bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Instruments to assess the role of the clinical pharmacist: a systematic review
Authors: Chagas Marina Oliveira , de Mendonça Lima Tácio , Rebustini Flávio , Noll Matias , de Carvalho Queiroz Débora Penélope , Hernandes Janete Capel , Chaveiro Neuma , Barbosa Maria Alves , Porto Celmo Celeno
Published: August 2022

Background

The clinical pharmacist is an essential member of the healthcare team and plays an important role in health care in the primary care and the hospital setting. Knowledge regarding the instruments that evaluate the different activities of the clinical pharmacist, as well as the evaluation of the psychometric properties of these instruments, is necessary.

Methods

A literature search was performed in the PubMed and Scopus electronic databases without time and language restrictions. For the search strategy, the “pharmaceutical services,” “validity studies,” and “professional performance” domains were used. To assess the quality of the instruments, the five sources of validity evidence of contemporary psychometry were used, and the Joanna Briggs Institute’s standardized instrument was used to assess the methodological quality of the studies. After screening 4096 articles, 32 studies were selected.

Results

A total of 32 studies were included, and 32 instruments were identified to be used by pharmacists acting in various pharmaceutical practice scenarios. It was found that the available instruments were developed or adapted from others, with variation in the methods, constructs, dimensions, and domains, as well as the psychometric properties. Most of the instruments addressed community pharmacies, and evidence of content validity and internal structure was found most frequently. A standardized and validated instrument that comprehensively assessed the performance of the clinical pharmacist, addressing clinical activities, was not identified for all practice environments.

Conclusions

Without standardized and validated instruments specifics to assess the performance of the clinical pharmacist, it is hard to establish the main clinical activities performed by pharmacists in their pharmaceutical practice environments and to propose training actions to improve professional practice. Despite the large number of instruments available and considered validated by the authors, it is questioned to what extent the validity indicators presented in the different studies really show the validation status.

Systematic review registration

PROSPERO CRD 42018099912.
SCP2 variant is associated with alterations in lipid metabolism, brainstem neurodegeneration, and testicular defects
Authors: Galano Melanie , Ezzat Shereen , Papadopoulos Vassilios
Published: August 2022

Background

The detoxification of very long-chain and branched-chain fatty acids and the metabolism of cholesterol to form bile acids occur largely through a process called peroxisomal β-oxidation. Mutations in several peroxisomal proteins involved in β-oxidation have been reported, resulting in diseases characterized by neurological defects. The final step of the peroxisomal β-oxidation pathway is catalyzed by sterol carrier protein-x (SCPx), which is encoded by the SCP2 gene. Previously, there have been two reports of SCPx deficiency, which resulted from a homozygous or compound heterozygous SCP2 mutation. We report herein the first patient with a heterozygous SCP2 mutation leading to SCPx deficiency.

Results

Clinical presentations of the patient included progressive brainstem neurodegeneration, cardiac dysrhythmia, muscle wasting, and azoospermia. Plasma fatty acid analysis revealed abnormal values of medium-, long-, and very long-chain fatty acids. Protein expression of SCPx and other enzymes involved in β-oxidation were altered between patient and normal fibroblasts. RNA sequencing and lipidomic analyses identified metabolic pathways that were altered between patient and normal fibroblasts including PPAR signaling, serotonergic signaling, steroid biosynthesis, and fatty acid degradation. Treatment with fenofibrate or 4-hydroxytamoxifen increased SCPx levels, and certain fatty acid levels in patient fibroblasts.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that the patient’s SCP2 mutation resulted in decreased protein levels of SCPx, which may be associated with many metabolic pathways. Increasing SCPx levels through pharmacological interventions may reverse some effects of SCPx deficiency. Collectively, this work provides insight into many of the clinical consequences of SCPx deficiency and provides evidence for potential treatment strategies.
BDNF-dependent modulation of axonal transport is selectively impaired in ALS
Authors: Tosolini Andrew P. , Sleigh James N. , Surana Sunaina , Rhymes Elena R. , Cahalan Stephen D. , Schiavo Giampietro
Published: August 2022

Axonal transport ensures long-range delivery of essential cargoes between proximal and distal compartments, and is needed for neuronal development, function, and survival. Deficits in axonal transport have been detected at pre-symptomatic stages in the SOD1G93A and TDP-43M337V mouse models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), suggesting that impairments in this critical process are fundamental for disease pathogenesis. Strikingly, in ALS, fast motor neurons (FMNs) degenerate first whereas slow motor neurons (SMNs) are more resistant, and this is a currently unexplained phenomenon. The main aim of this investigation was to determine the effects of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) on in vivo axonal transport in different α-motor neuron (MN) subtypes in wild-type (WT) and SOD1G93A mice. We report that despite displaying similar basal transport speeds, stimulation of wild-type MNs with BDNF enhances in vivo trafficking of signalling endosomes specifically in FMNs. This BDNF-mediated enhancement of transport was also observed in primary ventral horn neuronal cultures. However, FMNs display selective impairment of axonal transport in vivo in symptomatic SOD1G93A mice, and are refractory to BDNF stimulation, a phenotype that was also observed in primary embryonic SOD1G93A neurons. Furthermore, symptomatic SOD1G93A mice display upregulation of the classical non-pro-survival truncated TrkB and p75NTR receptors in muscles, sciatic nerves, and Schwann cells. Altogether, these data indicate that cell- and non-cell autonomous BDNF signalling is impaired in SOD1G93A MNs, thus identifying a new key deficit in ALS.
The Qianlong Emperor's order: scientific analysis helps find French painted enamel among Palace Museum collections
Authors: Liu Hanwen , Wang He , Duan Peiquan , Gao Han , Zhang Rong , Qu Liang
Published: August 2022

