bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Characteristics Comparison of Breast Cancer Patients in Southern China and America: A Multicentre Study in China Versus SEER Database
Authors: Niu Yingjie , Zhang Fan , Chen Dong , Ye Guolin , Li Yong , Zha Yong , Chen Wenlin , Liu Dequan , Liao Xiaoming , Huang Qinghua , Tang Wei , Cai Gengxi , Guo Rong , Li Hongyang , Tang Shicong
Published: October 2020

Background and Objective: The morbidity and mortality of breast cancer are increasing in recent years, which had become the second main cause of cancer death in women. However, there are different characteristics of breast cancer in developing countries and developed countries. What’s more, it has not reported the comparison of breast cancer between southern China and the United States. We intend to compare the age, different stages and grades of tumor and treatment methods, in order to study the factors which influence the survival and prognosis of breast cancer patients. Methods: To study the two groups which have been diagnosed with breast cancer in southern China from 2001 to 2016 and SEER database from 1975 to 2016. To register, collect and analyze the clinicopathological features and treatment information. To follow up the patients who have been diagnosed before 2016. Kaplan-Meier method was used to evaluate disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). Results: Young breast cancer patients accounted for 19.8% and 6.14% respectively in southern China and SEER cohort. The early diagnostic rate of breast cancer is high in southern China, but still lower than SEER cohort. Our study found that there are significant differences in tumor size and positive lymph node status between southern China and SEER cohort (P=0.000), which notably affect the OS of breast cancer patients (P=0.018 and P=0.000). Furthermore, KI-67 is also an important prognostic factor of breast cancer patients in southern China, which also affect the OS of patients (P=0.034). In treatment, there are also significant differences between the two regions. In southern China, there are 4.91% of breast cancer patients performed breast conserving surgery and 95.09% patients performed mastectomy. But in SEER cohort, there are only 4.91% patients preformed breast surgery. Conclusions: The age, tumor size, positive-node and KI-67 may cause the difference of morbidity and mortality of breast cancer patients in southern China and SEER cohort. Overall, the prognosis of breast cancer patients in SEER cohort is better than southern China.
Small Intestinal Perforation During Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer: A Case Report
Authors: Jin Zechuan , He Du , Shen Yu , Deng Xiangbing , Wang Ziqiang
Published: October 2020

Background: For patients with locally advanced rectal cancer, side effects such as nausea, vomiting and loss of appetite may occur during neoadjuvant chemotherapy, but small intestinal perforation is very rare.Case presentation: We present a case of a 62-year-old man who suffered small intestinal perforation in the first cycle neoadjuvant treatment of locally advanced rectal cancer with capecitabine and oxaliplatin. Six days after the start of neoadjuvant chemotherapy, he began to develop intermittent abdominal pain, accompanied by diarrhea and abdominal distension. The CT scan revealed an abscess with free air in the pelvic cavity with proximal intestinal ileus. Then we performed a laparotomy. After enterolysis, the rectum with tumor was carefully examined with no perforative lesion, and the terminal ileum about 15cm from the ileocecum which adhere to the pelvic abscess had one about 0.8cm ulcer. The patient had a radical anterior resection and the morbid small bowel resection with protective ileostomy. The postoperative pathological examination showed the full-thickness necrosis of the intestinal wall in the ileal lesion with peripheral acute suppurative inflammation. AND the final pathological stage of the tumor was pT3N0M0 (American Joint Committee on Cancer, eighth edition).Conclusion: As a chemotherapy regimen based on fluorouracil and oxaliplatin, small intestinal perforation is a very rare complication. The most common complications of these two drugs are gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea. Therefore, when the complications are not relieved during chemotherapy, we should think of a more serious possibility.
Expression Profiles and Prognostic Values of BOLA Family members in Ovarian Cancer
Authors: Zhu Mingyang , Xiao Shiqi
Published: October 2020

Background: The BOLA gene family, comprising 3 members, is mainly involved in the regulation of intracellular iron homeostasis. Emerging evidence suggests that BOLA family member 2 play vital roles in tumorigenesis and progression of hepatic cellular carcinoma. However, little known about its roles in ovarian cancer. Methods: In present study, we investigated the expression profiles, prognostic roles, and genetic alterations of three BOLA family members in patients with ovarian cancer through several public databases, containing Oncomine and Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis, Human Protein Atlas, Kaplan–Meier plotter and cBioPortal. Then, we constructed the protein–protein interaction networks of BOLA proteins and their interactors by using String database and Cytoscape software. In addition, we performed the Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment by the Annotation, Visualization, and Integrated Discovery database. Finally, we explored the mechanisms underlying the involvement of BOLA family members in OC by using gene set enrichment analysis. Results: The mRNA and protein expression levels of BOLA2 and BOLA3 were heavily higher in ovarian cancer tissues than that in normal ovarian tissues. Dysregulated mRNA expressions of three BOLA family members were significantly associated with prognosis in overall or subgroup analysis. Moreover, genetic alterations also occurred in three BOLA family members in ovarian cancer. Network analysis and enrichment analysis indicated that three BOLA family members and their 20 interactors were mainly associated with metal-ion binding and protein disulfide oxidoreductase activity. Gene set enrichment analysis indicated that BOLA family members were mainly associated with oxidative phosphorylation, proteasome, protein export and glutathione metabolism in ovarian cancer. Conclusions: In brief, the present comprehensive bioinformatics analysis revealed that BOLA1, 2, and 3 may be new prognostic biomarkers, and BOLA2 and BOLA3 may be a potential therapeutic target of precision therapy for patients with ovarian cancer, but further studies are demanded to certify this notion.
A Nonsense Mutation in VHL Gene Causing Von Hippel-lindau Syndrome in a Large Chinese Family
Authors: Ding Xinghuan , Liang Tingyu , Li Ben , Liang Bo , Li Peiliang , Chen Shichao , Li Jingjing , Wang Fang , Wang Shanjun , Cao Yang , Sun Jidian , Zheng Xinmei , Wang Xiaoyong , Wang Tongxin , Feng Enshan
Published: October 2020

