bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Practice and Training Needs of Staff Nurses Caring for Patients With Intestinal Ostomies in Primary and Secondary Hospitals in China
Authors: Li Fei , Deng Bo , Xu Linxia , Song Meixuan , Li Xianrong
Published: July 2019

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this study was to describe staff nurses' intestinal ostomy care practice in primary and secondary hospitals in China and their ostomy-related training needs.

SUBJECTS AND SETTING:

The target population for this study was first-line staff nurses working in general surgical departments in primary and secondary care hospitals in Luzhou, located in Sichuan Province, Southwest China. Hospitals in China are divided into 3 tiers; first tier facilities are usually located in townships and have fewer than 100 inpatients beds; secondary hospitals are usually found in medium-sized cities or districts and have between 100 and 500 inpatient beds.

DESIGN:

Descriptive, cross-sectional.

METHODS:

Participants were recruited through a stratified cluster sampling method based on hospital tier and the presence of general surgical department. Data were collected via a questionnaire that comprised 3 sections; the first section queried demographic and professional practice data, the second queried practice related to patients with intestinal ostomies, and the third queried nurses' stoma-related training needs. Links to the electronic survey were distributed through e-mail.

RESULTS:

Three hundred and eighteen nurses were invited to participate in the survey, and 280 questionnaires were returned, yielding a response rate of 88.05%. Review of data found that 214 questionnaires were sufficiently complete to be used in our data analysis. The mean intestinal ostomy practice score was 26.61 ± 7.98, indicating less than optimal engagement in ostomy care. Lack of manpower in the workplace and heavy workload of daily nursing were identified as leading barriers to continuing education in this area of practice.

CONCLUSIONS:

The ostomy-related practice of first-line staff nurses in Chinese primary and secondary hospitals showed less than optimal engagement in ostomy practice. We recommend creating additional ostomy-related continuing education targeted for nurses practicing in primary and secondary tier hospitals and removal of barriers to this education in order to improve ostomy care in primary and secondary tier hospitals in China.
Stem Cell Transplantation Patients and Situational Meaning: A Prospective and Longitudinal View
Authors: Blosser Jennifer , Sabo Roy , Candler Kathryn , Mullin Karen , Toor Amir , Chaber Denna
Published: July 2019

Background

Though there is thorough examination of psychosocial issues in SCT, there are few longitudinal studies examining the meaning SCT patients attribute to their treatment.

Objective

The object of this study was to examine change in situational appraisal over time, and to explore potential modifiers of that change.

Methods

A prospective, longitudinal study of 146 autologous and allogeneic stem cell transplant (SCT) patients at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) was conducted to measure situational appraisal over time as per the meaning making model of Park and Folkman (1997) utilizing the Illness Perception Questionnaire-Revised (IPQ-R; Moss-Morris et al., 2002). Participants were administered the instrument prior to transplant, at one, three and six months, and at one-year post-transplant.

Results

Change over time was seen in different diagnoses, donor types, reduced intensity and standard pre-transplant preparative regimens, and between the two major ethnic groups (Caucasian and African American) studied. Many of the patient subgroups had statistically significant findings in measures of illness attribution.

Conclusion

The appraisals SCT patients made of their situation in treatment revealed a complex process of appraisal affected by illness, treatment and patient characteristics including disease type, donor type, race, and pre-transplant regimen.
Analysis of mutations in West Australian populations ofBlumeria graminisf. sp.hordei CYP51conferring resistance to DMI fungicides
Authors: Tucker M. A. , Lopez-Ruiz F. , Cools H. J. , Mullins J. G. L. , Jayasena K. , Oliver R. P.
Published: July 2019

