bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
On next-to-leading power threshold corrections in Drell-Yan production at N3LO
Authors: Bahjat-Abbas N. , Sinninghe Damsté J. , Vernazza L. , White C. D.
Published: October 2018

Abstract

The cross-section for Drell-Yan production of a vector boson has been previously calculated at next-to-next-to-leading order, supplemented by enhanced logarithmic terms associated with the threshold region. In this paper, we calculate a large set of enhanced terms associated with the colour structure C

F

3
at N3LO, for the double real emission contribution in the quark-antiquark channel, as an expansion around the threshold region up to and including the first subleading power. We perform our calculation using the method of regions, which systematically characterises all contributions according to whether the virtual gluon is (next-to) soft, collinear or hard in nature. Our results will prove useful for developing general formalisms for classifying next-to-leading power (NLP) threshold effects. They are also interesting in their own right, given that they constitute a previously unknown contribution to the Drell-Yan cross-section at

$$ \mathcal{O}\left({\alpha}_s^3\right) $$

O

α
s
3

.
Cervical Medial Branch Block Volume Dependent Dispersion Patterns as a Predictor for Ablation Success: A Cadaveric Study
Authors: Wahezi Sayed E. , Molina Jocelin J. , Alexeev Edward , Georgy John S. , Haramati Nogah , Erosa Stephen A. , Shah Jay M. , Downie Sherry
Published: October 2018

Background

Neck pain is one of the most common causes of chronic pain and the fourth leading cause of disability worldwide; it is estimated that between 36% and 67% of this pain is due to facet arthropathy. For patients who have pain refractory to conservative treatments literature supports management with diagnostic cervical medial branch blocks (MBBs) to identify the associated facet innervation as the source of pain followed by therapeutic radiofrequency ablation (RFA) of the identified nerves. Cervical RFA has good published outcomes; however, the procedure is dependent upon the specificity of the diagnostic block to achieve maximal success. Currently, this prerequisite test has false positive rates between 27% and 63% and recent studies have shown that this may, in part, be a consequence of currently accepted injection volumes of 0.50 mL or more, which may decrease the sensitivity of MBBs.

Objective

To evaluate the possible differences in volume dispersion between 0.25 and 0.50 mL of injectate during cervical MBBs.

Study Design

Cadaveric study.

Setting

An academic medical center in the United States.

Patients

Not applicable.

Methods

This was a cadaveric study in which six subjects were chosen with intact cervical spines. Cervical MBB were performed bilaterally at the midcervical spine, using a posterior approach under fluoroscopic guidance. 0.25 or 0.50 mL of a 9:1 solution of Omnipaque 180 mg iodine/mL and 1% medical grade methylene blue were administered on the left and right sides, respectively. Postinjection computed tomography (CT) imaging and gross dissection were performed to assess injectate spread.

Main Outcome Measures

Outcome measures after using commonly injected volumes for cervical MBB, included visualized and measured spread (by CT and gross dissection) of cervical medial branch blocks, coating adjacent structures not targeted by RFA.

Results

Postinjection CT imaging and cadaveric dissection demonstrated that, although both volumes adequately coated the medial branches, the 0.50 mL cohort reliably spread dorsally to superficial muscles (splenius) and nerves distant from the targeted nerves (dorsal motor branches to splenius), whereas the 0.25 mL injectate cohort was contained in the deep and intermediate muscular cervical layers directly juxtaposed to the targeted cMBBs.

Conclusion

Results suggest that 0.50 mL injections of local anesthetic during cervical MBBs contacts many nonintended targets, thus decreasing the specificity of a targeted diagnostic cervical MBB. Furthermore, we demonstrated that 0.25 mL of injectate reliably bathed the cervical medial branches without extensive extravasation. This indicates that there would potentially be fewer local anesthetic effects on distant tissues, increasing the specificity of cervical MBBs and likely improving RFA planning.
Publishing the Science Fiction Canon
Authors: Roberts Adam
Published: October 2018

Science fiction was being written throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, but it underwent a rapid expansion of cultural dissemination and popularity at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth century. This Element explores the ways this explosion in interest in 'scientific romance', that informs today's global science fiction culture, manifests the specific historical exigences of the revolutions in publishing and distribution technology. H. G. Wells, Jules Verne and other science fiction writers embody in their art the advances in material culture that mobilize, reproduce and distribute with new rapidity, determining the cultural logic of twentieth-century science fiction in the process.
Normal stress differences in dense suspensions
Authors: Seto Ryohei , Giusteri Giulio G.
Published: October 2018

The presence and the microscopic origin of normal stress differences in dense suspensions under simple shear flows are investigated by means of inertialess particle dynamics simulations, taking into account hydrodynamic lubrication and frictional contact forces. The synergic action of hydrodynamic and contact forces between the suspended particles is found to be the origin of negative contributions to the first normal stress difference
$N_{1}$
, whereas positive values of
$N_{1}$
observed at higher volume fractions near jamming are due to effects that cannot be accounted for in the hard-sphere limit. Furthermore, we found that the stress anisotropy induced by the planarity of the simple shear flow vanishes as the volume fraction approaches the jamming point for frictionless particles, while it remains finite for the case of frictional particles.
Waves on a vortex: rays, rings and resonances
Authors: Torres Theo , Coutant Antonin , Dolan Sam , Weinfurtner Silke
Published: October 2018