Painted enamel holds special significance in the study of the history of Chinese ceramic and glass. Painted enamel also represents interesting evidence of cultural communication between China and European countries. In the past, studies on painted enamel have mainly focused on archival research. Although modern scientific techniques have complemented research on enameled artifacts, the quality of the samples has usually been inferior. This study combines scientific analysis and archival work to explore four similar pots from the Palace Museum collection, along with the specific documentation information attached to them. Raman spectra, XRF and CT scanning were applied to compare the four pots. Results show that one of the pots is made of gold and use cassiterite and Naples yellow as opacifier and pigments, this pot bears the hidden hallmarks of a Parisian goldsmith, providing direct evidence that the pot was made in France in 1783. The other pots are proven to have been made in China, which are made of copper gilded with gold and use lead arsenate and lead tin yellow as opacifier and pigments. This work reveals a previously unnoticed route by which enamel artifacts reached the Chinese court.
FTIR study on the phase transition of experimental and archaeological burnt ivory
Authors: Wang Kai , He Yuhang , Shao Ruiqi , Zhao Hao , Ran Honglin , Lei Yu , Zhou Yihang
Published: August 2022

Recent excavation of the elephant ivories at the Sanxingdui site of the Shang Dynasty in Sichuan, China brings attention to the burnt features of the ivories. However, burnt ivories cannot be assessed by the same criteria established for burnt bones because of the differences in the ways that the two materials respond to heat. This study examines differences in the phase transition characteristics of ivory and bone, and confirms that the threshold temperature of the alteration in ivories is lower than that in bones. In our analysis, elephant ivories and bovine bones burnt at the temperatures between 200 and 1000 °C in oxidizing or reducing atmosphere are prepared and comparatively investigated by attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The results show that the transformation from magnesium-substituted hydroxyapatite (Mg-HAp) to magnesium-substituted β-tricalcium phosphate in ivory dentin takes place at the temperature as low as 800 °C, while β-tricalcium phosphate is not observed in bovine bones burnt at 1000 °C or below mainly because of the different magnesium contents. Due to the destruction of Mg-HAp at 800 °C in ivories, cyanamidapatite that could form in bones burnt under reducing atmosphere is absent in burnt ivories. With reference to the experimental burnt ivories, archaeological burnt ivories from the Sanxingdui site can now be clearly determined to be burnt unevenly at temperatures up to around 800 °C. This study may provide further information for archaeological research on ivories from the Sanxingdui site and identification of burnt bioapatite materials in other archaeological findings.
'What do doctors think they need to know about nutrition?’—a qualitative study of doctors with formal nutrition training
Authors: Caldow G , Palermo C , Wilson AN
Published: August 2022

Background

Doctors are on the frontline of patient care and in an ideal position to provide nutritional advice, yet can feel ill-equipped to do so. The aim of this study was to explore the nutrition knowledge, skills and practice required for nutrition-competent medical graduates, and their role in providing nutrition advice and care, from the perspective of doctors with formal nutrition training.

Methodology

We conducted an exploratory qualitative research study. A purposive sample of 12 medical doctors and students with formal nutrition training across Australia participated in in-depth semi structured interviews. Data were analysed thematically.

Results

There were four main themes identified: 1. Identifying the role of doctors in nutrition care; 2. Understanding the interrelatedness of the social determinants of health and nutrition status is key; 3. Optimising nutrition care through multidisciplinary collaboration; and 4. Providing evidence-based nutrition care.

Conclusion

This exploratory study suggests that doctors consider that nutrition competent medical graduates require skills in referring to dietitians, an understanding and application of the social determinants of health, and practise applying multidisciplinary and evidence-based nutrition care.
Disentangling entangled mobilities: reflections on forms of knowledge production within migration studies
Authors: Wyss Anna , Dahinden Janine
Published: August 2022

European migration studies have been criticised for having certain epistemological and theoretical underpinnings that reproduce hegemonic structures, especially the ‘national order of things’ and colonial legacies. In this article, we propose the concept of ‘entangled mobilities’ to address some of these challenges. Entangled mobilities as a theoretical lens enables us to study specific global and transnational processes, the ways in which they are historically and locally situated, and how they materialise in individual mobilities of differently positioned actors within an unequal political global economy. This lens helps us simultaneously overcome nationality- and ethnicity-centred epistemologies, confront colonial aphasia, and be sensitive to the multiple inequalities and mobility regimes within which human mobilities evolve. Furthermore, the prism of entangled mobilities provides an ideal methodological departure point from which to systematically examine how human mobilities are intertwined and interdependent and to reveal how they are embedded in and shaped by asymmetric, historically evolved power structures. We propose three pragmatic entry points for mobilising the concept: in specific places, in terms of the intersections and interdependencies of different mobile people, and in the context of the biographical trajectories of individuals. Finally, we invite scholars from other fields, such as policy research, to innovatively adapt this approach to gain alternative knowledge and address inequalities.
Use of remimazolam in living donor liver transplantation: a case report
Authors: Matsumoto Tsuguhiro , Sakurai Kotaro , Takahashi Kazuyo , Kawamoto Shuji
Published: August 2022

Background

Remimazolam is an intravenous ultra-short-acting benzodiazepine with the benefit of hemodynamic stability, including blood pressure and pulse rate. We report a case in which remimazolam was used in living donor liver transplantation with stable hemodynamics.

