A client-server based recognition system: Non-contact single/multiple emotional and behavioral state assessment methods.

Background And Objectives: In the current global health landscape, there is an increasing demand for rapid and accurate assessment of mental states. Traditional assessment methods typically rely on face-to-face interactions, which are not only time-consuming but also highly subjective. Addressing this issue, this study aims to develop a client-server-based, non-contact multimodal emotion and behavior recognition system to enhance the efficiency and accuracy of mental state assessments.

Exposure therapy consortium: Outcomes of the proof-of-principle study.

Background: This paper reports on the outcomes of a proof-of-principle study for the Exposure Therapy Consortium, a global network of researchers and clinicians who work to improve the effectiveness and uptake of exposure therapy. The study aimed to test the feasibility of the consortium's big-team science approach and test the hypothesis that adding post-exposure processing focused on enhancing threat reappraisal would enhance the efficacy of a one-session large-group interoceptive exposure therapy protocol for reducing anxiety sensitivity.

Methods: The study involved a multi-site cluster-randomized controlled trial comparing exposure with post-processing (ENHANCED), exposure without post-processing (STANDARD), and a stress management intervention (CONTROL) in students with elevated anxiety sensitivity.

Unified Knowledge-Guided Molecular Graph Encoder with multimodal fusion and multi-task learning.

The remarkable success of Graph Neural Networks underscores their formidable capacity to assimilate multimodal inputs, markedly enhancing performance across a broad spectrum of domains. In the context of molecular modeling, considerable efforts have been made to enrich molecular representations by integrating data from diverse aspects. Nevertheless, current methodologies frequently compartmentalize geometric and semantic components, resulting in a fragmented approach that impairs the holistic integration of molecular attributes.

Blue light promotes conjunctival epithelial-mesenchymal transition and collagen deposition through ITGB4.

The increasing prevalence of LED technology heightened blue light (BL) exposure, raising concerns about its long-term effects on ocular health. This study investigated the transcriptomic response of conjunctiva to BL exposure, highlighting potential biomarkers for conjunctival injury. We exposed human conjunctival epithelial cells and C57BL/6 mice to BL to establish in vitro and in vivo models and identified the responsive genes in mice's conjunctiva to BL exposure by RNA sequencing transcriptome analysis.

Verification imaging in prostate MR-only radiotherapy: Are fiducial markers necessary?

Purpose/objective: MR-only radiotherapy planning exploits the benefits of MRI soft-tissue delineation, whilst negating the registration inaccuracies caused by MRI CT fusion. Fiducial markers have conventionally been used in prostate radiotherapy to reduce on-treatment image matching variability. However, this is an invasive procedure for the patient, and presents technical difficulties in an MR-only pathway as fiducial markers are difficult to visualise on MRI.

Electronic and paper delivery of parent proxy and children's report of two scar-specific patient-reported outcome measures (Brisbane Burn Scar Impact Profile and Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale): An equivalence study.

Introduction: The Brisbane Burn Scar Impact Profile (BBSIP) and the Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS) are used in burn scar assessment to quantify patient health-related quality of life (HR-QoL). These questionnaires were developed using pen-and-paper delivery methods; however, there is a push towards electronic delivery of these questionnaires in both clinical practice and research. Equivalence testing is required to ensure that validity of these paper questionnaires is maintained electronically.

Coupling of response biomarkers between tumor and peripheral blood in patients undergoing chemoimmunotherapy.

Platinum-based chemotherapy in combination with anti-PD-L1 antibodies has shown promising results in mesothelioma. However, the immunological mechanisms underlying its efficacy are not well understood and there are no predictive biomarkers to guide treatment decisions. Here, we combine time course RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) of peripheral blood mononuclear cells with pre-treatment tumor transcriptome data from the single-arm, phase 2 DREAM trial (N = 54).

Regulatory T cell therapy is associated with distinct immune regulatory lymphocytic infiltrates in kidney transplants.

Background: Adoptive transfer of autologous regulatory T cells (Tregs) is a promising therapeutic strategy aimed at enabling immunosuppression minimization following kidney transplantation. In our phase 1 clinical trial of Treg therapy in living donor renal transplantation, the ONE Study (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02129881), we observed focal lymphocytic infiltrates in protocol kidney transplant biopsies that are not regularly seen in biopsies of patients receiving standard immunosuppression.

