uncertainties in the socioeconomic-climate scenarios and global climate models are 6.58–489 million and 0.03–248 million, respectively. The population distribution has a similar impact, with an uncertainty of 169.1–338 million. These results highlight the importance of the subregional distribution of socioeconomic factors for future global environment prediction.
Bilateral U‐Net semantic segmentation with spatial attention mechanism
Authors: Zhao Guangzhe , Zhang Yimeng , Ge Maoning , Yu Min 
Published: June 2022

AbstractAiming at the problem that the existing models have a poor segmentation effect on imbalanced data sets with small‐scale samples, a bilateral U‐Net network model with a spatial attention mechanism is designed. The model uses the lightweight MobileNetV2 as the backbone network for feature hierarchical extraction and proposes an Attentive Pyramid Spatial Attention (APSA) module compared to the Attenuated Spatial Pyramid module, which can increase the receptive field and enhance the information, and finally adds the context fusion prediction branch that fuses high‐semantic and low‐semantic prediction results, and the model effectively improves the segmentation accuracy of small data sets. The experimental results on the CamVid data set show that compared with some existing semantic segmentation networks, the algorithm has a better segmentation effect and segmentation accuracy, and its mIOU reaches 75.85%. Moreover, to verify the generality of the model and the effectiveness of the APSA module, experiments were conducted on the VOC 2012 data set, and the APSA module improved mIOU by about 12.2%.
Attention‐based multi‐channel feature fusion enhancement network to process low‐light images
Authors: Xu Xintao , Li Jinjiang , Hua Zhen , Fan Linwei 
Published: June 2022

AbstractIn realistic low‐light environments, images captured by imaging devices often have problems such as low brightness and low contrast, serious loss of detail information, and a large amount of noise, posing major challenges to computer vision tasks. Low‐light image enhancement can effectively improve the overall quality of the image, which has important significance and application value. In this study, an attention‐based multi‐channel feature fusion enhancement network (M‐FFENet) is proposed to process low‐light images. In this network, a feature extraction model is first used to obtain the deep features of the downsampled low‐light images and fit them to an affine bilateral grid. Second, the addition of attention‐based residual dense blocks (ARDB) allows the network to focus on more details and spatial information. Meanwhile, all color channels are considered. The channel features and bilateral meshes are then linearly interpolated using the feature reconfiguration model (FRM) to obtain high‐quality features containing rich color and texture information. Next, the feature fusion module (FFM) is used to fuse features that contain different information. Enhancement model is used to further recover texture and detail in the image. Finally, the enhanced image is output. Numerous experimental results have shown that the method achieves better results in both quantitative and qualitative aspects compared to other methods.
Pricing iterative optimization for multi‐agent simulation of setting electric vehicle charging model in public parking lots
Authors: Mei Zhenyu , Liu Yi , Zhao Jinhuan , Cai Zhengyi 
Published: June 2022

AbstractDespite the increasing scale of the electric vehicle market in recent years, in view of the long charging time of EVs (Electric Vehicles), the accessibility of charging facilities is still an obstacle to the rapid development of EVs. Therefore, the Chinese government has promulgated a one‐size‐fits‐all construction strategy which means constructing charging piles in parking lots with a fixed proportion. This paper mainly simulates the actual demand and adjusts the charging price of charging stations to reduce the uneven spatial distribution of charging demand. In particular, this paper constructs a multi‐agent system of the road network, vehicle, and charging station to simulate the charging behaviour in the mixed scenario of EVs and traditional fuel vehicles. The impact of charging pricing adjustment on individuals and charging stations is fed back in real‐time by using the characteristics of agents to respond to dynamic changes and make intelligent decisions. This paper proposes an iterative optimization method to obtain the optimal pricing strategy for charging stations to reduce the imbalance of charging demand. Taking the Wulin Square business district in Hangzhou as an example, the results show that the proposed pricing optimization method can improve the overall utility.
Exploration of the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of metro ridership prompted by built environment: A multi‐source fusion perspective
Authors: Fu Xin , Zhao Xiao‐Xuan , Li Ceng‐Ceng , Cui Meng‐Yan , Wang Jian‐Wei , Qiang Yong‐Jie 
Published: June 2022

AbstractThe spatial and temporal characteristics of the factors influencing metro passenger flow are basic phenomena reflecting the environment‐land relationship. Existing studies tend to focus more on the characteristics of metro trips and the static built environment. One of the outstanding contributions of this paper is to expand the scope of the factors influencing the built environment of metro stations and explore the spatial differentiation and pattern characteristics of the static and dynamic environments. This paper provides additional empirical insights into spatiotemporal influencing factors of metro mobility patterns from the dynamic perspective. The results show spatial and temporal heterogeneity between four types of metro stations and their influencing factors. 21.59% of the stations are in in active areas, while the distribution of parking lots has a positive effect on metro passenger flow; 29.55% of the stations belong to integrated residential areas, and the number of residential areas is the dominant factor in such agglomerations; 38.64% of the areas belong to work areas, and such areas have the highest work‐related coefficients, but the work variable in the central city has a certain inhibiting effect; 10.23% of the stations are in commercial areas, which are mainly distributed within the central urban area.