bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Publicly Reported Patient Satisfaction Scores in Academic Otolaryngology Departments
Authors: Shintani Smith Stephanie , Cheng Brian T. , Kern Robert C. , Cameron Kenzie A. , Micco Alan G.
Published: April 2021

Objectives/Hypothesis

Despite controversy regarding their impact and validity, there is a rising national focus on patient satisfaction scores (PSS). We describe the landscape of online PSS as posted by academic otolaryngology practices.

Study Design

Retrospective cross‐sectional study.

Methods

Websites of academic otolaryngology programs were reviewed for PSS scores, provider type, and geographic location. Gender was determined by picture or profile pronouns. Years of experience were determined by year of initial American Board of Otolaryngology‐Head and Neck Surgery certification. We defined PSS derived from Press‐Ganey or Clinician and Group Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems surveys as “standardized PSS”. We determined potential associations between provider characteristics and standardized PSS.

Results

Out of 115 Otolaryngology‐Head and Neck Surgery academic programs, 40 (35%) posted a total of 64,638 online PSS surveys (nonstandardized plus standardized) of 507 unique otolaryngology care providers. Standardized PSS were posted for 473 providers (370 [78%] male; 446 physicians; 27 advanced practice providers). Median overall standardized PSS was 4.8 (interquartile range 4.7–4.9; range 3.8–5.0). PSS were similar between gender, provider type, and years of experience. Male providers had more surveys than female providers (149 vs. 93; P < .01). There was a linear relationship between number of surveys and years of experience (P < .01), but no relationship between number of surveys and overall standardized PSS.

Conclusions

Patient satisfaction with otolaryngology providers at academic institutions is consistently high, as demonstrated by high online PSS with little variability. The limited variation in PSS may limit their usefulness in differentiating providers and quality of care.

Level of Evidence

NA Laryngoscope, 131:2204–2210, 2021
Factors influencing users' adoption and use of conversational agents: A systematic review
Authors: Ling Erin Chao , Tussyadiah Iis , Tuomi Aarni , Stienmetz Jason , Ioannou Athina
Published: April 2021

As artificially intelligent conversational agents (ICAs) become a popular customer service solution for businesses, understanding the drivers of user acceptance of ICAs is critical to ensure its successful implementation. To provide a comprehensive review of factors affecting consumers' adoption and use of ICAs, this study performs a systematic literature review of extant empirical research on this topic. Based on a literature search performed in July 2019 followed by a snowballing approach, 18 relevant articles were analyzed. Factors found to influence human‐machine cognitive engagement were categorized into usage‐related, agent‐related, user‐related, attitude and evaluation, and other factors. This study proposed a collective model of users' acceptance and use of ICAs, whereby user acceptance is driven mainly by usage benefits, which are influenced by agent and user characteristics. The study emphasizes the proposed model's context‐dependency, as relevant factors depend on usage settings, and provides several strategic business implications, including service design, personalization, and customer relationship management.
Sex differences in clinical characteristics and risk factors for disease severity of hospitalized patients with COVID‐19
Authors: Wang Jing‐Jing , Su Yun‐Juan , Wang Qi , Cao Ying , Wang Ai‐Bin , Ding Rui , Xie Wen
Published: April 2021

Recent studies reported sex differences in patients with coronavirus disease‐2019 (COVID‐19). We aim to analyze sex differences in clinical characteristics and risk factors for disease severity of hospitalized patients with COVID‐19 in Beijing. All adults (185 cases) diagnosed with COVID‐19 and admitted to Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University were included in samples. The median age of all patients was 41 years. The mean body mass index (BMI) of males was relatively higher compared to females (p < 0.001). The proportion of male patients with coronary heart disease (CHD), nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), history of smoking and drinking was higher than females. Male patients developed more clinical symptoms, obtained more abnormal laboratory test results, while they were less aware of care‐seeking than female patients. There were no significant differences in clinical complications and outcomes between two groups. Age (odds ratio [OR]: 1.082; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.034–1.132; p = 0.001) and BMI (OR: 1.237; 95% CI: 1.041–1.47; p = 0.016) were considered risk factors for refractory pneumonia in multivariate regression analysis. The findings of the current study showed that SARS‐CoV‐2 was more likely to affect older males with comorbidities. Further researches into factors underlying obesity and disease severity may provide mechanistic insight into COVID‐19 development.
A size‐adaptive 32‐channel array coil for awake infant neuroimaging at 3 Tesla MRI
Authors: Ghotra Anpreet , Kosakowski Heather L. , Takahashi Atsushi , Etzel Robin , May Markus W. , Scholz Alina , Jansen Andreas , Wald Lawrence L. , Kanwisher Nancy , Saxe Rebecca , Keil Boris
Published: April 2021

Purpose

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during infancy poses challenges due to practical, methodological, and analytical considerations. The aim of this study was to implement a hardware‐related approach to increase subject compliance for fMRI involving awake infants. To accomplish this, we designed, constructed, and evaluated an adaptive 32‐channel array coil.

