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Multivariate Bayesian global–local shrinkage methods for regularisation in the high-dimensional linear model
Get PDFThis paper considers Bayesian regularisation using global–local shrinkage priors in the multivariate general linear model when there are many more explanatory variables than observations. We adopt priors’ structures used extensively in univariate problems (conjugate and non-conjugate with tail behaviour ranging from polynomial to exponential) and consider how the addition of error correlation in the multivariate set-up affects the performance of these priors. Two different datasets (from drug discovery and chemometrics) with many covariates are used for comparison, and these are supplemented by a small simulation study to corroborate the role of error correlation. We find that structural assumptions of the prior distribution on regression coefficients can be more significant than the tail behaviour. In particular, if the structural assumption of conjugacy is used, the performance of the posterior predictive distribution deteriorates relative to non-conjugate choices as the error correlation becomes stronger
Investigating phototoxicity of optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging in porcine and human sperm
Get PDFResearch question
Does exposure to near-infrared OCT laser radiation induce phototoxic effects in porcine and human sperm?
Design
Computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA) was used to determine whether OCT laser illumination at or above levels typically used for imaging alters sperm motility. Flow cytometry was used to determine the impact of irradiation on sperm acrosome reaction status, DNA fragmentation, and membrane integrity. Additionally, in vitro time-lapse OCT imaging of a porcine cumulus-oocyte complex with irradiated sperm was performed to determine whether irradiated sperm interacts with and penetrates the cumulus oophorus. Finally, human sperm was irradiated and analysed using CASA and flow cytometric techniques.
Results
All irradiated samples showed no statistically significant difference in sperm DNA damage or CASA sperm motility parameters including average path velocity (VAP), straight line velocity (VSL) or curvilinear velocity (VCL) when compared to their matched manipulation control, suggesting that sample irradiation did not compromise spermatozoa viability even when using an optical power of more than one order of magnitude greater than that typically required to image embryos. Proof of concept OCT imaging suggested that the motility of the irradiated sperm during cumulus interaction was not affected by radiation.
Conclusions
There was no observed significant effect on boar and human sperm kinetics following near-infrared OCT laser radiation. Future work will be aimed at looking at the fertilisation process and embryo development following near-infrared OCT laser radiation
The role of apology beliefs for apology tendencies across cultures with varying honor norms
Get PDFApologies serve as crucial tools for relationship repair, promoting reconciliation, and demonstrating accountability. However, beliefs about the morality, effectiveness, and responsibility-signaling nature of apologies may vary across cultures, particularly in contexts shaped by honor norms where apologies fit central cultural concerns for morality and strength in ambiguous ways. This study investigates the relation between apology beliefs and cultural honor norms across 14 Mediterranean, East Asian, and Anglo-Western samples (N = 5296). We assessed personal and normative beliefs about apologies and their alignment with apology tendencies (willingness to apologize and past offered apologies) as well as intersubjectively rated honor norms. Results revealed that stronger beliefs in the morality and effectiveness of apologies, as well as perceptions of apologies as admissions of responsibility, consistently predicted greater willingness to apologize across regions and past apologies offered. Against our expectations, honor norms moderated only a few of these relations, with significant interactions suggesting weaker links between apology beliefs and apology tendencies at stronger honor norms. Complementary analyses comparing regional categorizations (Anglo-West, East Asia, and MENA) further supported a picture of relative cultural similarities but also highlighted a wider array of relevant apology beliefs in the MENA region as well as a greater focus on personal morality beliefs in Anglo Western societies and personal effectiveness beliefs in East Asian societies. Our findings underscore the universal significance of apology beliefs in fostering reconciliation while also revealing some cultural variability in how personal beliefs and cultural norms may interact in shaping apology-related behaviors across diverse societies
Evolving concepts of the protein universe
Get PDFThe protein universe is the collection of all proteins on earth from all organisms both extant and extinct. Classical studies on protein folding suggested that proteins exist as a unique three-dimensional conformation that is dictated by the genetic code and is critical for function. In this perspective, we discuss ideas and developments that emerged over the past three decades regarding the protein structure-function paradigm. It is now clear that ordered (active/functional) and disordered/denatured (and hence inactive/non-functional) represent a continuum of states rather than binary states. Some proteins can switch folds without sequence change. Others exist as conformational ensembles lacking defined structure yet play critical roles in many biological processes, including forming membrane-less organelles driven by liquid-liquid phase separation. Numerous diverse proteins harbor segments with the potential to form amyloid fibrils, many of which are functional, and some possess prion-like properties enabling conformation-based transfer of heritable information. Taken together, these developments reveal the remarkable complexity of the protein universe