We study the scattering of surface water waves with irrotational draining vortices. At small depth, this system is a mathematical analogue of a rotating black hole and can be used to mimic some of its peculiar phenomena. Using ray-tracing methods, we exhibit the existence of unstable orbits around vortices at arbitrary depth. These orbits are the analogue of the light rings of a black hole. We show that these orbits come in pairs, one co-rotating and one counter-rotating, at an orbital radius that varies with the frequency. We derived an explicit formula for this radius in the deep-water regime. Our method is validated by comparison with recent experimental data from a wavetank experiment. We finally argue that these rings will generate a discrete set of damped resonances that we characterize and that could possibly be observed in future experiments.
Religion, race, and the nation inLa Tradotta del Fronte Giulio, 1942–1943
Authors: Virtue Nicolas G.
Published: October 2018

This paper examines intersections and divergences between Catholic universalism and Fascist ethno-nationalism in the pages ofLa Tradotta del Fronte Giulio, a satirical weekly newspaper for Italian military personnel in occupied Yugoslavia during the Second World War. Military propagandists appealed to grassroots Catholicism to motivate demoralised Italian soldiers in the last year of war against the communist-led Yugoslav partisan movement. Their use of Catholic themes revealed overlapping values but also apparent incongruities between Christianity, Fascism, and Italian military culture that had been evident throughout theventennio. While Catholic anti-communism blended relatively seamlessly with nationalist-Fascist anti-Slavism to depict the partisan enemy as a dehumanised Other, the use of conventional piety and Christian humanitarianism in the army’s propaganda contradicted Fascist and military concepts of the ideal Italian ‘new man’. In the process, military propagandists sowed the seeds for thebrava gentemyth that dominated postwar memory and national identity in Italy.
Retrieval of Englacial Firn Aquifer Thickness From Ice‐Penetrating Radar Sounding in Southeastern Greenland
Authors: Chu W. , Schroeder D. M. , Siegfried M. R.
Published: October 2018

An extensive perennial firn aquifer was previously mapped in Helheim Glacier, Southeast Greenland. However, critical constraints on aquifer thickness have been so far unobtainable without expensive field observations. Here we present a novel method that combines very high frequency airborne deep ice radar and ice sheet modeling to retrieve aquifer thickness and its evolution at Helheim Glacier. Using 2012–2014 radar measurements, we identify three aquifers of 4–25 m thick, with a total area of 1,934 km2 and water storage of 2.2 ± 1.5 Gt, about half the volume of previous estimates. The aquifer system is dynamic, and its thickness varies interannually at a rate similar to changes in surface mass balance. The rapid upstream migration of the saturated aquifer implies that this feature has the potential to increase its storage potential in upper Greenland. Together, a combination of very high‐ and ultra high frequency radar sounding provides a powerful tool to characterize englacial firn aquifers.
Predictability of Extreme Precipitation in Western U.S. Watersheds Based on Atmospheric River Occurrence, Intensity, and Duration
Authors: Chen Xiaodong , Leung L. Ruby , Gao Yang , Liu Ying , Wigmosta Mark , Richmond Marshall
Published: October 2018

We quantified the relationship between atmospheric rivers (ARs) and occurrence and magnitude of extreme precipitation in western U.S. watersheds, using ARs identified by the Atmospheric River Tracking Method Intercomparison Project and precipitation from a high‐resolution regional climate simulation. Our analysis shows the potential of ARs in predicting extreme precipitation events at a daily scale, with Gilbert Skill Scores of ~0.2. Monthly extreme precipitation amount in west coast watersheds is closely related to AR intensity, with correlation coefficients of up to 0.6. The relationship between ARs and precipitation is most significant in the Pacific Northwest and California. Using a K‐means clustering algorithm, ARs can be classified into three categories: weak ARs, flash ARs, and prolonged ARs. Flash ARs and prolonged ARs, though accounting for less than 50% of total AR events, are more important in controlling extreme precipitation patterns and should be prioritized for future studies of hydrological extreme events.
Implicit preference for human trustworthy faces in macaque monkeys
Authors: Costa Manuela , Gomez Alice , Barat Elodie , Lio Guillaume , Duhamel Jean-René , Sirigu Angela
Published: October 2018