Methods

To allow imaging with a close‐fitting head array coil for infants aged 1‐18 months, an adjustable head coil concept was developed. The coil setup facilitates a half‐seated scanning position to improve the infant’s overall scan compliance. Earmuff compartments are integrated directly into the coil housing to enable the usage of sound protection without losing a snug fit of the coil around the infant’s head. The constructed array coil was evaluated from phantom data using bench‐level metrics, signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) performances, and accelerated imaging capabilities for both in‐plane and simultaneous multislice (SMS) reconstruction methodologies. Furthermore, preliminary fMRI data were acquired to evaluate the in vivo coil performance.

Results

Phantom data showed a 2.7‐fold SNR increase on average when compared with a commercially available 32‐channel head coil. At the center and periphery regions of the infant head phantom, the SNR gains were measured to be 1.25‐fold and 3‐fold, respectively. The infant coil further showed favorable encoding capabilities for undersampled k‐space reconstruction methods and SMS techniques.

Conclusions

An infant‐friendly head coil array was developed to improve sensitivity, spatial resolution, accelerated encoding, motion insensitivity, and subject tolerance in pediatric MRI. The adaptive 32‐channel array coil is well‐suited for fMRI acquisitions in awake infants.
An inverse problem of identifying the time‐dependent potential in a fourth‐order pseudo‐parabolic equation from additional condition
Authors: Huntul Mousa J. , Tamsir Mohammad , Dhiman Neeraj
Published: April 2021

The aim of this work is to identify numerically, for the first time, the time‐dependent potential coefficient in a fourth‐order pseudo‐parabolic equation with nonlocal initial data, nonlocal boundary conditions, and the boundary data as overdetermination condition. This problem emerges significantly in the modeling of various phenomena in physics and engineering. From literature we already know that this inverse problem has a unique solution. However, the problem is still ill‐posed by being unstable to noise in the input data. For the numerical realization, we apply the quintic B‐spline (QB‐spline) collocation method for discretizing the pseudo‐parabolic problem and the Tikhonov regularization for finding a stable and accurate solution. The resulting nonlinear minimization problem is solved using the MATLAB subroutinelsqnonlin. Moreover, the von Neumann stability analysis is also discussed.
Salivary glands are a target for SARS‐CoV‐2: a source for saliva contamination
Authors: Matuck Bruno Fernandes , Dolhnikoff Marisa , Duarte‐Neto Amaro Nunes , Maia Gilvan , Gomes Sara Costa , Sendyk Daniel Isaac , Zarpellon Amanda , de Andrade Nathalia Paiva , Monteiro Renata Aparecida , Pinho João Renato Rebello , Gomes‐Gouvêa Michele Soares , Souza Suzana COM , Kanamura Cristina , Mauad Thais , Saldiva Paulo Hilário Nascimento , Braz‐Silva Paulo H , Caldini Elia Garcia , da Silva Luiz Fernando Ferraz
Published: April 2021

The ability of the new coronavirus SARS‐CoV‐2 to spread and contaminate is one of the determinants of the COVID‐19 pandemic status. SARS‐CoV‐2 has been detected in saliva consistently, with similar sensitivity to that observed in nasopharyngeal swabs. We conducted ultrasound‐guided postmortem biopsies in COVID‐19 fatal cases. Samples of salivary glands (SGs; parotid, submandibular, and minor) were obtained. We analyzed samples using RT‐qPCR, immunohistochemistry, electron microscopy, and histopathological analysis to identify SARS‐CoV‐2 and elucidate qualitative and quantitative viral profiles in salivary glands. The study included 13 female and 11 male patients, with a mean age of 53.12 years (range 8–83 years). RT‐qPCR for SARS‐CoV‐2 was positive in 30 SG samples from 18 patients (60% of total SG samples and 75% of all cases). Ultrastructural analyses showed spherical 70–100 nm viral particles, consistent in size and shape with the Coronaviridae family, in the ductal lining cell cytoplasm, acinar cells, and ductal lumen of SGs. There was also degeneration of organelles in infected cells and the presence of a cluster of nucleocapsids, which suggests viral replication in SG cells. Qualitative histopathological analysis showed morphologic alterations in the duct lining epithelium characterized by cytoplasmic and nuclear vacuolization, as well as nuclear pleomorphism. Acinar cells showed degenerative changes of the zymogen granules and enlarged nuclei. Ductal epithelium and serous acinar cells showed intense expression of ACE2 and TMPRSS receptors. An anti‐SARS‐CoV‐2 antibody was positive in 8 (53%) of the 15 tested cases in duct lining epithelial cells and acinar cells of major SGs. Only two minor salivary glands were positive for SARS‐CoV‐2 by immunohistochemistry. Salivary glands are a reservoir for SARS‐CoV‐2 and provide a pathophysiological background for studies that indicate the use of saliva as a diagnostic method for COVID‐19 and highlight this biological fluid's role in spreading the disease. © 2021 The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Corneal confocal microscopy: potential usage in the context of diabetes mellitus
Authors: Bondugulapati LN Rao , Narayen Nitesh
Published: April 2021

