bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Dietary branched-chain amino acid restriction alters fuel selection and reduces triglyceride stores in hearts of Zucker fatty rats
Authors: McGarrah Robert W. , Zhang Guo-Fang , Christopher Bridgette A. , Deleye Yann , Walejko Jacquelyn M. , Page Stephani , Ilkayeva Olga , White Phillip J. , Newgard Christopher B.
Published: December 2019

Elevations in circulating levels of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) are associated with a variety of cardiometabolic diseases and conditions. Restriction of dietary BCAAs in rodent models of obesity lowers circulating BCAA levels and improves whole-animal and skeletal-muscle insulin sensitivity and lipid homeostasis, but the impact of BCAA supply on heart metabolism has not been studied. Here, we report that feeding a BCAA-restricted chow diet to Zucker fatty rats (ZFRs) causes a shift in cardiac fuel metabolism that favors fatty acid relative to glucose catabolism. This is illustrated by an increase in labeling of acetyl-CoA from [1-13C]palmitate and a decrease in labeling of acetyl-CoA and malonyl-CoA from [U-13C]glucose, accompanied by a decrease in cardiac hexokinase II and glucose transporter 4 protein levels. Metabolomic profiling of heart tissue supports these findings by demonstrating an increase in levels of a host of fatty-acid-derived metabolites in hearts from ZFRs and Zucker lean rats (ZLRs) fed the BCAA-restricted diet. In addition, the twofold increase in cardiac triglyceride stores in ZFRs compared with ZLRs fed on chow diet is eliminated in ZFRs fed on the BCAA-restricted diet. Finally, the enzymatic activity of branched-chain ketoacid dehydrogenase (BCKDH) is not influenced by BCAA restriction, and levels of BCAA in the heart instead reflect their levels in circulation. In summary, reducing BCAA supply in obesity improves cardiac metabolic health by a mechanism independent of alterations in BCKDH activity.
Prognostic Factors and Nomograms to Predict Overall and Cancer-Specific Survival for Children with Wilms’ Tumor
Authors: Tang Fucai , Zhang Hanbin , Lu Zechao , Wang Jiamin , He Chengwu , He Zhaohui
Published: December 2019

Objective. This study is aimed at constructing and verifying nomograms that forecast overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) of children with Wilms’ tumor (WT). Patients and methods. Clinical information of 1613 WT patients who were under 18 years old between 1988 and 2010 was collected from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Using these data, we performed univariate as well as multivariate Cox’s regression analyses to determine independent prognostic factors for WT. Then, nomograms to predict 3- and 5-year OS and CSS rates were constructed based on the identified prognostic factors. The nomograms were validated externally and internally. The nomograms’ reliability was evaluated utilizing receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and concordance indices (C-indices). Results. 1613 WT patients under 18 were involved in the study and randomly divided into the training (n=1210) and validation (n=403) cohorts. Age at diagnosis, tumor laterality, tumor size, tumor stage, and use of surgery were determined as independent prognostic factors for OS and CSS in WT and were further applied to construct prognostic nomograms. The C-index and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) revealed the great performance of our nomograms. Internal and external calibration plots also showed excellent agreement between actual survival and nomogram prediction. Conclusion. Precise and convenient nomograms were developed for forecasting OS and CSS of children with WT. These nomograms were able to offer accurate and individualized prognosis and assisted clinicians in performing suitable therapy.
Increased Choroidal Thickness in Keratoconus Patients: Perspectives in the Disease Pathophysiology
Authors: Pinheiro-Costa João , Viana Pinto João , Perestrelo Sara , Beato João Nuno , Torrão Luís , Brandão Elisete , Carneiro Ângela , Madeira Maria Dulce , Falcão-Reis Fernando
Published: December 2019

Purpose. To analyze and compare choroidal thickness between keratoconus (KC) patients and age-matched non-KC subjects. Methods. A cross-sectional, case-control study. One hundred and thirty-four keratoconic eyes and 78 control eyes, from individuals aged from 12 to 30 years old, were studied. Patients with KC followed in Corneal Department of Centro Hospitalar São João, Porto, Portugal, were identified and consecutively included between December 2017 and February 2018. A spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) using depth enhanced imaging was performed, and choroidal thickness in the center of the fovea and at 500 μm intervals along a horizontal section was measured and compared. Results. The statistical analysis showed that keratoconic eyes present a thicker choroid in every measured location (p<0.05). Mean subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) values obtained were 375.86 ± 89.29 and 322.91 ± 85.14 in keratoconus and control groups, respectively (p<0.001). In a multivariate analysis, SFCT was significantly associated with spherical equivalent (p=0.004) and the presence of keratoconus (p<0.001), but not with age (p=0.167), gender (p=0.579), or best-corrected visual acuity (p=0.178). In a “fixed model,” keratoconus patients were found to have a 67.55 μm (95% CI 36.61–98.49) thicker subfoveal choroid compared to controls. Conclusion. Keratoconus patients seem to have a thicker choroid than healthy individuals. The exact pathophysiological mechanism resulting in a thicker choroid in KC patients is not known, but it could possibly be associated with inflammatory choroidal mechanisms.
Fracture of the Femoral Component Caused by Insufficient Crimping after Modern Unicompartmental Knee Arthroplasty
Authors: Ishibashi Yoichi , Mashiba Tasuku , Mori Masaki , Yamamoto Tetsuji
Published: December 2019