Powdery mildew caused byBlumeria graminisf. sp.hordei(Bgh) is a constant threat to barley production but is generally well controlled through combinations of host genetics and fungicides. An epidemic of barley powdery mildew was observed from 2007 to 2013 in the West Australian wheatbelt (WA). We collected isolates, examined their sensitivity to demethylation inhibitor (DMI) fungicides and sequenced the Cyp51B target gene. Five amino acid substitutions were found of which four were novel. A clear association was established between combinations of mutations and altered levels of resistance to DMIs. The most resistant genotypes increased in prevalence from 0 in 2009 to 16% in 2010 and 90% in 2011. Yeast strains expressing theBghCyp51 genotypes replicated the altered sensitivity to various DMIs and these results were confirmed byin silicoprotein docking studies.
Effects of prefrontal tDCS on dopamine-mediated behavior and psychophysiology
Authors: Imburgio Michael J. , Ballard Hannah K. , Cornwall Astin C. , Worthy Darrell A. , Bernard Jessica A. , Orr Joseph M.
Published: July 2019

The ability to manipulate dopaminein vivothrough non-invasive, reversible mechanisms has the potential to impact clinical, translational, and basic research. Recent PET studies have demonstrated increased dopamine release in the striatum after prefrontal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). We sought to extend this work by examining whether prefrontal tDCS could demonstrate an effect on behavioral and physiological correlates of subcortical dopamine activity. We conducted a between-subjects study (n = 30) with active and sham tDCS and used spontaneous eye blink rate (EBR), facial attractiveness ratings, and greyscales orienting bias as indirect proxies for dopamine functioning. The initial design and analyses were pre-registered (https://osf.io/gmnpc). Stimulation did not significantly affect any of the three measures, though effect sizes were often moderately large and were all in the predicted directions. Additional exploratory analyses suggested that stimulation’s effect on EBR might depend on pre-stimulation dopamine levels. Our results shed light on the sensitivity of indirect measures of dopamine in humans and add to a growing body of work demonstrating the importance of examining individual differences in tDCS response.
Regularized Bagged Canonical Component Analysis for Multiclass Learning in Brain Imaging
Authors: Sevilla-Salcedo Carlos , Gómez-Verdejo Vanessa , Tohka Jussi ,   Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative
Published: July 2019

A fundamental problem of supervised learning algorithms for brain imaging applications is that the number of features far exceeds the number of subjects. In this paper, we propose a combined feature selection and extraction approach for multiclass problems. This method starts with a bagging procedure which calculates the sign consistency of the multivariate analysis (MVA) projection matrix feature-wise to determine the relevance of each feature. This relevance measure provides a parsimonious matrix, which is combined with a hypothesis test to automatically determine the number of selected features. Then, a novel MVA regularized with the sign and magnitude consistency of the features is used to generate a reduced set of summary components providing a compact data description.

We evaluated the proposed method with two multiclass brain imaging problems: 1) the classification of the elderly subjects in four classes (cognitively normal, stable mild cognitive impairment (MCI), MCI converting to AD in 3 years, and Alzheimer’s disease) based on structural brain imaging data from the ADNI cohort; 2) the classification of children in 3 classes (typically developing, and 2 types of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)) based on functional connectivity. Experimental results confirmed that each brain image (defined by 29.852 features in the ADNI database and 61.425 in the ADHD) could be represented with only 30 – 45% of the original features. Furthermore, this information could be redefined into two or three summary components, providing not only a gain of interpretability but also classification rate improvements when compared to state-of-art reference methods.
Updated phylogeny of Chikungunya virus suggests lineage-specific RNA architecture
Authors: de Bernardi Schneider Adriano , Ochsenreiter Roman , Hostager Reilly , Hofacker Ivo L. , Janies Daniel , Wolfinger Michael T.
Published: July 2019

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV), a mosquito-borne alphavirus of the family Togaviridae, has recently emerged in the Americas from lineages from two continents, Asia and Africa. Historically, CHIKV circulated as at least four lineages worldwide with both enzootic and epidemic transmission cycles. To understand the recent patterns of emergence and the current status of the CHIKV spread, updated analyses of the viral genetic data and metadata are needed. Here, we performed phylogenetic and comparative genomics screens of CHIKV genomes, taking advantage of the public availability of many recently sequenced isolates. Based on these new data and analyses, we derive a revised phylogeny from nucleotide sequences in coding regions. Using this phylogeny, we uncover the presence of several distinct lineages in Africa that were previously considered a single one. In parallel, we performed thermodynamic modeling of CHIKV untranslated regions (UTRs), which revealed evolutionarily conserved structured and unstructured RNA elements in the 3’UTR. We provide evidence for duplication events in recently emerged American isolates of the Asian CHIKV lineage and propose the existence of a flexible 3’UTR architecture among different CHIKV lineages.
Refgenie: a reference genome resource manager
Authors: Stolarczyk Michal , Reuter Vincent P. , Magee Neal E. , Sheffield Nathan C.
Published: July 2019