Case presentation

A 19-year-old woman underwent living donor liver transplantation due to end-stage liver disease, which is associated with a hyperdynamic state and hemodynamic instability. The patient’s sister had a history of malignant hyperthermia, so we chose total intravenous anesthesia with remimazolam. Intraoperative bleeding of seven liters occurred, but she had mild intraoperative blood pressure changes, and continuous catecholamine administration was not necessary. The patient had no memories or discomfort during the surgery.

Conclusions

We maintained stable hemodynamics using remimazolam for anesthetic management of a patient undergoing a liver transplantation, which is characterized by a hyperdynamic state and circulatory instability.
Occurrence and anti-microbial susceptibility pattern of extended spectrum beta-lactamase producing Enterobacteriaceae in governmental hospitals wastewater in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Authors: Kebede Alehegn Amare , Bedada Tesfaye Legesse , Teklu Dejenie Shiferaw , Beyene Degefu , Tullu Kassu Desta
Published: August 2022

Background

Worldwide, come out and dissemination of extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLs) producing Enterobacteriaceae has been warning the efficacy of antibiotics to treat an infection. Hospital wastewaters were a reservoir of such kind of resistant bacteria. Currently, the predominant antibiotics used for the treatment of hospitalized patients infected by Gram-negative bacteria are the β-lactam antibiotics. Therefore, it is an important source to investigate the magnitude of ESBLs producing bacteria and their antimicrobial susceptibility pattern. This study aimed to determine the occurrence of ESBLs producing Enterobacteriaceae (ESBLs-pE) and their antibiotic susceptibility pattern in wastewater released from five governmental hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted from April 1 to May 31, 2020. A total of 100 wastewaters were collected from five governmental hospitals in Addis Ababa using a grap-sampling technique. All Enterobacteriaceae were screened for ESBLs production using cefotaxime and ceftazidime as per 29th CLSI guideline. Each screen positive for ESBLs production was confirmed by the combination disk method (CDT) and their antibiotic susceptibility pattern was done using the Kirby–Bauer disk diffusion method on Muller Hinton agar (MHA). Data were entered and summarized using SPSS version 20 software.

Results

Of all Enterobacteriaceae, 48.3% were confirmed ESBLs-pE. The highest ratio of ESBLs-PE was observed in the adult ward (66.7%) and laundry unit effluent (58.8%). The highest ESBL producers were E. coli (21.8%) and K. pneumoniae (4.8%). The most elevated resistance level of ESBL producers were observed to cefotaxime (95.8%) and amoxicillin/clavunalate (93%). 64% of tested Enterobacteriaceae isolates were multi drug resistant (MDR).

Conclusions

Higher magnitude of MDR and ESBLs-pE were present in the hospital wastewater. The majority of them were in the adult ward and laundry unit effluents. The most frequent ESBLs-pE was among E.coli and K. pneumoniae. Hence, Consistent infection prevention and control procedures should be in practice at each ward/unit.
Importance of appropriate genome information for the design of mating type primers in black and yellow morel populations
Authors: Cravero Melissa , Robinson Aaron J. , Hilpisch Patrick , Chain Patrick S. , Bindschedler Saskia , Junier Pilar
Published: August 2022

Morels are highly prized edible fungi where sexual reproduction is essential for fruiting-body production. As a result, a comprehensive understanding of their sexual reproduction is of great interest. Central to this is the identification of the reproductive strategies used by morels. Sexual reproduction in fungi is controlled by mating-type (MAT) genes and morels are thought to be mainly heterothallic with two idiomorphs, MAT1-1 and MAT1-2. Genomic sequencing of black (Elata clade) and yellow (Esculenta clade) morel species has led to the development of PCR primers designed to amplify genes from the two idiomorphs for rapid genotyping of isolates from these two clades. To evaluate the design and theoretical performance of these primers we performed a thorough bioinformatic investigation, including the detection of the MAT region in publicly available Morchella genomes and in-silico PCR analyses. All examined genomes, including those used for primer design, appeared to be heterothallic. This indicates an inherent fault in the original primer design which utilized a single Morchella genome, as the use of two genomes with complementary mating types would be required to design accurate primers for both idiomorphs. Furthermore, potential off-targets were identified for some of the previously published primer sets, but verification was challenging due to lack of adequate genomic information and detailed methodologies for primer design. Examinations of the black morel specific primer pairs (MAT11L/R and MAT22L/R) indicated the MAT22 primers would correctly target and amplify the MAT1-2 idiomorph, but the MAT11 primers appear to be capable of amplifying incorrect off-targets within the genome. The yellow morel primer pairs (EMAT1-1 L/R and EMAT1-2 L/R) appear to have reporting errors, as the published primer sequences are dissimilar with reported amplicon sequences and the EMAT1-2 primers appear to amplify the RNA polymerase II subunit (RPB2) gene. The lack of the reference genome used in primer design and descriptive methodology made it challenging to fully assess the apparent issues with the primers for this clade. In conclusion, additional work is still required for the generation of reliable primers to investigate mating types in morels and to assess their performance on different clades and across multiple geographical regions.
Early versus late onset depression: sociodemographic and clinical characteristics
Authors: Sayed Taher Abdelraheem , Mahmoud Osama Abd Alreheem , Hadad Saber
Published: August 2022

