Browse Articles

The role of self-rumination and self-reflection in depressive symptoms among individuals with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder traits

Abstract While some types of rumination have been reported as exacerbating factors in depressive symptoms related to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) traits, the role of self-rumination remains underexplored. Additionally, self-reflection—a similar form of private self-consciousness which may have protective effects—has been even less examined. This study of 3,000 Japanese adults (aged 18–50 years) investigates self-rumination and self-reflection in depressive symptoms related to ADHD, using the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale, Rumination–Reflection Questionnaire, and Beck Depression Inventory-II. Statistical analyses included Pearson’s correlation and linear regression for mediation/moderation. ADHD traits were correlated with depressive symptoms (r = 0.413, p < 0.001), mediated by self-rumination (indirect effect = 0.21, 95% confidence interval [0.17, 0.26]). Self-reflection was positively correlated with depressive symptoms (r = 0.193, p < 0.001) but had a protective effect when controlling for self-rumination (β = −0.75, p < 0.001). Moderated mediation analysis showed self-reflection reduced depressive symptoms related to ADHD traits by moderating both the impact of ADHD traits on self-rumination and the influence of self-rumination on depressive symptoms. These effects were particularly significant for inattention traits. Our findings suggest that self-reflection, by mitigating self-rumination, may serve as a therapeutic target for depressive symptoms in adults with ADHD traits.

Ventricular function assessment using an ultrafast spoiled gradient echo sequence with an intravascular blood pool contrast agent in pediatric patients

Background Balanced steady-state free processing (bSSFP) MR sequence has long been considered the gold standard method for ventricular function assessment (VFA), and normal values are based on this acquisition. However, bSSFP sequence suffers from susceptibility artifacts due to scenarios such as cardiac implants. The T1-TFE sequence, also known as ultrafast spoiled gradient sequence, is less affected by such susceptibility artifacts. While it is unclear if T1-TFE sequence yields similar VFA results as the bSSFP sequence. Purpose To validate if the T1-TFE sequence, with an intravascular blood pool contrast agent, yields similar results for VFA as the gold-standard non-contrast bSSFP approach, so that the T1-TFE sequence can be used for VFA when bSSFP approach fails. Methods Two sets of images from two different sequences were utilized in this study. T1-TFE (with contrast) scans were used as one while bSSFP-derived images were used as the other. 37 pediatric patients were recruited into this study. Semi-automated software (cvi42) was used to segment and derive ventricular volumes. Image quality was objectively assessed by comparing signal-to-noise (SNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) scores. Last, two expert readers provided a subjective analysis of image quality. Paired t-tests were used to assess significant differences in volumetric values (end-diastolic and end-systolic) between T1-TFE and bSSFP sequences. A Bland-Altman analysis evaluated potential bias and agreement between these sequences. Results Ventricular function assessment via volumetric data analysis resulted in no statistically significant differences (P > 0.05), and high R2 values. SNR and CNR scores also presented with no statistically significant differences (P > 0.05), and nearly identical scores (SNR T1-TFE mean: 29.5 ± 3.1, SNR bSSFP mean: 28.8 ± 3.7, CNR T1-TFE mean: 28.8 ± 3.3, CNR bSSFP mean: 28.1 ± 4.0). Image quality assessment via expert subjective image analysis scores is consistent with the data. All Bland-Altman plots show good agreement and reveal no systematic bias or random error. Conclusion T1-TFE sequences in combination with Ferumoxytol allow reliable ventricular function assessment and overcome the limitations of traditional bSSFP MR sequences in this context.

Differences in risk factor profiles for peripheral artery disease compared to coronary, cerebral and carotid artery