Reference genome assemblies are essential for high-throughput sequencing analysis projects. Typically, genome assemblies are stored on disk alongside related resources; for example, many sequence aligners require the assembly to be indexed. The resulting indexes are broadly applicable for downstream analysis, so it makes sense to share them. However, there is no simple tool to do this. To this end, we introduce refgenie, a reference genome assembly asset manager. Refgenie makes it easier to organize, retrieve, and share genome analysis resources. In addition to genome indexes, refgenie can manage any files related to reference genomes, including sequences and annotation files. Refgenie includes a command-line interface and a server application that provides a RESTful API, so it is useful for both tool development and analysis.

Availability

https://refgenie.databio.org
Gene expression profiles complement the analysis of genomic modifiers of the clinical onset of Huntington disease
Authors: Wright Galen E.B. , Caron Nicholas S. , Ng Bernard , Casal Lorenzo , Xu Xiaohong , Ooi Jolene , Pouladi Mahmoud A. , Mostafavi Sara , Ross Colin J.D. , Hayden Michael R.
Published: July 2019

Huntington disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that is caused by a CAG repeat expansion in the HTT gene. In an attempt to identify genomic modifiers that contribute towards the age of onset of HD, we performed a transcriptome wide association study assessing heritable differences in genetically determined expression in diverse tissues, employing genome wide data from over 4,000 patients. This identified genes that showed evidence for colocalization and replication, with downstream functional validation being performed in isogenic HD stem cells and patient brains. Enrichment analyses detected associations with various biologically-relevant gene sets and striatal coexpression modules that are mediated by CAG length. Further, cortical coexpression modules that are relevant for HD onset were also associated with cognitive decline and HD-related traits in a longitudinal cohort. In summary, the combination of population-scale gene expression information with HD patient genomic data identified novel modifier genes for the disorder.
Diverse, abundant and novel viruses infecting “unculturable” but abundant marine bacteria
Authors: Zhang Zefeng , Chen Feng , Chu Xiao , Zhang Hao , Luo Haiwei , Qin Fang , Zhai Zhiqiang , Yang Mingyu , Sun Jing , Zhao Yanlin
Published: July 2019

Many major marine bacterial lineages such as SAR11, Prochlorococcus, SAR116, and several Roseobacter lineages have members that are abundant, relatively slow-growing, and genome-streamlined. The isolation of phages that infect SAR11 and SAR116 have demonstrated the dominance of these phages in the marine virosphere. However, no phages have been isolated from bacteria in the Roseobacter RCA lineage, another abundant group of bacteria in the ocean. In this study, seven RCA phages that infect three different RCA strains were isolated and characterized. All seven RCA phages belong to the Podoviridae family and have genome sizes ranging from 39.6 to 58.1 kb. Interestingly, three RCA phages (CRP-1, CRP-2 and CRP-3) show a similar genomic content and architecture with SAR116 phage HMO-2011, which represents one of the most abundant known viral groups in the ocean. The high degree of homology between CRP-1, CRP-2, CRP-3 and HMO-2011 resulted in contribution of the RCA phages to the dominance of HMO-2011-type phage in the ocean. CRP-4 and CRP-5 are similar to the Siovirus roseophages in terms of gene content and organization. The remaining two RCA phages, CRP-6 and CRP-7, show limited genomic similarity with known phages and appear to form two new phage genera. Metagenomic fragment recruitment analyses reveal that these RCA phage groups are much more abundant in the ocean compared to most existing marine roseophage groups. The characterization of these RCA phages has greatly expanded our understanding of the genomic diversity and evolution of marine roseophages. Metagenomic fragment recruitment analyses suggest the critical need for isolating phages from the abundant but “unculturable” bacteria in the marine ecosystem.
Genetic basis of growth, phenology and susceptibility to biotic stressors in maritime pine
Authors: Hurel Agathe , de Miguel Marina , Dutech Cyril , Desprez-Loustau Marie-Laure , Plomion Christophe , Rodríguez-Quilón Isabel , Cyrille Agathe , Guzman Thomas , Alía Ricardo , González-Martínez Santiago C. , Budde Katharina B.
Published: July 2019

