PLoS ONE
Articles in this Issue
Phenological cycles in the Pantanal woody communities: Responses to climate and soil moisture seasonality
This study investigated the influences of regional climate and soil moisture conditions on the vegetative and reproductive cycles of seven savanna and forest vegetation communities of the Pantanal Mat...
Advanced retinal disease detection from OCT images using a hybrid squeeze and excitation enhanced model
Background Retinal problems are critical because they can cause severe vision loss if not treated. Traditional methods for diagnosing retinal disorders often rely heavily on manual interpretation of o...
The long-term and short-term effects of interest rate volatility on corporate bankruptcy risk: An industry and supply chain perspective
While higher interest rates increase the cost of credit financing for businesses, this study finds that the direct impact of this traditional credit transmission mechanism on corporate bankruptcy risk...
Body image and appearance distress among military veterans and civilians with an injury-related visible difference: A comparison study
Injuries sustained during military conflict can significantly impact appearance. Yet, little is known about the psychosocial experiences of veterans with conflict-related appearance-altering injuries...
Strength, extent and duration of secondary hyperalgesia induced by high-frequency electrical stimulation of the foot compared to the volar forearm of healthy human volunteers
High-frequency electrical stimulation (HFS) of the skin using a multi-pin electrode activating epidermal nociceptors is used to explore spinal central sensitization in humans. Most previous studies ap...
Association between C-reactive protein and chronic pain in US adults: A nationwide cross-sectional study
Background Chronic pain has emerged as a significant global public health concern. Hence, it is imperative to acquire a more comprehensive comprehension of these characteristics in the adult populatio...
Health-related quality of life and its predictors among chronic kidney disease patients: A hospital-based cross-sectional study
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) has a significant impact on the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of affected individuals due to its progressive and disabling nature. The aim of this study was to ev...
Asking an AI for salary negotiation advice is a matter of concern: Controlled experimental perturbation of ChatGPT for protected and non-protected group discrimination on a contextual task with no clear ground truth answers
We conducted controlled experimental bias audits for four versions of ChatGPT, which we asked to recommend an opening offer in salary negotiations for a new hire. We submitted 98,800 prompts to each v...
Risk factors for loss to follow-up in patients with gout: A Korean prospective cohort study
Objectives Gout, a common form of inflammatory arthritis, is often managed with urate-lowering therapy, but many patients only adhere to treatment during gout attacks, resulting in poor follow-up and...
Revealing the status of Orbicella: Main reef-builder of Morrocoy National Park and Cuare Wildlife Refuge, Venezuela, Southern Caribbean
Reef-building corals are the main basis of coral reef ecosystems, and the Orbicella genus is currently the most important in the Caribbean region. Although Orbicella species have been extensively stud...
In-silico tool based on Boolean networks and meshless simulations for prediction of reaction and transport mechanisms in the systemic administration of chemotherapeutic drugs
Using in-house computational tools, this work focuses on investigating how the combination of the electric field magnitude (E), bloodstream velocity (λinl) and pharmaco-kinetic profile (PK) impacts th...
Integrating ICT in education: A scoping review of pre-service teachers’ ICT beliefs
This scoping review aims to map the current understanding of pre-service teachers’ beliefs about ICT, identify critical research gaps, and provide actionable insights for teacher education policy and...
Analyzing and forecasting under-5 mortality trends in Bangladesh using machine learning techniques
Background Under-5 mortality remains a critical social indicator of a country’s development and economic sustainability, particularly in developing nations like Bangladesh. This study employs machine...
Broadening the spectrum of conflict and coexistence: A case study example of human-wolf interactions in British Columbia, Canada
Coexistence has seen an explosive rise within conservation social science scholarship. While this represents an exciting shift in the field, many academics are still skeptical. Some scholars have expr...
Optimized transmission of multi-path low-latency routing for electricity internet of things based on SDN task distribution
With the continuous development of 5G network, how to further improve the routing and transmission efficiency of electric power IoT has become a popular research at present. Facing the current problem...
Experimental study on in-situ simulation of rainfall-induced soil erosion in forest lands converted to cash crop areas in Dabie Mountains
Soil erosion is a pervasive global challenge and a significant ecological and environmental concern in China. Its occurrence frequently triggers ecological crises, including soil degradation and water...
Immunoinformatic strategy for developing multi-epitope subunit vaccine against Helicobacter pylori
Helicobacter pylori is a gram-negative bacterium that persistently infects the human stomach, leading to peptic ulcers, gastritis, and an increased risk of gastric cancer. The extremophilic characteri...
Evaluation of a pilot family planning educational seminar and subsequent attitudes towards family planning among Muslim communities in Tanzania
Evidence has demonstrated that uncertainty about compatibility with religious beliefs and limited health knowledge hinder uptake of family planning (FP), even among women who would like to prevent or...
Direct detection and identification of viruses in saliva using a SpecID ionization modified mass spectrometer
The COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has led to a significant mortality globally and persistent health challenges in many survivors. Early accurate diagnosis, surveillance, identification of cohorts, an...
Characterization of gene expression profiles in Alzheimer’s disease and osteoarthritis: A bioinformatics study
Background Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Osteoarthritis (OA) have been shown to have a close association in previous studies, but the pathogenesis of both diseases are unclear. This study explores the...
Association between wasting and inadequate breastfeeding practices among infants under six months in SNNPR and Somali regions of Ethiopia: A multilevel cross-sectional study
Background Wasting is a severe threat to children’s survival and development. Attaining optimal breastfeeding practices for infants under six months of age remains a significant challenge in low-incom...
YouTube as an information source in deep margin elevation: Reliability, accuracy and quality analysis
The objective of this research was to assess the accuracy, quality, content, and demographics of videos on YouTube concerning deep margin elevation (DME). Initially, 100 videos for each of the three k...
Optimized fertilization patterns increase foxtail millet biomass on the distribution and transformation in Loess Plateau of China
Organic manure or microbial fertilizers are essential sources of plant nutrients to supplement farmland soil, and organic and inorganic fertilizers are considered an effective way to achieve sustainab...
Impact of developmental state, p53 status, and interferon signaling on glioblastoma cell response to radiation and temozolomide treatment
Glioblastoma (GBM) tumors exhibit extensive genomic, epigenomic, and transcriptional diversity, with significant intratumoral heterogeneity, complicating standard treatment approaches involving radiat...
Comparison of frailty instruments for predicting mortality and prolon ged hospitalization in acute coronary syndrome patients
Objective To evaluate the relative strengths of 3 frailty assessment instruments for predicting mortality and prolonged hospitalization in acute coronary syndrome patients. Design Prospective cohort...