bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Decreased brain modularity after psilocybin therapy for depression.
Authors: Daws Richard , Timmerman Christopher , Giribaldi Bruna , Sexton James , Wall Matthew , Erritzoe David , Roseman Leor , Nutt David , Carhart-Harris Robin
Published: May 2021

Importance Psilocybin therapy shows antidepressant potential; our data link its antidepressant effects to decreased brain network modularity post-treatment. Objective To assess the sub-acute impact of psilocybin on brain activity in patients with depression. Design Pre vs post-treatment resting-state functional MRI (fMRI) was recorded in two trials: 1) Open-label treatment-resistant depression (TRD) trial with baseline vs 1 day post-treatment fMRI (April-2015 to April-2016); 2) Two-arm double-blind RCT in major depressive disorder (MDD), fMRI baseline vs 3 week after psilocybin-therapy or 6 weeks of daily escitalopram (January-2019 to March-2020). Setting Study visits occurred at the NIHR Imperial Clinical Research Facility.Participants Adult male and female patients with TRD or MDD. Intervention(s) (for clinical trials) or Exposure(s) (for observational studies)Study 1: Two oral doses of psilocybin (10mg and 25mg, fixed order, 7 days apart). fMRI was recorded at baseline and one day after the 25mg dose. Study 2: either: 2 x 25mg oral psilocybin, 3 weeks apart, plus 6 weeks of daily placebo (‘psilocybin-arm’), or 2 x 1mg oral psilocybin, 3 weeks apart, plus 6 weeks of daily escitalopram [10-20mg] (‘escitalopram-arm’). fMRI was recorded at baseline and 3 weeks after the 2nd psilocybin dose, which was the final day of the 6-week daily capsule ingestion. Main Outcome(s) and Measure(s) Beck Depression Inventory and fMRI network modularity. Results Study 1: In 16 adults (mean age [SD], 42.8 [10.1] years, 4 [25%] female), psilocybin therapy was associated with markedly decreased BDI scores at 1 week (mean difference, -21; 95% CI=[-27.3, -14.7], P<.001) and 6 months (mean difference, -14.19; 95% CI=[-21.3, -7.1], P<.001). Decreased network modularity at one day post-treatment correlated with treatment response at 6 months (Pearson, 0.64; P=.01). Study 2: In 43 adults (42.7 [10.5] years, 14 [33%] female), antidepressant effects favoured the psilocybin-arm at 2 (mean difference, -8.76; 95% CI=[-13.6, -3.9], P=.002) and 6 weeks (mean difference, -8.78; 95% CI=[-15.6, -2.0], P=.01). Specific to the psilocybin-arm, improvements at the 6-week primary endpoint correlated with decreased network modularity (Pearson, -0.42, P=.025). Conclusions and Relevance Consistent efficacy-related functional brain changes correlating with robust and reliable antidepressant effects across two studies suggest a candidate antidepressant mechanism for psilocybin therapy: decreased brain network modularity. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT03429075
Nicotinic Acid Upregulates Intestinal Antimicrobial Peptides via Manipulating the Histone Acetylation Modification to Enhance the Resistance of Escherichia Coli Infection in Weaned Piglets
Authors: Feng Junsen , He Dongsheng , Chen Tianbao , Cai Weiyou , Chen Yibo , Xiong Yunxia , Wu Qiwen , Jiang Zongyong , Wang Li , Yi Hongbo
Published: May 2021

Background: Nicotinic acid (NA) has been used to treat different inflammatory disease with positive influence, the mechanisms by which NA exerts its anti-inflammatory effects remain largely undefined. Here we proposed a new mechanism that NA manipulated endogenous antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) which contributed to the elimination of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) K88, and thus affects the alleviation of inflammation.Results: The results showed that NA alleviated the clinical symptoms of weaned piglets infected with ETEC K88. NA significantly reduced the amount of ETEC K88 in the spleen and liver (P < 0.05). The intestinal morphological damage caused by ETEC K88 infection was alleviated by NA in weaned piglets. In addition, NA significantly alleviated the expression of inflammatory cytokine (IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α) in the serum and intestines of weaned piglets infected with ETEC K88 (P < 0.05). and increased in intestinal mucosa. NA significantly increased the content of SIgA and the expression of antimicrobial peptides (pBD2, PG1-5 and PR39) in intestines of weaned pigs. NA increased the diversity of microflora in colonic contents, while NA significantly reduced the relative abundance of Bacteroidetes, Bacteroidales and bacteroidia in weaned piglets infected with ETEC K88 (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the NA group significantly reduced the level of HDAC7 in jejunum (P < 0.05) and increased the level of SIRT1 in the colon compared with the Control group. Moreover, NA significantly increased the levels phosphorylation of histone H3 at Ser10 (pH3S10) in ileum and the levels of acetylation of lysine 9 on histone 3 (acH3K9) and acH3K27 in colon (P < 0.05) in weaned piglets infected with ETEC K88 (P < 0.05). Conclusions: NA could alleviate the clinical symptoms, the damage of intestinal morphology, and intestinal inflammation in weaned piglets infected ETEC K88 through enhancing the endogenous AMPs expression by manipulating the histone acetylation modification.
Effect of coal fly ash and vermicompost amendment on soil earthworm and nematode count, and change in soil carbon pool in rice nursery
Authors: DWIBEDI SANAT KUMAR , SAHU SANJAT KUMAR , MAHALIK JAYANTA KUMAR , BEHERA MANORAMA
Published: May 2021