Background

Late-onset depression is different from early-onset depression in its sociodemographic and clinical characteristics and risk factors. This study aimed to demonstrate the differences in sociodemographic characteristics as well as clinical presentation between late-onset depression (after the age of 60 years) and early-onset depression (before the age of 45 years) and to determine the sociodemographic risk factors for late onset depression. Fifty-five patients between 18 and 45 years of age (group 1) and 55 patients aged 60 years and above (group 2) diagnosed for the first time with major depressive disorder were compared regarding sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. They were recruited from the psychiatric clinic at Sohag University Hospital. All participants were subjected to a Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID-IV), sociodemographic data form, Beck Depression Inventory-Second Edition (BDI-II), and Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES).

Results

The patients in group 2 were more commonly single (29%), employed (74.54%), living in rural areas (56.36%), and had high school education (41.81%). While the patients in group 2 were more commonly widows (18.18%), unemployed (61.81%), had less than high school education (47.27%), and had chronic diseases (78.81%). Significant risk factors for late onset depression are being widow, unemployed, having low socioeconomic status, and having a chronic medical disease. Patients with late-onset depression were more commonly presented with apathy, cognitive impairment, and somatic symptoms, as well as sleep disturbance (mean±SD 57±6, 70.9%, 61.81%, and 81.81%, respectively) than early-onset depression (mean±SD 49± 4, 47.27%, 36.36%, and 70.9%, respectively).

Conclusions

Cases with late onset depression are featured by being unemployed, widow, having low socioeconomic status and low educational level, suffering from a chronic medical condition and living in an urban area. In late onset depression, somatic symptoms, apathy, sleep disturbances, as well as cognitive impairment are prevalent presenting symptoms.
Correlation of miR-31 and miR-373 expression with KRAS mutations and its impact on prognosis in colorectal cancer
Authors: Ashoori Hasan , Kamian Shaghayegh , Vahidian Farnaz , Ghamarchehreh Mohammad Ebrahim
Published: August 2022

Introduction

Colorectal cancers (CRC) are among the most common cancers. There are different modalities for treatment including chemotherapy, surgery, and radiotherapy. There are some mutations in cancers which can assist in the treatment and better prognosis of patients. In this study, two molecular markers (miR-31 and miR-373) were involved in the pathogenesis of CRC and their association with histopathological features was investigated. As well, the prognostic value of these molecular markers was investigated in CRC patients with or without common KRAS mutations.

Methods

Paraffin blocks of tissue samples from 150 patients who underwent colon surgery between 2018 and 2020 were prepared by the Pathology Department of Imam Hossein Hospital (Tehran, Iran). After DNA and RNA isolation, gene expression of miR-31 and miR-373 was determined using probe-based quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Mutations of KRAS were surveyed using conventional PCR and agarose gel electrophoresis.

Results

The mean age of the patients was 57.2 ± 13.4 years. KRAS codon 12 and 13 mutations were positive in 31 (20.6%) and 22 (14.6%) cases, respectively. The results showed that KRAS common mutations occurred in 32.6% of Iranian CRC patients. The expression levels of miR-31 and miR-373 increased in CRC patients with KRAS mutations in comparison with patients without these mutations.

Conclusion

Considering the role of miR-31 and miR-373 in CRC tumor progression, it seems that the CRC patients bearing KRAS mutations have a poorer prognosis respective to patients without KRAS mutations.
Literature Reviews, Theoretical Frameworks, and Conceptual Frameworks: An Introduction for New Biology Education Researchers
Authors: Luft Julie A. , Jeong Sophia , Idsardi Robert , Gardner Grant
Published: August 2022

This Research Methods essay is designed to provide an overview of literature reviews, theoretical frameworks, and conceptual frameworks as critical elements of the research and writing processes and delineate the purpose of each in the educational research process.
All Groups Are Not Created Equal: Class-Based Learning Communities Enhance Exam Performance and Reduce Gaps
Authors: Chi Vivian Hye-In , Kadandale Pavan
Published: August 2022

We describe the design and implementation of a class-based learning community in which student collaboration is incentivized using principles from behavioral economics. We show that such learning communities correlate with increased student performance, and a narrowing of performance gaps for females and minoritized students.
Quality and Safety With Technological Advancements in Radiotherapy: An Overview and Journey Narrative From a Low- and Middle-Income Country Institution
Authors: Manjali Jifmi Jose , Krishnatry Rahul , Palta Jatinder R. , Agarwal J.P.
Published: August 2022

PURPOSE

To present an overview of quality and safety in radiotherapy from the context of low- and middle-income countries on the basis of a recently conducted annual meeting of our institution and our experience of implementing an error management system at our center.

