Queen Mary University of London

Impact of sudanese chewing tobacco toombak on oral bacteria – a culture-based pilot study

Abstract Objective This study investigated the impact of the Sudanese smokeless tobacco Toombak on cultivable oral bacteria, its potential antibacterial properties, and its own microbial composition. Materials and methods Oral swabs from 20 adult male participants, including ten...

Simple supercuspidal representations of $$\textrm{GSp}_4$$ and test vectors

Abstract We consider simple supercuspidal representations of $$\textrm{GSp}_4$$ GSp 4 over a p -adic field and show that they have conductor exponent 5. We study (paramodular) newvectors and minimal vectors in these representations, obtain formulas for their matrix coefficients,...

Programmable Anisotropic Terahertz Permittivity via High‐Aspect‐Ratio 3D‐Printed Dielectric Mesh Networks

ABSTRACT We present a 3D‐printed anisotropic dielectric with programmable terahertz permittivity. The design embeds a mesh network of high‐aspect‐ratio void channels within a bulk substrate. The anisotropic electromagnetic response, which depends on the orientation of the void ch...

Metabolic plasticity supports a flexible nutritional symbiosis in Cardiocondyla ants

Abstract Nutritional symbioses have repeatedly evolved in insects, yet how hosts regulate these partnerships to balance benefits across development and environments remains unclear. Ants provide an exceptional system to address this question, as several lineages maintain ancient...

Safety of routine antimicrobial prophylaxis for surgery (SAPPHIRE): a prospective multi-centre cohort study

Introduction: Prophylactic antimicrobial drugs are routinely administered for most surgical procedures worldwide. However, the benefit may be modest and supported by low-certainty evidence, while little is known about safety in contemporary practice.<br><br>Methods: O...

TSPO: a conserved mitochondrial conduit linking cellular homeostasis to disease

Abstract The translocator protein (TSPO) is an evolutionarily conserved 18 kDa protein localised to the outer mitochondrial membrane and increasingly recognised as a multifunctional regulator of cellular homeostasis. Although initially identified as the peripheral benzodiazepine...

Agentic AI: Vision and challenges

Agentic AI systems are increasingly viewed as a viable response to the shortcomings of static, rigid, and human-in-the-loop Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems. This is because autonomous operation enables rapid adaptation to dynamic, complex problems with improved time-critical...

Machine learning of artistic fingerprints in jazz

Abstract Artists are often recognizable through collections of distinctive patterns (‘fingerprints’) in their work. Identifying such traits has important applications in authorship attribution, education, cultural heritage research and historical analysis. Here we focus on music,...

Data-Driven Fatigue Trajectories in Multiple Sclerosis and Their Predictors

Fatigue is one of the most disabling symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS), yet its longitudinal trajectories and determinants remain poorly characterized. We aimed to identify trajectories of cognitive and physical fatigue in relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and to determine baseline...

A Machine Learning Platform for Imputing Missing Critical Quality Attributes in Pharmaceutical Development

Quality control is fundamental to drug development, with critical quality attributes (CQAs) serving as key indicators of product performance. However, missing or incomplete CQA data remains a persistent challenge throughout pharmaceutical research and manufacturing. In this study...

Into the Bermuda Triangle: How Prime Ministers Fall

ABSTRACT Eleven years after David Cameron promised ‘stability and strong government’; nine years after Theresa May pledged ‘strong and stable leadership’; and two years after Keir Starmer vowed to ‘stop the chaos’, the UK has its seventh prime minister in a decade. Most analyses...

Constraint satisfaction programming for the no-three-in-line problem

Using a constraint satisfaction formulation with rotational symmetry reduction, we exhibit configurations of 2 n points on the n × n grid for every 2 ≤ n ≤ 60 with no three collinear. These computations resolved every previously open case through n = 60 . We describe the formulat...

Symmetry-AdaptedRelaxation Theory (SART): VariationalEmbedding for Convergent Infinite-Order Induction without Overpolarization

Abstract The induction part of intermolecular interaction energy describes the effect of the mutual polarization of subsystems. Low-order induction effects can be reasonably described by symmetry-adapted perturbation theory (SAPT), but the capture of important higher-order polari...

A Liberalism of Public Things

ABSTRACT The social democratic ideological tradition ‐ including the liberalism within it ‐ should be described more accurately and defended. Liberalism within social democracy is the liberalism of public things and of cooperation, and of pride in welcoming places, based on mutua...

Acute kidney injury and renal replacement therapy: a critical synthesis of metabolic derangements and nutritional implications

Acute kidney injury (AKI) affects up to 50% of critically ill patients and is frequently complicated by severe metabolic derangements, requiring the initiation of replacement therapy (RRT) in 10–15% of cases. Despite substantial progress in the diagnosis of AKI and optimisation o...

Experiences and satisfaction with intensive community care services for children and adolescents with severe mental health disorders: a mixed-methods systematic review

Abstract Intensive community care services (ICCS) are community-based alternatives to inpatient care for young people with severe mental health disorders. This systematic review investigated the experiences and satisfaction associated with ICCS. Nine electronic databases were sea...

One in seven has severe pain: a point-prevalence study of hospitalised patients across Africa

ABSTRACT: Acute pain in hospitalised patients is common, yet African data are scarce. We conducted a prospective point-prevalence study of hospitalised adult patients across Africa to determine acute pain prevalence and severity and investigate associations of pain with critical...

Mechanisms underpinning the progression of nondysplastic Barrett's oesophagus to cancer

Barrett's oesophagus is the metaplastic precursor to oesophageal adenocarcinoma; it is initiated by exposure of the squamous oesophageal epithelium to acid reflux. Wound repair mechanisms lead to the migration of columnar cells into the denuded lower oesophageal niche. These colu...

Remission of long-term conditions among adults with multiple long-term conditions in England primary care: A retrospective cohort study of 4.7 million people

Abstract Background Multiple long-term conditions (MLTC) are increasingly prevalent among UK adults, yet the extent to which remission of long-term conditions is recorded in routine primary care remains poorly understood. Accurate documentation of remission has implications for c...

Tell Your Story: Strengthening Scientific Engagement and Welfare Leadership among Animal Technologists

<ns5:p>Background Animal Technologists (ATs) are vital in the scientific community, offering crucial expertise in animal care, welfare, and experimental procedures. As projects become more complex, there is an increasing opportunity for ATs to engage actively in scientific projec...