It has been shown that human judgements of trustworthiness are based on subtle processing of specific facial features. However, it is not known if this ability is a specifically human function, or whether it is shared among primates. Here we report that macaque monkeys (Macaca Mulatta and Macaca Fascicularis), like humans, display a preferential attention to trustworthiness-associated facial cues in computer-generated human faces. Monkeys looked significantly longer at faces categorized a priori as trustworthy compared to untrustworthy. In addition, spatial sequential analysis of monkeys’ initial saccades revealed an upward shift with attention moving to the eye region for trustworthy faces while no change was observed for the untrustworthy ones. Finally, we found significant correlations between facial width-to-height ratio– a morphometric feature that predicts trustworthiness’ judgments in humans – and looking time in both species. These findings suggest the presence of common mechanisms among primates for first impression of trustworthiness.
Simulated warming enhances biological invasion of Solidago canadensis and Bidens frondosa by increasing reproductive investment and altering flowering phenology pattern
Authors: Cao Yusong , Xiao Yi’an , Zhang Sisi , Hu Wenhai
Published: October 2018

Phenological and reproductive shifts of plants due to climate change may have important influences on population dynamics. Climate change may also affect invasive species by changing their phenology and reproduction, but few studies have explored this possibility. Here, we investigated the impact of climate change on the phenology, reproduction and invasion potential of two alien Solidago canadensis and Bidens frondosa and one native weed, Pterocypsela laciniata, all of which are in the Asteraceae family. The three species responded to simulated climate change by increasing reproductive investments and root/leaf ratio, prolonging flowering duration, and while the two alien species also displayed a mass-flowering pattern. Moreover, our experimental results indicated that the alien invasive species may have greater phenological plasticity in response to simulated warming than that of the native species (P. laciniata). As such, climate change may enhance the invasion and accelerate the invasive process of these alien plant species.
Polycyclic heteroaromatic ring construction driven by silver/cobalt co-catalyzed desulfonylative and defluorinative fragment-recombination of enol nonaflates with amidines
Authors: Xie Ting , Zhang Yao-Wei , Liu Li-Li , Shen Zhi-Liang , Loh Teck-Peng , Chu Xue-Qiang
Published: October 2018

A novel Ag(i)/Co(ii) co-catalyzed tandem fragmentation and recombination reaction commencing from detachable nonaflates and amidines has been developed.
‘Diet GMTKN55’ offers accelerated benchmarking through a representative subset approach
Authors: Gould Tim
Published: October 2018

The GMTKN55 benchmarking protocol allows comprehensive analysis and ranking of density functional approximations with diverse chemical behaviours. This work reports diet versions of GMTKN55 which reproduce key properties of the full protocol at substantially reduced numerical cost. ‘Diet GMTKN55’ can thus be used for benchmarking expensive methods, or in combination with solid state benchmarks.
Interfacial redox processes in memristive devices based on valence change and electrochemical metallization
Authors: Liu Keqin , Qin Liang , Zhang Xiaoxian , Zhu Jiadi , Sun Xinhao , Yang Ke , Cai Yimao , Yang Yuchao , Huang Ru
Published: October 2018

We show direct evidence for interfacial redox reactions in memristive devices based on both valence change and electrochemical metallization mechanisms.
10 kg scaled-up preparation of Al/Fe-pillared clay CWPO catalysts from concentrated precursors
Authors: Muñoz Helir-Joseph , Vallejo Carlos , Blanco Carolina , Gil Antonio , Vicente Miguel-Ángel , Ramírez José-Herney , Galeano Luis-Alejandro
Published: October 2018

10 kg scale, significantly intensified preparation of Al/Fe-PILCs from intercalating solution ∼100 times more concentrated than usual and powered clay.
Development of Hospital Data Warehouse for Cost Analysis of DPC Based on Medical Costs
Authors: Kumamoto I. , Uto Y. , Muranaga F.
Published: October 2018

Objectives
: To develop a data warehouse system for cost analysis, based on the categories of the diagnosis procedure combination (DPC) system, in which medical costs were estimated by DPC category and factors influencing the balance between costs and fees.

Methods
: We developed a data warehouse system for cost analysis using data from the hospital central data warehouse system. The balance data of patients who were discharged from Kagoshima University Hospital from April 2003 to March 2005 were determined in terms of medical procedure, cost per day and patient admission in order to conduct a drill-down analysis. To evaluate this system, we analyzed cash flow by DPC category of patients who were categorized as having malignanttumors andwhose DPC category was reevaluated in 2004.

Results
: The percentages of medical expenses were highest in patients with acute leukemia, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and particularly in patients with malignant tumors of the liver and intrahepatic bile duct. Imaging tests degraded the percentages of medical expenses in Kagoshima University Hospital.

