Bora is a non-synoptic downslope severe windstorm characterized by severe wind gusts. While it commonly occurs all around the world, bora origins and turbulence have been predominantly studied at the eastern Adriatic coast. The bora mean wind velocity rarely exceeds 17 m/s. However, its maximum gust velocity can reach up to five times the average wind velocity, i.e., 70 m/s and more. Due to its gusty and unpredictable nature, bora wind may cause substantial damage and failure to infrastructure, traffic and agriculture. In the present work, three bora simulation approaches are developed in the unique WindEEE Dome Research Facility at the Western University, Canada: a) a rapidly increasing/decreasing angular velocity of the fans yielding generic oscillations between the base- and gust-flow velocity, b) a scaled-down reproduction of the bora velocity time record, previously observed on a meteorological mast, by adjusting the angular velocity of the fans, and c) a concurrent application of the constant horizontal boundary-layer flow and the downburst flow. Flow velocity profiles in all three directions were measured using seven Cobra probes on a stiff mast. In total, 140 experiments were performed, the most comprehensive and unique laboratory dataset regarding bora wind thus far. This study outlines the novel experimental approaches developed for this purpose and the respective dataset.
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary liver cancer and a leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. While dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) plays a key role for HCC screening, diagnosis and treatment planning, the development of AI models for detection and characterization of focal liver lesions is hindered by the scarcity of publicly available annotated MRI datasets. Here, we present OpenSwissHCC, a curated multiphasic dataset of 132 multiparametric DCE-MRI scans from adult patients with chronic liver disease acquired on 1.5 T and 3 T MRI scanners between 2011 and 2020. The dataset includes both HCC-positive (n = 63) and HCC-negative (n = 69) patients, with up to five lesions per patient segmented across each sequence when confidently identified. Whole-liver and lesion segmentations were manually performed and expert-validated, with lesion metadata including LI-RADS scores, size, liver segment location, major LI-RADS imaging features (non-rim APHE, washout, capsule, threshold growth) and key ancillary/background findings (e.g., mosaic architecture, fat/blood products, necrosis, tumor-in-vein; cirrhosis and portal-hypertension signs). In total, 140 lesions were annotated, including 97 confirmed HCC. Additionally, we provide liver masks for all T1-weighted images (T1-WI) sequences, generated using a pre-trained nnU-Net model, as well as pre-computed transforms to facilitate registration across T1-WI phases. By providing a comprehensive, well-annotated, and standardized collection of liver MRI examinations, OpenSwissHCC aims to assist the development and benchmarking of advanced computational methods for automated HCC detection, segmentation, and characterization, fostering progress toward precision imaging and personalized treatment planning.
Postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) commonly affects elderly surgical patients and is associated with impairments in memory, attention, and executive function that can substantially reduce quality of life. The precise pathogenesis of POCD remains unclear, although trauma-induced epigenetic mechanisms have been implicated. Conventional sequencing methods are hindered by reverse-transcription arrest at modified RNAs, which may result in the underrepresentation or loss of small noncoding RNAs (sncRNAs) with important regulatory functions. Here, we applied panoramic RNA display by overcoming RNA modification-induced aborted sequencing (PANDORA-seq) to generate a comprehensive profile of highly modified sncRNAs in the hippocampus of mice with surgery-induced cognitive impairment. The dataset profiles the composition of hippocampal sncRNA classes—including miRNAs, tsRNAs, rsRNAs, and piRNAs—in control and surgery-exposed mice during the early postoperative period. We performed sequencing quality-control analyses and, as an orthogonal, assay-level check on selected sequencing signals, quantified selected tsRNAs by qRT-PCR. Structural mapping of these tsRNAs to their parental tRNAs was also performed. Overall, this resource provides a foundation for investigating neuroepigenetic changes associated with early postoperative cognitive impairment and for generating hypotheses regarding the molecular mechanisms of POCD.
A thriving fishing industry, that sustains livelihoods whilst sustainably exploiting marine resources, requires policy and management decisions that consider social sustainability objectives alongside environmental and economic objectives. Currently there is no robust monitoring of social conditions and the motivations and attitudes of commercial fishers in the UK. To address this gap, we compiled a dataset from a survey on a sample (N = 435) of the commercial fishing vessel owners and skippers in England. The survey collected data on respondents’ fishing activity, job satisfaction and job security, perception of and engagement with fisheries management, health and wellbeing and demographic profile. Analyses of these data will enable scholars, policymakers, fisheries managers and the fishing industry to gain valuable insights about the social conditions and opinions of English commercial fishers and will provide a baseline for future longitudinal surveys to monitor change in social conditions over time. Such data will contribute to delivery of the ‘social sustainability’ objective of the Fisheries Act (2020).