BackgroundVon Hippel-Lindau (VHL) syndrome is a multi-organ neoplastic disease characterized by highly vascular and cystic tumors in central nervous system (CNS), retina and visceral lesions, which is mainly caused by germline mutations in the VHL gene. MethodsHere, a large consanguineous four-generation family with variant phenotypes of VHL disease was recruited and molecular genetics tested via Sanger sequencing. ResultGenetic investigation detected a c.351G>A nonsense mutation in the VHL gene, that altered the reading frame downstream and created a premature TGA stop signal, resulting in severely truncated pVHL (p.Trp117Ter). This mutation is absent from public databases, and the functional prediction bioinformatic tools demonstrated that the residue is conserved and the variant is highly likely to be deleterious. ConclutionThe c.315G>A nonsense mutation in VHL gene is the causal mutation of this kindred that may lead to clear familial aggregation of VHL disease because of the dysfunction of truncated pVHL.
Analysis of Toxicity Profile and Predictors of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Related Adverse Events
Authors: Bai Rilan , Chen Naifei , Chen Xiao , Li Lingyu , Song Wei , Li Wei , Zhao Yuguang , Zhang Yongfei , Han Fujun , Lv Zheng , Cui Jiuwei
Published: October 2020

Background and objectiveIn recent years, a wide variety of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) is emerging and has shown long-lasting and significant efficacy in the treatment of various malignant tumors. However, about 10% of patients experience serious and even life-threatening immune-related adverse events (irAEs). Fully understanding the characteristics of toxic effects and biomarkers to predict irAEs is, therefore, of great interest. We aimed to retrospectively analyze the toxicity profile and predictors of irAEs, as well as the correlation between irAEs and clinical efficacy in patients with advanced pan-cancer who were treated with multi-type ICIs in real-world.MethodsWe retrospectively analyzed data from 105 patients with advanced pan-cancer who were treated with multi-type ICIs in the First Hospital of Jilin University from Jan 1, 2016 to Aug 1, 2020. We used logistic regression analyses to investigate associations between irAEs and clinical baseline characteristics, blood count parameters, and biochemical indicators during the treatment. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to determine a cutoff value for parameters and area under the curve (AUC). Kaplan–Meier and cox multivariate regression analysis were performed to estimate the relationship of baseline characteristics and irAEs with progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS).ResultsWe found that lower relative lymphocyte count (RLC) (cutoff=0.285*10^9/L), higher albumin (ALB) (cutoff=39.05g/L) and higher absolute eosinophil count (AEC) (cutoff=0.175*10^9/L) were significantly associated with the occurrence of any irAEs, of which a higher AEC (cutoff=0.205*10^9/L) was strongly associated with skin-related irAEs (HR=0.163, p=0.004); And a higher lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level (cutoff=237.5U/L) was an independent predictor of serious irAEs (HR=0.199, p=0.022). In the analysis of immune cell subgroup, lower absolute CD8+CD28- T cell count (HR=0.806; 95%CI: 0.643-1.011; p=0.062), a regulatory T lymphocytes, was associated with the occurrence of irAEs, although the difference was not statistically significant; And a higher percentage of CD19+ B cells were associated with the occurrence of serious irAEs and irAEs of grade ≥2 (p＜0.05). In addition, our study showed that patients with any grade irAE had a significantly better PFS (8.37 vs.3.77 months, HR=2.02, p=0.0038) and OS (24.77 vs.13.83 months, HR=1.78, p=0.029).ConclusionsThis retrospective study reported the clinical profile data of irAEs of unselected patients in the real world, and explored some parameters that may all be conventional, potentially predictable markers of the occurrence, type, or grade of irAEs in clinical practice. Evidence of a correlation between safety and efficacy may contribute to fully assess the risk-benefit ratio for patients treated with ICIs.
­­The Effects of Vagus Nerve Stimulation Mediated Protection of Intestinal Epithelial Glycocalyx on Acute Lung Injury Associated With Traumatic Hemorrhagic Shock/Resuscitation
Authors: Wu Juan , Yin Yushuang , Qin Mingzhe , Li Kun , Liu Fang , Zhou Xiang , Song Xiaoyang , Li Bixi
Published: October 2020