Conclusions
: These results suggested that cost analysis by patient is important for hospital administration in the inclusive evaluation system using a case-mix index such as DPC.
Low Plasma ADAMTS13 Activity Is Associated with Coagulopathy, Endothelial Cell Damage and Mortality after Severe Paediatric Trauma
Authors: Russell Robert , McDaniel Jenny , Cao Wenjing , Shroyer Michelle , Wagener Brant , Pittet Jean-François , Zheng X.
Published: October 2018

Decrease of plasma activity of ADAMTS13, a metalloenzyme that cleaves von Willebrand factor (VWF) and prevents adhesion and aggregation of platelets, has been reported early after onset of systemic inflammation resulting from infections and after severe trauma. Here, we determined whether trauma-induced systemic (sterile) inflammation would be associated with a reduction of plasma ADAMTS13 activity in paediatric patients and its association with disease severity and outcome. Paediatric patients (n = 106) with severe trauma at a level 1 paediatric trauma centre between 2014 and 2016 were prospectively enrolled. Blood samples were collected upon arrival and at 24 hours and analysed for plasma levels of ADAMTS13 activity, VWF antigen, collagen binding activity, human neutrophil peptides (HNP) 1–3, coagulation abnormalities, endothelial glycocalyx damage and clinical outcome. Plasma samples were also collected for similar measurements from 52 healthy paediatric controls who underwent elective minor surgery. The median age of patients was 9 years with 81% sustaining blunt trauma. The median injury severity score was 22 and the mortality rate was 11%. Plasma levels of ADAMTS13 activity were significantly lower and plasma levels of VWF antigen and HNP 1–3 proteins were significantly higher for paediatric trauma patients on admission and at 24 hours when compared with controls. Finally, the lowest plasma ADAMTS13 activity was found in patients who died from their injuries. We conclude that relative plasma deficiency of ADAMTS13 activity may be associated with more severe traumatic injury, significant endothelial glycocalyx damage, coagulation abnormalities and mortality after severe trauma in paediatric patients.
Altered Plasma Clot Properties and Trauma-Related Venous Thromboembolism despite Thromboprophylaxis
Authors: Goldman Sarah , Frączek Paulina , Szklanny Krzysztof , Papuga-Szela Elżbieta , Stanisz Andrzej , Undas Anetta
Published: October 2018

Background Prothrombotic clot phenotype may characterize patients developing deep vein thrombosis (DVT) despite pharmacological thromboprophylaxis. We studied the role of fibrin clot properties and its potential determinants in individuals who experienced DVT after lower limb injury.

Methods In a case–control study, we assessed 50 patients who developed DVT despite prophylactic use of low-molecular-weight heparins (the failed thromboprophylaxis group) after a lower limb injury, and three age- and sex-matched control groups, 50 patients each: (1) patients with trauma-related DVT without prior thromboprophylaxis; (2) individuals with unprovoked DVT; (3) patients without history of DVT (the no-DVT controls). Fibrin clot properties, along with thrombin concentration and α2-antiplasmin, were assessed following 3 months of anticoagulation in all DVT patients.

Results Compared with the no-DVT controls, the failed thromboprophylaxis group exhibited denser fibrin networks (12.8% lower clot permeability [Ks], p = 0.0008) and impaired fibrinolysis (46.2% longer clot lysis time [CLT], p = 0.0001 and 8% lower rate of D-dimer release from clots, p = 0.0008). In the unprovoked DVT, similar Ks and 14.9% shorter CLT (p = 0.02) were reported compared with the failed thromboprophylaxis group. The failed thromboprophylaxis patients had higher odds of having elevated peak thrombin generation (>241.5 nM, 90th percentile in the no-DVT controls; odds ratio [OR]: 3.62; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.86–7.06; p = 0.002), and higher odds of having elevated α2-antiplasmin (>115.05%; OR: 3.38; 95% CI, 1.64–6.98; p = 0.001).

Conclusion Patients who experienced DVT despite thromboprophylaxis following lower limb trauma display a strongly prothrombotic fibrin clot phenotype, including increased clot density and hypofibrinolysis associated with higher plasma α2-antiplasmin.
Role of TGR5 (GPBAR1) in Liver Disease
Authors: Häussinger Dieter , Keitel Verena
Published: October 2018

TGR5 (GPBAR1) is a G protein–coupled receptor activated by primary and secondary bile acids, which is expressed in different nonparenchymal cells of the liver, such as sinusoidal endothelial cells, Kupffer cells, cholangiocytes as well as activated hepatic stellate cells. In liver, TGR5 modulates microcirculation, inflammation, regeneration, biliary secretion and proliferation as well as gallbladder filling. Absence of TGR5 renders mice more susceptible toward infectious, inflammatory, metabolic as well as cholestatic liver injuries. It is unknown whether TGR5 plays a role in the pathogenesis of human nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and cholestatic liver diseases such as primary sclerosing cholangitis and primary biliary cholangitis. However, overexpression of TGR5 has been detected in human intra- and extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma as well as in cystic cholangiocytes, where the receptor promotes cell proliferation, anti-apoptosis as well as cyst growth. While TGR5 agonists may improve various aspects of metabolic, inflammatory, and cholestatic liver diseases, TGR5 inhibitors may attenuate disease progression in polycystic liver disease and cholangiocarcinoma.
Epidemiologic and Genotypic Distribution of Noroviruses Among Children With Acute Diarrhea and Healthy Controls in a Low-income Rural Setting
Authors: Hossain Mohammad Enayet , Rahman Rajibur , Ali Sk Imran , Islam Md Muzahidul , Rahman Mohammed Ziaur , Ahmed Shahnawaz , Faruque Abu Syed Golam , Barclay Leslie , Vinjé Jan , Rahman Mustafizur
Published: October 2018

Background

Noroviruses are the most common cause of epidemic and endemic acute gastroenteritis (AGE) worldwide. The burden of norovirus disease in low-income settings is poorly understood.