Fracture of a femoral component after modern unicompartmental knee arthroplasty is very rare. Although this is not the first case on this subject, no study has reported insufficient crimping as the cause of femoral component loosening that led to breakage of a metallic component. A 69-year-old man underwent medial unicompartmental knee arthroplasty for right medial knee osteoarthritis. His early postoperative course was good; however, the 1-year postoperative radiograph showed an apparent radiolucent line around the femoral component, and he occasionally had right knee pain. However, he had been followed up conservatively because he had been doing well even while doing heavy agricultural work. At 8 years after surgery, because breakage of the femoral component was found, revision surgery was performed using bicruciate-retaining total knee arthroplasty. The removed fractured femoral component revealed a thick cement mantle detached from the bone surface. The postoperative course of the patient after the revision surgery was excellent. We suggest that the causes of femoral component breakage include early implant loosening caused by uneven cement crimping of the femoral component to the bone and excessive loading stress as a result of heavy labour.
Design of Head-Pursuit Guidance Law Based on Backstepping Sliding Mode Control
Authors: Zhu Chenqi , Guo Zhengyu
Published: December 2019

In order to meet the needs of high-precision guidance for intercepting hypersonic targets, a novel head-pursuit guidance law considering the dynamic characteristics of a missile control system and the target mobility is presented via combining a fast power reaching law with backstepping sliding mode control in this paper. Initially, a three-dimensional head-pursuit system model of the missile and target is established. Subsequently, the system model is decomposed into a pitch plane system and lateral plane system, the control system dynamics are equivalent to second-order systems, and finite-time disturbance observers are introduced to estimate the target accelerations. On the basis of the previous work, the head-pursuit guidance laws of the vertical system and the lateral system which can stabilize the closed-loop system are designed separately and strict proofs of the methods are given. Finally, simulations are carried out to verify the effectiveness of this head-pursuit guidance law.
Applications of Blockchain Technology for Data-Sharing in Oncology: Results from a Systematic Literature Review
Authors: Dubovitskaya Alevtina , Novotny Petr , Xu Zhigang , Wang Fusheng
Published: December 2019

Background: Timely sharing of electronic health records across providers, while ensuring data security and privacy, is essential for prompt care of cancer patients, as well as for the development of medical research and the enhancement of personalized medicine. Yet, it is not trivial to achieve efficient consent management, data exchange, and access-control policy enforcement, in particular, in decentralized settings, and given the gravity of the condition such as cancer. Using blockchain technology (BCT) has been recently advocated by research communities and gained momentum from the industry perspective. However, most of the proposed solutions are at the level of a prototype, and blockchain-based healthcare data management systems are not in place yet. Summary:This paper presents a systematic literature review, aiming to analyze the motivations, advantages, and limitations, as well as barriers and future challenges faced when applying the state-of-the-art distributed ledger technology in oncology. We then discuss its outcomes and propose the direction of the future research that can help to attain integration and adoption of the BCT for data-sharing, medical research, and the pharmaceutical supply chain in oncology, as well as in healthcare in general. Key Messages:BCT has the potential to enhance data-sharing (for primary care and medical research), as well as to attain optimization of the pharmaceutical supply chain by bringing properties such as transparency, traceability, and immutability to the applications. However, BCT itself cannot guarantee data privacy and security. Thus, it is never proposed as a stand-alone technology, but as a combined technology with cryptographic techniques. Regardless of the number of existing prototypes of blockchain-based healthcare systems, due to the existing barriers of the adoption (e.g., legal, social, and technological limitations), there is a lack of evaluation in real-world settings. Aiming to overcome these limitations, we propose future research directions that include design of the privacy-preserving hybrid data storage, interoperable infrastructures and architecture, and are compliant with the international laws and regulations.
Dissonância métrica como elemento de convergência entre o erudito e o popular
Authors: Gumboski Leandro
Published: December 2019

A música dos séculos XX e XXI apresenta um conjunto grande de especificidades, dentre as quais está a tensão entre os campos erudito e popular, conceitos que têm sido revisados no âmbito da emergência de uma indústria cultural, da reinvenção da orquestra clássica, do isolamento da chamada música “séria” contemporânea em centros universitários e do plano popular abrangendo um número cada vez maior de manifestações, muitas das quais díspares entre si, sob certos aspectos. A dissonância métrica é um elemento fortemente presente na sonoridade romântica da música de concerto do século XIX, sistematizada enquanto conceito a partir dos escritos de Hector Berlioz, com ampla contribuição da teoria musical recente. É, como tal, um dos tantos elementos que permanecem insistentemente nas mais diferentes manifestações musicais dos séculos XX e XXI. Este trabalho tem como objetivo indicar a existência de dissonâncias métricas em repertórios múltiplos, comumente identificados em contextos distintos a partir dos amplos e difusos campos do erudito e do popular. Revisa-se, inicialmente, definições e categorias de culturas, partindo-se para a identificação dos espaços fronteiriços entre cada categoria. Por fim, após se relacionar certo número de exemplos dos mais distintos contextos, conclui-se que a separação do erudito e do popular se torna inoperante, e que a dissonância métrica pode ser compreendida como um elemento de convergência entre ambos.
Performance: Música em Movimento
Authors: Palermo Filho Silas da Luz
Published: December 2019

