Common Strategy Research Articles

Designing Bimetallic Metal‐Organic Framework‐Based Heterojunction Radiosensitizer for Enhanced Radiodynamic Therapy and Immunotherapy

AbstractRadiotherapy, as one of the most common strategies for clinical cancer treatment, suffers from failure due to the hypoxia, inflammation, and radiosensitivity difference of malignant tumors, side effects, and radioresistance. Heterojunction‐based radiosensitizers attract great attention to the lower excitation energy and remarkable catalytic activity as compared to typical transition metal radiosensitizers. However, the bio‐application of heterojunction radiosensitizers is in its infancy due to the challenges in structure engineering, rational energy band alignment, and ideal photogenerated carrier migration. Herein, a bimetallic metal‐organic framework (MOF)‐based heterojunction radiosensitizer is reasonably designed to enhance the radiodynamic therapeutic efficiency of Ru complex, and to activate natural killer (NK) cell‐mediated innate immune responses for promoted tumor immunotherapy. This study not only designs a novel bimetallic MOF‐based heterojunction structure but also elucidates the underlying action mechanisms in inhibiting cancer proliferation, which sheds light on the practicable design of radiosensitizers and the tumor combination treatment.

Effects of additive on formation and electron transfer capacity of humic substances derived from silkworm-excrement compost during composting

Amending biochar or MnO2 is a common strategy to regulate humification during manure composting. However, how these additives affect the formation, spectrum characteristics (UV–vis, FTIR, EEM) of humic substances (HSs) in silkworm-excrement (SE) compost and their electron transfer capacities (ETC) remains unclear. Thus, the SE composting pilot separately added with 10% corncob biochar (CB) (w/w) and 0.5% MnO2 (w/w) was run to investigate the effects. The results revealed that adding 10% CB slightly affected the HA/FA (humic acids/fulvic acids) ratios, UV–vis and FTIR spectra of the final SE-compost HSs and EEM components in the FA, but remarkably improved fulvic-like (C1)/quinone-like (C3) substances and reduced humic-like (C2)/protein-like substances (C4) in the HA. Meanwhile, 0.5% MnO2 had a noticeable positive effect on the aromatization of SE-compost FA and HA but only weak impact on SUVAs and EEM components in these HSs except C4 in the FA. Moreover, 10% CB obviously reduced EAC/EDC of FA and HA in the final SE compost by 31.1%/22.0% and 19.7%/24.0%, while MnO2 improved EDC of these HSs by 6.5%/9.1% (FA/HA). These results showed MnO2 can be used as a useful amendment to enhance the promotion effect of SE-compost HA in the soil remediation other than CB. Further investigation is suggested to focus on the effects of adding MnO2 on SE-compost HSs enhancing soil remediation and its effect on ETC derived from other manure compost.

The bio-food industry's corporate political activity during Health Canada's revision of Canada's food guide.

We analyzed the bio-food industry's corporate political activity (CPA) during the revisions of Canada's food guide between 2016 and 2019. We undertook a content analysis of the websites of 11 bio-food industry organizations and of the briefs that 10 of them submitted to the Canadian House of Commons Standing Committee on Health, as part of this Committee's review of the food guide. Data were classified according to an existing conceptual framework. We identified 366 examples of CPA used by the bio-food industry during and immediately after the development of the food guide. Most of the industry actors opposed the guide's recommendations. The most common CPA strategies were information management (n = 197), used to create and disseminate information in industry's favour, and discursive strategies (n = 108), used to defend food products and promote the industry's position regarding the food guide. Influencing public policy (n = 40), by gaining indirect access to policy makers (e.g. through lobbying) and becoming active in government decision-making, as well as coalition management (n = 21), by establishing relationships with opinion leaders and health organizations, were also common strategies. Bio-food industry actors used many different CPA strategies during the revisions of the food guide. It is important to continue to document the bio-food industry's CPA to understand whether and how this is shaping public policy development in Canada and elsewhere.

High treatment failure rate in haematogenous compared to non-haematogenous periprosthetic joint infection.