Fly ash (FA) as a byproduct from the coal-fired power plants needs timely, effective, productive and safe disposal. Its application to soil at lower concentration is advocated by many researchers due to its soil ameliorative properties. Combined application of FA along with organic substrates such as farm yard manure, compost, and microbial culture has positive influence on soil biota and crop performance. But the xenobiotic effect of FA in presence of vermicompost (VC) has not yet been studied fully. The present investigation was carried out in western Odisha, India with native soil, FA and VC at 0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100% combinations (by weight) to study their effects on earthworm and nematode count, and change in soil carbon pool in rice nursery. The experiment was laid out in a factorial complete randomized design with three replications. The earthworm and nematode population at 40 DAS of rice was positively influenced by the concentration of VC in rhizosphere of rice nursery but FA addition affected earthworm survivability to an extent that no earthworm was found with more than 20% FA. Rhabditis terricola and Dorylaimids in the rhizosphere of rice nursery was also positively linked with VC concentration while FA had antagonistic effects. Absence of nematodes and earthworm at higher concentration of FA could be linked to xenobiotic effects of FA. Mild addition (20% each) of FA and VC to native soil could increase in carbon stock to the maximum extent due to combined effect of larger surface area of FA and minimized microbial activity limiting respirational carbon loss.
WITHDRAWN: Lung Involvement Multicentric Castleman of Hyaline-vascular Variant: 3 cases
Authors: Cen Jiemei , Chen Jiarui , Zeng Wen , Pan Mianluan , Qiu Ye , Zhang Jianquan
Published: May 2021

BackgroundCastleman disease is clinically divided into unicentric Castleman disease (UCD), with hyaline-vascular Variant (HV) as major pathological pattern, and multicentric Castleman disease (MCD), with plasma cell type (PC) most commonly. Lung involvement is a serious complication of CD and usually leads to death.MethodWe retrospectively analyzed the medical records of 3 patients admitted to The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University during January 1, 2007 to September 30, 2020.Result2 male and 1 female with age ranging from 16 years old to 63 years old were admitted. The involved areas varied a lot. Respiratory symptoms were seen in 3 cases, along with fever, weight loss and splenomegaly. Dry and wet rales were found in all patients. All patients had hypoxemia and obstructive ventilation dysfunction. Computed tomography (CT) mainly showed bronchiectasis and mediastinal lymph node enlargement. All 3 cases were complicated with PNP. 1 case failed chemotherapy after local mass excision, 1 case remitted after chemotherapy but the lung lesion was irreversible, and 1 case was untreated and soon die of respiratory failure.ConclusionCases of HV-MCD with pulmonary affected were characterized by small airway lesions and poor prognosis. Respiratory symptoms along with systemic symptoms were common.
Life, Trauma, and Growth in Adult Female Survivors of Bam Earthquake: The Phenomenology of 16-Year Post-Earthquake Lived Experience
Authors: Jafarizadeh Rayhaneh , Pourhusein Reza , Borghei Shahriar , Sakhi Shahin
Published: May 2021

Background: Earthquake, as a natural disaster, is considered to be one of the traumatic events. Considering the concept of trauma and two consequences of the earthquake (namely stress and growth), the present study aimed to delve into the 16-year post-earthquake living experience of adult female Bam earthquake’s survivors and its relationship with their current lives.Methods: This qualitative study was carried out in 2018, in which the interpretive phenomenological analysis method was adopted, and in-depth semi-structured interviews were run. In this study, six 22-34-year-old adult female survivors in the age range of 6-18 years at the time of the Bam Earthquake (2007) were selected using the purposive sampling method. Moreover, thematic analysis was used to extract the themes.Results: The participants’ lives could be depicted using the following themes: life before the earthquake, the moment of the earthquake, the first days after the earthquake, back to life, fear, regret, and excellence after the trauma.Conclusion: According to the findings, the pre-earthquake life and post-earthquake social support, including the same identity of the earthquake (e.g., Bam) survivors, are the significant dimensions making the tolerance of the earthquake experience possible. Moreover, the proximal experiences of fear and regret, as common orientations of traumatized individuals towards the future and the past, were also reflected in this study. Furthermore, all the participants reported Post-Traumatic Growth (PTG) experiences in their current personality, indicating the intertwined relationship between traumatic injury and trauma tolerance. This study's findings would provide researchers and practitioners with a deeper understanding of the same population's strengths and weaknesses. Policymakers are recommended to include supporting policies for earthquake survivors’ resilience in their public health plans.
Cure Rate and Associated Factors for Children with Severe Acute Malnutrition Under the Out Patient Therapeutic Care Programme in the Health Centres of Kabale District in Southwestern Uganda. A Cross Sectional Study.
Authors: SSEKAJJA VINCENT , WAMANI HENRY , KITUTU FREDDY , ATUKWASE ABEL
Published: May 2021