A música é uma atividade; e como tal, exige-se o fazer humano. A despeito das abstrações teóricas, ela não é simplesmente algo conceitual, mas pensamento em ação. Música somente se dá a partir do movimento de pessoas imbuídas no processo do fazer, do performar. O objetivo do presente trabalho é abordar a origem do pensamento idealista ocidental em música e como este influenciou todo o desenvolvimento musical gerando uma hierarquização entre teoria e práxis, valorizando mais um em detrimento de outro, resultando em reducionismo no significado do fazer música, antes de se pensar no significado da música em si, mas da música para nós. O conceito de Obra musical apegada somente a notação musical e seu autor sem considerar o intérprete e sua contribuição ativa, não apenas reativa, é restrito e idealizado.  Contrapomos o pensamento de Platão, Aristóteles, Pitágoras, Boécio, entre outros, com o de Sexto Empírico, como pensadores precursores no ocidente; o neoplatonismo da era cristã, e ainda musicólogos modernos que se defrontaram sobre questões estéticas da música. Entendemos que o fazer-música é cerne da existência dela, a música.
Re-visioning library support for undergraduate educational programmes in an academic health sciences library
Authors: Smith Denise
Published: December 2019

McMaster University’s Health Sciences Library (HSL) began to transition to a new liaison service model in early 2018. One of its librarians sought to understand how an academic health sciences library can optimise its support for academic undergraduate programmes. This scoping review of the literature was pursued with the aim to submit an informed recommendation to HSL’s new Education and Lifelong Learning team, so the library could shift its approach to information literacy instruction in a manner that would optimise its outcomes for students and improve relationships with faculty staff. The author searched seven databases: Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA), ProQuest ERIC, OVID Embase, EBSCO CINAHL, OVID Medline, Web of Science and PapersFirst. She developed a robust and comprehensive search strategy that used a combination of subject headings and keywords to describe information literacy, metaliteracy, libraries and health sciences education. The author also hand-searched bibliographies of seminal publications to broaden her search for relevant literature. The findings in this review indicate that metaliteracy as a concept has not been intentionally implemented into information literacy training at academic health sciences libraries. The review finds that it is preferable to integrate information literacy skills directly into course or programme curricula and align those skills with the evidence-based practice skills undergraduates are already learning. Further, establishing a programme that builds on these skills gradually throughout the duration of the academic programme, rather than one-shot library instruction, is also preferred. To achieve success, libraries must build strong collaborative relationships with faculty staff. The author provides recommendations for practice that reflect the findings of this review. Other academic health libraries may benefit from this review by taking into consideration its findings and subsequent recommendations.
Exploring value as a dimension of professional information literacy
Authors: Sharun Sara
Published: December 2019

This study presents a critical exploration of one of the ACRL Framework concepts by examining it in the context of professional practice. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with health and human service professionals at a community health centre to explore how information literacy (IL) is experienced in the workplace. Value emerged as the dominant theme in participants’ descriptions of their information practices. This concept was conceived of predominantly in the context of personal and professional relationships that existed within the systems and structures of the physical workplace, professional practice and the health and social care system. Using phenomenography as a methodological approach, this study presents a lens through which to see the nature and significance of information value in various contexts beyond academia, and invites librarians to consider how evidence from workplace and professional settings may inform IL instruction to students, especially those entering health and human service professions.
The tadpole of Elachistocleis helianneae Caramaschi, 2010 (Anura: Microhylidae)
Authors: DIAS-SOUZA MARCOS ROBERTO , COSTA-CAMPOS CARLOS EDUARDO , MENIN MARCELO
Published: December 2019

The neotropical genus Elachistocleis Parker comprises 18 described species [including Elachistocleis ovalis (Schneider) which is considered a nomen dubium by Caramaschi (2010), with pending revision]. This genus is distributed in Central America and most of South America, from Panama and Trinidad to southern Paraguay, including central Argentina, Uruguay, Venezuela, Colombia, Bolivia, Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana, and Brazil (Marinho et al. 2018; Frost 2019). Currently, the tadpoles of ten species have been described and/or figured: Elachistocleis bicolor (Guérin-Méneville), E. cesarii (Miranda-Ribeiro), E. erythrogaster Kwet and Di-Bernardo, E. haroi Pereyra, Akmentins, Laufer and Vaira, E. muiraquitan Nunes-de-Almeida and Toledo, E. ovalis, E. panamensis (Dunn, Trapido and Evans), E. pearsei (Ruthven), E. surinamensis (Daudin), and Elachistocleis sp. (Kenny 1969; Williams & Gudynas 1987; Kwet & Di-Bernardo 1998; Duellman 2005; Lynch 2006; Rossa-Feres & Nomura 2006; Vera Candioti 2006; Magalhães et al. 2012; Pereyra et al. 2013).
A review species of the genus Ceroplastes (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha: Coccidae) in China
Authors: WU SAN-AN , WANG XUBO
Published: December 2019