A higher failure rate has been reported in haematogenous periprosthetic joint infection (PJI) compared to non-haematogenous PJI. The reason for this difference is unknown. We investigated the outcome of haematogenous and non-haematogenous PJI to analyze the risk factors for failure in both groups of patients. Episodes of knee or hip PJI (defined by the European Bone and Joint Infection Society criteria) treated at our institution between January 2015 and October 2020 were included in a retrospective PJI cohort. Episodes with a follow-up of > one year were stratified by route of infection into haematogenous and non-haematogenous PJI. Probability of failure-free survival was estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method, and compared between groups using log-rank test. Univariate and multivariate analysis was applied to assess risk factors for failure. A total of 305 PJI episodes (174 hips, 131 knees) were allocated to the haematogenous (n = 146) or the non-haematogenous group (n = 159). Among monomicrobial infections, Staphylococcus aureus was the dominant pathogen in haematogenous PJI (76/140, 54%) and coagulase-negative staphylococci in non-haematogenous PJI (57/133, 43%). In both groups, multi-stage exchange (n = 55 (38%) in haematogenous and n = 73 (46%) in non-haematogenous PJI) and prosthesis retention (n = 70 (48%) in haematogenous and n = 48 (30%) in non-haematogenous PJI) were the most common surgical strategies. Median duration of antimicrobial treatment was 13.5 weeks (range, 0.5 to 218 weeks) and similar in both groups. After six years of follow-up, the probability of failure-free survival was significantly lower in haematogenous compared to non-haematogenous PJI (55% vs 74%; p = 0.021). Infection-related mortality was significantly higher in haematogenous than non-haematogenous PJI (7% vs 0% episodes; p = 0.001). Pathogenesis of failure was similar in both groups. Retention of the prosthesis was the only independent risk factor for failure in multivariate analysis in both groups. Treatment failure was significantly higher in haematogenous compared to non-haematogenous PJI. Retention of the prosthesis was the only independent risk factor for failure in both groups.

Indigenous Peoples Organisations’ Approaches to Social and Community Development in Cambodia

Although Indigenous peoples’ organisations (IPOs) are positioned to make vital contributions to the social and community development of Indigenous peoples (IPs), the development-studies literature offers limited research about IPOs’ approaches and unique contributions to development as defined by IPs. This article explores the roles of IPOs in social and community development involving Indigenous populations in Cambodia. The case study of six IPOs, involving 46 semi-structured interviews and four focus group discussions, captures leadership perspectives on desired development for Indigenous communities and the ways in which IPOs can contribute to achieving community goals. The analysis shows common goals and strategies and the gaps to be addressed by the IPOs. The study argues that Cambodian IPOs complement one another in advancing local development and raising Indigenous voices at the national level. However, the civic space for bringing about sustainable social change is shrinking. Similar Indigenous contexts in other countries may find the analysis useful.

Warum besitzt die koptische Schrift das Zeichen ϯ? Ein einsames Syllabogramm sakralisiert die Schrift

“Why does the Coptic script have the character ϯ? A lone syllabogram sacralizes the script” – The Coptic character ϯ has several abnormalities within the Coptic script. On the one hand, it is the only syllabogram in the Coptic alphabet. On the other hand, it is not existent in all Coptic dialects and not at all in Old Coptic. Thus, the older explanation that this character did not evolve from a Demotic origin but is a ligature consisting of ⲧ and ⲓ should again be considered. In a second step, it is asked why Coptic has the character ϯ at all. There is hardly any evidence for phonetic reasons, and it is also not convincing to stress a better economy of writing provided by just one sign. Therefore, another explanation is proposed: In Late Antiquity, when the Coptic script emerged, mysticism of signs and numbers (Gematria) was a common exegetic strategy and cultural phenomenon. In this context, the letters ⲧ and ⲓ were, among others, heavily charged with supplementary meaning and also took part in the creation of monograms (like the Staurogram ⳨) and the special writing of nomina sacra. Furthermore, a strong cult of the cross has evolved since Constantine I. and has led to many visual and textual representations of the cross, which the sign ϯ obviously resembles. Thus the implementation of the otherwise not required ϯ can be seen as a sacralization, if not Christianization, of the Coptic Script whose progenitors were used in pagan or at least non-Christian contexts. Therefore, the rendering of the Egyptian-Coptic language by the Coptic alphabet, which consists of some extra characters originating from the Demotic script besides ϯ, became acceptable for Christian texts, although the Demotic script at this time almost exclusively occurs in pagan contexts. Although ϯ has primarily phonographic functions in most cases, it can serve as a visual marker of Christian creed. Thus, this contribution tries to connect Graphematics, Coptology, Patrology and Early Christian Art for a more holistic approach towards the understanding of the character ϯ.

