Search Results (2,036,259)

Background and Objective: The ultrasound sliding sign dynamically assesses pouch of Douglas (POD) obliteration in suspected endometriosis. Transvaginal (TVS) and transrectal (TRS) ultrasound are used in patients with and without a self-reported history of vaginal intercourse, respectively, and thus in clinically distinct populations. We evaluated sliding sign performance for predicting surgically confirmed complete POD obliteration in patients with ovarian endometriomas and described findings in route-defined TVS and TRS groups. Materials and Methods: This retrospective cohort study enrolled 318 patients with surgically and pathologically confirmed ovarian endometriomas; intraoperative POD status was evaluable in 309. Patients with and without a self-reported history of vaginal intercourse underwent TVS (n = 247) and TRS (n = 71), respectively. A negative sliding sign (absent movement between the uterus and rectum) was the positive index test result for complete POD obliteration. The unadjusted full-cohort diagnostic accuracy analysis was the primary analysis. Because no parous patient underwent TRS (a lack of overlap in examination-route assignment among parous patients), exploratory adjusted analyses were restricted to nulliparous patients, using overlap weighting (principal adjusted analysis) and 1:1 propensity score matching (sensitivity analysis). Results: In the primary unadjusted analysis of the full cohort (n = 309), the negative sliding sign showed limited to moderate discriminative ability (sensitivity 0.71, 95% CI 0.63–0.78; specificity 0.60, 95% CI 0.52–0.67; PLR 1.78, 95% CI 1.44–2.20; NLR 0.48, 95% CI 0.36–0.64) and was associated with complete POD obliteration (p < 0.001). The between-route sensitivity difference was inconclusive (0.19, 95% CI −0.01 to 0.38). In the exploratory overlap-weighted analysis of nulliparous patients (n = 217), the association remained significant (weighted OR = 2.80, 95% CI 1.17–6.69; p = 0.021), without significant sliding sign-by-route interaction (p = 0.302); findings were consistent in the matching sensitivity analysis (66 pairs). Conclusions: The sliding sign was associated with surgically confirmed complete POD obliteration in patients with ovarian endometriomas, but evidence that this association differed between route-defined groups was inconclusive. Route-specific findings are exploratory because the examination route was determined by sexual history rather than randomization. Whether TRS offers performance comparable to TVS remains undetermined, because the two techniques were not evaluated in the same population and TRS feasibility was not formally assessed. Full article

Background/Objectives: Loneliness can persist, resolve or develop over time. We examined whether repeated assessments add information about health beyond an initial assessment and which health domains account for that information. Methods: The primary analysis included 4904 women aged ≥45 years in the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS). Loneliness was assessed in 2011, 2013 and 2015. The outcome combined worsening depressive symptoms, physical function and cognition over 2011–2018, although some physical measurements ended in 2015. Thus, exposure and outcome periods overlapped. We compared models using baseline information alone with models adding the later assessments, testing both in held-out participants. Post hoc analyses included 4287 men. The Health and Retirement Study (HRS) provided a longitudinal comparison in women and additional analyses in men; UK Biobank provided a baseline comparison in women only. Results: Repeated assessments modestly increased explained variation in CHARLS (averaged difference in R-squared [ΔR²] = 0.0178, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.0103–0.0254 in women; 0.0148, 95% CI 0.0067–0.0228 in men). Associations were strongest for depressive symptoms and everyday function, smaller for cognition, and near null for metabolic and inflammatory markers. There was no clear evidence of sex or age differences in the tested associations. HRS gains were modest in women and imprecise in men. UK Biobank used a different joint loneliness and low-confiding measure. Conclusions: Repeated loneliness assessments added modest information, chiefly about psychological and functional burden. Overlapping measurement periods and differences between cohorts limit causal interpretation and generalizability. Clinical usefulness remains unestablished. Full article

Macrophages must preserve genome stability while performing immune and tissue-supporting functions that can themselves induce DNA damage or interfere with genome maintenance. Inflammatory metabolism produces reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, extensive transcription imposes topological and transcription-associated stress, and proliferative responses generate replication stress. At the same time, studies of monocyte-derived macrophages and macrophage-like differentiation models show selective changes in DNA repair capacity: base excision repair (BER)/single-strand break (SSB) repair and DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK)-dependent double-strand break (DSB) repair are enhanced, whereas global nucleotide excision repair (NER) can be attenuated while repair is preferentially retained in transcriptionally active regions. When these protective mechanisms fail, persistent DNA damage can promote apoptosis or senescence, alter inflammatory signaling and extracellular communication, and modify self-antigen presentation. Here, we focus on differentiation-associated changes in DNA repair capacity and genome maintenance during inflammatory activation, drawing on selected tissue and disease models. We also discuss emerging evidence that circadian regulation of metabolism and redox activity may add a temporal dimension to this balance. Defining how pathway-specific DNA repair capacity is matched to state-dependent genotoxic challenges will clarify how genome stability supports immune homeostasis and how its disruption contributes to inflammatory dysfunction. Full article

Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a prevalent degenerative joint disease lacking effective disease-modifying therapies, which necessitates the discovery of key genes for mechanistic exploration and therapeutic development. Methods: We integrated three large-scale cis-protein quantitative trait locus datasets and two OA genome-wide association study summary statistics to screen candidate proteins by two-stage proteome-wide Mendelian randomization (MR). Causal association reliability was validated via summary-data-based Mendelian randomization (SMR) and Bayesian colocalization analyses. A phenome-wide association study (PheWAS) was performed to evaluate potential pleiotropic effects of the candidates. Subsequently, transcriptomic and single-cell RNA sequencing datasets were employed to evaluate the candidate genes’ expression stability, classification efficacy in the in vitro models of OA, cell-specific enrichment, and pseudotime expression dynamics in cartilage. Finally, drug repurposing potential was explored by integrating drug–gene interaction database searches and molecular docking. Results: Two-stage cis-pQTL MR combined with cis-eQTL-based SMR analysis identified 14 plasma proteins with consistent effects at the protein and transcript levels. RNA-seq revealed that adrenomedullin (ADM) and complement factor H (CFH) were upregulated in two in vitro models of OA, and both genes exhibited favorable classification efficacy in these models. Bayesian colocalization analysis provided evidence of shared causal variants for ADM, and PheWAS did not detect significant pleiotropic associations for ADM or CFH across the tested phenotypes. Single-cell analysis indicated that ADM was enriched in pre-fibrocartilage chondrocytes with biphasic pseudotime expression, whereas CFH was widely expressed across chondrocyte subsets. Database screening identified 15 potential drugs for ADM and 6 for CFH. Conclusions: Combining MR, multi-omics and pharmacological evidence, we prioritized ADM and CFH as OA candidate genes. Full article

In large-scale plant construction projects, integrating Building Information Modeling (BIM) with construction schedules is essential for detailed planning and advanced practices such as Advanced Work Packaging (AWP), yet a granularity mismatch remains between schedule activities and object-level BIM components. This study proposes a method that combines lightweight axis-aligned bounding box (AABB) geometry with piping-specific semantic rules to derive object-level connectivity for installation grouping and sequencing. The method was implemented as a custom Autodesk Navisworks add-in and evaluated using an industrial process piping system comprising 705 physical objects. Geometric adjacency relationships were refined through semantic false-positive filtering, achieving 99.02% edge-level precision and 98.37% port-count agreement. The validated connectivity was then used to restructure 20 initial semantic partitions into 16 dimensionally feasible installation groups. A candidate installation sequence was subsequently generated by prioritizing equipment-connected main-line piping and maintaining continuity along connected piping routes. The results demonstrate that lightweight geometry combined with piping-specific semantic constraints can reliably support object-level installation planning without requiring predefined installation grouping or sequencing information in the BIM model. The proposed method provides an intermediate planning structure that links detailed BIM objects with broader construction schedule activities and supports subsequent detailed 4D BIM planning. Full article

The construction industry is actively promoting female participation, but the motivation to drive their entry and stay, particularly into different job roles, remains underexplored. Previous studies typically treated extrinsic motivation as a single, undifferentiated construct. This study therefore examines the motivations shaping women’s entry into the construction industry across on-site, off-site, and fluid job roles. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 29 female construction professionals in Australia across different roles. Data were thematically analysed using ATLAS.ti (version 25), producing twelve initial codes that were refined into seven core motivational codes and synthesised into three key motivational factors. The three main identified factors aligned with three distinct theories: intrinsic drivers with career choice theory, career opportunities with social cognitive career theory, and external/social drivers with social capital theory. Across 428 coded quotations, personal and social factors outweighed financial considerations. Interest in construction subjects/studies (21.0%) and early exposure (20.8%) were most frequently cited, while financial incentives were least cited (3.3%). Finally, motivational patterns were found to vary across the three roles. This study developed a role-sensitive motivational framework that is informed by the intrinsic/extrinsic career choice model to explain women’s motivations across construction roles and to guide the design of recruitment, education, and career pathway strategies in male-dominated industries. Full article

High-grade canine B-cell lymphoma (cBCL) is a spontaneous cancer in dogs with similar pathologic features as human diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). The value of comparative oncology to both dogs and humans has long been recognized, but the progress in cBCL research has been hampered by a scarcity of preclinical models. This study aimed to establish and characterize novel patient-derived xenograft (PDX) and cell line models from primary cBCL tumors to address this critical gap. To this end, primary cBCL tumors from three canine patients were surgically excised and serially transplanted into immunodeficient NOD scid gamma (NSG) mice. The resulting PDX models were characterized across passages in mice using histology, flow cytometry, single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping, and RNA sequencing. The results show that the samples retain many of their original characteristics, even after multiple NSG passages. Cancer cells from two of the PDX lines were successfully adapted to in vitro culture, creating two new established cell lines which were then used in drug sensitivity assays. The successful generation and characterization of these cBCL PDX and cell lines provides a valuable resource for canine cancer research and associated comparative oncology approaches. Full article