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is a difficult diagnosis to make, especially in its early stages. Standard practice has been to take judicious clinical history and examination with 10gm monofilament, which not only misses the early disease but also lacks the ability to detect small fibre neuropathy. Given the morbidity, mortality, as well as the cost implications diabetic foot ulcer disease has, it is crucial to diagnose DPN early to prevent the complications associated with it. Here, we discuss the utility of corneal confocal microscopy as a potential tool for early diagnosis of DPN, quantify its severity, and assess therapeutic benefit to identify nerve fibre repair in the context of disease modifying treatments of DPN. Copyright © 2021 John Wiley & Sons.
Teaching in the shadow of terrorism: An attempt of schools' rehabilitation
Authors: Memon Ubedullah , Ali Anees J. , Nisa Zaib U. , Raza Ali , Nisar Nabeel
Published: April 2021

The emergence of terrorism against girls' education continues to prevent a large number of girls from attending school. The imminent fear of terrorist attacks also infiltrates the female teaching fraternity through their perceived job risk, job anxiety, and death sensitivity. This study echoes the female teachers' vulnerability through time‐lagged data gathered from Pakistan's terrorism‐affected areas. The findings unveiled the negative role of female teachers' perceived threats of terrorism in stimulating their job anxiety. This study also investigated the moderating effect of female teachers' perceived resilience in a jeopardizing context. The results of the study unveiled a significant positive association between female teachers' perceived threats of terrorism and their perceived job risk. The findings also confirmed a significant positive association between female teachers' perceived job risk and job anxiety. Furthermore, the mediating role of perceived job risk between perceived threats of terrorism and job anxiety was confirmed. Finally, the buffering effect of female teachers' perceived resilience weakens the link between perceived job risk and job anxiety. The results showed that female teachers' perceived job risk accounted for 31.8% of the variance in their job anxiety. The study's scope attempts to address the sensitive issue of society and provides a viable solution.
Identification of Spanish third graders at risk of math problems: Usefulness of number sense based screening measures
Authors: de León Sara C. , Jiménez Juan E. , García Eduardo , Gutiérrez Nuria
Published: April 2021

This study aimed to explore the utility of a math curriculum‐based measurement (M‐CBM) to identify Spanish‐speaking students at risk of math failure in third grade. The M‐CBM includes a set of number sense based single and composite screening for third graders. The study's sample included 236 Spanish third‐graders from the Canary Islands tested in the fall, winter, and spring. Reliability and validity of all measures were explored, finding adequate indexes. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) and Hierarchical linear modeling analyses were conducted for both single and composite measures. All the measures revealed an area under the ROC curve values at or above 0.84, the composite measures ranging from 0.86 to 0.94. When comparing the single and composite measures, the latter revealed a higher classification accuracy for identifying students at risk in third grade than quantity discrimination, missing number, and multi‐digit computation measures, but not for single‐digit computation and place value measures. Finally, significant differences were found between at‐risk and non‐risk students learning growth throughout the school year.
Credibility in enhanced self‐regulation: The case of the European data protection regime
Authors: Medzini Rotem
Published: April 2021

This article builds upon the literature on regulatory intermediation to answer how and why European rule‐makers rely on data protection officers (DPOs) to shape the self‐regulation of private and public organizations regarding the processing of personal information. Based on the theory‐testing process‐tracing methodology, the article finds that while the old data protection regime (1995–2016) allowed national rule‐makers to pursue their preferred policy paths regarding the regulation of DPOs, this is not the case for the new data protection regime (from 2016). The article argues that a combination of two causal mechanisms—supranational and functional—has led European rule‐takers to institutionalize the designation of DPOs within broad categories of regulated organizations to motivate credibility toward data protection. The article concludes that while this policy decision enhances the self‐regulation capabilities of rule‐takers with the professional accountability and expertise of DPOs, European politics have made the reliance on DPOs more susceptible to the short‐term interests of rule‐takers.
Shared decision making for children with chronic respiratory failure—It takes a village and a process
Authors: Kevill Katharine , Ker Grace , Meyer Rina
Published: April 2021

Background and Objectives

Shared decision making (SDM) before nonurgent tracheostomy in a child with chronic respiratory failure (CRF) is often recommended, but has proven challenging to implement in practice. We hypothesize that utilization of the microsystem model for analysis of the complex ecosystem in which SDM occurs will yield insights that enable formation of a reproducible, measurable SDM process.

Methods

Retrospective chart review of a case series of children with CRF in whom a SDM process was pursued. The process included a palliative care consult, a validated decision aid and 12 key questions designed to elucidate information integral to an informed decision. Investigators reviewed a single hospital admission for each child, focusing on the 3 core elements of a medical microsystem—the patient, the providers, and information.