BACKGROUND Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among children under the age of five. Globally, SAM affects 19 million children with sub-Saharan Africa being the most affected. In Uganda, Global acute malnutrition (GAM) affects 4% and SAM 1% children. Kabale district in South Western Uganda, located in Kigezi sub-region, has been reported to have a GAM prevalence of 3.8 % and SAM of 2.9% among children below five years. To ensure timely detection and management of SAM, the government of Uganda in collaboration with development partners introduced Out Patient Therapeutic Care (OTC) program in all health centre level III and IV in Kabale district. However, there is limited information about the Cure rate of children and associated factors under the OTC program in Kabale district. This study was therefore designed to assess the Cure rate and factors affecting it. METHODS: A retrospective cross-sectional study was carried out on records of children under five years of age (n=637), presenting with SAM and enrolled on OTC program in the health centres of Kabale district between 2013 and 2015. Data were collected from the nutrition registration logbook using a structured check list and cleaned using Microsoft Excel. Data were then exported into STATA 12 for analysis. Univariate and Bivariate analysis together with logistic regression were run to generate frequencies and factors associated with the recovery of children from SAM. RESULTS: The Cure rate was 36.3% (n=231 cases) with a median Recovery time of 21 days. The Default rate was 58.6% (n=373 cases) while the Non-response rate was 0.6% (n=4 cases). Bivariate and multivariate analyses revealed that source where the child was coming from at admission Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR = 0.1, 95% CI 0.0, 0.7, p = 0.012), Weight at admission (AOR = 0.5, 95% CI 0.0, 0.9, p = 0.014) and Number of visits to the program (AOR = 14.9, 95% CI 9.3, 24.2, p = 0.040) were the major factors influencing the recovery of severely Malnourished children admitted in OTC programme in health centres in Kabale district.CONCLUSION: Overall the Cure rate and Default rate for the children under the OTC programme in Kabale district were found to be very unacceptable according to both the national and international standards. However, Death rate and Non-response rate were within the acceptable levels. To improve the Cure rates of children with SAM under the OTC programme in Kabale district, there is need for interventions aimed at encouraging caretakers to pay special attention to the number of visits to the programme.
8-oxoguanine DNA glycosylase1 recognizes oxidatively-generated epitranscriptomic marks on nascent mRNAs to promote RSV replication
Authors: Wang Ke , Hao Wenjing , Pan Lang , Xu Zheng , Bácsi Attila , Gagnon Matthieu , Ritwika Basu , Tian Bing , Zsolt Radak , Vlahopoulos Spiros , Hazra Tapas , Casola Antonella , Garofalo Roberto , Ba Xueqing , Brasier Allan , Boldogh Istvan
Published: May 2021

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection induces an oxidizing environment linked to increased viral load, expression of pro-inflammatory genes, and excessive lung inflammation. The mechanisms of how reactive oxygen species (ROS) promotes viral gene expression have remained largely elusive. Here we show that nascent (n)RNAs of RSV acquire 8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanine (8-oxo(r)Gua) -a covalently modified guanine base in their 5’-UTR peritranscriptionally, while paired with the 3’-terminus of viral gene(s). 8-oxo(r)Gua is bound by 8-oxoguanine DNA glycosylase1 (OGG1), a complex that physically interacts with and recruits the anti-terminator protein M2-1 to increase viral gene transcription. Knockdown of OGG1 (but not other DNA glycosylases) or inhibition of its binding, significantly decreased RSV mRNA, protein levels and yield of progeny in cultured cells and airways. Collectively, these data suggest that Gua oxidation in vRNA, serves as an epitranscriptomic mark that repurposes OGG1 to increase lytic viral replication. Pharmacological inhibition of OGG1 binding to the epitranscriptomic mark could have clinical utility to decrease manifestations of RSV infection.
Effectiveness of Extra Corporeal Removal Methods in the Management of Paraquat Poisoning: A Retrospective Analysis
Authors: Srid Balaji , Raj Jemima Pappu , Kunhikatta Vijayanarayana , Shivashankar K , Balakrishnan Athira , Poojari Pooja , Thunga Girish
Published: May 2021

Paraquat poisoning is a major medical problem in many parts of Asia, Pacific nations, and America. An increased rate of morbidity and mortality is associated with paraquat poisoning due to the absence of a definite antidote. The objective of this study is to assess the effectiveness of various treatment strategies with the outcome in paraquat poisoning. In this study the mean age of 206 patients were 28.14±11.35 years. Majority of the patient population were males (63.6%). Extra Corporeal Removal treatment (ECR) (45.6%) method was given majorly to the patients. Primary outcome analysis with respect to various ECR methods revealed that hemoperfusion (43.9%) showed better results compared to other ECR methods. Secondary outcome such as the ICU days (4.66±3.43), ventilator days (0.63±1.61), and secondary complications (7.6%) was comparatively less in the group treated with hemoperfusion. The treatment analysis revealed ECR of Paraquat by hemoperfusion ensured better clinical outcomes in terms of primary and secondary outcomes.
Association of Atrial Arrhythmias With Thrombospondin-1 in Patients With Acute Myocardial Infarction
Authors: Liao Wenkai , Xu Li , Pan Yuxia , Wei Jie , Wang Peijia , Yang Xinchun , Chen Mulei , Gao Yuanfeng
Published: May 2021