Forest ecosystems are increasingly challenged by extreme events, e.g. drought, storms, pest and pathogenic fungi outbreaks, causing severe ecological and economical losses. Understanding the genetic basis of adaptive traits in tree species is of key importance to preserve forest ecosystems, as genetic variation in a trait (i.e. heritability) determines its potential for human-mediated or evolutionary change. Maritime pine (Pinus pinaster Aiton), a conifer widely distributed in southwestern Europe and northwestern Africa, grows under contrasted environmental conditions promoting local adaptation. Genetic variation at adaptive phenotypes, including height, growth phenology and susceptibility to two fungal pathogens (Diplodia sapinea and Armillaria ostoyae) and an insect pest (Thaumetopoea pityocampa), were assessed in a range-wide clonal common garden of maritime pine. Broad-sense heritability was significant for height (0.219), growth phenology (0.165-0.310) and pathogen susceptibility (necrosis length caused by D. sapinea, 0.152; and by A. ostoyae, 0.021) measured after inoculation under controlled conditions, but not for pine processionary moth incidence in the common garden. The correlations of trait variation among populations revealed contrasting trends for pathogen susceptibility to D. sapinea and A. ostoyae with respect to height. Taller trees showed longer necrosis length caused by D. sapinea while shorter trees were more affected by A. ostoyae. Moreover, maritime pine populations from areas with high summer temperatures and frequent droughts were less susceptible to D. sapinea but more susceptible to A. ostoyae. Finally, an association study using 4,227 genome-wide SNPs revealed several loci significantly associated to each trait (range of 3-26), including a possibly disease-induced translation initiation factor, eIF-5. This study provides important insights to develop genetic conservation and breeding strategies integrating species responses to biotic stressors.
Characterising the mechanisms underlying genetic resistance to amoebic gill disease in Atlantic salmon using RNA sequencing
Authors: Robledo Diego , Hamilton Alastair , Gutiérrez Alejandro P. , Bron James E. , Houston Ross D.
Published: July 2019

Background

Gill health is one of the main concerns for Atlantic salmon aquaculture, and Amoebic Gill Disease (AGD), attributable to infection by the amoebaNeoparamoeba perurans, is a frequent cause of morbidity. In the absence of preventive measures, increasing genetic resistance of salmon to AGD via selective breeding can reduce the incidence of the disease and mitigate gill damage. Understanding the mechanisms leading to AGD resistance and the underlying causative genomic features can aid in this effort, while also providing critical information for the development of other control strategies. AGD resistance is considered to be moderately heritable, and several putative QTL have been identified. The aim of the current study was to improve understanding of the mechanisms underlying AGD resistance, and to identify putative causative genomic factors underlying the QTL. To achieve this, RNA was extracted from the gill and head kidney of AGD resistant and susceptible animals following a challenge withN.perurans, and sequenced.

Results

Comparison between resistant and susceptible animals pointed to differences mainly in the local immune response in the gill, involving red blood cell genes and genes related to immune function and cell adhesion. Differentially expressed immune genes highlighted differences in the Th2 and Th17 responses, which are consistent with the increased heritability observed after successive challenges with the amoeba. Five QTL-region candidate genes showed differential expression, including a gene connected to interferon responses (GVINP1), a gene involved in systemic inflammation (MAP4K4), and a positive regulator of apoptosis (TRIM39). Analyses of allele-specific expression highlighted a gene in the QTL region on chromosome 17, cellular repressor of E1A-stimulated genes 1 (CREG1), showing allelic differential expression suggestive of a cis-acting regulatory variant.