METHODS

The minutes of recently concluded annual Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM-2021) meeting on the basis of technology in radiation oncology were reviewed. The session on quality and safety, which had international experts as speakers, was reviewed. Along with this, we reviewed the literature for preventive and reactive measures proposed to manage errors including error reporting and learning systems (ILSs). Concise summary for the same was prepared for this article.

RESULTS

We also reviewed the journey of development of our institutional ILS and present here a summary of achievements, challenges, and future vision.

CONCLUSION

Preventive and reactive measures must be followed to achieve high-quality and safe radiotherapy. Despite resource constraints, a successful ILS program can be developed in a low- and middle-income country center by first understanding the patterns of error and developing one that suits the working ecosystem.
The Armed Conflict and the Impact on Patients With Cancer in Ukraine: Urgent Considerations
Authors: Caglevic Christian , Rolfo Christian , Gil-Bazo Ignacio , Cardona Andrés , Sapunar Jorge , Hirsch Fred R. , Gandara David R. , Morgan Gilberto , Novello Silvia , Garassino Marina-Chiara , Mountzios Giannis , Leighl Natasha B. , Bretel Denisse , Arrieta Oscar , Addeo Alfredo , Liu Stephen V. , Corrales Luis , Subbiah Vivek , Aboitiz Francisco , Villarroel-Espindola Franz , Reyes-Cosmelli Felipe , Morales Ricardo , Mahave Mauricio , Raez Luis , Alatorre Jorge , Santos Edgardo , Ubillos Luis , Tan Daniel S.W. , Zielinski Christoph
Published: August 2022

On February 24, 2022, a war began within the Ukrainian borders. At least 3.0 million Ukrainian inhabitants have already fled the country. Critical infrastructure, including hospitals, has been damaged. Children with cancer were urgently transported to foreign countries, in an effort to minimize interruption of their life-saving treatments. Most adults did not have that option. War breeds cancer—delaying diagnosis, preventing treatment, and increasing risk. We project that a modest delay in care of only 4 months for five prevalent types of cancer will lead to an excess of over 3,600 cancer deaths in the subsequent years. It is critical that we establish plans to mitigate that risk as soon as possible.
Fragments of Truth
Authors: Angel Naomi
Published: August 2022

In 2008, the Canadian government established a Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to review the history of the residential school system, a brutal colonial project that killed and injured many Indigenous children and left a legacy of trauma and pain. In Fragments of Truth Naomi Angel analyzes the visual culture of reconciliation and memory in relation to this complex and painful history. In her analyses of archival photographs from the residential school system, representations of the schools in popular media and literature, and testimonies from TRC proceedings, Angel traces how the TRC served as a mechanism through which memory, trauma, and visuality became apparent. She shows how many Indigenous communities were able to use the TRC process as a way to claim agency over their memories of the schools. Bringing to light the ongoing costs of transforming settler states into modern nations, Angel demonstrates how the TRC offers a unique optic through which to survey the long history of colonial oppression of Canada’s Indigenous populations.
Why We Can't Have Nice Things
Authors: Pham Minh-Ha T.
Published: August 2022

In 2016, social media users in Thailand called out the Paris-based luxury fashion house Balenciaga for copying the popular Thai “rainbow bag,” using Balenciaga’s hashtags to circulate memes revealing the source of the bags’ design. In Why We Can’t Have Nice Things Minh-Ha T. Pham examines the way social media users monitor the fashion market for the appearance of knockoff fashion, design theft, and plagiarism. Tracing the history of fashion antipiracy efforts back to the 1930s, she foregrounds the work of policing that has been tacitly outsourced to social media. Despite the social media concern for ethical fashion and consumption and the good intentions behind design policing, Pham shows that it has ironically deepened forms of social and market inequality, as it relies on and reinforces racist and colonial norms and ideas about what constitutes copying and what counts as creativity. These struggles over ethical fashion and intellectual property, Pham demonstrates, constitute deeper struggles over the colonial legacies of cultural property in digital and global economies.
Violent Utopia
Authors: Lewis Jovan Scott
Published: August 2022

In Violent Utopia Jovan Scott Lewis retells the history and afterlife of the 1921 Tulsa race massacre, from the post-Reconstruction migration of Black people to Oklahoma Indian Territory to contemporary efforts to rebuild Black prosperity. He focuses on how the massacre in Tulsa’s Greenwood neighborhood—colloquially known as Black Wall Street—curtailed the freedom built there. Rather than framing the massacre as a one-off event, Lewis places it in a larger historical and social context of widespread patterns of anti-Black racism, segregation, and dispossession in Tulsa and beyond. He shows how the processes that led to the massacre, subsequent urban renewal, and intergenerational poverty shored up by nonprofits constitute a form of continuous slow violence. Now, in their attempts to redevelop resources for self-determination, Black Tulsans must reconcile a double inheritance: the massacre’s violence and the historical freedom and prosperity that Greenwood represented. Their future is tied to their geography, which is the foundation from which they will repair and fulfill Greenwood’s promise.
Paternally inherited H3K27me3 affects chromatin accessibility in mouse embryos produced by round spermatid injection
Authors: Sakamoto Mizuki , Ito Daiyu , Inoue Rei , Wakayama Sayaka , Kikuchi Yasuyuki , Yang Li , Hayashi Erika , Emura Rina , Shiura Hirosuke , Kohda Takashi , Namekawa Satoshi H. , Ishiuchi Takashi , Wakayama Teruhiko , Ooga Masatoshi
Published: August 2022