Objectives: Atrial remodeling is the main developmental cause of atrial arrhythmias (AA), which may induce atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, atrial tachycardia, and frequent premature atrial beats in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients. Thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1) has been shown to play an important role in inflammatory and fibrotic processes, but its role in atrial arrhythmias is not well described. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of TSP-1 in AMI patients with atrial arrhythmias. Methods: A total of 219 patients with AMI who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention and with no previous arrhythmias were included. TSP-1 were analyzed in plasma samples. Patients were classified into 2 groups, namely, with and without AA during the acute phase of MI. Continuous electrocardiographic monitoring was used for AA diagnosis in hospital. Results: Twenty-four patients developed AA. Patients with AA had higher TSP-1 levels (29.01 ± 25.87 μg/mL vs 18.36 ± 10.89 μg/mL, p < 0.001) than those without AA. AA patients also tended to be elderly (65.25 ± 9.98 years vs 57.47 ± 10.78 years, p < 0.001), had higher Hs-CRP (39.74 ± 43.50 mg/L vs 12.22 ± 19.25 mg/L, p < 0.001) and worse heart function. TSP-1 (OR, 1.033; 95% CI, 1.003–1.065, p = 0.034), Hs-CRP (OR, 1.023; 95% CI, 1.006–1.041, p = 0.008), age (OR, 1.067; 95% CI, 1.004–1.135, p = 0.038) and LVDd (OR, 1.142; 95% CI, 1.018–1.282, p = 0.024) emerged as independent risk factors for AA in AMI patients. Conclusion: TSP-1 is a potential novel indicator of atrial arrhythmias during AMI.
Bivariate Genomic Prediction of Phenotypes by Selecting Epistatic Interactions Across Years Based on Haplotype Blocks and Pruned Sets of SNPs
Authors: Vojgani Elaheh , Pook Torsten , Hölker Armin C. , Mayer Manfred , Schön Chris-Carolin , Simianer Henner
Published: May 2021

The importance of accurate genomic prediction of phenotypes in plant breeding is undeniable, as higher prediction accuracy can increase selection responses. In this study, we investigated the ability of three models to improve prediction accuracy by including phenotypic information from the last growing season. This was done by considering a single biological trait in two growing seasons (2017 and 2018) as separate traits in a multi-trait model. Thus, bivariate variants of the Genomic Best Linear Unbiased Prediction (GBLUP) as an additive model, Epistatic Random Regression BLUP (ERRBLUP) and selective Epistatic Random Regression BLUP (sERRBLUP) as epistasis models were compared with respect to their prediction accuracies for the second year. The results indicate that bivariate ERRBLUP is almost identical to bivariate GBLUP in prediction accuracy, while bivariate sERRBLUP has the highest prediction accuracy in most cases. The obtained prediction accuracies were similar when utilizing pruned sets of SNPs and haplotype blocks, while utilizing haplotype blocks reduces the computational load significantly compared to utilizing pruned sets of SNPs. The prediction accuracies of bivariate GBLUP, ERRBLUP and sERRBLUP have been assessed across eight phenotypic traits and studied datasets from 471/402 doubled haploid lines in the European maize landrace Kemater Landmais Gelb/Petkuser Ferdinand Rot. We further investigated the genomic correlation, phenotypic correlation and trait heritability as factors affecting the bivariate models’ prediction accuracy, with genetic correlation between growing seasons being the most important one. For all three considered model architectures results were far worse when using a univariate version of the model.
Toxicology of Ngirimbo Samples across Chitipa District
Authors: Mithi Vita , Kamanula John F. , Pandey Ashok , Dewey Rebecca S.
Published: May 2021

Introduction: Smokeless tobacco describes a wide variety of tobacco products that do not require combustion, and is typically used either orally or nasally. Ngirimbo is a form of oral smokeless tobacco used by smokers in Malawi for tobacco harm reduction. The aim of this study was to determine the acidity (pH), nicotine content, mineral content (iron, zinc, calcium, magnesium and copper), heavy metal content (lead, chromium and cadmium), and presence of other volatile compounds in ngirimbo across Chitipa District in Malawi . Methods: Atomic absorption spectrophotometry and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry were used to estimate nicotine content, concentration of toxic heavy metals, minerals of potential toxicity and other harmful chemicals in the samples. Results: Samples were found to contain harmful chemicals, high pH and nicotine [2-(1-methyl-2-pyrolidinyl)-pyridine, (S)- and (S)-3-(1-methyl-2-pyrolidinyl)-pyridine] levels. Mineral concentrations were found to be much higher than typical safety limits. Conversely, samples were not found to contain lead, and had low concentrations of chromium and cadmium. Conclusions: These findings suggest that prolonged use of ngirimbo is a significant health risk to people with chronic diseases. Nonetheless, ngirimbo provides a valid method of tobacco harm reduction and a potential smoking cessation tool. Therefore, further analytical toxicological studies are needed to fully characterize variations in the quality of the product. Implications : Consumers of ngirimbo are susceptible to acute toxic effects of oral and dermal exposure to the product, as well as addiction. Some individuals would suffer from convulsions or seizures following ngirimbo use, and other clinical consequences depending on the amount ingested. However, understanding the amount of nicotine, and other volatile constituents, consumed through ngirimbo use will help to generate recommendations for quantity and frequency of use. Further, establishing the threshold of harm for nicotine consumption will contribute to the extraction, isolation, and use of nicotine as a smoking-cessation agent, and for treating psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s.
The Role of Lymph Node Dissection in Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma: A Multicenter Retrospective Study.
Authors: Hu Hanjie , Xu Gang , Du Shunda , Luo Zhiwen , Zhao Hong , Cai Jianqiang
Published: May 2021

