Abstract Background This paper describes the rationale and design of the RECOVER study. Currently, there is no consensus regarding the optimal treatment for high-risk, non-metastatic prostate cancer (PCa). The study primarily aims to evaluate and compare the impact of treatment with robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RP) versus external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) with androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for men with high-risk, non-metastatic PCa regarding health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and functional outcomes. Secondary objectives are progression-free survival (PFS), distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), costs and cost-effectiveness. Methods The RECOVER study is a comparative effectiveness study that prospectively includes newly diagnosed high-risk (cT3a-bN0M0, ISUP-grade ≥ 4 and/or PSA > 20 ng/mL), non-metastatic PCa patients. Four Dutch prostate cancer networks, comprising 29 hospitals, are currently participating in the study. Patient reported outcomes are collected before treatment initiation, 12 months and 36 months after treatment initiation and include the EORTC-QLQ-C30, the EPIC-26, an adapted version of the SCQ, an adapted version of the iMTA Productivity Cost Questionnaire and several specific questions regarding patient characteristics, treatment of PCa specific complaints and health resources used. Clinical data regarding patient-, tumor- and treatment characteristics and oncological outcomes are collected up to 5 years after diagnosis. For sufficient power, patient reported outcomes of 471 patients must be collected 36 months after treatment initiation. Descriptive statistics and mixed-effects models are used to assess differences in HRQoL and functional outcomes over time between the patients treated with radical prostatectomy versus EBRT (+ ADT). Inverse probability of treatment weighting or the g-formula are used to adjust for confounding covariates associated with treatment. Secondary endpoints PFS and DMFS are evaluated using a competing risk analysis and cost-utility and budget-impact analyses will be performed to determine cost and cost-effectiveness. Discussion An observational prospective design was chosen since a randomized controlled trial comparing surgery and radiotherapy was not deemed feasible. This study evaluates effectiveness of treatment in a routine clinical setting (with adjustment for confounding) and its findings will enhance patients’ and healthcare professionals’ awareness for the impact of both treatment modalities on (long-term) daily functioning and HRQoL and aid treatment decision making. Trial registration This study is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05931419).

• Book : 25(1)
• Pub. Date : 2025
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We present a novel cosmological framework where cosmic expansion arises from the gravitational collapse and bounce of a uniform, spherically symmetric cloud of mass \( m \) with an initial comoving radius \( \chi_* \). Extending Lemaître's 1933 'atom universe,' this model incorporates a perfect fluid with an evolving equation of state \( P = P(\rho) \), transitioning from pressureless dust \( P = 0 \) to a ground state with fixed energy density (\( \rho_G \)) as required by the quantum exclusion principle. This results in negative pressure (\( P_G = -\rho_G \)) and a gravitational bounce at the gravitational radius \( R_B \), associated with \( \rho_G \) (\( R_B \simeq 24 \) km for nuclear saturation density). The bounce triggers an expansion phase, with \( P(\rho) \) serving as the inflationary potential. This framework explains the cosmic cutoff scale (\( \chi_* \simeq 15.9 \) Gpc) which addresses key observed CMB anomalies. The bounce is trapped within the initial gravitational radius \( r_S = 2Gm \), which acts like a \( \Lambda \) term with \( r_S=\sqrt{3 /\Lambda} \simeq 5.1 \) Gpc. This approach provides a unified explanation of inflation and its observational signatures, offering new insights into cosmic expansion and the quantum origins of structures.