The fifteen Ceroplastes species recorded from China are discussed in relation to the origin, distribution, host-plants, biology and remarks. Of these, one new species, Ceroplastes planus Wu & Wang, sp. nov., is described and illustrated; and C. magnificus (Green) is recorded from China for the first time. A key to species of Ceroplastes now known from China is provided.
Outcome of Patients With Prior Stroke/Transient Ischemic Attack and Acute Coronary Syndromes
Authors: Zhang Dongfeng , Song Xiantao , Chen Yalei , Raposeiras-Roubín Sergio , Abu-Assi Emad , Henriques Jose Paulo Simao , D’Ascenzo Fabrizio , Saucedo Jorge , González-Juanatey José Ramón , Wilton Stephen B. , Kikkert Wouter J. , Nuñez-Gil Iván , Ariza-Sole Albert , Alexopoulos Dimitrios , Liebetrau Christoph , Kawaji Tetsuma , Moretti Claudio , Huczek Zenon , Nie Shaoping , Fujii Toshiharu , Correia Luis , Kawashiri Masa-aki , García-Acuña José María , Southern Danielle , Alfonso Emilio , Terol Belén , Garay Alberto , Xanthopoulou Ioanna , Osman Neriman , Möllmann Helge , Shiomi Hiroki , Giordana Francesca , Kowara Michal , Filipiak Krzysztof , Wang Xiao , Yan Yan , Fan Jingyao , Ikari Yuji , Nakahashi Takuya , Sakata Kenji , Yamagishi Masakazu , Kalpak Oliver , Kedev Sasko
Published: December 2019

The association between prior stroke/transient ischemic attack (TIA) and clinical outcomes in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) has not been well explored. We evaluated the impact of prior stroke/TIA on this specific patient population. We conducted an international multicenter study including 15 401 patients with ACS from the Bleeding Complications in a Multicenter Registry of Patients Discharged With Diagnosis of Acute Coronary Syndrome registry. They were divided into 2 groups: patients with and without prior stroke/TIA. The primary end point was death at 1-year follow-up. Prior stroke/TIA was associated with higher rate of 1-year death (8.7% vs 3.4%; P < .001). It was an independent predictor of 1-year death even after adjustment for confounding variables (odds ratio, 1.705; 95% confidence interval, 1.046-2.778; P = .032). Besides, patients with prior stroke/TIA had significantly increased 1-year reinfarction (5.6% vs 3.8%, P = .015), in-hospital bleeding (8.7% vs 5.8%, P < .001), and 1-year bleeding (5.2% vs 3.0%, P < .001). No difference of antithrombotic therapies or dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) types on outcomes was observed in patients with prior stroke/TIA. Prior stroke/TIA was associated with higher 1-year death for patients with ACS who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention. No benefits or harms were observed with different antithrombotic therapies or DAPT types in these patients.
Dysphagia Screening for Pneumonia Prevention in a Cancer Hospital: Results of a Quality/Safety Initiative
Authors: Ebersole Barbara , Lango Miriam , Ridge John , Handorf Elizabeth , Farma Jeffrey , Clark Sarah , Jamal Nausheen
Published: December 2019

Objective

Hospital‐acquired aspiration pneumonia remains a rare but potentially devastating problem. The best means by which to prevent aspiration in a cancer hospital population has not been evaluated. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of dysphagia screening on aspiration pneumonia rates in an acute care oncology hospital.

Methods

A prospective single‐institution quality improvement dysphagia screening protocol at a comprehensive cancer center. Effect of dysphagia screening implemented in 2016 on hospital‐acquired aspiration pneumonia rates coded “aspiration pneumonitis due to food/vomitus” was compared with rates from 2014 to 2015 prior to implementation. Screening compliance, screening outcomes, patient demographics, and medical data were reviewed as part of a post hoc analysis.

Results

Of 12,392 admissions in 2014 to 2016, 97 patients developed aspiration pneumonia during their hospitalization. No significant change in aspiration pneumonia rate was seen during the dysphagia screening year when compared to prior years (baseline, 7.36; screening year, 8.78 per 1000 discharges; P =. 33). Sixty‐eight of the cases (66%) were associated with emesis/gastrointestinal obstruction or perioperative aspiration and only 15 (15%) with oropharyngeal dysphagia. Multivariate analysis found that patients admitted to gastrointestinal surgery had an aspiration risk equivalent to patients admitted to head and neck, thoracic, and pulmonary services (odds ratio, 0.65; P =. 2).

Discussion

Nursing‐initiated dysphagia screening did not decrease aspiration pneumonia rates. The causes of aspiration‐associated pneumonia were heterogeneous. Aspiration of intestinal contents is a more common source of hospital‐acquired pneumonia than oropharyngeal dysphagia.
Language transfer and positional bias in English stress
Authors: Garcia Guilherme D
Published: December 2019

This article shows that first language (L1) transfer may not be effectively maintained in the interlanguage due to confounding factors in the second language (L2). When two factors, [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], are correlated in the L2, second language learners may only acquire [Formula: see text], even if [Formula: see text] is present in the L1. Transfer may not be effective because [Formula: see text], being more robust in the input, conceals [Formula: see text]. Native speakers, on the other hand, generalize [Formula: see text] in spite of [Formula: see text]. The variables in question are weight-sensitivity ([Formula: see text]) and positional bias ([Formula: see text]) in English, both of which can predict the location of stress in the language. I show that two seemingly target-like groups of second language learners of English (speakers of Mandarin and speakers Portuguese) fail to accurately generalize weight-sensitivity in the language, and instead display response patterns which are predictable given the existing positional bias in English stress.
The effectiveness of the Internet-based self-management program for cancer-related fatigue patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Huang Junting , Han Yang , Wei Jiejie , Liu Xiaobo , Du Yanying , Yang Linqing , Li Ying , Yao Wanxia , Wang Ruijun
Published: December 2019

Objective:

To systematically investigate how fatigue, depression, anxiety, sleep quality, and life quality are influenced by the Internet-based self-management program (IBSMP) among cancer patients.