BackgroundAcute lung injury (ALI) is a common complication after THS/R, and vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) could alleviate lung injury by activating cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway (CAP) during traumatic hemorrhagic shock/resuscitation (THS/R). The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of VNS on intestinal epithelial glycocalyx and acute lung injury associated with THS/R.MethodsSprague-Dawley rats were subjected to traumatic hemorrhagic shock/ resuscitation to induce ALI. The measurements of intestinal barrier permeability, intestinal epithelial glycocalyx, and the level of inflammation factors and histology of lung and gut tissue were made in each group.ResultsThe level of TNF-α，IL-6 and MPO in lung and gut tissue were significantly decreased in the VNS-treated group. In addition, the shedding of intestinal epithelial glycocalyx and increased gut barrier permeability were alleviated in the VNS-treated group, and the gut tissue and lung tissue injury were mitigated in the VNS-treated group. However, pretreated with methyllycaconitine could reverse the protective effect of VNS.ConclusionsVNS could relieve lung injury associated with THS/R by alleviating the damage of intestinal epithelial glycocalyx, which might be achieved by activating CAP.
Performance Analysis of PEMFC Based Grid-connected Distributed Generation System
Authors: AKPOLAT Alper Nabi , Dursun Erkan
Published: October 2020

Background: Less energy consumption and more efficient use of fossil-fueled technologies are among the sustainable energy targets of modern societies. The essential activities to be achieved under these objectives are to increase the distributed generation structures and increase their applicability. The distributed generation (DG) is a small-scale version of the traditional power grid, which is supported by micro turbines, hydrogen fuel cells, wind turbines, photovoltaic (PV) modules, combine heat and power systems, and energy storage units. Methods: The aim of this research is to detail performance analyze and unit sizing of proton-exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC)-based grid-connected distributed generation system with the help of empirical calculations. To this end, we tried to establish the system and analyze the performance of reliable operation of the system with experimental verifications.Results and Conclusions: The results demonstrate the situation of annual production about how much rated power can be generated through the real meteorological data to dispatch the power to the constant variable loads. While, 53.56% of the total energy demand is met by the utility grid, 46.44% of the demand is met by the produced energy i.e., from microgrid. The PEMFC based hybrid microgrid at Marmara University, Faculty of Technology was analyzed in detail in this study. According to the results of the performance analysis, the important points that will be highlighted and will help the researchers working in this field are as follows. Our results are encouraging and can be validated by a larger sample size with the fine weather conditions in terms of the percentage of procurement of energy.
Upregulation of Small Nucleolar RNA 78 Promotes Cell Proliferation and Invasion of Breast Cancer
Authors: Nong Qiaohong , Wang Shubin , Li Zhu , Tong Gangling , Yu Shaokang , Hu Hui
Published: October 2020

OBJECTIVE: Recent studies suggest that abnormal snoRNA expression may play crucial role in tumor development and progression. In the study, we aim to explore the clinical significance and functional role of Small nucleolar RNA 78 (SNORD78) in breast cancer.PATIENTS AND METHODS: The expression of SNORD78 in 92 breast cancer and adjacent non tumor tissues was analyzed by quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The association between SNORD78 expression and clinicopathological factors was evaluated. The biological functions in vitro were examined by MTT cell proliferation, colony formation and transwell invasion assays. QRT-PCR and Western blot assays were used to analyze the mRNA and protein expression of WNT1, GSK3β and β-catenin.RESULTS: SNORD78 expression showed a significant increase in breast cancer tissues and cell lines. Higher SNORD78 expression positively was related to lymph node metastasis and TNM stage in patients. Furthermore, knockdown of SNORD78 inhibited the abilities of cell proliferation, colony formation, and cell invasion in MDA-MB-231 and SKBR-3 cells. Moreover, we demonstrated that knockdown of SNORD78 inhibited WNT/β-catenin signaling pathway in MDA-MB-231 and SKBR-3 cells via downregulating the relative protein expression of WNT1 and β-catenin and upregulating the GSK3β expression.CONCLUSION: Our results indicated that SNORD78 may be potential therapeutic target for breast cancer.
Intrauterine SARS-CoV-2 infection – a case confirming transplacental transmission followed by divergence of the viral genome
Authors: Zaigham Mehreen , Holmberg Anna , Karlberg Maria Lind , Lindsjö Oskar Karlsson , Jokubkiene Ligita , Sandblom Johan , Strand Anna Söderlund , Andersson Ola , Hansson Stefan R. , Nord David Gisselsson , Tannenberg Philip
Published: October 2020

Pregnant women and their newborns may be at particular risk for poor outcomes due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Intrauterine SARS-CoV-2 transmission has been suggested but most reports have not ruled out postpartum infection. We demonstrate a confirmed case of transplacental transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in a neonate born to a mother infected in the third trimester. Comprehensive virological, pathological and genetic investigations establish that intrauterine SARS-CoV-2 transmission occurred via the following chain of events; I) maternal viremia in a seemingly mildly symptomatic patient, II) high viral load in the placenta with massive perivillous fibrin deposition, acute intervillositis in areas with strong positivity for SARS-CoV-2 and chorangiosis in the areas less affected by infection and inflammation, III) intrauterine fetal distress with pathological cardiotocography and acidemia in validated umbilical cord blood gases and IV) mild neonatal COVID-19. Whole genome sequencing of isolates from the mother and placenta revealed a single variant of the virus. Interestingly, the neonate displayed a mixed SARS-CoV-2 population, harboring both an identical strain to the mother as well as a population with one single-nucleotide polymorphism difference, indicating intrapatient genetic drift.
Rapid screening of secondary aromatic metabolites in Populus trichocarpa leaves
Authors: Harman-Ware Anne Elizabeth , Martin Madhavi , Engle Nancy L. , Doeppke Crissa , Tschaplinski Timothy J.
Published: October 2020