Abstract The aim of this study was to evaluate the greatest drivers for development of lower extremity peripheral artery disease (PAD) in relation to coronary, precerebral, or cerebral artery disease This prospective study (Malmö Diet and Cancer study) included 26,681 participants. The diagnosis of incident PAD, coronary artery disease (CoAD), atherothrombotic ischemic stroke (IS) free from atrial fibrillation or flutter, and carotid artery disease (CaAD) was validated. A modified Lunn-McNeil competing risk analysis was performed to compare the Hazard Ratio (HR) strength of PAD in relation to CoAD, IS, or CaAD. The estimated population attributable risk fractions (PAF) for each atherosclerotic manifestation were estimated by first fit an age and sex adjusted Cox proportional hazard regression, and then estimate the PAF using the Direct method. Male sex, age, and hypertension were risk factors for development of all atherosclerotic manifestations. Current smoking accounted for 45.6% (95% CI 41.1–47.2), 16.1%, 14.0%, and 23.3% of the risk for development of PAD, CoAD, IS, and CaAD, respectively. Hypertension was more associated with development of PAD than CoAD (p = 0.009). Smoking and diabetes mellitus were positively associated with all four manifestations, but these associations were significantly stronger for PAD than the other three manifestations. Smoking and diabetes mellitus had a larger impact on incident PAD than incident coronary, cerebral or precerebral artery manifestations. Since the lower extremity arteries are the easiest to access and examine, they may be considered as the first arterial bed to examine in patients at increased risk for atherosclerotic manifestations.

Correction: Association between sanitary toilets and health poverty vulnerability among rural western Chinese adults aged 45 years and older: A cross-sectional study

Feasibility study of emotion mimicry analysis in human–machine interaction

Abstract Health apps have increased in popularity as people increasingly follow the advice these apps provide to enhance physical and mental well-being. One key aspect of improving neurosensory health is identifying and expressing emotions. Emotional intelligence is crucial for maintaining and enhancing social interactions. In this context, a preliminary closed-loop feedback system has been developed to help people project specific emotions by altering their facial expressions. This system is part of a research intervention aimed at therapeutic applications for individuals with autism spectrum disorder. The proposed system functions as a digital mirror, initially displaying an animated avatar’s face expressing a predefined emotion. Users are then asked to mimic the avatar’s expression. During this process, a custom emotion recognition model analyzes the user’s facial expressions and provides feedback on the accuracy of their projection. A small experimental study involving 8 participants tested the system for feasibility, with avatars projecting the six basic emotions and a neutral expression. The study results indicated a positive correlation between the projected facial expressions and the emotions identified by participants. Participants effectively recognized the emotions, with 85.40% accuracy demonstrating the system’s potential in enhancing the well-being of individuals. The participants were also able to mimic the given expression effectively with an accuracy of 46.67%. However, a deficiency in the performance of one of the expressions, surprise, was noticed. In the post processing, this issue was addressed and model enhancements were tailored to boost the performance by ~ 30%. This approach shows promise for therapeutic use and emotional skill development. A further wider experimental study is still required to validate the findings of this study and analyze the impact of modifications made.

How corporate financialization affects main business performance—Empirical evidence based on a dynamic panel threshold model

Corporate financialization is a growing concern in China, and its impact on the main business of real enterprises is a crucial topic. This paper uses data from all A-share non-financial listed companies in China between 2013 and 2022 to establish a dynamic panel threshold model and test the effect of corporate financialization on enterprise performance. The empirical results indicate a threshold effect between the two variables, corporate financialization has both positive and negative effects on main business performance, with a threshold of 5.82%. Additionally, significant heterogeneous results are found for the nature of ownership, asset maturity, industry and regional distribution.

Artificial neural network with incompressible smoothed particle hydrodynamics for exothermic chemical reaction on heat and mass transfer in a rectangular annulus

Integrative analysis of the metabolome and transcriptome provides insights into the mechanisms of flavonoid biosynthesis in Polygonatum

A noteworthy group of culinary and medicinal plants is Polygonatum species. They are known for their abundant flavonoid compound-rich rhizomes, which have antioxidative and anticancer activities. Using Polygonatum sibiricum Red (SXHZ) and Polygonatum kingianum var. grandifolium (HBES), we conducted transcriptome and metabolomic investigations to look into the molecular processes that control the manufacture of these flavonoids in Polygonatum plants. Seven distinct flavonoid metabolites were identified by the analytical data, with phloretin exhibiting a notable differential expression in the biosynthetic pathway. 30 genes with differential expression were found in both plants after further investigation, five of which are members of the transcription factor family associated with MBW. Thus, we suggest that Phloretin and the genes belonging to the MYB-related transcription factor family play a crucial role in controlling the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway in Polygonatum. This work lays the groundwork for a deeper comprehension of the biosynthesis and metabolic processes of flavonoids in Polygonatum, serving as an invaluable resource for the development of the polygonatum-related pharmaceutical industries as well as for the future breeding of Polygonatum plants with higher flavonoid content.