Data sources:

Eight databases (Cochrane Library, Ovid, Web of Science, Medline, Embase, Chinese biomedical database (CBM), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), and Wanfang) were systematically searched from inception to January 2019.

Methods:

The aim of this study is to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) associated with the IBSMP among cancer-related fatigue (CRF) patients. Two reviewers independently screened 1128 records and selected 13 articles, including 1603 patients for inclusion. The quality of the evidence was assessed at the study level and at the outcome level.

Results:

The meta-analysis showed that the IBSMP was effective for ameliorating fatigue and related symptoms among cancer survivors (the Brief Fatigue Index, relative risk = 0.74, 95% confidence interval (CI; 0.69, 0.79), P < 0.01; the Cancer Fatigue Scale or the Multidimension Fatigue Scale, weighted mean difference = −10.15, 95% CI (−11.42, −8.89), P < 0.01; the Self-rating Anxiety scale, relative risk = 1.07, 95% CI (0.55, 2.05), P < 0.01; the Self-rating Depression scale, relative risk = 0.70, 95% CI (0.60, 0.81), P < 0.01; the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, relative risk = 0.46, 95% CI (0.33, 0.62), P < 0.01; and the Function Assessment of Cancer Therapy—General scale or the Function Assessment of Cancer Therapy—Breast, weighted mean difference = 13.76, 95% CI (3.38, 24.14), P < 0.01.)

Conclusion:

This meta-analysis demonstrates that the IBSMP, as one of the rehabilitation forms, can reduce the incidence of fatigue, depression, and anxiety and improve sleep quality and life quality among CRF patients.
The Intimate International Relations of Museums: a Method
Authors: Tidy Joanna , Turner Joe
Published: December 2019

This article proposes a method for analysing museums as sites of intimate and colonially-produced international relations. Beginning with fieldwork that approaches museums as sites through which people intimately encounter the objects, institutions, selves and others of international politics, we explore how intimacy can be ‘read’ as socio-sexual affect, scales and proximities, and colonial differentiation/racialisation. The article is grounded in fieldwork at the British Army Royal Engineers Museum in Kent, UK, conceptualised as an assembly of, following Stoler, imperial debris. We explore how certain museum exhibits work as intimate ‘organising objects’, locating the museum collection, and those who visit or are excluded from it, within the intimate circulations of imperial and colonial violence. The article makes two core contributions: first, responding to recent literature in IR on museums we propose a framework for understanding how museums and exhibitions function as everyday sites of coloniality and racialisation. Second, we propose that approaching intimacy as a method is instructive for fieldwork in international relations (including museums) which takes the colonial constitution of the global/local seriously.
Mediating state–society disputes in China: Outsourced lawyers and their selective responses
Authors: Ruoting Zheng , Jieren Hu
Published: December 2019

Where popular contention in China is concerned, third parties are not merely supporters of protesters but also allies of the state. Through quantitative and qualitative methods, this article uses an actor-centred perspective to explore the dual role of Chinese lawyers in state dispute resolution projects. When providing legal counselling services to the public, lawyers adopt selective strategies and channel non-political cases into legal channels while keeping political cases within the political arena. When handling social disputes for the government, however, they apply professional diagnoses and legal persuasion, and intervene through mediation and negotiation. Three factors constrain the effectiveness of Chinese lawyers during dispute resolution. These are the limited access to cases, the dilemmas inherent in acting simultaneously both as a third party and as a state agent, and the restricted influence of lawyers over the final resolution of social disputes. This article argues that the selective responses of Chinese lawyers during legal counselling and strategic defence of state power in dispute resolution make them a governance tool for stability maintenance. Their participation contributes more to legal repression than to legal development in contemporary China.
Nature-Based Solutions in Tourism: A Review of the Literature and Conceptualization
Authors: Padma Panchapakesan , Ramakrishna Sundari , Rasoolimanesh S. Mostafa
Published: December 2019

“Nature based solutions” are innovative solutions, which are inspired from nature, and applied to contemporary societal problems such as climate change, overtourism, poverty alleviation, and so on. The research on “nature-based solutions” in tourism is rudimentary and the main objective of this study is to identify and conceptualize the nature-based solutions in tourism. For this purpose, a hybrid literature review has been conducted in the scientific fields of tourism and hospitality as well as agriculture, building sector, and urban planning. An examination of the characteristics of the nature-based solutions have led to its conceptualization based on six constituent dimensions such as empowerment of stakeholders, monitoring the state of natural environment, economic development of residents, adoption of environment-friendly solutions, and changing the mind-set of stakeholders. Finally, limitations of the current study have been identified and some recommendations for further research have been provided.
Climatic clustering analysis for novel atlas mapping and bioclimatic design recommendations
Authors: Roshan Gholamreza , Farrokhzad Mohammad , Attia Shady
Published: December 2019