Results

Twenty‐nine patients who met inclusion criteria ranged in age from 0 to 19.5 years (median 1.7) and remained in the hospital from 10 to 316 days (median 38). Patients were medically complex with multiple and varied respiratory diagnoses, multiple and varied comorbidities, and varying psychosocial environments. 14/29 children received tracheostomies. Each child encountered a mean of 6.2 medical specialties, 1.9 surgical specialties and 8.5 nonphysician led services. Answers to 12 key questions were not documented systematically and often not found in the electronic medical record.

Conclusion

A unique SDM microsystem is formed around each child but not optimally utilized. Explicit recognition of these microsystems would enable team formation and an SDM process comprised of measurable steps and communication patterns.
A Viscoelastic Constitutive Model of Propellant with Pressure Cure
Authors: Cui Zhanxin , Li Haiyang , Shen Zhibin , Cui Huiru
Published: April 2021

The application of pressure cure molding technology can effectively reduce the structural integrity problems of casting solid rocket motors. In order to describe the curing and cooling process under this new technology more realistically, it is decomposed into two processes, pressurization curing, and pressure relief cooling and a time‐varying segmented solid propellant intrinsic equation applicable to the pressure cure molding technology is proposed. The constitutive equation takes into account the change in material properties caused by the change in the state of the propellant during the curing process. In order to accurately model the changes in mechanical properties of the propellant during curing, the present constitutive equations for this process are rewritten in incremental form and implemented in the user subroutine UMAT of the finite element analysis platform ABAQUS. The detailed derivation steps of the constitutive equation are introduced in this paper, and the subsequent application analysis is carried out with reference to the star‐shaped grain. The final stress and strain state of the propellant after cooling is used as the main analytical index. The results show that the pressure cure molding technology can effectively reduce the residual stress and the residual strain on the inner surface of the propellant grain. The pressure cure effect on the outer surface of the grain is relatively small compared to the overall reduction. The time‐varying constitutive model provides technical support for a more accurate description of the pressure cure process.
Implicit‐Euler based digital implementation for constrained stabilization of second‐order systems
Authors: Xiong Xiaogang , Sachan Ankit , Huang Ruining , Kumar Pal Anil , Kamal Shyam , Chen Wei
Published: April 2021

In this article, an implicit Euler algorithm for digital implementation of constrained stabilization is studied for the second‐order systems. For that, a switching controller is designed in a discrete‐time framework such that the system's position output converges to some predefined range, that is, ϱ ∈ (−ε, ε) in finite‐time while the velocity output converges to the origin, that is, , in finite‐time. The switching controller is switched to the implicit Euler implementation of twisting algorithm when ϱ ∉ (−ε, ε) and to an implicit Euler implementation of first‐order sliding mode control when ϱ ∈ (−ε, ε). The combination of the two implicit Euler implementations achieves discrete‐time constrained stabilization of second‐order systems, avoiding the chattering caused by conventional explicit integration schemes. The usefulness of the proposed algorithm for constrained stabilization is illustrated by considering the container‐slosh coupled dynamical system.
Supervised compression of big data
Authors: Joseph V. Roshan , Mak Simon
Published: April 2021

The phenomenon of big data has become ubiquitous in nearly all disciplines, from science to engineering. A key challenge is the use of such data for fitting statistical and machine learning models, which can incur high computational and storage costs. One solution is to perform model fitting on a carefully selected subset of the data. Various data reduction methods have been proposed in the literature, ranging from random subsampling to optimal experimental design‐based methods. However, when the goal is to learn the underlying input–output relationship, such reduction methods may not be ideal, since it does not make use of information contained in the output. To this end, we propose a supervised data compression method calledsupercompress, which integrates output information by sampling data from regions most important for modeling the desired input–output relationship. An advantage ofsupercompressis that it is nonparametric—the compression method does not rely on parametric modeling assumptions between inputs and output. As a result, the proposed method is robust to a wide range of modeling choices. We demonstrate the usefulness ofsupercompressover existing data reduction methods, in both simulations and a taxicab predictive modeling application.
Design and evaluation of a scalable Internet of Things backend for smart ports
Authors: Bracke Vincent , Sebrechts Merlijn , Moons Bart , Hoebeke Jeroen , De Turck Filip , Volckaert Bruno
Published: April 2021

Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, when adequately integrated, cater for logistics optimisation and operations' environmental impact monitoring, both key aspects for today's EU ports management. This article presents Obelisk, a scalable and multi‐tenant cloud‐based IoT integration platform used in the EU H2020 PortForward project. The landscape of IoT protocols being particularly fragmented, the first role of Obelisk is to provide uniform access to data originating from a myriad of devices and protocols. Interoperability is achieved through adapters that provide flexibility and evolvability in protocol and format mapping. Additionally, due to ports operating in a hub model with various interacting actors, a second role of Obelisk is to secure access to data. This is achieved through encryption and isolation for data transport and processing, respectively, while user access control is ensured through authentication and authorisation standards. Finally, as ports IoTisation will further evolve, a third need for Obelisk is to scale with the data volumes it must ingest and process. Platform scalability is achieved by means of a reactive micro‐services based design. Those three essential characteristics are detailed in this article with a specific focus on how to achieve IoT data platform scalability. By means of an air quality monitoring use‐case deployed in the city of Antwerp, the scalability of the platform is evaluated. The evaluation shows that the proposed reactive micro‐service based design allows for horizontal scaling of the platform as well as for logarithmic time complexity of its service time.
Diagnosis and management of segmental volvulus of the jejunoileum in a first lactation Flekvieh heifer
Authors: Ridgway Rachel , Ghirello Gabriele , Gillespie Amy
Published: April 2021