Methods

We tested stool samples from children less than 5 years of age with diarrhea who were admitted in a rural hospital in Bangladesh from 2010–2012 and from matched, healthy controls from the same catchment area.

Results

Norovirus was detected in 109 (18%) of 613 children with diarrhea and in 30 (15%) of 206 healthy controls. Most (n = 118; 85%) norovirus infections belonged to genogroup II (GII). Of these, GII.4 viruses were identified in 36 (33%) of the cases and in 6 (21%) of the controls. Other major genotypes included GII.3 (13%), GII.6 (11%), and GII.13 (11%) in the cases and GII.6 (17%) and GII.2 (14%) in the controls. The greatest risk of severe norovirus disease (Vesikari score ≥11) was associated with GII.4 infections. GII.4 viruses were the predominant genotype detected during the winter (55%) and rainy season (23%), while GII.3 (19%) and GII.13 (19%) viruses were the most prevalent genotypes during the summer. Vomiting was significantly associated with GII.4 infections, while longer durations of diarrhea were associated with GI.3 infections.

Conclusions

Future studies are needed to understand the high rates of virus shedding in children without AGE symptoms.
Effect of family-oriented diabetes programs on glycemic control: A meta-analysis
Authors: Kodama Satoru , Morikawa Sakiko , Horikawa Chika , Ishii Dai , Fujihara Kazuya , Yamamoto Masahiko , Osawa Taeko , Kitazawa Masaru , Yamada Takaho , Kato Kiminori , Tanaka Shiro , Sone Hirohito
Published: October 2018

Background

Efficacy of programs for patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) that have promoted family members to help with patients’ self-care activities has been largely inconsistent. This meta-analysis aims to assess the effect of family-oriented diabetes programs for glycemic control (GC).

Methods

Electronic literature searches were conducted for clinical trials with a parallel design wherein there were two groups according to whether family members were included (intervention group) or not included (control group) and changes in glycohemoglobin A1C (A1C) were assessed as a study outcome. Each effect size (i.e. difference in A1C change between the intervention and control group) was pooled with a random-effects model.

Results

There were 31 eligible trials consisting of 1466 and 1415 patients in the intervention and control groups, respectively. Pooled A1C change [95% confidence interval (CI)] was −0.45% (−0.64% to −0.26%). Limiting analyses to 21 trials targeted at patients with type 1 DM or 9 trials targeted at patients with type 2 DM, the pooled A1C changes (95% CI) were −0.35% (−0.55% to −0.14%) and −0.71% (−1.09% to −0.33%), respectively.

Conclusion

This meta-analysis suggests that focusing on the family as well as the individual patient in self-management diabetes programs to improve the performance of self-care activities of patients with DM is effective in terms of proper GC.
DRMY1, a Myb-Like Protein, Regulates Cell Expansion and Seed Production in Arabidopsis thaliana
Authors: Wu Peipei , Peng Mingsheng , Li Zhigang , Yuan Ning , Hu Qian , Foster Cliff E , Saski Christopher , Wu Guohai , Sun Dongfa , Luo Hong
Published: October 2018

Plant organ development to a specific size and shape is controlled by cell proliferation and cell expansion. Here, we identify a novel Myb-like Arabidopsis gene, Development Related Myb-like1 (DRMY1), which controls cell expansion in both vegetative and reproductive organs. DRMY1 is strongly expressed in developing organs and its expression is reduced by ethylene while it is induced by ABA. DRMY1 has a Myb-like DNA-binding domain, which is predominantly localized in the nucleus and does not exhibit transcriptional activation activity. The loss-of-function T-DNA insertion mutant drmy1 shows reduced organ growth and cell expansion, which is associated with changes in the cell wall matrix polysaccharides. Interestingly, overexpression of DRMY1 in Arabidopsis does not lead to enhanced organ growth. Expression of genes involved in cell wall biosynthesis/remodeling, ribosome biogenesis and in ethylene and ABA signaling pathways is changed with the deficiency of DRMY1. Our results suggest that DRMY1 plays an essential role in organ development by regulating cell expansion either directly by affecting cell wall architecture and/or cytoplasmic growth or indirectly through the ethylene and/or ABA signaling pathways.
Daily Physical Activity and Functional Disability Incidence in Community-Dwelling Older Adults with Chronic Pain: A Prospective Cohort Study
Authors: Makino Keitaro , Lee Sangyoon , Lee Sungchul , Bae Seongryu , Jung Songee , Shinkai Yohei , Shimada Hiroyuki
Published: October 2018

Objective

This study examined the association between daily physical activity and functional disability incidence in community-dwelling older adults with chronic pain.

Design

Prospective cohort study.

Setting

Japanese community.

Subjects

Of the 5,257 participants enrolled for baseline assessment, data on the 693 participants who had chronic lower back or knee pain and underwent daily physical activity assessment using an accelerometer were analyzed.