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• Pub. Date : 2025
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Wild emmer wheat (Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccoides) is the ancestral species of cultivated tetraploid wheat with BBAA genomes. Because of its full interfertility with domesticated emmer wheat, this wild species can serve as one of the most important genetic resources to improve durum and bread wheat. To clarify the magnitude of genetic diversity between and within populations of Turkish wild emmer wheat, 169 genotypes of ssp. dicoccoides selected from the 38 populations collected from the three sub-regions (East-1, West-1, and West-2) of the Southeast Anatolia Region of Turkey were molecularly and morphologically characterized. The populations showed significant variation in plant height, heading date, flag leaf area, spike length and number, spikelet, peduncle, lemma, palea, glume and anther lengths, glume hull thickness, anther width, and days to maturity. According to the results of nuclear-SSR analysis, the populations collected from the sub-regions East-1 and West-2 were the most genetically distant (0.539), while the populations collected from the sub-regions West-1 and West-2 were the most genetically similar (0.788) populations. According to the results of AMOVA, there was 84% similarity within the populations studied, while the variation between the populations of the three sub-regions was 16%. In the dendrogram obtained by using nuclear-SSR data, the populations formed two main groups. The populations from the sub-region East-1 were in the first group, and the populations from the sub-regions West-1 and West-2 were in the second group. From the dendrogram, it appears that the populations from the sub-region East-1 were genetically distant from the populations from the sub-regions West-1 and West-2. The results highlight the potential diversity in Southeast Anatolia for wild emmer discovery and utilization.

• Book : 15(2)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.203-203
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Abstract. Quantifying environmental radiation dose rates is an essential step in age calculation using trapped charge dating methods. A means of rapid dose rate estimation would therefore be useful for a variety of reasons, especially in contexts where rapid equivalent dose estimates are available. For instance, for informing sampling strategy, providing initial age estimates, or supporting portable luminescence studies. However, high-precision methods often used for calculating dose rates are typically time consuming and expensive and are impractical for such ‘range-finder’ applications. Portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) offers a rapid means of measuring the Potassium (K) concentration of sediment, although the other radionuclides typically used to calculate dose rates (Uranium (U) and Thorium (Th)) fall beneath its detection limits at the quantities at which they are usually present in sediments. In this study, we investigate whether pXRF measurements of K concentration alone can be used to accurately estimate total environmental dose rates. A large, global training dataset of 1473 radionuclide samples is used to generate a set of linear relationships between (1) K concentration and external beta dose rate; (2) external beta and gamma dose rates; and (3) external gamma and alpha dose rates. We test the utility of these relationships by measuring the K contents of 67 sediment samples with independent high-precision radionuclide data from a variety of contexts using pXRF. The resulting K concentrations are then converted to external dose rate estimates using the training equations. A simplified set of attenuation parameters are used to correct infinite matrix dose rate estimates, and these are combined with cosmic ray and internal contributions to rapidly calculate total environmental dose rates for a range of theoretical, common luminescence dating scenarios (such as 180–250 μm quartz that has undergone etching). Results show that pXRF can accurately measure K concentrations in a laboratory setting. The training equations can predict external beta dose rates accurately based on K content alone, whilst external alpha dose rates are predicted less accurately. In combination, total estimated dose rates show good agreement with their counterparts calculated from high-precision methods, with 68–98 % of our results lying within ±20 % of unity depending on the scenario. We report better agreement for scenarios where alpha contributions are assumed to be negligible (e.g., in the case of etched, coarse-grained quartz or potassium feldspar). The use of simplified attenuation factors to correct estimated infinite matrix dose rates does not contribute significantly to resulting scatter, with uncertainties mostly resulting from the training equations. This study serves as a proof of concept that pXRF measurements, along with a set of linear equations and a simplified correction procedure, can be used to rapidly calculate range-finder environmental dose rates.

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• Pub. Date : 2025
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Abstract The Institute of Nuclear and Physical Engineering at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava is actively engaged in research on application of neutron sources and shielding. These neutron sources are regularly utilized for educational purposes and international research projects. Most current activities take place in the Laboratory of Reactor Physics, using Pu–Be, Am–Be, and Cf-252 neutron sources. The Mini Labyrinth is one of the most frequently used experiments. Since 2020, five versions have been developed and used for various purposes. In the previous activities of the research team, the measurements were usually compared with simulations using high-fidelity simulation codes. These comparisons identified two important effects that may influence the experiments and the simulations: room effects and source anisotropy. In this paper, we focus on determining the axial and radial anisotropy of the IBN-10 Pu–Be neutron source through two simple experiments and simulation tasks using state-of-the-art Monte Carlo simulation tools, MCNP6 and Monaco. The aim of this study is to determine the uncertainty that represents the geometry effects influencing the source emission rate.