Perceptions of medical error among general practitioners in rural China: a qualitative interview study

BackgroundMedical error (ME) is a serious public health problem and a leading cause of death. The reported adverse incidents in China were much less than western countries, and the research...

Inverse design of nonlinear mechanical metamaterials via video denoising diffusion models

The accelerated inverse design of complex material properties—such as identifying a material with a given stress–strain response over a nonlinear deformation path—holds great potential for addressing challenges from soft robotics to biomedical implants and impact mitigation. Although machine learning models have provided such inverse mappings, they are typically restricted to linear target properties such as stiffness. Here, to tailor the nonlinear response, we show that video diffusion generative models trained on full-field data of periodic stochastic cellular structures can successfully predict and tune their nonlinear deformation and stress response under compression in the large-strain regime, including buckling and contact. Key to success is to break from the common strategy of directly learning a map from property to design and to extend the framework to intrinsically estimate the expected deformation path and the full-field internal stress distribution, which closely agree with finite element simulations. This work thus has the potential to simplify and accelerate the identification of materials with complex target performance.

PEDOT:PSS-coated platinum electrodes for neural stimulation

Safe and long-term electrical stimulation of neurons requires charge injection without damaging the electrode and tissue. A common strategy to diminish adverse effects includes the modification of electrodes with materials that increases the charge injection capacity. Due to its high capacitance, the conducting polymer PEDOT:PSS is a promising coating material; however, the neural stimulation performance in terms of stability and safety remains largely unexplored. Here, PEDOT:PSS-coated platinum (Pt-PEDOT:PSS) microelectrodes are examined for neural stimulation and compared to bare platinum (Pt) electrodes. Microelectrodes in a bipolar configuration are used to deliver current-controlled, biphasic pulses with charge densities ranging from 64 to 255 μC cm−2. Stimulation for 2 h deteriorates bare Pt electrodes through corrosion, whereas the PEDOT:PSS coating prevents dissolution of Pt and shows no degradation. Acute stimulation of primary cortical cells cultured as neurospheres shows similar dependency on charge density for Pt and Pt-PEDOT:PSS electrodes with a threshold of 127 μC cm−2 and increased calcium response for higher charge densities. Continuous stimulation for 2 h results in higher levels of cell survival for Pt-PEDOT:PSS electrodes. Reduced cell survival on Pt electrodes is most profound for neurospheres in proximity of the electrodes. Extending the stimulation duration to 6 h increases cell death for both types of electrodes; however, neurospheres on Pt-PEDOT:PSS devices still show significant viability whereas stimulation is fatal for nearly all cells close to the Pt electrodes. This work demonstrates the protective properties of PEDOT:PSS that can be used as a promising approach to extend electrode lifetime and reduce cell damage for safe and long-term neural stimulation.

An orthogonal experimental study on the influence of steam-curing on mechanical properties of foam concrete with fly ash

Foam concrete can be widely utilized as precast walls for its low density, excellent heat resistance and sound insulation. The challenge of its application is its low strength due to the porous matrix, which prolongs the demolding time. Steam curing at an early time is a common strategy to improve its early-age strength. Here, an orthogonal experiment (OA16) was adopted to investigate the influence of curing parameters on the properties of foam concrete. Specific compressive strengths (SCS) given as the ratio of the strength and the density at 12 h (12 h) and 28 days (28d) were calculated to evaluate the early-age and long-age strength. The range analysis and the analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that the optimum steam-curing system that can yield the highest 12 h SCS (1.9 MPa, which meets the demand for demolding) is that preheating temperature of 25 ℃, preheating duration of 4 h, curing temperature of 50 ℃, together with 1.5% early-strength agent Na2SO4. Compared to the normal cured concrete, the addition of mineral power (fly ash by 20%) will successfully increase the early-age strength under steam curing, while XRD, SEM and FTIR analysis all show there are more hydrated products formed after steam curing and the activity of fly ash is activated to form C-S-H gels. However, improving early-age strength too much will lead to a deficiency of later-age strength growth. MIP analysis also exhibited high pore probability in the sample cured under higher steam-curing temperatures. These results can provide experiences for the wide application of foam concrete in precast walls and help improve the efficiency of their template turnover.