Conclusions

In summary, this study provides new insights into the mechanisms of resistance to AGD in Atlantic salmon, and highlights candidate genes for further functional studies that can further elucidate the genomic mechanisms leading to resistance and contribute to enhancing salmon health via improved genomic selection.
Functional harmonics reveal multi-dimensional basis functions underlying cortical organization
Authors: Glomb Katharina , Kringelbach Morten L. , Deco Gustavo , Hagmann Patric , Pearson Joel , Atasoy Selen
Published: July 2019

The human brain consists of functionally specialized areas, which flexibly interact and integrate forming a multitude of complex functional networks. However, the nature and governing principles of these specialized areas remain controversial: a distinct modular architecture versus a smooth continuum across the whole cortex. Here, we demonstrate a candidate governing principle ubiquitous in nature, that resolves this controversy for the brain at rest, during perception, cognition and action: functional harmonic modes. We calculated the harmonic modes of the brain’s functional connectivity, called “functional harmonics”, from functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data in resting state of 812 participants. Each functional harmonic provides an elementary pattern of brain activity with a different spatial frequency. The set of all functional harmonics - ordered according to their spatial frequencies - can reconstruct any pattern of brain activity. The activity patterns elicited by 7 different tasks from the Human Connectome Project can be reconstructed from a very small subset of functional harmonics, suggesting a novel relationship between task and resting state brain activity. Further, the isolines of the continuous functional harmonic patterns delineate the borders of specialized cortical areas as well as somatotopic and retinotopic organization. Our results demonstrate a candidate scalable governing principle for functional brain organization, resolving the controversy between modular versus gradiental views, and demonstrate that a universal principle in nature also underlies human brain cortical organization.
Cryptogams signify key transition of bacteria and fungi in Arctic sand dune succession
Authors: Juottonen Heli , Männistö Minna , Tiirola Marja , Kytöviita Minna-Maarit
Published: July 2019

Primary succession models focus on aboveground vascular plants. However, the prevalence of mosses and lichens, i.e. cryptogams, suggests they play a role in soil successions. Here, we explore whether effects of cryptogams on belowground microbes can facilitate progressive shifts in sand dune succession.

We linked aboveground vegetation, belowground bacterial and fungal community, and soil chemistry in six successional stages in Arctic inland sand dunes: bare sand, grass, moss, lichen, ericoid heath and mountain birch forest.

Compared to the bare sand and grass stages, microbial biomass and the proportion of fungi increased in the moss stage, and later stage microbial groups appeared despite the absence of their host plants. The microbial communities of the lichen stage resembled the communities in the vascular plant stages. Bacterial community correlated better with soil chemistry than with vegetation, whereas the correlation of fungi with vegetation increased with vascular vegetation.

Distinct bacterial and fungal patterns of biomass, richness, and plant-microbe interaction showed that the aboveground vegetation change structured the bacterial and fungal community differently. The nonalignment of aboveground vs. belowground changes suggests that cryptogams can drive succession towards vascular plant dominance through microbially mediated facilitation in eroded Arctic soil.
Har-P, ashortP-element variant, weaponizesP-transposase to severely impairDrosophiladevelopment
Authors: Srivastav Satyam P. , Rahman Reazur , Ma Qicheng , Lau Nelson C.
Published: July 2019

Without transposon-silencing Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs), transposition causes an ovarian atrophy syndrome inDrosophilacalled gonadal dysgenesis (GD).Harwich(Har) strains withP-elements cause severe GD in F1 daughters whenHarfathers mate with mothers lackingP-element-piRNAs (i.e.ISO1strain). To address the mystery of whyHarinduces severe GD, we bred hybridDrosophilawithHargenomic fragments into theISO1background to createHISR-D or HISR-Nlines that still causeDysgenesis or areNon-dysgenic, respectively. In these lines, we discovered a highly truncatedP-element variant we named “Har-P” as the most frequentde novoinsertion. AlthoughHISR-Dlines still contain full-lengthP-elements,HISR-Nlines lost functionalP-transposase but retainedHar-P’s that when crossed back toP-transposase restores GD induction. Finally, we uncoveredP-element-piRNA-directed repression onHar-P’stransmitted paternally to suppress somatic transposition. TheDrosophilashortHar-P’sand full-lengthP-elements relationship parallels the MITEs/DNA-transposase in plants and SINEs/LINEs in mammals.
Artifact Formation in Single Molecule Localization Microscopy
Authors: Reichel Jochen M. , Vomhof Thomas , Michaelis Jens
Published: July 2019