Biofilm Formation on Endotracheal and Tracheostomy Tubing: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Culture Data and Sampling Method
Get PDFBiofilm formation on tracheal tubing is a key risk factor for ventilator-associated pneumonia. Endotracheal tube microbiology has been systematically reviewed, but tracheostomy tube profiles have not. Analysis of the tube-associated microbiome is not standardised, and sampling methods are varied. We compared the reported microbiomes of endotracheal and tracheostomy tubes and examined the impact of sampling by tracheal aspiration or direct culture. We searched PubMed, SCOPUS, and Web of Knowledge for clinical microbiology studies from 2000-2024, extracting tubing type, sampling method, and the most prevalent genera identified. Genera were compared by Spearman's rank correlation and pairwise analyses by Šidák's test. Extraction from 49 studies identified 30 genera. Pseudomonas was the most prevalent in all conditions followed by Klebsiella, Staphylococcus, and Acinetobacter. 25 studies performed tracheal aspiration, and 22, direct culture. Two studies used both methods. Correlation was observed between endotracheal and tracheostomy tubes, and aspirates and direct cultures (Spearman's rho = 0.69; 0.59). Pseudomonas were more prevalent in tracheostomy tubes (p < 0.0001). Coagulase-positive Staphylococci were more common in tracheal aspirates, and coagulase-negative Staphylococci in direct culture. The microbial profiles of endotracheal and tracheostomy tubes are comparable, with Pseudomonas being the most common coloniser. Our analyses suggest that tracheal aspiration can effectively identify the constituents of biofilms without requiring tube removal, making it a valuable tool for clinical researchers to analyse or monitor biofilms before extubation or device failure using existing microbiology procedures
Development and Validation of an Instrument for Measuring Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity (EDI) in Medical Education Teaching Resources: The GRADES10
Get PDFHigher education institutions around the world have a responsibility to diversify their course content. This is an important consideration to ensure that students are prepared to serve a diverse population once they graduate, however, a lack of diversity representation in medical school curricula in particular, is reported in the literature. A paucity of reliable resources to support creating more inclusive content is also reported. This study developed and validated a diversity measurement instrument, designed to look at representation in the areas of gender, religion, age, disability, ethnicity/race, sexuality, and socio-economic status. Early prototypes were sent to experts for validity testing and using their feedback, improvements and iterations were made to the instrument until the final instrument was agreed: the GRADES10©. The instrument was then applied to a variety of medical education resources to test for rater-reliability. An accompanying user guide was developed to support users with the application of the GRADES10© in practice. Face validity was conducted by 10 experts on several iterations of the instrument from the early prototype (GRADESs7), until the final agreed GRADES10©. Rater-reliability was calculated by intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Cronbach’s Alpha measure of internal consistency. The GRADES10© instrument was shown to have an ICC of 0.83% (SD 0.725–0.907) p= < .0001, and Cronbach’s Alpha of 0.97. Overall, this study has shown that the validated GRADES10© instrument is able to measure diversity in medical teaching resources reliably. The GRADES10© has the potential to contribute to creating a more inclusive learning environment by allowing its users to apply a diversity metric to their educational materials, to identify gaps and areas for improvement. If applied by medical schools and organisations offering continuing medical education courses in future, the GRADES10© may impact the grassroots of medical education diversification, which may have a beneficial effect on medical student and doctors’ attitudes, experiences and ultimately on patient care
bingenTV and the Hildegard von Bingen Society for Gardening Companions: A Conversation Between Sophie Seita, Naomi Woo and Declan Wiffen
No full textThis interview with Sophie Seita and Naomi Woo explores bingenTV, an exhibition at Mimosa House (London) in the Winter of 2023, and The Hildegard von Bingen Society for Gardening Companions, a queer-feminist, and ecologically engaged creative project. The conversation traces the Society’s origins, fictional and real, and its multimedia performances, workshops, and installations – including bingenTV, a satirical 1980s queer gardening talk show. Seita and Woo reflect on performance, rituals, archival fabulation, queer ecologies, and reparative ecological practices, drawing from a range of creative practitioners, such as Hildegard von Bingen, Vita Sackville-West, Pauline Oliveros and Alison Knowles, Mary Delany and others. The discussion explores the ambivalences of queer historical recovery, complicity, and exclusion – foregrounding gossip, humour, and embodied performance as valid modes of knowledge. Focusing on ways of cultivating community across human and more-than-human boundaries, the conversation navigates the tensions between healing and dissonance, critique and care, fiction and fact
Novel approaches for evaluation of research impact
No full textResearch evaluation plays a vital role in the management of science and technology. This thesis is motivated by the fact that manipulation of citation data is becoming a common issue in scientific research evaluation. Thus, we aim to utilise multiple data resources, including scientometric and altmetric data, to develop evidence-based quantitative evaluating methods for research impact to increase the reliability of assessment results.