Background/Objectives: Digital technologies have transformed how young adults in romantic relationships communicate, develop intimacy, and manage control. Although these technologies facilitate connection, they may enable surveillance, control, and aggression. This study examined associations of psychological distress and romantic love myths with digital dating violence while controlling for problematic social media use. Methods: This observational, cross-sectional study included 336 university students aged 18–25 years. Participants completed the Cyber-Violence in Adolescent Couples Scale, adapted for young adults (Cib-VPA), the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21 (DASS-21), the Scale of Myths of Romantic Love (SMRL), and the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS). Differences between men and women, partial correlations, pooled regression models testing the Sex × DASS-21 × SMRL interaction, and sex-stratified regression models were examined. Results: Women reported higher levels of anxiety, depression, stress, psychological distress, cybercontrol victimization, cyberaggression victimization, cybercontrol perpetration, and total victimization. Men showed stronger endorsement of romantic love myths. Formal pooled comparisons indicated that the DASS-21 × SMRL interaction differed by sex for victimization–cyberaggression, perpetration–cybercontrol, and total victimization. Sex-stratified models showed significant interactions for several dimensions of digital dating violence. Simple slopes showed that psychological distress was positively associated with total perpetration among men and women and with total victimization among women when romantic love myth endorsement was high. Conclusions: Psychological distress and romantic love myths appear to be associated with digital dating violence. Prevention programs should support psychological well-being, challenge romantic love myths, and improve recognition of cybercontrol as a form of intimate partner violence. Full article

Plastic pollution has emerged as one of the most pressing environmental, health, and socio-economic challenges worldwide, driving rapid growth in scientific research over the last decade. This study presents a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of global research on plastic particles as environmental contaminants published between 2015 and 2025. The search expression employed was (*plastic) AND (pollut* OR contaminat*) to retrieve publications addressing plastic pollution and the occurrence of plastics as environmental contaminants. A total of 50,946 documents, including articles, reviews, and book chapters indexed in the Scopus database, were analyzed using VOSviewer 1.6.20 and Bibliometrix/Biblioshiny v. 2026.01.1 Build 403 to evaluate publication trends, collaboration networks, conceptual structure, and the bibliometric organization of the field. The analysis revealed a sustained increase in scientific production, led by China (15,667 publications), the United States (5540), and India (5374), with Environmental Science representing the dominant subject area (31.2%). To characterize the most recent thematic structure, keyword co-occurrence analysis was specifically performed using articles published during 2024–2025. Keyword co-occurrence and thematic mapping identified microplastics, nanoplastics, and adsorption as the principal motor themes, while circular economy, sustainability, biodegradation, and machine learning emerged as rapidly expanding research directions. Author-productivity and journal-dispersion analyses revealed a concentrated scientific structure, characterized by a relatively small group of highly productive authors and a core set of journals accounting for a substantial proportion of the literature but with significant deviations from the theoretical Lotka and Bradford distributions. Furthermore, the collaboration analysis revealed an irregular geographic distribution of publication output and international co-authorship, with the largest absolute contributions concentrated in China, the United States, India, and several European countries. By integrating bibliometric indicators with policy frameworks, funding patterns, and sustainability perspectives, this study provides a system-level understanding of the evolution of research on plastic pollution. It identifies strategic priorities to support evidence-based environmental governance, circular economy implementation, and future research agendas. Full article

Freeze–thaw resistance is important for the use of red mud-based synthetic sand in cold regions. Mortars containing synthetic, standard, and fluvial sand were compared at a nominal water-to-cement ratio of 0.50 and cement-to-sand mass ratio of 1:3. Strengths were measured at 3, 7, 14, and 28 d. After 28 d of curing, specimens underwent 25 freeze–thaw cycles, each comprising 12 h at −20 °C and 12 h in water at 20 ± 1 °C. Digital image correlation (DIC) during loading at 0.2 kN/s and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) assessed strain localization and interfacial morphology. At 28 d, compressive and flexural strengths were 45.3 ± 0.6 and 9.9 ± 0.6 MPa for synthetic-sand mortar, 44.0 ± 0.6 and 8.9 ± 0.8 MPa for standard-sand mortar, and 42.5 ± 1.0 and 7.3 ± 0.8 MPa for fluvial-sand mortar, respectively. After cycling, synthetic sand mortar exhibited mass, compressive strength, and flexural strength losses of 0.2%, 6.1%, and 8.6%, respectively, lower than those of both reference mortars. DIC showed increased strain localization, while SEM suggested less interfacial deterioration in synthetic sand mortar. Its rough surface and possible mechanical interlocking may contribute to the observed resistance under these test conditions. Full article