BackgroundLymph node dissection (LND) is of great significance in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC). Although the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines recommend routine LND in ICC, the effects of LND remains controversial. This study aimed to explore the role and application of LND in ICC.MethodsPatients were identified in two Chinese academic centers. Inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) was used to reduce bias. Kaplan–Meier curves and Cox proportional hazards models were used to compare overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS).ResultsOf 232 patients, 177 (76.3%) underwent LND, and 71 (40.1%) had metastatic lymph nodes. A minimum of 6 lymph nodes were dissected in 66 patients (37.3%). LND did not improve the prognosis of ICC. LNM >3 may have worse OS and DFS than LNM 1-3, especially in the LND >=6 group. For nLND patients, the adjuvant treatment group had better OS and DFS.ConclusionsCA 19-9, CEA, operative time, positive surgical margin, and T stage were independent risk factors for OS; CEA and differentiation were independent risk factors for DFS. LND has no definite predictive effect on prognosis. Patients with 4 or more LNMs may have a worse prognosis than patients with 1-3 LNMs. Adjuvant therapy may benefit patients of nLND.
Toward Ultrathin Gold Nanoshells: Exploring Seed Density, Polymer Additives and Microwave Radiation Effects
Authors: Lermusiaux Laurent , Plissonneau Marie , Bertry Laure , Drisko Glenna L. , Buissette Valérie , Mercier Thierry Le , Duguet Etienne , Tréguer-Delapierre Mona
Published: May 2021

Nanoshells made of a silica core and a gold shell possess an optical response that is sensitive to nanometre-scale variations in shell thickness. The exponential red shift of the plasmon resonance with decreasing shell thickness makes ultrathin nanoshells (less than 10 nm) particularly interesting for broad and tuneable ranges of optical properties. Nanoshells are generally synthesised by coating gold onto seed-covered silica particles, producing continuous shells with a lower limit of 15 nm, as a result of an inhomogeneous droplet formation on the silica surface during the seed regrowth. In this paper, we investigate the effects of three variations of the synthesis protocol to favour ultrathin nanoshells: seed density, polymer additives and microwave treatment. We first maximised gold seed density around the silica core but surprisingly its effect is limited. However, we found that the addition of polyvinylpyrrolidone during the shell synthesis leads to higher homogeneity and a thinner shell and that a post-synthetic thermal treatment using microwaves can further smooth the particle surface. This study brings new insights into the synthesis of metallic nanoshells, pushing the limits of ultrathin shell synthesis.
Long-Term Impact of Conventional and Optimal Contribution Conservation Methods on Genetic Diversity and Genetic Gain in Chinese Indigenous Pig Breeds
Authors: Zhao Qingbo , Liu Huiming , Qadri Qamar Raza , Wang Qishan , Pan Yuchun , Su Guosheng
Published: May 2021

Background

China has rich and vast genetic resources of indigenous pig breeds. Currently, great attention is paid to either crossbreeding or conservation of these indigenous pig breeds, and insufficient attention is paid to the combination of conservation and breeding along with their long-term effects on genetic diversity. The genetic diversity of livestock is essential to increase productivity and respond to future challenges such as climate change. The genetic stability and product consistency of these indigenous pig breeds should be focused on and further improved. Therefore, the objective of this study is to compare the long-term effects of using conventional conservation and optimal contribution selection methods on genetic gain and genetic diversity.
Results

A total of 11 different methods including conventional conservation and optimal contribution selection methods were investigated using stochastic simulations with a population size of 600 animals in each generation. Each scenario was run for 20 generations and 100 replicates. The long-term effects of using these methods were evaluated in terms of rate of genetic gain, rate of true inbreeding based on genome-wide identity-by-descient (IBD) markers and various genetic diversity metrices such as expected heterozygosity (He). The results indicated that the rates of true inbreeding in these conventional conservation methods were maintained at around 0.01. The optimal contribution selection methods based either on the pedigree (POCS) or genome (GOCS) information showed more genetic gain than conventional methods, and POCS achieved the largest gentic gain. Furthermore, the effect of using GOCS methods on most of the genetic diversity metrics was slightly better than the conventional conservation methods when the the rate of true inbreeding was the same, but this also required more sires used in OCS methods. According to the rate of true inbreeding, there was no significant difference among these conventional methods.
Conclusion

In conclusion, there is no significant difference in different ways of selecting sows on inbreeding when we use different conventional conservation methods. Compared with conventional methods, POCS method could achieve the most genetic gain. However, GOCS methods can not only achieve higher genetic gain, but also maintain a relatively high level of genetic diversity. Therefore, GOCS is a better choice if we want to combine conservation and breeding in actual production in the Chinese national-level conservation farms.
How Healthy Are Horticultural Plants Grown in Polluted Cities? The Case of Mexico City
Authors: Alonso-Durán Ivonne , Hernández-Álvarez Elizabeth , Morton-Bermea Ofelia , Castro-Larragoitia Javier , Ortega Margarita Collazo
Published: May 2021