Round spermatid injection (ROSI) results in a lower birth rate than intracytoplasmic sperm injection, which has hampered its clinical application. Inefficient development of ROSI embryos has been attributed to epigenetic abnormalities. However, the chromatin-based mechanism that underpins the low birth rate in ROSI remains to be determined. Here, we show that a repressive histone mark, H3K27me3, persists from mouse round spermatids into zygotes in ROSI and that round spermatid-derived H3K27me3 is associated with less accessible chromatin and impaired gene expression in ROSI embryos. These loci are initially marked by H3K27me3 but undergo histone modification remodelling in spermiogenesis, resulting in reduced H3K27me3 in normal spermatozoa. Therefore, the absence of epigenetic remodelling, presumably mediated by histone turnover during spermiogenesis, leads to dysregulation of chromatin accessibility and transcription in ROSI embryos. Thus, our results unveil a molecular logic, in which chromatin states in round spermatids impinge on chromatin accessibility and transcription in ROSI embryos, highlighting the importance of epigenetic remodelling during spermiogenesis in successful reproduction.
Regulação realmente responsiva
Authors: Baldwin Robert , Black Julia
Published: August 2022

A Regulação Realmente Responsiva busca reforçar as teorias atuais de execução, enfatizando a necessidade de os reguladores responderem não apenas à atitude da empresa regulada, mas também às estruturas operacionais e cognitivas das empresas; ao ambiente institucional e ao desempenho do regime regulatório; às diferentes lógicas das ferramentas e estratégias regulatórias; e às mudanças em cada um desses elementos. A abordagem permeia todas as diferentes tarefas da atividade de fiscalização: detectar comportamentos indesejáveis ou não conformes; desenvolver ferramentas e estratégias para responder a esse comportamento; fazer cumprir essas ferramentas e estratégias; avaliar seu sucesso ou fracasso; e modificá-las em conformidade. O valor da abordagem é demonstrado delineando sua aplicação potencial aos controles ambientais e pesqueiros do Reino Unido. Colocar o sistema em vigor é por si só um desafio, mas falhar em regular de forma realmente responsiva pode constituir um processo dispendioso de atirar no escuro.
Nova Lei de Licitações e o ciclo de vida do objeto
Authors: Freitas Juarez
Published: August 2022

A análise do ciclo de vida, nas contratações públicas, requer a releitura do conceito de proposta mais vantajosa para a administração pública, com intensa atenção ecossistêmica aos impactos diretos e indiretos. A nova Lei Brasileira de Licitações Públicas determina o escrutínio integrado e interdisciplinar do ciclo de vida do objeto, com o abandono da perspectiva pautada exclusivamente pelo viés economicista, tendo em mente a centralidade indiscutível dos fatores sociais, ambientais e éticos. Ademais, a motivação, na esfera decisória pública, jamais se revela neutra. Assim, na avaliação do ciclo de vida, não merecem prosperar metodologias incapazes de traduzir a justa precificação sustentável. Imprescindível aperfeiçoar a governança pública, de molde a viabilizar aferição confiável do ciclo de vida, por intermédio de ferramentas hábeis a dialogar com as múltiplas técnicas avaliativas, afastando fórmulas simplistas e redundantes. Em suma, o exame do ciclo de vida requer consecutivo refinamento metodológico, com ênfase para a decisão iluminada por protocolos engajadamente indutores do primado líquido de benefícios e cobenefícios.
Direito subjetivo à regulação eficiente: a natureza dúplice da Análise de Impacto Regulatório
Authors: Cardoso Henrique Ribeiro , Soares Alexandre Augusto Rocha
Published: August 2022

A Análise de Impacto Regulatório (AIR), criada pela MP nº 881 de 2019, convertida posteriormente na Lei nº 13.869 de 2019 (Lei de Liberdade Econômica), estabelece uma etapa obrigatória à atividade normativa estatal a fim de mitigar seu risco e torná-lo juridicamente tolerável, reconhecendo o caráter potencialmente nocivo da regulação. Nesse sentido, a produção da AIR seria um direito subjetivo dos integrantes do mercado regulado, em consonância com os deveres da boa administração e de mitigação de riscos da atividade normativa em si considerada, e um dever do poder público, evidenciando seu caráter dúplice na construção de políticas públicas, especialmente em momentos de crise, como o vivenciado durante a pandemia de Covid-19.
Tributação e regulação econômica: contribuições para um modelo de Análise de Impacto Regulatório das normas tributárias indutoras
Authors: Seixas Luiz Felipe Monteiro
Published: August 2022