Assessing the Impact of Futures Trading Availability on Spot Market Dynamics of Indian Pepper

Modern agricultural tools boost productivity across crops. Pepper, a lucrative cash crop, attracts global cultivation, bolstering yields. However, heightened productivity brings risks like price fluctuations and supply-demand imbalances, impacting the market's stability and success. Utilizing futures contracts is a common strategy to mitigate risks, yet the challenge lies in ensuring the availability of futures aligned with the specific commodity and contract size. In the Indian context, where pepper futures have been introduced and withdrawn multiple times, this study seeks to examine the impact of the presence or absence of pepper futures trading on pepper spot prices. Econometric techniques such as the Johansen cointegration test, VECM, Granger causality test, and ARIMA modeling were employed to analyze market integration and price autocorrelation. Findings indicate short-term cointegration between pepper spot and futures markets, striving for long-term equilibrium. Futures were found to influence the pepper spot market. ARIMA modeling recommended ARIMA(11,1,7) during futures presence and ARIMA(1,2,2) during absence for representing distinct periods.

The effect of graphene and graphene oxide induced reactive oxygen species on polycaprolactone scaffolds for bone cancer applications

Bone cancer remains a critical healthcare problem. Among current clinical treatments, tumour resection is the most common strategy. It is usually effective but may present several limitations such as multiple operations, long hospital time, and the potential recurrence caused by the incomplete removal of cancer cells. To address these limitations, three-dimensional (3D) scaffolds fabricated through additive manufacturing have been researched for both bone cancer treatment and post-treatment rehabilitation. Polycaprolactone (PCL)-based scaffolds play an important role in bone regeneration, serving as a physical substrate to fill the defect site, recruiting cells, and promoting cell proliferation and differentiation, ultimately leading to the regeneration of the bone tissue without multiple surgical applications. Multiple advanced materials have been incorporated during the fabrication process to improve certain functions and/or modulate biological performances. Graphene-based nanomaterials, particularly graphene (G) and graphene oxide (GO), have been investigated both in vitro and in vivo, significantly improving the scaffold's physical, chemical, and biological properties, which strongly depend on the material type and concentration. A unique targeted inhibition effect on cancer cells was also discovered. However, limited research has been conducted on utilising graphene-based nanomaterials for both bone regeneration and bone cancer treatment, and there is no systematic study into the material- and dose-dependent effects, as well as the working mechanism on 3D scaffolds to realise these functions. This paper addresses these limitations by designing and fabricating PCL-based scaffolds containing different concentrations of G and GO and assessing their biological behaviour correlating it to the reactive oxygen species (ROS) release level. Results suggest that the ROS release from the scaffolds is a dominant mechanism that affects the biological behaviour of the scaffolds. ROS release also contributes to the inhibition effect on bone cancer due to healthy cells and cancer cells responding differently to ROS, and the osteogenesis results also present a certain correlation with ROS. These observations revealed a new route for realising bone cancer treatment and subsequent new bone regeneration, using a single dual-functional 3D scaffold.

Persuasion Methods Behind Mass Manipulation

Persuasion is used each day by millions of people, however, often these methods are misused for harmful manipulation. Practices such as the foot-in-the-door method and the low-ball method are analyzed within white supremacist websites such as those supporting the Ku Klux Klan group. By providing minimal information initially, influential individuals succeed in attracting millions of people to support their view. With the availability of the internet, mass manipulation has become increasingly achievable and dangerous. Therefore, it is important that society is aware of the most common strategies used. Psychologists studied the persuasion methods and trends between 4-6 year olds, revealing that humans of all ages have the knowledge and urge to persuade. Throughout an individual’s complicated life they train this skill repeatedly, and many use it to gain power and influence.