Soil to plant metal(loid) accumulation has been highly evaluated in recent years due to its significant impact on human health. This study reports the concentrations of 15 metal(loid)s in four vegetables (tomato, onion, chili, and lettuce) cultivated in one greenhouse, one top garden, and two roof gardens, rooftop urban gardens in four locations within the metropolitan area of Mexico City. In this experiment, the contribution of metals and metalloids due to atmospheric deposition and irrigation may be negligible. It is considered that the concentration of metals depends only on transfer from the soil. Soil analysis indicates that only vanadium in one location (a rooftop garden in V. Carranza) exceeds the permissible limits recommended by the Mexican government. For most metals, lettuce shows the highest concentrations and transfer factors compared to the other vegetables studied. The transfer factors were exceptionally high for Cd (lettuce) and Hg (tomato), presenting values above 1. The concentrations of As, Cd, Hg, and Pb were compared with permissible limit values recommended for vegetables by different international agencies. It was observed that, except for As, these values are exceeded in various vegetables harvested in this study. This information must be corroborated with more detailed studies evaluating the chemical species in which those metal(loid)s is present and identifying the physicochemical parameters of the soil that caused the enrichment of these metal(loid)s to exceed the permissible limit values.
Isolated Skyrmion, Skyrmion Lattice, and Antiskyrmion Lattice Creation Through Magnetization Reversal in Co/Pd Nanostructure
Authors: Kandukuri Sateesh , v satya narayana murthy , K Thiru Vikraman P
Published: May 2021

Skyrmion and antiskyrmion spin textures are axisymmetric inhomogeneous localized objects with distinct chirality in magnetic systems. These spin textures are potential candidates for the next generation energy-efficient spintronic applications due to their unique topological properties. Controlled and effective creation of the spin textures is required to use in conventional and neuromorphic computing applications. Here we show the creation of an isolated skyrmion, skyrmion lattice, and antiskyrmion lattice by the magnetization reversal in Co/Pd multilayer nanostructure using spin-polarized current. The spin textures' stability depends on the spin-polarized current density, current pulse width, and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI). Antiskyrmions are evolved during the formation of a single skyrmion and skyrmion lattice. Skyrmion and antiskyrmion lattices together are observed for lower pulse width, 0.05 ns. Our micromagnetic studies suggest that the two distinct lattice phases' evolution could help to design the topological spin textures-based devices.
Inequalities in Catastrophic Health Expenditures in Conflict-Affected Areas and the Colombian Peace Agreement: An Oaxaca Blinder Change Decomposition Analysis
Authors: Leon-Giraldo Sebastian , Cuervo-Sanchez Juan Sebastián , Casas German , González-Uribe Catalina , Kreif Noemi , Bernal Oscar , Moreno-Serra Rodrigo
Published: May 2021

BackgroundThe present study analyzes inequalities in catastrophic health expenditures in conflict-affected regions of Meta, Colombia and socioeconomic factors contributing to the existence and changes in catastrophic expenditures before and after the sign of Colombian Peace Agreement with FARC-EP guerilla group in 2016.MethodsThe study uses the results of the survey Conflicto, Paz y Salud (CONPAS) conducted in 1309 households of Meta, Colombia, a territory historically impacted by armed conflict, for the years 2014 and 2018. We define catastrophic expenditures as health expenditures above 20% of the capacity to pay of a household. We disaggregate the changes in inequalities in catastrophic expenditures through the Oaxaca-Blinder change decomposition method.ResultsThe incidence of catastrophic expenditures slightly increased between 2014 to 2018, from 29.3–30.7%. Inequalities in catastrophic expenditures, measured through concentration indexes (CI), also increased from 2014 (CI: -0.152) to 2018 (CI: -0.232). Results show that differences in catastrophic expenditures between socioeconomic groups are mostly attributed to an increased influence of specific sociodemographic variables such as living in rural zones, being a middle-aged person, living in conflict-affected territories, or presenting any type of mental and physical disability.ConclusionsConflict-deescalation and the peace agreement may have facilitated lower-income groups to have access to health services, especially in territories highly impacted by conflict. This, consequently, may have led to higher levels of out-of-pocket expenditures and, therefore, to higher chances of experiencing catastrophic expenditures for lower-income groups in comparison to higher-income groups. Therefore, results indicate the importance of designing policies that guarantee access to health services for people in conflict -affected regions but also, that minimize health care inequalities in out-of-pocket payments that may arouse between people at different socioeconomic groups.
An Exhaled microRNA Panel Interrogated for Lung Cancer Case-Control Discrimination
Authors: Shi Miao , Han Weiguo , Loudig Olivier , Shah Chirag D. , Dobkin Jay B. , Keller Steven , Sadoughi Ali , Zhu Changcheng , Siegel Robert E. , Fernandez Maria Katherine , DeLaRosa Lizzet , Patel Dhruv , Desai Aditi , Siddiqui Taha , Gombar Saurabh , Suh Yousin , Wang Tao , Hosgood H. Dean , Pradhan Kith , Ye Kenny , Spivack Simon D.
Published: May 2021