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• Pub. Date : 2025
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• Pub. Date : 2025
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• Book : 42()
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.101881-101881
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Enriched lithium isotopes (6Li and 7Li) are essential in the nuclear energy industry, where 6Li is bombarded with neutrons to produce tritium for fusion reactions, while 7Li is used as a core coolant and pH regulator. Separation of 6Li and 7Li by electromigration is a promising method for producing enriched lithium isotopes that fulfill industrial needs. In this work, based on a previously proposed biphasic system electromigration routine, a three-stage system of ‘LiCl aqueous solution (anolyte)|B12C4-[EMIm][NTf2] organic solution|NH4Cl aqueous solution (catholyte)’ was constructed and the rules of lithium isotope separation and lithium-ion migration investigated. It was shown that the isotope enrichment effect of the catholyte was greatly affected by the experimental conditions, while that of the organic solution was less affected. As the B12C4 concentration increased, enhancement of 7Li enrichment in the catholyte and 6Li enrichment in the organic solution was observed, and α(C/O) and α(O/A) reached 0.975 and 1.018 at B12C4 of 0.5 mol/L. With the increase in current, migration time, and LiCl concentration, the isotope that was enriched in the catholyte trended from 7Li to 6Li (about 6 mA, 12 h or LiCl of 5 mol/L). Taking lithium-ion transport efficiency and lithium isotope separation effect into consideration together, a current of at least 6 mA, duration of at least 12 h, LiCl concentration of at least 1 mol/L and B12C4 concentration of 0.2 mol/L are suggested for the electromigration process. The work provides an important reference for system construction and experimental design of a biphasic electromigration separation method, which is expected to be an industrial alternative because of its environmental protection and high efficiency.

• Book : 12(2)
• Pub. Date : 2025
• Page : pp.27-27
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The characterization of carbonate microstructure is of great significance for the evaluation of carbonate oil and gas resources. However, due to the complexity and heterogeneity of the pore structure of tight carbonate rocks, high-pressure mercury intrusion, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and other methods have different limitations in the characterization. This study takes tight carbonate core samples in the fourth member of the Ordovician Majiagou Formation in the Ordos Basin as the research object, and the rock physics experiments, computed tomography (CT), high resolution large-scale backscatter scanning electron microscopy (MAPS), quantitative evaluation of minerals by scanning electron microscopy (QEMSCAN) and focused ion beam-scanning electron microscopy (FIB-SEM) was utilized to characterize the pore structure from micrometer to nanometer, revealing the main mineral composition, and systematically analyzing the relationship between different mineral and pore structures. The results show that the microscopic reservoir space in the study area is mainly composed of inter-crystalline pores, intra-crystalline pores and microfractures; there are obvious differences in the pore structure of different lithologies. The samples with more dolomite have the largest number of pores and throats, the largest coordination number, and the best connectivity; the samples with more calcite have the smallest pore radius. The presence of quartz is conducive to the preservation of pores. This multi-scale characterization method using digital core technology provides us with comprehensive pore characteristic, provides important clues for further understanding the pore structure of tight carbonate reservoirs.

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• Pub. Date : 2025
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In this paper, we show how the finite formulation of quantum field theory based on Callan-Symanzik equations can be generalized to the case of nonrenormalizable theories. We derive an equation for effective action for an arbitrary single scalar field theory, allowing us to perform computations without running in intermediate divergencies. We illustrate the method with the use of λϕ4+ϕ6/M2 theory by the explicit (and fully finite) calculations of the effective potential as well as two-, four- and six-point correlation functions at one-loop level and demonstrate that no quantum corrections to scalar mass m2, depending on M2 scale, are generated. Published by the American Physical Society 2025

• Book : 111(2)
• Pub. Date : 2025
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