A three‐year‐old first lactation Flekvieh heifer was presented with sudden milk drop, anorexia and absence of faeces in the rectum after being perceived as fit and healthy the day before. Following medical treatment and close monitoring, an exploratory laparotomy was performed and a segmental volvulus of part of the small intestine was identified. Successful treatment involved relieving the intestinal distension and untwisting the intestine. This case was interesting as the cow showed minimal outward signs of discomfort and cardiovascular compromise with intestinal volvulus.
(Im)mobility Patterns among Polish Unemployed Migrants in Iceland Navigating Different Welfare Regimes
Authors: Wojtyńska Anna , Skaptadóttir Unnur Dís
Published: April 2021

Based on fieldwork among unemployed Polish migrants in Iceland, this chapter examines how they negotiate and adapt to the social risks and changing circumstances encountered in the countries of emigration and immigration as well as how they navigate the available ‘resource environments’ emerging in conjunction with different welfare regimes. We particularly look at the European Union (EU) regulations for social-security protection vis-à-vis national welfare-protection policies on unemployment in Iceland and Poland and their possible ramifications for the mobility and immobility of Polish workers. Furthermore, we highlight some problematic interactions between the internationalisation of the labour market and concomitant transnational livelihoods, EU social policy and the welfare-assistance environment of member states. In so doing, we apply a critical approach to the commonly assumed high flexibility and extensive geographical mobility of migrant workers that tends to overlook counterfactors that influence different forms of immobility.
Teaching the World Court Makes a Bad Case: Revisiting the Relationship Between Domestic Courts and the ICJ
Authors: Kunz Raffaela
Published: April 2021

Sentenza238/2014 once more highlights the important role domestic courts play in international law. More than prior examples, it illustrates the ever more autonomous and self-confident stance of domestic courts on the international plane. But the ruling of the Italian Constitutional Court (ItCC) also shows that more engagement with international law does not necessarily mean that domestic courts enhance the effectiveness of international law and become ‘compliance partners’ of international courts.Sentenza238/2014 suggests that domestic courts, in times of global governance and increased activity of international courts, see the role they play at the intersection of legal orders also as ‘gate-keepers’, ready to cushion the domestic impact of international law if deemed necessary. The judgment of the ItCC thus offers a new opportunity to examine the multifaceted and complex role of these important actors that apply and shape international law, while always remaining bound by domestic (constitutional) law. This chapter does so by exploring how domestic courts deal with rulings of the World Court. It shows that despite the fact that in numerous situations domestic courts could act as compliance partners of the International Court of Justice, in reality, more often than not, they have refused to do so, arguing that its judgments are not self-executing and thus deferring the implementation to the political branches. Assessing this practice, the chapter argues that domestic courts should take a more active stance and overcome the purely interstate view that seems at odds with present-day international law. While it seems too far-reaching to expect domestic courts to follow international courts unconditionally, the chapter cautions that there is a considerable risk of setting dangerous precedents by openly defying international judgments. Domestic courts should carefully balance the different interests at stake, namely an effective system of international adjudication on the one hand and the protection of fundamental domestic principles on the other hand. The chapter finds that the ItCC’s attempt to reintroduce clear boundaries between legal orders lacks the openness and flexibility needed to effectively cope with today’s complex and plural legal reality.
Between a Rock and a Hard Place: Italian Concerns Between Constitutional Rights and International Law
Authors: Paulus Andreas L.
Published: April 2021

Sentenza 238/2014 has led to a sharp dissonance between the international law of state immunity as interpreted by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and Italian constitutional law as understood and applied by the Corte Costituzionale. While the interpretation and application by the Italian Constitutional Court (ItCC) of the access-to-courts provision in the Italian Constitution may not have been inevitable, this does not remove the need for finding a solution to the stalemate between international and domestic law. On the one hand, the easy solution, namely that the rejection of German state immunity from jurisdiction does not necessarily remove immunity from execution into German property, appears unlikely to be accepted by the ItCC because it would give stones rather than bread to the complainants and render court access a futile exercise. On the other hand, bringing Sentenza to its logical conclusion would result in Italy having to return to Germany what Italian courts took from her by requiring compensation—either by way of the general international law of restitutio in integrum, which the Corte Costituzionale has neither contemplated nor contradicted, or by way of the 1961 Treaty between Germany and Italy in which Italy promises to indemnify Germany against any further claims. Thus, a compromise would have to distinguish between full access to the Italian courts notwithstanding international immunity—as required by the ItCC—and substantive law, which could accept a more symbolical recognition of the suffering of the victims. That recognition could stem from a direct source other than the two states involved, such as a common fund, and address only the small group of immediate victims who were unjustly, if arguably legally, excluded from the previous compensation scheme of the 1960s. It is by no means certain, however, whether such an outcome would be acceptable to all sides—including the Corte itself. Thus, legal certainty would have to be established as quickly as possible so that the victims can still receive at least symbolic compensation.
Overcoming the Judicial Conundrum: The Road to a Diplomatic Solution
Authors: Francioni Francesco
Published: April 2021