Defining and determining climatic zones accurately is crucial to inform the decision making of building designers and planners during early design phases of urban development. Characterizing the climatic zones allows estimation of energy requirements in buildings and develop climate adapted energy polices. Climatic zones can be defined by using the statistical cluster analysis. Data from weather stations can be used after standardization with zero mean and unit variance, to confirm that all variables are weighted equally in the cluster analysis. In this paper, a novel atlas for 19 climatic zones is presented that represent a variety of bioclimatic design strategies and recommendations, for passive design, based on a clustering analysis in Iran. The clustering analysis is based on the statistical analysis of daily temperature and relative humidity from 1995 to 2014. The results visualize 19 different climate zones for Iran and indicate the dominance of passive design strategies. As a result, Iran was divided into eight climatic clusters. The results showed that each of the studied clusters require specific strategies in providing indoor comfort. The outputs of this study shed the light on the importance of up-to-date climate characterization and the effectiveness of climate mapping and recommendations to inform decision makers.
The knowing mother: Maternal knowledge and the reinforcement of the feminine consuming subject in magazine advertisements
Authors: Davis Teresa , Hogg Margaret K. , Marshall David , Petersen Alan , Schneider Tanja
Published: December 2019

The caring mother is one of the most recurring images of femininity in post-war advertising. We examine how mothers are depicted as knowing consumers in advertisements in Australian Women’s Weekly and the United Kingdom’s Good Housekeeping magazines between 1950 and 2010. Our data suggest that although visual representations of maternal consumer knowledge change over this period, assumptions about the responsibilities of mothers endure in the family-related advertisements in these women’s magazines. There is a shift over time, however, from a representation of mothers as passive recipients of advice provided by external experts to a more active representation of mothers as experts themselves within both domestic and private spheres. We trace historically how the trope of the knowing mother works as a visual discursive device that helps to reinforce not just patriarchal hegemony, but a particular form of maternal hegemony. The hegemony of motherhood presents a particularly desirable/idealised femininity. However, this visual depiction also serves to gender the very way in which maternal knowledge is to be used. While maternal knowledge is depicted as changing from being merely intuitive or practical to subsuming the technique of knowledge or prescribed expertise; the purposes for which such knowledge is used remain firmly situated within the maternal/feminine realm of nurturing and caring consumption for the family. Despite shifts in discourse that appear to increasingly value mothers’ knowledge—there exists an enduring assumption that mothers should use their knowledge for domestic caring and consumption, ultimately reinforcing a heteronormativity of the use of women’s knowledge that subdues even expert knowledge for a domestic purpose.
Morphological Assessment of MACI Grafts in Patients with Revision Surgery and Total Joint Arthroplasty
Authors: Beck Aswin , Wood David , Vertullo Christopher J. , Ebert Jay , Janes Greg , Sullivan Martin , Zheng Ming-Hao
Published: December 2019

Objective

To compare the histological and immunohistochemical characteristics of matrix-assisted chondrocyte implantation (MACI) grafts between patients with revision surgery and patients with total joint arthroplasty.

Methods

Biopsies of MACI grafts from patients with revision and total joint arthroplasty. The graft tissue characteristics and subchondral bone were examined by qualitative histology, ICRS (International Cartilage Repair Society) II scoring and semiquantitative immunohistochemistry using antibodies specific to type I and type II collagen.

Results

A total of 31 biopsies were available, 10 undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and 21 patients undergoing revision surgery. Patients in the clinically failed group were significantly older (46.3 years) than patients in the revision group (36.6 years) ( P = 0.007). Histologically, the predominant tissue in both groups was of fibrocartilaginous nature, although a higher percentage of specimens in the revision group contained a hyaline-like repair tissue. The percentages of type I collagen (52.9% and 61.0%) and type II collagen (66.3% and 42.2%) were not significantly different between clinically failed and revised MACI, respectively. The talar dome contained the best and patella the worst repair tissue. Subchondral bone pathology was present in all clinically failed patients and consisted of bone marrow lesions, including edema, necrosis and fibrosis, intralesional osteophyte formation, subchondral bone plate elevation, intralesional osteophyte formation, subchondral bone cyst formation, or combinations thereof.

Conclusions

MACI grafts in patients with revision and total joint arthroplasty were predominantly fibrocartilage in repair type, did not differ in composition and were histologically dissimilar to healthy cartilage. Clinically failed cases showed evidence of osteochondral unit failure, rather than merely cartilage repair tissue failure. The role of the subchondral bone in relation to pain and failure and the pathogenesis warrants further investigation.
Estimating Health Cost Repartition Among Diseases in the Presence of Multimorbidity
Authors: Rousson Valentin , Rossel Jean-Benoît , Eggli Yves
Published: December 2019

We consider the nontrivial problem of estimating the health cost repartition among different diseases in the common case where the patients may have multiple diseases. To tackle this problem, we propose to use an iterative proportional repartition (IPR) algorithm, a nonparametric method which is simple to understand and to implement, allowing (among other) to avoid negative cost estimates and to retrieve the total health cost by summing up the estimated costs of the different diseases. This method is illustrated with health costs data from Switzerland and is compared in a simulation study with other methods such as linear regression and general linear models. In the case of an additive model without interactions between disease costs, a situation where the truth is clearly defined such that the methods can be compared on an objective basis, the IPR algorithm clearly outperformed the other methods with respect to efficiency of estimation in all the settings considered. In the presence of interactions, the situation is more complex and will deserve further investigation.
Overexpression of TCP8 delays Arabidopsis flowering through a FLOWERING LOCUS C-dependent pathway
Authors: Wang Xiaoyan , Xu Xintong , Mo Xiaowei , Zhong Luyao , Zhang Jiancong , Mo Beixin , Kuai Benke
Published: December 2019