To achieve the research goals, we first examined various altmetric data sources and platforms through a comprehensive literature review and an empirical study to investigate the quality of altmetric data. We suggested ways to utilise altmetric data in research impact evaluation studies. Then, we developed an evidence-chain-based evaluation method for research impact. We explored the methods for evaluating the research impact of research publications. We analysed the impact generation cause-effect chains, which put together the academic and broader impacts (economy, society, culture, public policy or services, health, and more) of the research output as a final effect, and illustrated the cause-effect chains of the impact generation process across different logical stages. We collected a range of evidence data as indicators of the impact generation process that were carefully selected from the most representative database within their category, and quality was verified by small sample tests, clarifying the origins of data sources and the breadth and comprehensiveness of the database's publication coverage. We utilised the structural equation modelling approach to establish the research impact aggregation models. Finally, all observed publications' impact scores were calculated using the factor weights from disciplinary structural models for research impact.
This research offers several significant contributions to the evaluation of research impact. Firstly, it proposes an innovative quantitative method based on evidence chains, effectively addressing the limitations of traditional results-driven evaluation systems and yielding more reliable insights. Secondly, it pioneers a full-chain evaluation method that captures both academic and broader dimensions of impact by incorporating every stage of the impact generation process, providing a novel perspective on impact assessment. Thirdly, the study develops a new way of thinking that employs cause-effect chains to analyse research impact, improving attribution and consistency. Additionally, an empirical analysis of altmetrics platforms offers a detailed understanding of altmetric data quality, reliability, and disciplinary differences, serving as a valuable reference for future use of the altmetric data. Lastly, while recognising the limitations of altmetrics as direct tools for impact evaluation, this research highlights their role in deriving meaningful indicators that propose a fresh approach to their application in research impact evaluations
The value of qualitative approaches to impact evaluation in biodiversity conservation
Get PDFTo evaluate impact, conservation practitioners and researchers can pursue different approaches and draw on an array of methods. Although the suitability of specific impact evaluation methodologies varies depending on context, quantitative approaches are predominantly used due to perceptions of greater rigour and broader acceptance. However, qualitative approaches to impact evaluation can generate distinct and complementary insights. In this perspective piece, we provide a conceptualisation of qualitative approaches to impact evaluation in conservation and draw on case studies to illustrate the value of qualitative approaches. These approaches can offer unique insights to understand change by illuminating different ways of seeing, testing the validity of explicit and implicit assumptions, and helping to make sense of real-world complexity. We illustrate the value and necessity of understanding why change is occurring alongside magnitude. To promote more effective and inclusive conservation research and practice, we propose that the conservation community should strive to mainstream qualitative approaches, both independently and in conjunction with quantitative approaches, as part of the development and implementation of impact evaluation in biodiversity conservation
Bridging the Gap in Physical Activity and Sport Among Women University Students: Motivational and Practical Insights for Effective Promotion
No full textWomen’s participation in physical activity (PA) and sport remains lower than that of men, with specific challenges persisting into young adulthood. This study aims to better understand the diverse engagement patterns and motivations of women university students in order to inform targeted, gender-sensitive approaches to PA and sport promotion. A survey was conducted among 2,071 women students aged 18–25 years (M = 20.01, SD = 1.33) from 16 European universities. Principal component analysis and clustering techniques revealed two main participation styles: “free” (C1 and C2) and “organized” (C3 and C4). The “free” group preferred low-intensity, flexible activities, often self-directed, and supported by digital tools, while the “organized” group thrived in structured, socially supportive environments such as clubs or team sports with coaching. Motivational factors varied considerably: C1 participants did not prioritize a single motivational factor, C2 were primarily motivated by physical condition and appearance, while a combination of enjoyment, affiliation, and psychological well-being drove C3 and C4 participants. The study highlights the need for universities to offer diverse, flexible PA options that cater to different preferences, from autonomous activities facilitated by digital innovations to structured programs that promote social belonging and accountability. Universities can create supportive environments that encourage sustained PA and sport engagement by tailoring interventions to individual motivations and using inclusive communication strategies. These findings provide valuable insights for promoting active lifestyles among women university students and for advancing gender-sensitive approaches to PA and sport promotion
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