The role of international law and of international lawyers is at its best when it results in a ‘work of reconciliation and realistic construction’ (Dag Hammarskjöld, 1953). Unfortunately, it is difficult to find much of this spirit in the unfolding, regrettable and never-ending saga of Germany versus Italy. In answering the basic question of whether Germany is obliged to negotiate a settlement with Italy, this chapter argues that even if there is no hard and fast legal obligation, there is a political and moral obligation to negotiate a settlement, as indicated by paragraph 104 of the Jurisdictional Immunities Judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ); the same obligation is incumbent upon Italy. The current legal ‘black hole’ cannot be filled by further proceedings before the ICJ because immunity serves the value of the equality of states, yet equality is not a value in its own sake but is functional to the preservation of peaceful and orderly international relations and to the ‘realistic construction’ of conditions for the fulfilment of human rights. Negotiations in view of the creation of a joint German–Italian fund for the reparation of victims is the appropriate way to overcome the present impasse and to do justice to a whole class of victims who so far have fallen into oblivion.
State Immunity, Individual Compensation for Victims of Human Rights Crimes, and Future Prospects
Authors: Kadelbach Stefan
Published: April 2021

This chapter first recapitulates the state of affairs as to the principle of state immunity and why exceptions from jurisdictional immunity for gross violations of human rights and humanitarian law are not recognized. It explores customary law and the global compensation treaty between Germany and Italy. Both indicate that Italy would be obligated to indemnify Germany from individual claims raised before Italian courts.

In a second step, the development towards individual rights in public international law will be taken up. It appears that human beings are increasingly recognized as holders of individual claims but, apart from human rights treaty systems, lack the capacity under international law to invoke their rights before courts. Instead, they depend on their home states, which have standing but are not entitled to waive the individual rights of their citizens.

In order to reconcile the seemingly antagonistic regimes of state immunity and claim settlement, prospects for a friendly solution of the present dilemma will be assessed. Against the background of cases pending before Italian courts, it will be examined whether the distinction between jurisdictional immunity and immunity from execution opens up a way out of the impasse, which the two states and private capital could pursue, and whether this solution would create a precedent for other similar constellations.

Lastly, some concluding remarks will address lessons to be learnt for future conflicts. They will deal with elements of a general regime of compensation, drawing from the experience of both past reparation schemes and the experience of reconciliation in post-totalitarian societies. Such elements could be a duty to seek bona fide settlements, possible consequences of violations for domestic court proceedings, methods of assessing damages inspired by mass claim processing, the categorization of claims according to the gravity of violations, rules on evaluating evidence, procedures to give victims a say, and appropriate forms of monetary and non-pecuniary compensation including the necessary institutional framework.
On rational points in CFT moduli spaces
Authors: Benjamin Nathan , Keller Christoph A. , Ooguri Hirosi , Zadeh Ida G.
Published: April 2021

Abstract

Motivated by the search for rational points in moduli spaces of two-dimensional conformal field theories, we investigate how points with enhanced symmetry algebras are distributed there. We first study the bosonic sigma-model with S1 target space in detail and uncover hitherto unknown features. We find for instance that the vanishing of the twist gap, though true for the S1 example, does not automatically follow from enhanced symmetry points being dense in the moduli space. We then explore the supersymmetric sigma-model on K3 by perturbing away from the torus orbifold locus. Though we do not reach a definite conclusion on the distribution of enhanced symmetry points in the K3 moduli space, we make several observations on how chiral currents can emerge and disappear under conformal perturbation theory.
Direct and Inverse Spectral Problems for Rank-One Perturbations of Self-adjoint Operators
Authors: Dobosevych Oles , Hryniv Rostyslav
Published: April 2021

For a given self-adjoint operatorAwith discrete spectrum, we completely characterise possible eigenvalues of its rank-one perturbations Band discuss the inverse problem of reconstructingBfrom its spectrum.
Neugeborenenscreening auf spinale Muskelatrophie
Authors: Müller-Felber W. , Vill K. , Schwartz O. , Blaschek A. , Nennstiel U. , Schara U. , Hoffmann G. F. , Gläser D. , Becker M. , Röschinger W. , Bernert G. , Klein A. , Kölbel H.
Published: April 2021

Im Dezember 2020 hat der Gemeinsame Bundesausschuss beschlossen, dass das Screening auf spinale Muskelatrophie (SMA) in das allgemeine Neugeborenenscreening aufgenommen werden soll. Grundlage dieser Entscheidung war die Tatsache, dass inzwischen gezielte Behandlungsmöglichkeiten für die Patienten mit SMA zur Verfügung stehen und der Zeitpunkt, zu dem die Behandlung begonnen wird, entscheidend für den Erfolg der Therapie ist.