Impoliteness in the Talk Show Catatan Demokrasi on YouTube TvOne

Catatan Demokrasi has a unique color in its use of language. In this talk show, two different camps are presented to discuss current issues. From these two camps, there will be differences of opinion that trigger the emergence of forms of language impoliteness. The use of language impoliteness in the event occurs spontaneously and naturally so that the utterances that appear occur naturally. The purpose of this study is to describe and analyze the most common impoliteness strategy in the data source, namely the bald on record impoliteness strategy. The research method used in this research is descriptive qualitative. The data sources in this study are 9 videos of the talk show Catatan Demokrasi downloaded from Youtube TvOne. The data of this research are the utterances in the videos that contain language impoliteness, especially the bald on record impoliteness strategy. The data were collected using the listening method with the download technique and the note-taking technique. The data were analyzed using the pragmatic pairing method and contextual analysis method. The conclusion of this analysis is that the use of language impoliteness is mostly found in the data source. The most widely used strategy is the bald on record strategy. Of the 9 themes that have been studied, the strategy of impoliteness bald on record is the most widely used, and the substrategy of expressing annoyance is the most dominant. This strategy tends to be used by speakers who have power, so it is very potential to attack the face of speech partners. In addition, the factor that influences the emergence of the impoliteness strategy is the desire of the speaker, who deliberately does not want to keep the face of the speech partner caused of a conflict of interest.

The impact of cognitive resource constraints on goal prioritization

Many decisions we face daily entail deliberation about how to coordinate resources shared between multiple, competing goals. When time permits, people appear to approach these goal prioritization problems by analytically considering all goal-relevant information to arrive at a prioritization decision. However, it is not yet clear if this normative strategy extends to situations characterized by resource constraints such as when deliberation time is scarce or cognitive load is high. We evaluated the questions of how limited deliberation time and cognitive load affect goal prioritization decisions across a series of experiments using a gamified experimental task, which required participants to make a series of interdependent goal prioritization decisions. We fit several candidate models to experimental data to identify decision strategy adaptations at the individual subject-level. Results indicated that participants tended to opt for a simple heuristic strategy when cognitive resources were constrained rather than making a general tradeoff between speed and accuracy (e.g., the type of tradeoff that would be predicted by evidence accumulation models). The most common heuristic strategy involved disproportionately weighing information about goal deadlines compared to other goal-relevant information such as the goal’s difficulty and the goal’s subjective value.

Assessment of Occupational Burnout And Its Determinants, Causes of Occupational Stress, And Its Coping Strategies Among Nurses Working In The Psychiatric Wards: A mixed-method study

Aims: This study assessed occupational burnout and its determinants, causes of occupational stress, and its coping strategies amongst 13 nurses working in the psychiatry wards in India. Methods: This was a longitudinal mixed-method study. The qualitative component comprised interviewing each participant under the steps of “free listing” and “pile sorting” to assess the causes of occupational stress and its coping strategies. The occupational burnout experiences were assessed using the Maslach Burnout Inventory. Results: Low-level depersonalization scores were present among six (46.1%) participants. Scores under this component of burnout were negatively correlated with years of work experience in providing nursing care for admitted psychiatric patients (rs = -0.548, p=0.05). Median scores of the emotional exhaustion scale (p=0.047) and of the depersonalization scale (p=0.016) were significantly higher among participants working at the government hospital. The major cause of occupational stress was poor infrastructure and treatment facilities with a salience score of 0.154. The most adopted strategies to tide over occupational stress were reading books and meditation with a salience score of 0.128 and 0.109 respectively. Conclusion: Extended work experience of participants was associated with their better ability to understand and empathize more with the patients as reflected by the low depersonalization scores. Two components of occupational burnout were found to be higher among nurses working in the government hospital. Organizational relationships were a more common cause of occupational stress than client-related matters among the participants. Recreational activities were the most common coping strategies adopted by the participants to deal with stress.