Background

Flowering is a key process in the life cycle of plants. The transition from vegetative to reproductive growth is thus under sophisticated regulation by endogenous and environmental signals. The plant-specific Teosinte Branched 1/Cycloidea/Proliferating Cell Factors (TCP) family transcription factors are involved in many biological processes, but their roles in regulating flowering have not been totally elucidated.

Results

We explored the role of ArabidopsisTCP8in plant development and, especially, in flowering control. Overexpression ofTCP8significantly delayed flowering under both long-day and short-day conditions and dominant repression byTCP8led to various growth defects. The upregulation ofTCP8led to more accumulated mRNA level ofFLOWERING LOCUS C(FLC), a central floral repressor of Arabidopsis.TCP8functions in an FLC-dependent manner, asTCP8overexpression in theflc-6loss-of-function mutant failed to delay flowering. The vernalization treatment could reverse the late flowering phenotype caused byTCP8overexpression.

Conclusions

Our results provide evidence for a role ofTCP8in flowering control and add to our knowledge of the molecular basis ofTCP8function.
Graft failure of IgA nephropathy in renal allografts following living donor transplantation: predictive factor analysis of 102 biopsies
Authors: Zhang Jin , Chen Guo-dong , Qiu Jiang , Liu Guo-chang , Chen Li-zhong , Fu Kai , Wu Zi-xuan
Published: December 2019

Background

To investigate predictive factors related to graft failure of IgA nephropathy(IgAN) in renal allografts following living donor transplantation.

Methods

We identified a series of 102 biopsies diagnosed as IgAN in renal allografts following living donor transplantation from July 2004 to January 2017 at our center, and assess the predict value of the Lee’s classification and the 2009 Oxford classification in IgAN in renal allografts, clinical, ultrasonic and pathological characteristics at biopsy and the outcomes were retrospectively analyzed.

Results

The 5-year graft cumulative survival rate after transplantation was 91.4%. The 4-year graft cumulative survival rate after biopsy diagnosis of IgAN in renal allografts was 59.6%. The mean time ± SD to disease was 4.7 ± 3.5 years. The color doppler ultrasound and blood flow imagine showed the echo enhancement, the reduced blood flow distribution, the reduced peak systolic velocity of main renal artery, and the increased resistance index of arcuate renal artery were valuable in evaluating the graft dysfunction. The Cox multivariate analysis revealed that the 24-h urinary protein level (HR 1.6 for 1-g increase, 95%CI 1.2–2.0), estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) (HR 1.0 for 1-mL/min/1.73 m^2 decline, 95%CI 1.0–1.1), and mesangial C1q deposition (HR 3.0, 95%CI 1.2–7.4) at biopsy were independent predictive factors of graft failure of IgAN in renal allografts.

Conclusions

IgAN in renal allografts occurred frequently within 5 years after transplantation. The risk of graft failure should be taken seriously in patients who exhibit heavy proteinuria and/or a declined eGFR as the initial symptoms; a high lesion grade (grade IV-V of Lee’s classification) and/or mesangial C1q deposition may also indicated a poor outcome.
Why acute ischemic stroke patients in the United States use or do not use emergency medical services transport? Findings of an inpatient survey
Authors: Xirasagar Sudha , Tsai Meng-han , Heidari Khosrow , Hardin James W. , Wu Yuqi , Wronski Robert , Hurley Dana , Jauch Edward C. , Sen Souvik
Published: December 2019

Background

Patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) who use emergency medical services (EMS) receive quicker reperfusion treatment which, in turn, mitigates post-stroke disability. However, nationally only 59% use EMS. We examined why AIS patients use or do not use EMS.

Methods

During 2016–2018, a convenience sample of AIS patients admitted to a primary stroke center in South Carolina were surveyed during hospitalization if they were medically fit, available for survey when contacted, and consented to participate. The survey was programed into EpiInfo with skip patterns to minimize survey burden and self-administered on a touchscreen computer. Survey questions covered symptom characteristics, knowledge of stroke and EMS importance, subjective reactions, role of bystanders and financial factors. Descriptive and multiple regression analyses were performed.

Results

Of 108 inpatients surveyed (out of 1179 AIS admissions), 49% were male, 44% African American, mean age 63.5 years, 59% mild strokes, 75 (69%) arrived by EMS, 33% were unaware of any stroke symptom prior to stroke, and 75% were unaware of the importance of EMS use for good outcome. Significant factors that influenced EMS use decisions (identified by regression analysis adjusting for stroke severity) were: prior familiarity with stroke (self or family/friend with stroke) adjusted odds ratio, 5.0 (95% confidence interval, 1.6, 15.1), perceiving symptoms as relevant for self and indicating possible stroke, 26.3 (7.6, 91.1), and bystander discouragement to call 911, 0.1 (0.01,0.7). Further, all 27 patients who knew the importance of EMS had used EMS. All patients whose physician office advised actions other than calling EMS at symptom onset, did not use EMS.