Sensorimotor adaptation reveals systematic biases in 3D perception

Public knowledge, attitudes, practices, and barriers to skin cancer screening in the United Arab Emirates

Objective To assess knowledge, attitude, practice, and barriers to skin cancer screening among the general population of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Methods In this cross-sectional study, an online-based questionnaire was distributed via online social media sites such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, and others to the residents of the UAE. The questionnaire evaluated socio-demographics, knowledge (8 items), attitudes (10 items), practices (14 items), and barriers (9 items) in the context of skin cancer screening. A binary logistic regression was conducted to assess variables associated with practice levels. Results The study included 924 participants (51.9% females), with a median (IQR) age of 32 (22–44) years. Results showed a window for knowledge improvement [median = 4 (3–6) out of a maximum potential score of 8], unfavourable attitudes [median = 37 (33–39) out of a maximum potential score of 50], inadequate practices [median = 41 (31–45) out of a maximum possible score of 70]. The most common barriers to skin cancer screening were lack of knowledge about skin cancer (74.1%), lack of awareness of the need for skin cancer screening (72.2%), and absence of symptoms (54.1%). Older age (OR = 0.985, 95%CI: 0.971–0.998) and lack of health insurance (OR = 0.478, 95%CI: 0.301–0.758) were associated with lower screening practices. Female gender (OR = 1.833, 95%CI: 1.361–2.469), being married (OR = 1.415, 95%CI: 1.006–1.992), being a non-smoker (OR = 1.568, 95%CI: 1.045–2.352) or a former smoker (OR = 2.555, 95% CI: 1.082–6.034), and more favourable attitudes (OR = 1.071, 95%CI: 1.044–1.096) were associated with higher screening practices. Conclusion The UAE population exhibited moderate knowledge, unfavourable attitudes, and inadequate practices regarding skin cancer screening, with several barriers identified. Targeted online and in-person awareness campaigns are crucial for improving public understanding and attitudes, thereby enhancing screening practices, especially among older adults, males, smokers, and those without health insurance.

Incidence and predictors of seizure-related injuries among epileptic patients undergoing follow-up treatment at public hospitals in Central Ethiopia

The effects of haloperidol on motor vigour and movement fusion during sequential reaching

Reward is a powerful tool to enhance human motor behaviour with previous research showing that during a sequential reaching movement, a monetary incentive leads to increased speed of each movement (motor vigour effect), whilst reward-based performance feedback increases the speed of transition between movements (movement fusion effect). The neurotransmitter dopamine plays a central role in the processing of reward signals and has been implicated to modulate motor vigour and regulate movement fusion. However, in humans, it is unclear if the same dopaminergic mechanism underlies both processes. To address this, we used a complex sequential reaching task in which rewards were based on movement times (MT). Crucially, MTs could be reduced via: 1) enhanced speed of individual movements (motor vigour effect) and/or 2) enhanced speed of transition between movements (movement fusion effect). 95 participants were randomly assigned to a reward or no reward group and were given either 2.5mg of the dopamine antagonist haloperidol or a placebo (control group). An independent decision-making task performed prior to the main experiment suggested that haloperidol was active during the sequential reaching task (positive control). We did not find evidence that haloperidol affected the facilitatory effects of reward on movement fusion. However, we found that haloperidol negated the reward-based effects on motor vigour. Therefore, our results suggest that a D2-antagonist differentially influences reward-based effects on movement vigour and movement fusion, indicating that the dopaminergic mechanisms underlying these two processes may be distinct.

Room temperature CRISPR diagnostics for low-resource settings

Aesthetic evaluation and the perceived properties of Chinese characters

Previous studies have indicated that the visually perceived properties of geometrical figures influence aesthetic evaluations. However, it is unclear whether findings based on geometrical figures can be extended to artworks such as paintings and calligraphy, as artworks have their own contents and meanings. To answer this question, we designed experiments in which users of Chinese characters were asked to rate the perceived symmetry, complexity, prototypicality, and beauty of Chinese characters. Each character was presented to 35 Japanese and Chinese participants in five typing fonts in a laboratory setting (Experiment 1), and to 100 Japanese participants in five calligraphic handwriting scripts online (Experiment 2). By analyzing the relative impacts of perceived properties on aesthetic evaluation and their interactions with script styles using a generalized linear mixed model, we discovered that script style plays an important role in the association between the perceived properties and aesthetic evaluation of Chinese characters. These results are discussed in relation to studies on the aesthetic evaluation of geometrical figures and recent studies using Chinese calligraphy.