Methods

Participants were assessed for regular physical activity (step counts, moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity duration, and light-intensity physical activity duration) using an accelerometer at baseline and were followed up for monthly functional disability incidence, based on the national long-term care insurance system, for approximately two years. We determined the effect of physical activity cutoff points on functional disability incidence using receiver operating characteristic curves and Youden index. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to analyze associations between the cutoff points and disability incidence.

Results

Among the 693 participants with chronic pain, 69 (10.0%) developed functional disability during the follow-up period. Participants with lower physical activity levels showed significantly higher risk of disability. After adjusting for all covariates, functional disability was associated with step counts (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.79, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.02–3.14) and moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity duration (HR = 2.02, 95% CI = 1.16–3.51) but had no relationship with light-intensity physical activity duration (HR = 1.72, 95% CI = 0.97–3.05).

Conclusions

Maintenance of physical activity with at least moderate intensity may be effective in preventing disability even among older adults with chronic pain.
Population-based validation of the National Cancer Comprehensive Network recommendations for baseline imaging workup of cutaneous melanoma
Authors: Abdel-Rahman Omar
Published: October 2018

The aim of the current study is to assess the performance of some of the imaging scans recommended in the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Guidelines as part of baseline staging for cutaneous melanoma, regarding the detection of lung, brain, bone, and liver metastases. Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database (2010–2015) was used to extract the data, and cases with cutaneous melanoma and complete information about TN stages and sites of distant metastases were explored. Performance parameters assessed in the current study included positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value, sensitivity, specificity, number needed to investigate (NNI), and accuracy. A total of 109 971 patients were included in the analysis. If all stage III patients in the study cohort are to be staged through routine imaging, PPV (for the recognition of lung metastases) will be 2.9% and NNI to detect one case of lung metastasis will be 34. Likewise, PPV (for the recognition of bone metastases) will be 1.8% and NNI to detect one case of bone metastasis will be 55. Moreover, PPV (for the recognition of liver metastases) will be 1.8% and NNI to detect one case of liver metastasis will be 55. Excluding stage III patients with clinically node-negative/sentinel node-positive disease would improve PPV and decrease NNI for the three metastatic sites. Adherence to current National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines for cutaneous melanoma imaging for baseline staging results in low rates of failure to detect asymptomatic lung, liver, brain, or bone metastases.
A pooled analysis of three studies of nonpharmacological interventions for menopausal hot flashes
Authors: Avis Nancy E. , Levine Beverly J. , Danhauer Suzanne , Coeytaux Remy R.
Published: October 2018

Objective:

The aim of the study was to conduct a pooled analysis of three published trials of nonpharmacological interventions for menopausal hot flashes to compare the effectiveness of interventions.

Methods:

Data from three randomized controlled trials of interventions for hot flashes (two acupuncture trials, one yoga trial) were pooled. All three studies recruited perimenopausal or postmenopausal women experiencing ≥4 hot flashes/d on average. The primary outcome for all three studies was frequency of hot flashes as measured by the Daily Diary of Hot Flashes. Study 1 participants were randomly assigned to 8 weeks of acupuncture treatments (active intervention), sham acupuncture (attention control), or usual care. Study 2 participants were randomly assigned to 10 weeks of yoga classes, health and wellness education classes (attention control), or waitlist control. Study 3 randomly assigned participants to 6 months of acupuncture or waitlist control. To standardize the time frame for these analyses, only the first 8 weeks of intervention from all three studies were used.

Results:

The three active interventions and the two attention control groups had statistically similar trends in the percentage reduction of hot flashes over 8 weeks, ranging from 35% to 40%. These five groups did not differ significantly from each other, but all showed significantly greater reduction in hot flash frequency compared with the three usual care/waitlist groups.

Conclusion:

Acupuncture, yoga, and health and wellness education classes all demonstrated statistically similar effectiveness in reduction of hot flash frequency compared with controls.
Similar Uptake of 99mTc-MDP and 67Ga-Citrate at the Sites of Metastatic Calcification
Authors: Chen Meng-Ling , Su Hung-Yi
Published: October 2018

A 59-year-old woman presented with fever for 2 weeks. The patient had end-stage renal disease and was undergoing dialysis therapy for 10 years. Plain radiographs revealed extensive calcification in the subcutaneous tissues of the shoulders, thighs, and hips. In this case, 99mTC-MDP bone scan detected all sites of subcutaneous metastatic calcification in one sweep. 67Ga-citrate scintigraphy was also performed and showed similar uptake at the same locations as those revealed by the bone scan, suggesting the existence of an inflammatory process at the sites of metastatic calcification.
NanoPARE: parallel analysis of RNA 5′ ends from low-input RNA
Authors: Schon Michael A. , Kellner Max J. , Plotnikova Alexandra , Hofmann Falko , Nodine Michael D.
Published: October 2018