Dimensional early life adversity and anxiety symptoms: A network analysis and longitudinal study.

Background: Accumulating literature has found a close relation between early life adversity (ELA) and anxiety. However, previous studies did not rule out the high co-occurrence of different types of ELA when exploring the association of ELA and anxiety. In the present study, we carried out network analysis based on a cross-sectional sample and longitudinal sample to investigate the relationship between ELA and anxiety symptoms in non-clinical populations over time.

Status of coral, giant clam and sea cucumber communities including CITES listed species on a remote Australian coral reef atoll and the potential impact of illegal fishing.

Following a recent dramatic increase in illegal fishing by Indonesian fishing vessels in Australian waters in 2022, we conducted an extensive survey of coral reef communities covering 33,000 m at Mermaid Reef Marine Park in the Rowley Shoals off north-western Australia in July 2022. Species richness of sea cucumbers was 13 species (three CITES listed) and 6 species of giant clams (all CITES listed). The most abundant sea cucumber species were the low or intermediate value, asexually reproducing species Holothuria atra and H.

Maintaining hexagonal structures through interfacial positioning of crosslinkers for nanofiltration.

Hypothesis: Optimizing interfacial positioning of crosslinkers within a reactive self-assembled hexagonal lyotropic liquid crystals (HLLC) system could assist in retaining the hexagonal structure during polymerization and thereby improving water filtration performances of the as-synthesized nanofiltration membranes.

Experiments: The positioning of the hydrophilic crosslinker, poly (ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA), within the reactive HLLC system was systematically investigated using H and C solid nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) techniques. The structural variation and water filtration performances of these HLLC systems with/without crosslinkers after polymerization were further studied using grazing incidence SAXS (GISAXS) and crossflow filtration tests, respectively.

Photo-thermal conversion properties of MXene/metal-organic-frameworks-based nanofluids for solar energy harvesting.

This study focuses on enhancing solar energy capture efficiency by introducing innovative hybrid nanofluids for use in solar thermal collectors, whose performance largely depends on the absorption properties of the working fluid. The newly developed hybrid nanofluids, MXene/NH2-UiO66 (Zr) (noted as MX/UO66) and MXene/MIL-88B (Fe) (noted as MX/ML88), were synthesized using an in-situ solvothermal method, combining annealed Ti3C2Tx MXenes with water-stable metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). These nanofluids achieved high efficiency at low concentrations, providing both economic and performance benefits.

Shared genetic architecture and bidirectional clinical risks within the psycho-metabolic nexus.

Background: Increasing evidence suggests a complex interplay between psychiatric disorders and metabolic dysregulations. However, most research has been limited to specific disorder pairs, leaving a significant gap in our understanding of the broader psycho-metabolic nexus.

Methods: This study leveraged large-scale cohort data and genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary statistics, covering 8 common psychiatric disorders and 43 metabolic traits.

The assessment of oxidative stress in human semen: chaos and confusion in pursuit of diagnostic precision.

The importance of oxidative stress in the aetiology of male infertility has occasioned numerous clinical trials designed to assess the potential of antioxidants for treating this condition. These trials have not returned definitive results, probably because they have never selected participants on the basis of oxidative stress. Clearly, if a moderate to severe state of oxidative stress does not exist in semen, antioxidants can hardly be expected to improve fertility.

Mildly acidic pH boosts up CO conversion to isobutyrate in H driven gas fermentation system.

As a greenhouse gas, massive carbon dioxide (CO) has been generated due to organic matter degradation in wastewater treatment processes. Microbial gas fermentation offers a promising approach to capture CO and generate various valuable chemicals. However, limited studies have achieved branched or medium-chain fatty acids production via gas fermentation.

Community-based going-out program and dementia onset in Japanese older adults: A longitudinal observational study.

Objectives: With dementia prevalence rising globally among older adults, effective and scalable community-based interventions are urgently needed to reduce dementia onset. This study aimed to estimate the association of the going-out program with dementia onset in older adults.

Methods: A 5-year longitudinal observational study was employed.

Cation-Modulated Ni/NiN Compound Heterojunctions as Highly Efficient Bifunctional Electrocatalysts for Water Splitting.