Author Correction: Classification of RTV-coated porcelain insulator condition under different profiles and levels of pollution

Goal-line oracles: Exploring accuracy of wisdom of the crowd for football predictions

Football’s inherent volatility and low-scoring nature present unique challenges for predicting outcomes. This study investigates the efficacy of Wisdom of the Crowd in forecasting football match outcomes as well as expected goals (XG) across a Premier League season. Participants predicted team goal counts, which were then compared to actual expected goals (XG) and match results. Results across 760 team predictions reveal that while Wisdom of the Crowd accurately predicts XG on average, it overestimates ’big-6’ teams and underestimates others, hinting at inherent biases. Notably, however, collective crowd predictions outperform individual estimates consistently, affirming the power of collective intelligence. Furthermore, when tested against betting odds, Wisdom of the Crowd demonstrates limited profitability, indicating its potential as a supplementary rather than sole prediction tool. These findings underscore the nuanced dynamics of football prediction and highlight the utility of collective wisdom in navigating its complexities. Overall, this study contributes insights into crowd prediction dynamics and underscores its potential in football analytics, shedding light on its implications for decision-making and understanding group behaviour in sports forecasting contexts.

A comparative analysis of LSTM models aided with attention and squeeze and excitation blocks for activity recognition

The evolution and driving mechanism of education inequality in China: From 2003 to 2020

Although China’s education development has made great progress, there are obvious regional differences in China’s educational development. A systematic investigation of the regional inequality in China’s educational development and its driving factors is of great significance for optimizing the allocation of educational resources and giving full play to the critical role of education in regional development. In addition, the research on the evolution and internal mechanism of educational development inequality in China can also provide experience and reference for the Global South. Therefore, we construct a comprehensive evaluation index system to measure the level of regional educational development, reveal the regional inequalities in China’s educational development, and employ spatial econometric model to dissect the factors influencing the regional inequalities. The results show that China’s educational development level continues to increasing from 2003 to 2020, but a significant decrease in its growth rate. In this process, regional differences in education inequality in China have gradually narrowed, which can be confirmed by changes in the Gini coefficient and Theil index. In terms of direct spillover effects, the per capita fiscal expenditure on education and urbanization rate have positive effects. In terms of indirect spillover effects, per capita GDP and per capita fiscal expenditure on education have negative effects, while population density and urbanization rate have positive effects. After replacing the weight matrix and removing the extreme values, the model also passes the robustness test. However, this mechanism is heterogeneous in different regions, therefore, we put forward the corresponding policies and measures according to the regional driving effects of influencing factors.

Automated strabismus detection and classification using deep learning analysis of facial images

Identification of personal factors that influence engagement in cardiac rehabilitation and interventions targeting personal factors: A scoping review protocol

Cardiac rehabilitation effectively reduces mortality and enhances the quality of life for individuals with cardiovascular disease. Despite that, individuals’ engagement in cardiac rehabilitation remains low. Considering the significant contributions of individuals’ self-management of cardiovascular disease to their progress, it is essential to understand the personal factors that influence engagement in cardiac rehabilitation. This scoping review aims to identify and map personal factors that influence cardiac rehabilitation engagement with a specific focus on the subjective experiential dimensions of personal factors (cognitive, emotional, and behavioural). It also aims to explore interventions targeting personal factors to increase cardiac rehabilitation engagement. This review will be reported using the PRISMA-ScR checklist following the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) methodology. It will include peer-reviewed articles published in English from January 2004, excluding grey literature. Studies reporting adult populations aged 18 and over with cardiovascular disease and addressing personal factors or interventions to increase cardiac rehabilitation engagement, will be included. Databases for the searches will include PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science. The data extraction is developed by the reviewers based on JBI guidelines and relevant literature, the form will detail the characteristics of included publications, personal factors influencing cardiac rehabilitation engagement, and intervention characteristics. The data analysis will summarise descriptively the key features of the included studies and interventions, the Patient Health Engagement Model will guide the categorisation of personal factors into cognitive, emotional, and behavioural aspects, with other personal factors organised as emerging other relevant factors themes. The findings of this review will provide important evidence support for researchers, clinicians and policy makers to promote participation in cardiac rehabilitation. Within the constraints of medical and human resources, attention to personal factors can maximise the individual’s role in cardiac rehabilitation and self-management, contributing to the efficient allocation and use of resources.