Diverse RNA 5′ ends are generated through both transcriptional and post-transcriptional processes. These important modes of gene regulation often vary across cell types and can contribute to the diversification of transcriptomes and thus cellular differentiation. Therefore, the identification of primary and processed 5′ ends of RNAs is important for their functional characterization. Methods have been developed to profile either RNA 5′ ends from primary transcripts or the products of RNA degradation genome-wide. However, these approaches either require high amounts of starting RNA or are performed in the absence of paired gene-body mRNA-seq data. This limits current efforts in RNA 5′ end annotation to whole tissues and can prevent accurate RNA 5′ end classification due to biases in the data sets. To enable the accurate identification and precise classification of RNA 5′ ends from standard and low-input RNA, we developed a next-generation sequencing-based method called nanoPARE and associated software. By integrating RNA 5′ end information from nanoPARE with gene-body mRNA-seq data from the same RNA sample, our method enables the identification of transcription start sites at single-nucleotide resolution from single-cell levels of total RNA, as well as small RNA-mediated cleavage events from at least 10,000-fold less total RNA compared to conventional approaches. NanoPARE can therefore be used to accurately profile transcription start sites, noncapped RNA 5′ ends, and small RNA targeting events from individual tissue types. As a proof-of-principle, we utilized nanoPARE to improve Arabidopsis thaliana RNA 5′ end annotations and quantify microRNA-mediated cleavage events across five different flower tissues.
Efficiency in South African agriculture: a two-stage fuzzy approach
Authors: Aye Goodness C. , Gupta Rangan , Wanke Peter
Published: October 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to assess the efficiency of agricultural production in South Africa from 1970 to 2014, using an integrated two-stage fuzzy approach.

Design/methodology/approach

Fuzzy technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution is used to assess the relative efficiency of agriculture in South Africa over the course of the years in the first stage. In the second stage, fuzzy regressions based on different rule-based systems are used to predict the impact of socio-economic and demographic variables on agricultural efficiency. They are compared with the bootstrapped truncated regressions with conditionalαlevels proposed in Wankeet al.(2016a).

Findings

The results show that the fuzzy efficiency estimates ranged from 0.40 to 0.68 implying inefficiency in South African agriculture. The results further reveal that research and development, land quality, health expenditure–population growth ratio have a significant, positive impact on efficiency levels, besides the GINI index. In terms of accuracy, fuzzy regressions outperformed the bootstrapped truncated regressions with conditionalαlevels proposed in Wankeet al.(2015).

Practical implications

Policies to increase social expenditure especially in terms of health and hence productivity should be prioritized. Also policies aimed at conserving the environment and hence the quality of land is needed.

Originality/value

The paper is original and has not been previously published elsewhere.
Darcy-Forchheimer flow of nanofluid in a rotating frame
Authors: Hayat Tasawar , Aziz Arsalan , Muhammad Taseer , Alsaedi Ahmed
Published: October 2018

Purpose

The aim of this study is to elaborate three dimensional rotating flow of nanoliquid induced by a stretchable sheet subject to Darcy–Forchheimer porous space. Thermophoretic diffusion and random motion aspects are retained. Prescribed surface heat flux and prescribed surface mass flux conditions are implemented at stretchable surface. Convergent series solutions have been derived for velocities, temperature and concentration.

Design/methodology/approach

Optimal homotopy analysis method is implemented for the solution development.

Findings

The current solution demonstrates very good agreement with those of the previously published studies in the special cases of regular fluid and nanofluids. Graphical results are presented to investigate the influences of the titania and copper nanoparticle volume fractions and also the nodal/saddle indicative parameter on flow and heat transfer characteristics. Here, the thermal characteristics of hybrid nanofluid are found to be higher in comparison to the base fluid and fluid containing single nanoparticles, respectively. An important point to note is that the developed model can be used with great confidence to study the flow and heat transfer of hybrid nanofluids.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no such consideration has been given in the literature yet.
Internationalization as process of value distribution through innovation: polyhedral diagnosis of a “born global” firm
Authors: Calvo Nuria , Villarreal Oskar
Published: October 2018

Purpose

Technology applied to learning is blurring the traditional outlines of the relations between publishing and technology industries, moving the internationalization strategy away from a gradual perspective toward accelerated internationalization. This paper aims to provide a conceptual model of polyhedral diagnosis of market entry strategy (PODMES model) for “born global” firms involved in e-learning industries.

Design/methodology/approach

The use of the case study methodology allowed apply PODMES model to a “born global” firm of the e-learning industry.

Findings

Results confirm that “born global” firms in the e-learning industry can adopt behaviors contrary to those expected in the literature. These behaviors imply new entry patterns by creating new strategic partner–supplier–client–competitor relations that extend the traditional analysis of the internal value chain to a process of value distribution through product and technology alliances.