Das Neugeborenenscreening auf eine SMA basiert auf dem Nachweis einer homozygoten Deletion von Exon 7 im SMN1-Gen durch eine molekulargenetische Analyse aus der Trockenblutkarte. In allen Fällen muss eine Bestätigungsdiagnostik aus einer zweiten Blutprobe im Rahmen der Konfirmationsdiagnostik mit Bestimmung der SMN2-Kopien-Zahl durchgeführt werden. Die weitere Beratung und Therapie sollten in einer neuropädiatrischen Ambulanz mit Erfahrung in der Betreuung von Kindern mit SMA erfolgen.
Analysis of overlapping genetic association in type 1 and type 2 diabetes
Authors: Inshaw Jamie R. J. , Sidore Carlo , Cucca Francesco , Stefana M. Irina , Crouch Daniel J. M. , McCarthy Mark I. , Mahajan Anubha , Todd John A.
Published: April 2021

Aims/hypothesis

Given the potential shared aetiology between type 1 and type 2 diabetes, we aimed to identify any genetic regions associated with both diseases. For associations where there is a shared signal and the allele that increases risk to one disease also increases risk to the other, inference about shared aetiology could be made, with the potential to develop therapeutic strategies to treat or prevent both diseases simultaneously. Alternatively, if a genetic signal co-localises with divergent effect directions, it could provide valuable biological insight into how the association affects the two diseases differently.

Methods

Using publicly available type 2 diabetes summary statistics from a genome-wide association study (GWAS) meta-analysis of European ancestry individuals (74,124 cases and 824,006 controls) and type 1 diabetes GWAS summary statistics from a meta-analysis of studies on individuals from the UK and Sardinia (7467 cases and 10,218 controls), we identified all regions of 0.5 Mb that contained variants associated with both diseases (false discovery rate <0.01). In each region, we performed forward stepwise logistic regression to identify independent association signals, then examined co-localisation of each type 1 diabetes signal with each type 2 diabetes signal using coloc. Any association with a co-localisation posterior probability of ≥0.9 was considered a genuine shared association with both diseases.

Results

Of the 81 association signals from 42 genetic regions that showed association with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, four association signals co-localised between both diseases (posterior probability ≥0.9): (1) chromosome 16q23.1, near CTRB1/BCAR1, which has been previously identified; (2) chromosome 11p15.5, near the INS gene; (3) chromosome 4p16.3, near TMEM129 and (4) chromosome 1p31.3, near PGM1. In each of these regions, the effect of genetic variants on type 1 diabetes was in the opposite direction to the effect on type 2 diabetes. Use of additional datasets also supported the previously identified co-localisation on chromosome 9p24.2, near the GLIS3 gene, in this case with a concordant direction of effect.

Conclusions/interpretation

Four of five association signals that co-localise between type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes are in opposite directions, suggesting a complex genetic relationship between the two diseases.

Graphical abstract
Modeling human tumor-immune environments in vivo for the preclinical assessment of immunotherapies
Authors: Bareham Bethany , Georgakopoulos Nikitas , Matas-Céspedes Alba , Curran Michelle , Saeb-Parsy Kourosh
Published: April 2021

Despite the significant contributions of immunocompetent mouse models to the development and assessment of cancer immunotherapies, they inadequately represent the genetic and biological complexity of corresponding human cancers. Immunocompromised mice reconstituted with a human immune system (HIS) and engrafted with patient-derived tumor xenografts are a promising novel preclinical model for the study of human tumor-immune interactions. Whilst overcoming limitations of immunocompetent models, HIS-tumor models often rely on reconstitution with allogeneic immune cells, making it difficult to distinguish between anti-tumor and alloantigen responses. Models that comprise of autologous human tumor and human immune cells provide a platform that is more representative of the patient immune-tumor interaction. However, limited access to autologous tissues, short experimental windows, and poor retention of tumor microenvironment and tumor infiltrating lymphocyte components are major challenges affecting the establishment and application of autologous models. This review outlines existing preclinical murine models for the study of immuno-oncology, and highlights innovations that can be applied to improve the feasibility and efficacy of autologous models.
Crustal variability along the rifted/sheared East African margin: a review
Authors: Vormann Maren , Jokat Wilfried
Published: April 2021