Background High-throughput metabolomics analytical methodology is needed for population-scale studies of bioenergy-relevant feedstocks such as poplar (Populus sp.). Here, the authors report the relative abundance of secondary aromatic metabolites in Populus trichocarpa leaves rapidly estimated using pyrolysis-molecular beam mass spectrometry (py-MBMS). A training set of leaves was analyzed in conjunction with GC/MS analysis of extracts to determine key spectral features associated with the aromatic metabolites and build PLS models to predict the relative composition of extractable aromatic metabolites in a second test set of leaves. The relative abundance of major secondary aromatic metabolites for the test set of leaves was validated by GC/MS analysis of extracts. Results The Pearson correlation coefficient for the relative abundance of aromatic metabolites based on ranking between GC/MS analysis and py-MBMS analysis of the test leaf set was 0.86 with R2 = 0.76 using a simplified prediction approach from select ions in MBMS spectra. Metabolites most influential to py-MBMS spectral features in the training set included the following compounds: catechol, salicortin, salicyloyl-coumaroyl-glucoside, a-salicyloylsalicin, tremulacin, and to a lesser degree: benzyl-coumaroyl glucoside, benzoyl-salicyloylsalicin, tremuloidin, salireposide, trichocarpin, salicylic acid, salicyl-salicylic acid-2-O-glucoside, phenethyl-tremuloidin, coumaroyl-tremuloidin, 2,6-cyclohexadiene-1,2-diol, and salicyl-tremuloidin. Ions in py-MBMS spectra with the highest correlation to the abundance of aromatic secondary metabolites, particularly those previously mentioned as determined by GC/MS analysis of extracts, included m/z 68, 71, 77, 91, 94, 105, 107, 108, and 122, and were used to develop the simplified prediction approach without PLS models or a priori measurements. Conclusions The simplified py-MBMS method is capable of rapidly screening leaf tissue for relative abundance of extractable aromatic secondary metabolites to enable prioritization of samples in large populations requiring comprehensive metabolomics that will ultimately inform plant systems biology models and advance the development of optimized biomass feedstocks for renewable fuels and chemicals.
DenseNet Convolutional Neural Networks Application for Predicting COVID-19 Using CT Image
Authors: Hasan Najmul , Bao Yukun , Shawon Ashadullah
Published: October 2020

Public health and human lives recently have been impacted by the devastating effect of Coronavirus 2019. This catastrophic effect has destroyed the human experience by creating a chaotic healthcare situation infinitely more destructive than the Second World War. Strong communicable characteristics of COVID-19 among human communities make the world’s situation a severe pandemic. Due to the unavailable vaccine of COVID-19 to control rather than cure, early and accurate detection of the virus can be a promising technique for tracking and preventing the infection spreading (e.g., by isolating the patients). This situation indicates to improve auxiliary COVID-19 detection technique. Computed tomography (CT) imaging is a mostly used technique for pneumonia because of its common availability. The application of artificial intelligence systems integrated with images can be a promising alternative for the identification of COVID-19. This paper presents a promising technique of predicting COVID-19 patients from the CT image using convolutional neural networks (CNN). The novel approach is based on DenseNet is the updated CNN architecture in the present state to detect COVID-19. The results outperformed 92% accuracy, with 95% recall showing good performance for the identification of COVID-19.
Drug Design and Repurposing with DockThor-VS Web Server: Virtual Screening focusing on SARS-CoV-2 Therapeutic Targets and their Non-Synonym Variants
Authors: Guedes Isabella A. , Costa Leon S. C. , Santos Karina B. dos , Karl Ana L. M. , Rocha Gregório K. , Teixeira Iury M. , Galheigo Marcelo M. , Medeiros Vivian , Krempser Eduardo , Custódio Fábio L. , Barbosa Helio J. C. , Nicolás Marisa F. , Dardenne Laurent E.
Published: October 2020

The COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus was declared as a pandemic disease in March 2020 by the World Health Organization (WHO). Structure-Based Drug Design strategies based on docking methodologies have been widely used for both new drug development and drug repurposing to find effective treatments against this disease. In this work, we present the developments implemented in the DockThor-VS web server to provide a virtual screening (VS) platform with curated structures of potential therapeutic targets from SARS-CoV-2 incorporating genetic information regarding relevant non-synonymous variations. The web server facilitates repurposing VS experiments providing curated libraries of currently available drugs on the market. Currently, DockThor-VS provides ready-for-docking 3D structures for wild type and selected mutations for Nsp3 (papain-like, PLpro domain), Nsp5 (Mpro, 3CLpro), Nsp12 (RdRp), Nsp15 (NendoU), N protein and Spike. We performed VS experiments of FDA-approved drugs considering the therapeutic targets available at the web server to assess the impact of considering different structures and mutations in the identification of possible new treatments of SARS-CoV-2 infections. The DockThor-VS is freely available at www.dockthor.lncc.br.
Unveiling the real dynamics of transmission of COVID-19 in Malaysia without incarcerated clusters: a modelling study
Authors: Law Kian Boon , Peariasamy Kalaiarasu M
Published: October 2020