Originality/value

This research provides two main contributions. First, an advance upon previous research into “born global” firms, through deep analysis of a case study that offers new findings regarding the phenomenon studied. It permits to align this research with previous analysis, following a strict case study methodology approach. Second, this study offers the application of a new methodology (PODMES model) that integrates the most relevant theories of internationalization (factorial dodecagon) within the five contingencies of entry market and the design of a strategic profile of internationalization.
Modeling anti-malware use intention of university students in a developing country using the theory of planned behavior
Authors: Vafaei-Zadeh Ali , Thurasamy Ramayah , Hanifah Haniruzila
Published: October 2018

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate the impact of perceived price level and information security awareness on computer users’ attitude. Moreover, this study aims to investigate the effect of attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control (PBC) on intention to use anti-malware software.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected using a structured questionnaire from 225 students of five public universities in Malaysia. Purposive sampling technique was used in this study. AMOS 24 was used to test the research framework using a two-step approach.

Findings

Findings give support to some of the hypotheses developed with R2 values of 0.521 for attitude and 0.740 for intention. Perceived price level had a negative effect on attitude while information security awareness had a positive effect on attitude and intention. Attitude, subjective norms and PBC were all positively related to intention, but perceived price level did not affect intention. This suggests that benefits of using anti-malware are more than its price value. Therefore, the price has no direct effect on intention to use.

Research limitations/implications

University computer networks are as open and inviting as their campuses. Therefore, this research can be helpful to the universities to safeguard their networks and encourage the students to use anti-malware. However, using anti-malware software will enable an individual to identify and prioritize security risks, quickly detect and mitigate security breaches, improve the understanding of security gaps and safeguard the sensitive data by minimizing the risks related to malware.

Originality/value

This study ventured to model the information security behavior of anti-malware usage by individual users by using the theory of planned behavior with the addition of two new variables, perceived price level and information security awareness to explain the behavior better.
Behavioral biases and retirement assets allocation of corporate pension plans
Authors: Verma Rahul , Verma Priti
Published: October 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the existence of behavioral biases, disposition effect and house money effect in investment decisions of defined benefit pension funds. It investigates the determinants of portfolios by examining whether pensions display risk seeking or risk aversion behavior in reaction to prior gains and losses.

Design/methodology/approach

The first research question is to examine the impact of prior period’s return and αs on existing portfolio allocation in equity, debt, real estate and other assets. In order to test this relationship, four separate regressions are estimated using the pooled data. Regression helps in examining the relationship between prior gains with current allocation in four categories of assets of varying degrees of riskiness (stocks, debt, real estate and other assets). In order to investigate the second research question on whether pension funds increase (decrease) their investments in risky (safer) assets due to prior gains and αs, the four variables representing the changes in portfolio allocation for each asset class over one period are employed. These changes in allocation are regressed against the prior year’s actual return, expected return, αs and a set of control variables.

Findings

The results suggest significant negative (positive) relationship between prior positive returns and αs with portfolio allocation in risky (safer) assets. Also, there is an increased (decreased) investment in safer (risky) assets following prior period’s positive returns and αs. The findings confirm the existence of disposition effect, while there is no evidence of house money effect.

Originality/value

The portfolio allocation of pension plans provides unique setting to investigate the relevance of behavioral finance and examine the role of psychological biases on risk taking. This study attempts to contribute to the literature by empirically investigating whether the tenets of behavioral finance are relevant in defined benefit pension fund’s portfolio allocation decisions. Specifically, it focuses on the determinants of portfolio choices by directly investigating pension funds’ reaction to prior period’s actual as well as risk adjusted return (or αs – the difference between the actual and expected return).
Antihypertensive Drug Deintensification and Recurrent Falls in Long‐Term Care
Authors: Song Wei , Intrator Orna , Lee Sei , Boockvar Kenneth
Published: October 2018

Objective

To examine the relationship between antihypertensive drug deintensification and recurrent falls in long‐term care.

Data Sources/Settings

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) inpatient, outpatient, and purchased care data, Minimum Data Set assessments from VA nursing homes (NHs), and Medicare claims from fiscal years 2010 – 2015.

Study Design

We identified NH residents with evidence of overaggressive antihypertensive treatment, defined as systolic blood pressure (SBP) 80–120 and an index fall. Recurrent fall, hospitalization, and mortality within 30 days were compared between veterans whose antihypertensive medications were deintensified versus those whose antihypertensive medications were not using propensity score methods (PSM).

Principal Findings

Among 2,212 NH residents with possibly overaggressive antihypertensive treatment, 11 percent experienced antihypertensive drug deintensification. Lower blood pressure, >1 antihypertensive drug, no congestive heart failure, fracture from index fall, and older age were associated with higher likelihood of deintensification. Antihypertensive deintensification was associated with statistically significant (p‐value < .01) lower risk of recurrent fall among residents with SBP 80–100 (marginal effect = −11.4 percent; PSM = −13.6 percent) and higher risk of death among residents with SBP 101–120 (marginal effect = 2.1 percent, p‐value = .07; with PSM = 4.3 percent, p‐value = .04).

Conclusions

Results provide some needed evidence and guidelines for deintensifying antihypertensive medication among frail older residents; since hypertension is prevalent among 54 percent of NH residents, the potential impact of new evidence is great.