Com base nas discussões contemporâneas relativas ao papel da tributação como instrumento de regulação econômica, bem como as atuais experiências de boas práticas regulatórias desenvolvidas no Brasil, este trabalho propõe-se a examinar se é possível desenvolver ou adaptar um modelo brasileiro de Análise de Impacto Regulatório das normas tributárias indutoras. Por meio do estudo interdisciplinar, com ênfase na pesquisa qualitativa, de caráter bibliográfico, documental e legislativo, foram apresentados os principais conceitos, fundamentos e discussões relacionados tanto com normas tributárias indutoras quanto com a Análise de Impacto Regulatório, com o intuito de subsidiar o debate e o exame da viabilidade de um modelo de Análise de Impacto Regulatório específico para a tributação indutora no Brasil.
Adoption Factors of Digital Services—A Systematic Literature Review
Authors: Paulus Moritz , Jordanow Slawka , Millemann Jan Andre
Published: August 2022

In recent years, the diffusion of digital technologies in the service sector offers great potential for growth and success. Today, many companies are trying to launch new digital services on the market to realize this potential. Prior research concludes that the success of such services depends crucially on whether a consumer adopts or rejects them. Hence, by using the methodology of a systematic literature review, this paper identifies key factors that drive a consumer to adopt digital services. As a result of a subsequent classification, the present work distinguishes among three main categories. First are consumer-specific factors relating to individual predispositions, demographics, and awareness factors that can be attributed to the consumer. Second are situation-specific factors, representing the smallest category found, concerning the service environment, the context of service delivery, and situations in which consumers may find themselves before or during the use of digital services. Third are service-specific factors that are mainly determined by individual characteristics and features of these services, such as ease of use, usability, compatibility, and enjoyment. Hence, this study provides a comprehensive overview of determinants affecting consumer’s adoption behavior and suggests several opportunities for future research. Whereas the rich set of identified factors serves as a foundation, it further proposes to what responsible service executives should pay particular attention in order to succeed with digital services.
Case studies 1–3: leg ulcers
Authors: Tickle Joy
Published: August 2022

Case studies are presented here by a tissue viability nurse consultant and an advanced podiatrist demonstrating the use of ChloraSolv in clinical practice. The first set of cases is from a community setting, where the tissue viability nurse and district nurse successfully used the product to fully debride hard-to-heal leg ulcers in patients who mostly had been unable to tolerate other forms of debridement. The second set illustrates its use in a podiatry clinic, where the gel removed dry, adherent slough.

‘These case studies show that ChloraSolv can be used by any health professional to achieve a clean wound bed’
Pharmacotherapeutics of aprepitant and pregabalin in neuropathic pain and refractory pruritus in a patient diagnosed with a cutaneous T-cell lymphoma
Authors: Keenan Michelle
Published: August 2022

Background/Aims

Palliative care nurse specialists are required to have a high level of knowledge and expertise in the management of complex symptoms. As a result of patient complexity, clinicians are often faced with advising on multiple drug regimes. This often requires clinical nurse specialists to have knowledge of pharmacotherapeutics to ensure safe and rational prescribing. In the form of a case study, the author has critically discussed the use of aprepitant and pregabalin in the management of neuropathic pain and refractory pruritus in a patient diagnosed with a cutaneous T cell lymphoma. These drugs are not routinely prescribed together and therefore the author has explored potential pharmacokinetic interactions.

Case presentation

The case presented a 49-year-old lady with an advanced metastatic cutaneous T-cell lymphoma with failed remission despite extensive oncological treatment. She was referrd to the to hospital specialist palliative care team for treatment of refractory pruritus and neuropathic pain.

Conclusion

Aprepitant is considered an effective anti-pruritic agent that is normally well tolerated; however, careful consideration must be taken because of extensive drug interactions. Caution is also required in patients with hepatic impairment. Pregabalin is often used in specialist palliative care for the management of neuropathic pain because of its efficacy and ease of titration. Caution must be taken in prescribing in patients with renal impairment. As pregabalin is not bound to plasma proteins nor metabolised by the liver, the risk of pharmacokinetic interaction with aprepitant is minimal. As both drugs cross the blood brain-barrier, clinicians must monitor for adverse central nervous system activity. This case study highlights the importance of pharmacotherapeutics in ensuring safe and rational prescribing, with the need to continue to integrate this knowledge into future practice as nurse prescribers.
Design, fabrication, and testing of an all-metal ultra-compact telescope
Authors: Zhao Zhi-Cheng , Chen Xin-Hua , Shen Wei-Min
Published: August 2022

The design, fabrication, and testing of an all-metal four-mirror telescope for high-resolution remote sensing is presented in this paper. The system works in the visible (VIS) band and is designed with a focal length of 1406 mm, an aperture of 200 mm, and a full field of view (FOV) of 1.32°. The mechanical structure is designed to realize the snap-together alignment. The primary mirror (M1) and tertiary mirror (M3) are designed as a co-substrate element to simplify the fabrication and alignment. The telescope’s weight is 3.5 kg, and the volume is just

φ

230

×

220

m
m

3

. Metallic mirrors are fabricated with single-point diamond turning, and post-polishing is used to correct the mirror’s surface form deviation and remove turning tool marks effectively. After polishing, the RMS value of the mirror surface form deviation of the final mirror can reach