Introduction: The latest outbreak of COVID-19 in Malaysia emerged in early September and had two determinants. First, it involved incarcerated populations from four prisons located in Sabah, Kedah and Penang states. Second, the Sabah state by-election campaigns accelerated the spread of COVID-19 in the state and across the South China Sea into the west Malaysia. The emergence of multiple incarcerated clusters at different time points may shadow the real dynamics of transmission of COVID-19 in the community and lead to inaccurate interpretation and conclusion. The study aimed to reveal the real spreading pattern of COVID-19 by excluding incarcerated clusters in the modelling.Methodology: We extended the susceptible-infectious-removed (SIR) model to include an additional class for non-isolated active cases, which was assumed to impel the transmission of COVID-19 in the community. The model was fitted to actual total and removed cases for estimation of duration of transmission and hospitalization. The parameters were then applied to model the transmission for COVID-19 in the community.Results: The presence of incarcerated clusters shadowed the dynamics of transmission of COVID-19 with a lower reproduction number of 2.0. The proportion of non-isolated active cases increased slowly from 49.4% on 1 September 2020 to 60.3% on 8 October 2020. In the absence of incarcerated clusters, the dynamics of transmission of COVID-19 appeared differently with a higher reproduction number of 2.3. The proportion of non-isolated active cases increased tremendously from 22.1% on 1 September 2020 to 63.7% on 8 October 2020. The tremendous increase of non-isolated active cases impelled the dynamics of transmission of COVID-19 in the community following the Sabah state by-election campaigns and more inter-state travels.Conclusion: The inclusion of incarcerated clusters shadowed the dynamics of transmission of COVID-19 in the community with a lower transmission rate, which might lead to wrong interpretation of the dynamics of transmission in the community.
Survey of the Level of Preparedness and Fears of Anaesthesia Staff regarding the Management of COVID-19 patients in ABUTH Zaria-Nigeria
Authors: Yakubu Saidu Yusuf
Published: October 2020

Objectives: Data was collected to determine the level of preparedness and fears of anaesthesia staff regarding the management of COVID-19 patients in a low resource tertiary hospital in Zaria, Nigeria. Information obtained was used to request for missing equipment from the hospital management and to allay the fears of staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: Data reported was from the survey of consenting anaesthesia staff at the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital Zaria. Information obtained include age, gender, marital status, professional role, level of preparedness, availability of working materials/equipment, fear of COVID-19, level of stress, stigmatization and the willingness or otherwise to volunteer in the management of COVID-19 patients. All 45 respondents stated that they do not have a life insurance. Forty four (97.8%) lack access to COVID-19 testing while 36 (80%) have not received any training on COVID-19 and the use of personal protective equipment. Twenty eight of 43 staff said that they were not willing or prepared to participate in the management of COVID-19 patients. Data will be useful to other researchers with a similar challenge. Data obtained was deposited at https://dx.doi.org/10.17632/stdmys22gk.1.
Profesionalización en la empresa familiar: evolución y líneas de investigación
Authors: Marcelino-Aranda Mariana , Torres-Ramírez Aylin , Muñoz Marcelino David , D. Camacho Alejandro
Published: October 2020

Introducción: Las empresas familiares (EF), aportan significativamente a la economía y a la sociedad en muchos países. El estudio de la profesionalización de estas empresas resulta relevante, toda vez que permite alcanzar una gestión eficiente dentro de la organización y para aumentar ganancias. Esta investigación tiene como objetivo describir y analizar la evolución cuantitativa de la producción científica de la profesionalización en la EF familiar desde 1980 a 2019, lo cual, permite identificar aspectos claves como son el autor más citado, la revista de mayor impacto, la institución líder, a fin de analizar las principales características del tema y perfilar futuras líneas de investigación.Método: Los datos se obtuvieron de los artículos recuperados del portal Web of Science, de Clarivate Analytics y se llevó a cabo un método bibliométrico y análisis de contenido.Resultados: La búsqueda produjo 112 artículos, con picos de producción en 2013 y 2018. Se analizan las redes de coocurrencia, citación y coautoría. La revista “Family Business Review” es la de mayor publicación de artículos; no obstante, el “Journal of Finance” y “Quarterly Journal of Economics” tienen un factor de impacto mayor. Anderson y Reeb son los autores más citados. Estados Unidos concentran la mayor producción científica y la participación de América Latina y, en específico México, es casi nula.Discusión y Conclusión: El tema de profesionalización comenzó a ser estudiado como un factor implícito y de soporte para el crecimiento de la empresa familiar. En los últimos nueve años, aumentaron las publicaciones sobre la profesionalización ya que incide en la obtención de ganancias económicas, además, está en la base de la sucesión e institucionalización de la organización e interviene en la continuidad de la empresa y la armonía familiar. La mayoría de las investigaciones se enfocan en evaluar los resultados financieros comparando entre un CEO familiar o uno externo. Sin embargo, falta profundizar en el estudio de cómo realizar la planeación, ejecución y evaluación de la profesionalización. Las diferencias en la gestión aplicable a empresas familiares grandes, las microempresas, pequeños emprendimientos, y sus componentes culturales, son temas amplios que requieren más investigación. A nivel internacional sigue en debate el perfil de la persona para manejar eficientemente la EF, lo cual abre la oportunidad para investigar estos temas en el contexto mexicano.
Does gender affect business continuity? An analysis with hierarchical modeling
Authors: Ortiz Rodríguez Jeyle , Picazzo Palencia Esteban , Alvarado Lagunas Elías
Published: October 2020