The East African margin between the Somali Basin in the north and the Natal Basin in the south formed as a result of the Jurassic/Cretaceous dispersal of Gondwana. While the initial movements between East and West Gondwana left (oblique) rifted margins behind, the subsequent southward drift of East Gondwana from 157 Ma onwards created a major shear zone, the Davie Fracture Zone (DFZ), along East Africa. To document the structural variability of the DFZ, several deep seismic lines were acquired off northern Mozambique. The profiles clearly indicate the structural changes along the shear zone from an elevated continental block in the south (14°–20°S) to non-elevated basement covered by up to 6-km-thick sediments in the north (9°–13°S). Here, we compile the geological/geophysical knowledge of five profiles along East Africa and interpret them in the context of one of the latest kinematic reconstructions. A pre-rift position of the detached continental sliver of the Davie Ridge between Tanzania/Kenya and southeastern Madagascar fits to this kinematic reconstruction without general changes of the rotation poles.
Unusual mechanical failures of intrathecal baclofen pump systems: symptoms, signs, and trouble shooting
Authors: Gburek-Augustat Janina , Krause Matthias , Bernhard Matthias , Sorge Ina , Gräfe Daniel , Siekmeyer Manuela , Nestler Ulf , Merkenschlager Andreas
Published: April 2021

Introduction

Although intrathecal baclofen (ITB) therapy is an effective treatment for spasticity, it has several disadvantages and a risk of complications.

Methods

We present six pediatric patients who suffered from unusual mechanical failures of intrathecal baclofen pump systems.

Results

With these case-vignettes, we provide a systematic approach on how to interpret the symptoms of ITB complications and an advice which further diagnostic and therapeutic steps to follow. We underline the seriousness of baclofen overdose, underdosing or withdrawal.
Tau strains shape disease
Authors: Vaquer-Alicea Jaime , Diamond Marc I. , Joachimiak Lukasz A.
Published: April 2021

Tauopathies consist of over 25 different neurodegenerative diseases that include argyrophilic grain disease (AGD), progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), corticobasal degeneration (CBD), and Pick’s disease (PiD). Tauopathies are defined by brain accumulation of microtubule-associated protein tau in fibrillar aggregates, whose prevalence strongly correlates with dementia. Dominant mutations in tau cause neurodegenerative diseases, and most increase its aggregation propensity. Pathogenesis of tauopathies may involve pathological tau conformers that serve as templates to recruit native protein into growing assemblies and also move between brain cells to cause disease progression, similar to prions. Prions adopt pathological conformations, termed “strains,” that stably propagate in living systems, and create unique patterns of neuropathology. Data from multiple laboratories now suggest that tau acts as a prion. It propagates unique strains indefinitely in cultured cells, and when these are inoculated into mouse models, they create defined neuropathological patterns, which establish a direct link between conformation and disease. In humans, distinct fibril structures are associated with different diseases, but causality has not been established as in mice. Cryo-EM structures of tau fibrils isolated from tauopathy brains reveal distinct fibril cores across disease. Interestingly, the conformation of the tau monomer unit within different fibril subtypes from the same patient appears relatively preserved. This is consistent with data that the tau monomer samples an ensemble of conformations that act as distinct pathologic templates in the formation of restricted numbers of strains. The propensity of a tau monomer to adopt distinct conformations appears to be linked to defined local motifs that expose different patterns of amyloidogenic amino acid sequences. The prion hypothesis, which predicts that protein structure dictates resultant disease, has proved particularly useful to understand the diversity of human tauopathies. The challenge now is to develop methods to rapidly classify patients according to the structure of the underlying pathological protein assemblies to achieve more accurate diagnosis and effective therapy.
Importance of evaluating protein glycosylation in pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes for research and clinical applications
Authors: Kelly Maia I. , Albahrani Mustafa , Castro Chase , Poon Ellen , Yan Bin , Littrell Jack , Waas Matthew , Boheler Kenneth R. , Gundry Rebekah L.
Published: April 2021

Proper protein glycosylation is critical to normal cardiomyocyte physiology. Aberrant glycosylation can alter protein localization, structure, drug interactions, and cellular function. The in vitro differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells into cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CM) has become increasingly important to the study of protein function and to the fields of cardiac disease modeling, drug testing, drug discovery, and regenerative medicine. Here, we offer our perspective on the importance of protein glycosylation in hPSC-CM. Protein glycosylation is dynamic in hPSC-CM, but the timing and extent of glycosylation are still poorly defined. We provide new data highlighting how observed changes in hPSC-CM glycosylation may be caused by underlying differences in the protein or transcript abundance of enzymes involved in building and trimming the glycan structures or glycoprotein gene products. We also provide evidence that alternative splicing results in altered sites of glycosylation within the protein sequence. Our findings suggest the need to precisely define protein glycosylation events that may have a critical impact on the function and maturation state of hPSC-CM. Finally, we provide an overview of analytical strategies available for studying protein glycosylation and identify opportunities for the development of new bioinformatic approaches to integrate diverse protein glycosylation data types. We predict that these tools will promote the accurate assessment of protein glycosylation in future studies of hPSC-CM that will ultimately be of significant experimental and clinical benefit.