0.02

λ

at

λ
=

632.8

n
m

, and the surface roughness Ra value is about 1.83 nm. Benefiting from the all-metal mechanical design, the alignment process of the telescope is fast and accurate. The interferometric wavefront, modulation transfer function, and focal length of the telescope are measured, and the results demonstrated that it achieves the near-diffraction-limited imaging performance.
Using deep learning for the automated identification of cone and rod photoreceptors from adaptive optics imaging of the human retina
Authors: Zhou Mengxi , Doble Nathan , Choi Stacey S. , Jin Tianyu , Xu Chenwei , Parthasarathy Srinivasan , Ramnath Rajiv
Published: August 2022

Adaptive optics imaging has enabled the enhanced in vivo retinal visualization of individual cone and rod photoreceptors. Effective analysis of such high-resolution, feature rich images requires automated, robust algorithms. This paper describes RC-UPerNet, a novel deep learning algorithm, for identifying both types of photoreceptors, and was evaluated on images from central and peripheral retina extending out to 30° from the fovea in the nasal and temporal directions. Precision, recall and Dice scores were 0.928, 0.917 and 0.922 respectively for cones, and 0.876, 0.867 and 0.870 for rods. Scores agree well with human graders and are better than previously reported AI-based approaches.
Delay-aware and resource-efficient service function chain mapping in inter-datacenter elastic optical networks
Authors: Zhu Min , Gu Jiahua , Shen Tianyu , Zhang Jiao , Gu Pingping
Published: August 2022

Network function virtualization (NFV) is emerging as a promising paradigm for network architectures. By migrating network functions from dedicated hardware appliances to software instances running in a virtualized environment, NFV promises to offer a more flexible way to deploy and manage service function chains (SFCs). When deploying these SFCs to users, the network operators require not only the user’s demands (e.g., end-to-end delay) to be satisfied, but require the cost of SFC mapping to be minimized (e.g., resource consumption). To fulfill these two goals, in this paper, we have investigated how to realize the delay-aware and resource-efficient SFC mapping in inter-datacenter elastic optical networks. We first formulate an integer linear programming (ILP) model to solve the problem exactly. The main optimization goal in the ILP model is to jointly minimize resource consumption and end-to-end delay to achieve optimal virtual network function placement. Then, a delay-aware and load-balancing mapping algorithm (DALB-MA) is proposed to obtain a near-optimal solution in a reasonable amount of time. Finally, we evaluate the proposed ILP model and heuristic algorithms via extensive simulations. The results indicate that the proposed ILP model and the DALB-MA outperform the benchmarks in terms of block rate, average cost, number of CPUs used, maximum frequency slot index, and delay margin gain.
Higher-order correlation based real-time beamforming in photoacoustic imaging
Authors: Mulani Sufayan , Paul Souradip , Singh Mayanglambam Suheshkumar
Published: August 2022

Although a delay-and-sum (DAS) beamformer is best suited for real-time photoacoustic (PA) image formation, the reconstructed images are often afflicted by noises, sidelobes, and other intense artifacts due to inaccurate assumptions in PA signal correlation. The present work aims to develop a reconstruction method that reduces the occurrence of sidelobes and artifacts and thus improves the reconstructed image quality or imaging performance. This beamformer is fundamentally based on higher-order signal correlation wherein a higher number of delayed PA signals—compared to conventional delay-multiply-and-sum (DMAS)—are combined and summed up. The proposed technique provides significant improvements in resolution, contrast, and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) compared to traditional beamformers. For real-time implementation, the proposed algorithms were simplified, and their computational complexities were shrunk to the order of DAS [

O
(
N
)

]. A GPU based study was also performed to validate the real-time capability of the proposed beamformers. For validation studies, both numerical simulation and experiments were conducted. Quantitative evaluation studies involving SNR, contrast ratio, generalized contrast-to-noise ratio, and FWHM demonstrate that the proposed higher-order DMAS beamformer is superior in PA image reconstruction. Conclusively, the proposed beamformer uniquely facilitates real-time PA image reconstruction with an achievable frame rate close to DAS and DMAS but with better imaging performance, which holds promise for real-time PA imaging and its clinical applications.
Focal-plane wavefront sensing with photonic lanterns: theoretical framework
Authors: Lin Jonathan , Fitzgerald Michael P. , Xin Yinzi , Guyon Olivier , Leon-Saval Sergio , Norris Barnaby , Jovanovic Nemanja
Published: August 2022

The photonic lantern (PL) is a tapered waveguide that can efficiently
couple light into multiple single-mode optical fibers. Such devices
are currently being considered for a number of tasks, including the
coupling of telescopes and high-resolution, fiber-fed spectrometers,
coherent detection, nulling interferometry, and vortex-fiber nulling.
In conjunction with these use cases, PLs can simultaneously perform
low-order focal-plane wavefront sensing. In this work, we provide a
mathematical framework for the analysis of a PL wavefront sensor
(PLWFS), deriving linear and higher-order reconstruction models as
well as metrics through which sensing performance—in
both the linear and nonlinear regimes—can be quantified.
This framework can be extended to account for additional optics such
as beam-shaping optics and vortex masks, and can be generalized for
other wavefront sensing architectures. Finally, we provide initial
numerical verification of our mathematical models by simulating a
six-port PLWFS. In a forthcoming companion paper (Lin and Fitzgerald),
we provide a more comprehensive numerical characterization of few-port
PLWFSs, and consider how the sensing properties of these devices can
be controlled and optimized.