Background: An exhaled microRNA-based lung cancer case-control discriminant biomarker strategy is reported.Methods: A microRNA-seq discovery effort compared paired tumor to non-tumor tissue, was reconciled with analogous TCGA and published literature-based tissue-discriminant microRNA data, yielding a candidate panel of 24 microRNAs that are upregulated in either adenocarcinomas and/or squamous cell carcinomas. The technical feasibility of microRNA-PCR assays in exhaled breath condensate (EBC) was tested. The airway origin of exhaled microRNAs was then topographically “fingerprinted”, using paired EBC and bronchoscopic samples. For initial EBC testing, a clinic-based case-control set of 351 individuals (166 NSCLC cases, 185 non-cancer controls) was interrogated with the 24-candidate microRNA panel by qualitative RT-PCR, and curated by melt curve analysis. Data were analyzed by both logistic regression (LR), and by random-forest (RF) models, validated by iterative resampling.Results: Both feasibility of exhaled microRNA detection, and its origins in part from lower airway sources, were confirmed. LR models adjusted for age, sex, smoking status, pack years, quit-years, and underlying lung disease identified exhaled miR-21, 33b, 212 (p.adj,=0.019, 0.018, 0.033, resp.) as case-control discriminant. For the RF analysis, the combined clinical + microRNA models showed modest added discrimination capacity (1.1–2.5%) beyond the clinical models alone: by subgroup, all subjects 1.1% (p = 8.7e-04)); former smokers 2.5% (p = 3.6e-05); early stage 1.2% (p = 9.0e-03). Sensitivity, specificity, positive- and negative-predictive values of the clinical + microRNA models for the entire cohort were 71%-76%.Conclusion: This work suggests that exhaled microRNAs are measurable qualitatively; reflect in part lower airway signatures; and if improved/refined, can potentially help distinguish lung cancer cases from controls.
An Intelligent Control System of Remanufacturing Assembly for Improving Quality and Production Efficiency
Authors: Liu Conghu , Cai Wei , Zhu Guang , Gao Mengdi
Published: May 2021

Remanufacturing has been considered to be one of the most effective ways to deal with sustainable manufacturing. The integration of intelligent technology and remanufacturing assembly system is a necessary way for the development of remanufacturing industry. This paper proposes an intelligent control system for improving the quality and production efficiency of the remanufacturing assembly (reassembly) systems. First, the state space model of reassembly is constructed and deduced to reveal the quality transfer and coupling mechanism of reassembly process. An optimization model of the reassembly scheme is established for minimizing the comprehensive cost. Then, an intelligent control system for reassembly process is proposed, which is a real-time monitoring and dynamic compensation response to address abnormal quality and to achieve intelligent control of reassembly process. The data model, information perception and fusion technology, real-time monitoring and dynamic compensation of reassembly quality are studied and implemented. Finally, the prototype intelligent control system of reassembly is developed, which illustrates its practicability offering a technical support for sustainability of remanufacturing. It can monitor the abnormal quality in real time and make dynamic compensation response, and realize the intelligent control of reassembly process. It plays a positive role in improving quality, reducing cost and enhancing customer satisfaction. This intelligent control method is more suitable for the reassembly system of complex machinery, especially under uncertain operating environment.
Incidence and Temporal Changes in Lumbar Degeneration and Low Back Pain in Child and Adolescent Weightlifters: Prospective 5-Year Cohort Study
Authors: Yoshimizu Rikuto , Nakase Junsuke , Yoshioka Katsuhito , Shimozaki Kengo , Asai Kazuki , Toyooka Kazu , Kimura Mitsuhiro , Kitaoka Katsuhiko , Tsuchiya Hiroyuki
Published: May 2021

PurposeTo investigate the incidence of lumbar degeneration findings and low back pain (LBP) over a 5-year period in children and adolescent weightlifters using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and medical questionnaires. Furthermore, to reveal the temporal changes in the lumbar vertebrae caused by long-term hard weightlifting training during the growth period.MethodsTwelve children and adolescent weightlifters who participated in weightlifting for >2 years (six boys, six girls, 11.4±2.0 years) were enrolled. Participants underwent annual medical questionnaire surveys including practice frequency, competition history, presence of LBP, and lumbar examinations using MRI during the 5-year follow-up.ResultsLumbar disc degeneration was detected in all participants after 4 years, and lumbar disc herniation findings were detected in 33% of participants after 5 years; one underwent herniotomy during the follow-up period. Lumbar spondylolysis was detected in 58% of patients at 5 years. Although there were three participants who had LBP in the final year, none had LBP that prevented them from returning to weightlifting.ConclusionA 5-year cohort study of 12 children and adolescent weightlifters detected lumbar degeneration in all participants. Long-term hard weightlifting training during the growth period may increase the risk of developing current and future LBP.
Hepatotoxic manifestations of arsenic trioxide loaded poly (lactide-co-glycolide) nanoparticles in wistar rat
Authors: Verma Yeshvandra , Rana Kavita , Rani Varsha , Rana S VS
Published: May 2021

Present study reports on the hepatotoxic manifestations of arsenic trioxide loaded poly lactide-co-glycolide nanoparticles (As2O3-PLGA- NPs) in rats. As2O3-PLGA- NPs enhances the activity of serum transaminases. As2O3-PLGA-NPs are potential inducer of lipid peroxidation in mitochondria as well as microsomes. Mitochondrial lipid peroxidation was higher than the microsomal lipid peroxidation. CYP450 2E1 was lower in the liver of As2O3-PLGA- NPs treated rats in comparison to arsenic trioxide treated rats. GSH showed lower values than control rats and arsenic trioxide treated rats. Glutathione-S-transferase inhibited by arsenic trioxide, non significant increase was recorded in the liver of As2O3-PLGA- NPs treated rats. As2O3-PLGA- NPs readily accumulates in liver and induces peculiar histopathological changes viz. intracytoplasmic/intranuclear inclusions and apoptosis. Since As2O3-PLGA- NPs are being considered as a suitable chemo-preventive agent against different types of cancer, its toxicological properties are of prime concern from bio-safety point of view. Thus, present observations seem to be important from human health risk assessment point of view.
Combined Quantitative and Qualitative Optical Coherence Tomography Angiography Biomarkers for Predicting Active Neovascular Age-related Macular Degeneration
Authors: Hsu Cherng-Ru , Lai Tso-Ting , Hsieh Yi-Ting , Ho Tzyy-Chang , Yang Chung-May , Yang Chang-Hao
Published: May 2021