Introduction: Gender differences, which are socially and culturally created, determine how women and men will perform and the more appropriate activities for each person. As cultural and social aspects emphasize the differences in men’ and women’s roles, culture and gender stereotypes may influence the difference in the probability of success of business headed by men or women. The objective of this article is to explore whether the impact of the determinants of micro-businesses continuity varies between men and women in the Metropolitan Area of Monterrey, Mexico.Method: We use hierarchical modeling with Bernoulli distribution using the sex of the micro entrepreneur as a variable in the second level.Results: Results indicate that sex moderates the effect of schooling, having the micro-business to exercise his or her career or profession, if the micro-entrepreneur is willing to change the business activity to a job with similar income, but with access to social security, and if the micro-business is in the manufacturing sector.Discussion: Women entrepreneurs can feel disadvantaged as entrepreneurs or make choices that emphasize traditional gender roles. As a consequence, the social and cultural restrictions faced by women restrict their participation and performance in the business world.
Predictors of hand hygiene behaviours among primary and secondary school children in a rural district setting in Zimbabwe: a cross-sectional epidemiologic study
Authors: Ncube France , Kanda Artwell , Chahwanda Maude , Macherera Margaret , Ngwenya Bigboy
Published: October 2020

Hand hygiene is one of the most effective and efficient ways of controlling faecal–oral diseases. However, little is known about the predictors of hand hygiene behaviours among school children. A predesigned checklist guide was used to observe hygiene behaviours of 460 pupils from four rural schools in Shamva South district, Zimbabwe. A pretested questionnaire was administered to obtain demographic data of the observed school children. Membership of a Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) club, age, gender and the level of education were associated with hand hygiene practices (p < 0.05). The findings indicated that investing in hand hygiene behaviour change processes among school children using the promotion, formation, resuscitation and empowerment of WASH clubs in schools is important in disease prevention among communities in developing countries.
Water reuse potential for irrigation in Brazilian hydrographic regions
Authors: Lima Maíra , Araujo Bruna Magalhães de , Soares Sérgio Rodrigues Ayrimoraes , Santos Ana Silvia Pereira , Vieira José Manuel Pereira
Published: October 2020

The present paper carried out an evaluation of the reuse potential of the Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs) effluents for irrigation in the 12 Brazilian Hydrographic Regions (BHRs). For this purpose, initially, the WWTPs were categorized and the effluent flow rate was estimated. Category 1 represents secondary effluent with an efficiency of organic matter removal greater than 80%; Category 2 represents effluent that underwent some disinfection step; and effluents that perform less than the other categories were called ‘Uncategorized’. After that, the irrigation water demands for each BHRs were compiled, and finally, the production of water for reutilization was compared with the demand for irrigation. Thus, it was observed that all the sewage flow rates generated in Brazil classified in Categories 1 and 2 represent 9% of the total irrigation water demand in the country (1,078.71 m3/s) and it stands out that only 7% of the flows treated in Brazil undergo a tertiary treatment step.
Sorption behavior and mechanism of oxytetracycline from simulated wastewater by Amberlite IR-120 resin
Authors: Yousef Rechidi , Malika Chabani
Published: October 2020

The adsorption of oxytetracycline from aqueous solution by the resin Amberlite IR 120 was studied. The effect of different experimental parameters such as contact time, initial concentration of OTC 40–200 mg/l, initial pH 2–12 of aqueous solution, adsorbent dose 0.5–3 g/l, and stirring speed 100–700 rpm on the adsorption of OTC were investigated. The kinetic adsorption experimental results were analyzed using pseudo-first order, pseudo-second order and Elovich kinetic models. The adsorption process was found to follow a pseudo-second order kinetic model and the corresponding rate constants were obtained. A film-pore diffusion (FPD) mass transfer model has been developed to predict the concentration distribution in the fluid phase, based on the external mass transfer coefficient and the effective diffusion coefficient. The values of the external mass transfer coefficient (βL) and effective diffusion coefficient (Deff) were found to decrease with increasing OTC concentration. The comparison between the experimental and the theoretical curves allowed us to note that the film-pore diffusion mass transfer model gave a good agreement with the experimental data for all the values of initial OTC concentration.
Tio2/SiO2/Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles synthesis and application in methyl orange UV photocatalytic removal
Authors: Behzadi Shabnam , Nonahal Behrouz , Royaee Sayed Javid , Asadi Amir Atabak
Published: October 2020