Conclusion

Systematic stroke education of patients with stroke-relevant comorbidities and life-style risk factors, and public health educational programs may increase EMS use and mitigate post-stroke disability.
Does HOTAIR expression level in the peripheral blood have veritably predictive/prognostic impact on breast cancer patients?
Authors: Ezzatizadeh Vahid , Mozdarani Hossein
Published: December 2019

As a peripheral blood biomarker, the crucial role of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) HOTAIR has recently been suggested in many types of disorder. Among these reports, few investigations have indicated overexpression of HOTAIR transcript in the breast cancer patients’ peripheral blood. In this regard, we studied the potential impact of radiotherapy on the peripheral blood HOTAIR expression of different breast cancer patients. Curiously, no significant expression level of HOTAIR was determined in the breast cancer patients’ peripheral blood, before and after radiotherapy (10 Gy exposure). Deliberating these investigations raised some debates on the specificity of the utilized methods, the corresponding obtained findings and impact of HOTAIR expression on breast cancer predication, as a potential peripheral blood biomarker, which is discussed in this article.
Beneficial effects of xenon inhalation on behavioral changes in a valproic acid-induced model of autism in rats
Authors: Dobrovolsky A. P. , Gedzun V. R. , Bogin V. I. , Ma D. , Ichim T. E. , Sukhanova Iu. A. , Malyshev A. V. , Dubynin V. A.
Published: December 2019

Background

Xenon (Xe) is a noble gas that has been used for the last several decades as an anesthetic during surgery. Its antagonistic effect on glutamate subtype of NMDA (N-methyl-d-aspartate) receptors resulted in evaluation of this gas for treatment of CNS pathologies, including psychoemotional disorders. The aim of this study was to assess the behavioral effects of acute inhalation of subanesthetic concentrations of Xe and to study the outcomes of Xe exposure in valproic acid (VPA)-induced rodent model of autism.

Methods

We have conducted two series of experiments with a battery of behavioral tests aimed to evaluate locomotion, anxiety- and depression-like behavior, and social behavior in healthy, VPA-treated and Xe-exposed young rats.

Results

We have shown that in healthy animals Xe exposure resulted in acute and delayed decrease of exploratory motivation, partial decrease in risk-taking and depressive-like behavior as well as improved sensorimotor integration during the negative geotaxis test. Acute inhalations of Xe in VPA-exposed animals led to improvement in social behavior, decrease in exploratory motivation, and normalization of behavior in forced-swim test.

Conclusion

Behavioral modulatory effects of Xe are probably related to its generalized action on excitatory/inhibitory balance within the CNS. Our data suggest that subanesthetic short-term exposures to Xe have beneficial effect on several behavioral modalities and deserves further investigation.
HDAC2 hyperexpression alters hippocampal neuronal transcription and microglial activity in neuroinflammation-induced cognitive dysfunction
Authors: Sun Xiao-Yu , Zheng Teng , Yang Xiu , Liu Le , Gao Shen-Shen , Xu Han-Bing , Song Yu-Tong , Tong Kun , Yang Li , Gao Ya , Wu Tong , Hao Jing-Ru , Lu Chen , Ma Tao , Gao Can
Published: December 2019

Background

Inflammation can induce cognitive dysfunction in patients who undergo surgery. Previous studies have demonstrated that both acute peripheral inflammation and anaesthetic insults, especially isoflurane (ISO), are risk factors for memory impairment. Few studies are currently investigating the role of ISO under acute peri-inflammatory conditions, and it is difficult to predict whether ISO can aggravate inflammation-induced cognitive deficits. HDACs, which are essential for learning, participate in the deacetylation of lysine residues and the regulation of gene transcription. However, the cell-specific mechanism of HDACs in inflammation-induced cognitive impairment remains unknown.

Methods

Three-month-old C57BL/6 mice were treated with single versus combined exposure to LPS injected intraperitoneally (i.p.) to simulate acute abdominal inflammation and isoflurane to investigate the role of anaesthesia and acute peripheral inflammation in cognitive impairment. Behavioural tests, Western blotting, ELISA, immunofluorescence, qRT-PCR, and ChIP assays were performed to detect memory, the expressions of inflammatory cytokines, HDAC2, BDNF, c-Fos, acetyl-H3, microglial activity, Bdnf mRNA, c-fos mRNA, and Bdnf and c-fos transcription in the hippocampus.

Results

LPS, but not isoflurane, induced neuroinflammation-induced memory impairment and reduced histone acetylation by upregulating histone deacetylase 2 (HDAC2) in dorsal hippocampal CaMKII+ neurons. The hyperexpression of HDAC2 in neurons was mediated by the activation of microglia. The decreased level of histone acetylation suppressed the transcription of Bdnf and c-fos and the expressions of BDNF and c-Fos, which subsequently impaired memory. The adeno-associated virus ShHdac2, which suppresses Hdac2 after injection into the dorsal hippocampus, reversed microglial activation, hippocampal glutamatergic BDNF and c-Fos expressions, and memory deficits.

Conclusions

Reversing HDAC2 in hippocampal CaMKII+ neurons exert a neuroprotective effect against neuroinflammation-induced memory deficits.