B2B service sales on a digital multi-sided platform: Transformation from value chains to value networks

Business-to-business (B2B) service suppliers mobilize a platform approach to enhance their competitive advantage, service selling, and long-term relationships. These emerging platforms in established value chains have been insufficiently studied on a strategic level, especially regarding value orchestration. The aim of this article is to examine how digital multi-sided platforms (DMSPs) change platform owners' value chains toward joint value creation from a sales approach, including sales strategy, sales structure, and customer relationships. Our longitudinal multiple case study was conducted on four platform owners adopting a DMSP as part of their service selling. The findings show how the transition from value chain toward value orchestration in a network shifts the platform owner's focus to develop a common sales strategy with strategic network actors. The restructuring of sales with platform resources allows platform owners to manage larger networks with fewer resources and utilize enhanced interaction to create commitment in network relationships. We put forward three propositions and a framework to illustrate the interdependence of the value chain changes under examination. Additionally, this study offers various managerial implications for companies when utilizing platforms and provides avenues for further research.

Emerging strategies and challenges faced by professors during Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) at a Colombian university

This paper analyzed the relationship between emergent teaching strategies and the challenges professors at Universidad Icesi (Cali, Colombia) faced when transitioning to Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) during the COVID-19 pandemic. A survey with open-ended questions was used to conduct a content analysis, followed by a correspondence analysis. The main findings were that most professors described submitting information and interaction as the most common teaching strategies. The challenges were primarily emotional and technical in nature. There were differences in discipline, gender, and age. Furthermore, there was no alignment between the challenges and the proposed strategies. Finally, this research has significant implications for future teacher training programs that emphasize faculty diversity.
 Received: 16 February 2022Accepted: 24 July 2023

A broadly reactive antibody targeting the N-terminal domain of SARS-CoV-2 spike confers Fc-mediated protection

Most neutralizing anti-SARS-CoV-2 monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) target the receptor binding domain (RBD) of the spike (S)protein. Here, we characterize a panel of mAbs targeting the N-terminal domain (NTD) or other non-RBD epitopes of S. A subset of NTD mAbs inhibits SARS-CoV-2 entry at a post-attachment step and avidly binds the surface of infected cells. One neutralizing NTD mAb, SARS2-57, protects K18-hACE2 mice against SARS-CoV-2 infection in an Fc-dependent manner. Structural analysis demonstrates that SARS2-57 engages an antigenic supersite that is remodeled by deletions common to emerging variants. In neutralization escape studies with SARS2-57, this NTD site accumulates mutations, including a similar deletion, but the addition of an anti-RBD mAb prevents such escape. Thus, our study highlights a common strategy of immune evasion by SARS-CoV-2 variants and how targeting spatially distinct epitopes, including those in the NTD, may limit such escape.

Combined Ionic Membrane and Silica Desiccant Configuration for Maintenance-Free Humidity Control in Equipment

Much scientific equipment requires the use of humidity control technologies. This includes instruments with hygroscopic optics, such as infrared spectrometers, OPOs and some lasers. The most common strategies include nitrogen purging or desiccant bag replacement, which involve maintenance and running costs. In this work we present a dual strategy, combining both ionic membranes and silica desiccant, which results in a reusable and maintenance-free scheme for humidity control. The desiccant action of the silica gels, the membrane, and combinations thereafter, are studied. It is shown that the combination of the silica gel desiccants and the membrane is the most efficient configuration, reducing the humidity from 73% to only 15% in 20 h in a 70 L volume and from 80% to 20% in 40 h in a 230 L volume. An experiment over 5 days showed that the status of the silica gel desiccants that had adsorbed high water vapor levels returned to normal after they were enclosed together with the ionic membrane in the 70 L volume. Finally, measurements taken by a commercial infrared spectrometer of the reduction in the H2O lines absorption in the mid-infrared region under the operation of the combined configuration are examined. It was demonstrated that H2O lines with low to moderate absorption almost disappeared when the humidity levels inside the spectrometer dropped from 42.5% to 15.1% in the span of 90 min, while lines with stronger absorption remained present even though they showed the highest percentage of change.