Three main parameters affecting TiO2/SiO2/Fe3O4 nanoparticles activity in photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange were investigated using response surface methodology (SRM). Precipitation method and sol-gel technique were used to prepare SiO2/Fe3O4 electromagnetic composite support and TiO2/SiO2/Fe3O4 photocatalytically active nanoparticles. The specific surface area, pore volume, and average pore size of the synthesized nanoparticles were respectively equal to 56 m2/g, 0.12 cm3/g and 9.4 nm. The point of zero charge (PZC) of the catalyst was measured to be 5.9. The maximum and minimum photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange using the synthesized nanoparticles were 100% and 30%, respectively. A linear model was fitted to the obtained results with R2adjusted equal to 0.87. The results of analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed that catalyst concentration, reaction media pH and aeration rate were significantly affected the photocatalytic activity. Optimization was performed considering photocatalytic activity as the main objective functions. In order to maximize photocatalytic activity, catalyst loading, reaction media pH and aeration rate were respectively adjusted to 2,000 ppm, 3 and 2.5 L/min, which resulted in total methyl orange removal. Considering promising photocatalytic activity of TiO2/SiO2/Fe3O4 along with core-sell nanocomposite separation performance led us to propose this photocatalyst as an alternative solution for treating waste waters.
Evaluation of the Cardioprotective Effect of Granulocyte Colony Stimulating Factor in Patients with Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
Authors: Pourtaji Atena , Sahebkar Amirhossein , Poorzand Hoorak , Moshiri Mohammad , Mohammadpour Amir Hooshang , Mousavi Seyed Reza
Published: October 2020

Background:

Carbon monoxide (CO), which is well known as silent killer, has many
toxic effects on organs with high rate of metabolism such as heart and brain. CO-induced cardiotoxicity
resulted in a wide range of disabilities including electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormalities,
elevation in level of cardiac enzymes, arrhythmias, impairment of left ventricular and myocardial
infarction (MI). Cardio-protective effects of Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) on infarcted
heart was proved previously in various reports.

Objective:

In this study, possible effect of G-CSF on cardiac function of patients with moderate to severe acute CO poisoning
was investigated.

Methods:

Cardioprotective effects of G-CSF in CO-poisoned patients was evaluated through ECG, Holter monitoring,
echocardiography, and biochemical studies. Continuous intravenous infusion of G-CSF (90 µg/kg) and normal saline were
administered respectively to treatment and placebo groups.

Results:

The results demonstrated that in moderate to severe CO poisoning, myocardial injury is
common. ECG changes (e.g., ST-segment and T-wave changes, QTC), cardiac arrhythmias (e.g.,
heart blocks and ventricular arrhythmias), serum level of Troponin I, left ventricular ejection fraction
were determined after G-CSF administration. Frequencies of ST depression, inversion or flatting
of T wave and QTC in ECG were significantly reduced after G-CSF treatment. In addition, incidence
of cardiac arrhythmias due to CO poisoning were reduced after G-CSF treatment. However,
G-CSF did not exert protective effects on TPI level and function of left ventricular in CO-poisoned
patients.

Conclusion:

GCSF could probably reduce CO-induced cardiac ischemia in patients with acute CO poisoning.
Peptide-Modified Nanoparticles for Tumor Targeting and Molecular Imaging
Authors: Lu Liejing , Zhang Qinyuan , Wang Zhe , Gao Liqian , Shen Jun
Published: October 2020

Nanoparticles hold great promise in tumor targeting and molecular imaging because
they can co-deliver therapeutic drugs and imaging agents to the tumor site with a
single entity. Nanoparticles modified with ligands against moieties overexpressed on tumor
tissues have gained increasing attention due to their active targeting mechanisms.
Peptides are well suited for nanoparticle targeting modifications because they are small,
easy to synthesize and typically non-immunogenic. Herein, we review the peptide-modified
nanoparticles used for tumor targeting therapy and molecular imaging based on the
classification of peptide-targeting ligands. The development of targeting peptides and
nanoparticles will also be discussed.
Berberine in the Treatment of Diabetes Mellitus: A Review
Authors: Baska Aleksandra , Leis Kamil , Gałązka Przemysław
Published: October 2020

Berberine is an alkaloid found in plants. It has neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory and
hypolipidemic activities. The research proves that it also strongly impacts carbohydrate
metabolism. The compound also protects pancreatic β-cells and increases sensitivity to insulin in
peripheral tissues via the induction of GLUT-1, GLUT-4 and insulin type 1 (Ins-1) receptors activity.
It also stimulates glycolysis and leads to a decrease in insulin resistance by macrophages polarization,
lipolytic processes induction and energy expenditure enhancement (by reducing body
mass and limiting insulin resistance caused by obesity). In liver berberine inhibits FOX01,
SREBP1 and ChREBP pathways, and HNF-4α (hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 alpha) mRNA that hinder
gluconeogenesis processes. In the intestines it blocks α-glucosidase contributing to glucose absorption
decrease. Its interference in intestinal flora reduces levels of monosaccharides and suppresses
diabetes mellitus complications development.
Temperature Influences at the Myoelectric Level in the Upper Extremities of the Human Body
Authors: Herrera Efrén V. , Vela Edgar M. , Arce Victor A. , Molina Katherine G. , Sánchez Nathaly S. , Daza Paúl J. , Herrera Luis E. , Plaza Douglas A.
Published: October 2020

Objective:

Nowadays, surface electromyography (sEMG) signals are used for a variety of medical interaction applications along with hardware and software interfaces. These signals require advanced techniques with different approaches that enable processing the sEMG signals acquired in the upper limb muscles of a person.