Purpose: To investigate choroidal neovascularization (CNV) activity after anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) therapy in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) by optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) and to determine whether combined qualitative and quantitative biomarkers can achieve high predictive accuracy to guide treatment decisions.Methods: Patients diagnosed with type 1 or type 2 CNV via multimodal imaging who had received anti-VEGF treatment were retrospectively reviewed. Qualitative and quantitative CNV responses on OCTA after serial injections were analyzed, and the assessment was correlated with their structural OCT scans. The enrolled eyes were divided into two groups: eyes with exudative signs on structural OCT and those without exudative signs. Results: Fifty-seven eyes of 56 patients were included in the study. Twenty-eight eyes (49.1%) were classified as the “active group”, and 29 eyes (50.9%) were categorized as the “silent group”. Qualitative biomarkers of CNV showed significant differences between the two groups (branching capillaries: 50.0% vs 6.9%, p < 0.001; anastomoses and loops: 78.6% vs 13.8%, p < 0.001; peripheral arcade: 39.3% vs 10.3%, p = 0.015, and hypointense halo: 82.1% vs 41.4%, p = 0.003). A significantly higher vessel density was found in the active group (41.8 ± 12.0% vs 31.0 ± 11.5%, p=0.002). “Anastomoses and loops” and “vessel density” predicted an active CNV status with a probability of 93.7% and achieved the best performance. Conclusions: The combination of two potential biomarkers of CNV on OCTA predicts a high possibility of an active disease status that suggests optimal decisions to treat.
An Ecofriendly Synthesis of 2-oxazolidinone From 2-aminoethanol and Urea Under Solvent-free Condition Using CeO2 Nanoparticles
Authors: KHARAT ALI NEMATI , Aliahmadi Mehrnaz
Published: May 2021

Cerium dioxide nanoparticles were prepared by the sol-gel method using cellulose as a template and used in the synthesis of 2-oxazolidinone from urea and 2-aminoethanol under solvent-free conditions. All the reaction parameters were optimized to obtain the best selectivity and conversion. The selectivity of 100 % to 2-oxazolidinone with a pretty complete conversion of about 98.4 % was achieved. The prepared catalyst was characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and volumetric isothermal nitrogen gas adsorption-desorption method (BET).
Genomic Resources of Broomcorn Millet: Demonstration and Application of a High-throughput BAC Mapping Pipeline
Authors: Xu Wei , Liang Mengjie , Yang Xue , Wang Hao , Luo Meizhong
Published: May 2021

Background: With high-efficient water-use and drought tolerance, broomcorn millet has emerged as a candidate for food security. To promote its research process for molecular breeding and functional research, a comprehensive genome resource is of great importance. Results: Herein, we constructed a BAC library for broomcorn millet, generated BAC end sequences based on the clone-array pooled shotgun sequencing strategy and Illumina sequencing technology, and integrated BAC clones into genome by a novel pipeline for BAC end profiling. The BAC library is consisted of 76,023 clones with an average insert length of 123.48 Kb, covering about 9.9-fold of the 850 Mb genome. Of 9,216 clones tested using our pipeline, 8,262 clones were mapped on the broomcorn millet cultivar longmi4 genome. These mapped clones covered 308 of the 829 gaps left by the genome. To our knowledge, this is the only BAC resource for broomcorn millet.Conclusions: We constructed a high-quality BAC libraray for broomcorn millet and designed a novel pipeline for BAC end profiling. BAC clones can be browsed and obtained from our website (http://eightstarsbio.com/gresource/JBrowse-1.16.5/index.html). The high-quality BAC clones mapped on genome in this study will provide a powerful genomic resource for genome gap filling, complex segment sequencing, FISH, functional research, and genetic engineering of broomcorn millet.
Autoimmune Haemolysis After Operation of Gastric Cancer Complicated With Drug-refractory Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura: a Case Report and Review of the Literature
Authors: Pang Xiao , Guan Wei-Kang , Pan Yu-Lin , Zhang Yi-Chao , Xu Li-Ya , Zhang Jun
Published: May 2021

Background: To the best of our knowledge, few reports are available at home and abroad on autoimmune haemolysis occurring after operation of gastric cancer complicated with drug-refractory idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP)(Table 1). The treatment process in this case is usually risky, and multidisciplinary collaboration is often required. Therefore, the case report aims to improve the awareness of the perioperative management of this type of patients.Case presentation: A 69-year-old male admitted to the hospital for "anaemia" was diagnosed with gastric adenocarcinoma after gastroscopy and biopsy. This diagnosis was confirmed to be an early stage by abdominal CT imaging. However, the patient had an extremely low platelet level and a history of hormone therapy. Moreover, administration of thrombopoietin and immunoglobulin was ineffective for treatment. After transfusion of aphaeretic platelets, laparoscopic total gastrectomy with D2 lymphadenectomy and splenectomy were performed. Anastomotic bleeding and autoimmune haemolysis occurred after the operation. Haemolytic symptoms were spontaneously relieved after a period of hospitalisation.Conclusion: This case involved many disciplines, and revealed the interaction and mutual promotion of gastric cancer, ITP and autoimmune haemolysis, but further relationships need to be further investigated.