The exploration and rational design of high-performance, durable, and non-precious-metal bifunctional oxygen electrocatalysts are highly desired for the large-scale application of overall water splitting. Herein, an effective and straightforward coupling approach was developed to fabricate high-performance bifunctional OER/HER electrocatalysts based on core-shell nanostructure comprising a Ni/NiN core and a NiFe(OH) shell. The as-prepared Ni/NiN@NiFe(OH)-4 catalyst exhibited low overpotentials of 57 and 243 mV at 10 mA cm for the HER and OER in 1.

Useful or merely convenient? On the issue of a suitability of enzymatic antioxidant activity as a proxy for abiotic stress tolerance.

During their lifespan, plants are often exposed to a broad range of stresses that change their redox balance and lead to accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The traditional view is that this comes with negative consequences to cells structural integrity and metabolism and, to prevent this, plants evolved a complex and well-coordinated antioxidant defence system that relies on the operation of a range of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants (AO). Due to the simplicity of measuring their activity, and in the light of the persistent dogma that stress-induced ROS accumulation is detrimental for plants, it is not surprising that enzymatic AO have often been advocated as suitable proxies for stress tolerance, as well as potential targets for improving tolerance traits.

Does methylene blue improve outcomes in patients with post-cardiac surgery vasoplegic syndrome?

Objectives: A best evidence topic was written according to a structured protocol described in ICVTS. The question addressed was: "In patients with vasoplegic syndrome after cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB), does adjunctive methylene blue improve outcomes including reduced mortality, morbidity and vasopressor requirements?"

Methods: Ovid Medline was searched using a reported search algorithm. Articles that represented the best evidence to answer the clinical question were selected, tabulated and discussed.

Demystifying furan formation in foods: Implications for human health, detection, and control measures: A review.

Furan (C₄H₄O), an unintended hazardous compound, is formed in various thermally processed foods through multiple pathways, raising concerns due to its potential carcinogenicity in humans. The aim of this comprehensive review was to synthesize and evaluate the latest research on furan, from its formation by different precursors to its presence in diverse food matrices, as well as the emerging methods for its detection and mitigation. Emphasizing the toxicity of furan, it explored evidence from in vitro and in vivo studies, including reproductive toxicity, carcinogenic effects, and related biomarkers.

Systematic Literature Review of Access Pathways to Drugs for Patients with Rare Diseases.

Objective: This article reviews the assessment pathways that have been implemented worldwide to facilitate access to drugs for patients with rare diseases.

Methods: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were used to conduct a systematic literature review. The Ovid (Embase/MEDLINE), Cochrane, Web of Science, Econlit, National Institute of Health Research, Centre for Reviews and Dissemination, and International Network of Agencies for Health Technology Assessment databases were searched.

Trends in the surgical management of proximal humerus fractures over the last 20 years from Australian registry databases.

Background: Proximal humerus fractures (PHF) are common with approximately 30% requiring surgical intervention. This ranges from open reduction internal fixation (ORIF) to shoulder arthroplasty (including hemiarthroplasty, total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA), reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (RTSA)). The aim of this study was to assess trends in operative interventions for PHF in an Australian population.

Effect of Qigong exercise on quality of life and cortisol in patients with cancer: a non-randomized controlled trial.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a 6-month Guolin Qigong on quality of life and serum cortisol among patients with cancer.

Methods: This study was a two-arm and non-randomized controlled trial. Forty-nine patients with cancer who were over 18 years of age and diagnosed with cancer were enrolled in this study and assigned to either the Guolin Qigong intervention group (IG, n = 26) or the usual care group (UC, n = 23) for 6 months.

Latent Tuberculosis Infection Amongst Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Recipients: The Impact of Routine Pretransplant Review by a Transplant Infectious Diseases Physician.

Background: Identifying patients with latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) is challenging. This is particularly true amongst immunocompromised hosts, in whom the diagnostic accuracy of available tests is limited. The authors evaluated the impact of routine pretransplant review by a transplant infectious diseases (TID) physician on LTBI screening in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (alloHSCT) recipients.

Historical, Theoretical and Methodological Foundations of CHAT: Critical Deliberations.

The paper critically analyses cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) in two most important aspects - the basic unit of analysis (i.e., in essence, the subject of the theory) and the main epistemological and methodological principles.