Methods:

The purpose of this article is to analyze the sEMG signals of the upper limb of a person exposed to temperature changes to envisage its behavior and its nature. The anticipated diagnostic is a key factor in the health field. Therefore, it is very important to develop more precise methods and techniques. For the present study, a heat chamber that allows controlling the temperature of the area where the patient rests his or her hand was designed and implemented. With the appropriate hardware interfaces, the sEMG signals of the hand were registered with MatLab/Simulink software for further analysis. The article explains the analysis and develops knowledge, through a probabilistic approach regarding the change in the sEMG signals.

Results:

The results show that there is an activity in the sEMG signal response due to changes in temperature and it is feasible to detect them using the proposed method.

Conclusion:

This finding contributes to research that seeks to characterize temperature’s effect in the biomedical field.
Consistency of the Semi-parametric MLE under the Cox Model with Right-Censored Data
Authors: Yu Qiqing
Published: October 2020

Objective:

We studied the consistency of the semi-parametric maximum likelihood estimator (SMLE) under the Cox regression model with right-censored (RC) data.

Methods:

Consistency proofs of the MLE are often based on the Shannon-Kolmogorov inequality, which requires finite E(lnL), where L is the likelihood function.

Results:

The results of this study show that one property of the semi-parametric MLE (SMLE) is established.

Conclusion:

Under the Cox model with RC data, E(lnL) may not exist. We used the Kullback-Leibler information inequality in our proof.
Iterative Recognition of Bird's Nest in Aerial Photograph of High Voltage
Transmission Tower
Authors: Yu WanBo , Li XingWen , Yu Ting
Published: October 2020

Background:

Unmanned aerial vehicle automatic fault identification of high voltage transmission equipment
has entered the stage of product development, in which image recognition technology is one of the key technologies.
There are often bird nests on the high voltage transmission tower, which have an impact on the transmission, so they
needs to be automatically detected.

Methods:

For bird's nest recognition, a novel algorithm is proposed. Firstly, the template image and auxiliary function are
used to construct the system, and the iterative point trajectory set, called feature set, is obtained by iteration; Then, the
target image is searched by blocks, and the image blocks are iterated with the same auxiliary function to construct the
iterative system, and the set of iterative point tracks to be identified is obtained. The correlation coefficient is calculated
by comparing the feature set with those to be recognized. And we can confirm whether the image block is a bird's nest
according to the size of correlation coefficient.

Results:

Different from the general image recognition method, the iterative algorithm obtains the iterative trajectory by
iterating the image and the auxiliary function, and takes the iterative trajectory as the image feature, then the feature
comparison is carried out, so as to achieve the goal of bird's nest recognition. The effectiveness of the method is proved by
experiments. The recognition accuracy is 99% by experiment on the self-built data set.

Conclusion:

This paper proposes a new feature extraction algorithm for bird's nest recognition. The algorithm based on
iteration is very simple and effective for bird's nest identification. As a new method, it needs further development and
improvement.
Implementation and Application of Telemedicine in China: Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Cui Fangfang , Ma Qianqian , He Xianying , Zhai Yunkai , Zhao Jie , Chen Baozhan , Sun Dongxu , Shi Jinming , Cao Mingbo , Wang Zhenbo
Published: October 2020

Background

Telemedicine has been used widely in China and has benefited a large number of patients, but little is known about the overall development of telemedicine.

Objective

The aim of this study was to perform a national survey to identify the overall implementation and application of telemedicine in Chinese tertiary hospitals and provide a scientific basis for the successful expansion of telemedicine in the future.

Methods

The method of probability proportionate to size sampling was adopted to collect data from 161 tertiary hospitals in 29 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities. Charts and statistical tests were applied to compare the development of telemedicine, including management, network, data storage, software and hardware equipment, and application of telemedicine. Ordinal logistic regression was used to analyze the relationship between these factors and telemedicine service effect.

Results

Approximately 93.8% (151/161) of the tertiary hospitals carried out telemedicine services in business-to-business mode. The most widely used type of telemedicine network was the virtual private network with a usage rate of 55.3% (89/161). Only a few tertiary hospitals did not establish data security and cybersecurity measures. Of the 161 hospitals that took part in the survey, 100 (62.1%) conducted remote videoconferencing supported by hardware instead of software. The top 5 telemedicine services implemented in the hospitals were teleconsultation, remote education, telediagnosis of medical images, tele-electrocardiography, and telepathology, with coverage rates of 86.3% (139/161), 57.1% (92/161), 49.7% (80/161), 37.9% (61/161), and 33.5% (54/161), respectively. The average annual service volume of teleconsultation reached 714 cases per hospital. Teleconsultation and telediagnosis were the core charging services. Multivariate analysis indicated that the adoption of direct-to-consumer mode (P=.003), support from scientific research funds (P=.01), charging for services (P<.001), number of medical professionals (P=.04), network type (P=.02), sharing data with other hospitals (P=.04), and expertise level (P=.03) were related to the effect of teleconsultation. Direct-to-consumer mode (P=.01), research funding (P=.01), charging for services (P=.01), establishment of professional management departments (P=.04), and 15 or more instances of remote education every month (P=.01) were found to significantly influence the effect of remote education.

Conclusions

A variety of telemedicine services have been implemented in tertiary hospitals in China with a promising prospect, but the sustainability and further standardization of telemedicine in China are still far from accomplished.