We investigate the influence of different accuracy-detection rate trade-offs on image reconstruction in single molecule localization microscopy. Our main focus is the investigation of image artifacts experienced when using low localization accuracy, especially in the presence of sample drift and inhomogeneous background. In this context we present a newly developed SMLM software termed FIRESTORM which is optimized for high accuracy reconstruction. For our analysis we used in silico SMLM data and compared the reconstructed images to the ground truth data. We observe two discriminable reconstruction populations of which only one shows the desired localization behavior.
MCP-based detectors: calibration and first photon radiation measurements
Authors: Syresin Evgeny , Grebentsov Alexander , Brovko Oleg , Yurkov Mikhail , Freund Wolfgang , Grünert Jan
Published: July 2019

Detectors based on microchannel plates (MCPs) are used to detect radiation from free-electron lasers. Three MCP detectors have been developed by JINR for the European XFEL (SASE1, SASE2 and SASE3 lines). These detectors are designed to operate in a wide dynamic range from the level of spontaneous emission to the SASE saturation level (between a few nJ up to 25 mJ), in a wide wavelength range from 0.05 nm to 0.4 nm for SASE1 and SASE2, and from 0.4 nm to 4.43 nm for SASE3. The detectors measure photon pulse energies with an anode and a photodiode. The photon beam image is observed with an MCP imager with a phosphor screen. At present, the SASE1 and SASE3 MCP detectors are commissioned with XFEL beams. Calibration and first measurements of photon radiation in multibunch mode are performed with the SASE1 and SASE3 MCPs. The MCP detector for SASE2 and its electronics are installed in the XFEL tunnel, technically commissioned, and are now ready for acceptance tests with the X-ray beam.
Overcoming the challenges of high-energy X-ray ptychography
Authors: da Silva Julio Cesar , Guilloud Cyril , Hignette Olivier , Jarnias Christophe , Ponchut Cyril , Ruat Marie , Labiche Jean-Claude , Pacureanu Alexandra , Yang Yang , Salome Murielle , Bohic Sylvain , Cloetens Peter
Published: July 2019

X-ray ptychography is a coherent diffraction imaging technique with a high resolving power and excellent quantitative capabilities. Although very popular in synchrotron facilities nowadays, its implementation with X-ray energies above 15 keV is very rare due to the challenges imposed by the high energies. Here, the implementation of high-energy X-ray ptychography at 17 and 33.6 keV is demonstrated and solutions to overcome the important challenges are provided. Among the particular aspects addressed are the use of an efficient high-energy detector, a long synchrotron beamline for the high degree of spatial coherence, a beam with 1% monochromaticity providing high flux, and efficient multilayer coated Kirkpatrick–Baez X-ray optics to shape the beam. The constraints imposed by the large energy bandwidth are carefully analyzed, as well as the requirements to sample correctly the high-energy diffraction patterns with small speckle size. In this context, optimized scanning trajectories allow the total acquisition time to be reduced by up to 35%. The paper explores these innovative solutions at the ID16A nano-imaging beamline by ptychographic imaging of a 200 nm-thick gold lithography sample.
Tennantite: multi-temperature crystal structure, phase transition and electronic structure of synthetic Cu12As4S13
Authors: Yaroslavzev Alexey A. , Mironov Andrei V. , Kuznetsov Alexey N. , Dudka Alexander P. , Khrykina Olga N.
Published: July 2019

The structure of synthetic tennantite Cu12As4S13was investigated at various temperatures in the 90–293 K range. It crystallizes in space group I{\overline 4}3m. No structural transformation was observed in this temperature range. The structures were refined in anharmonic approximation for atomic displacements and electron density maps were refined using the maximum entropy method. Both approaches indicate a noticeable static disorder of the copper atoms in the triangular sulfur coordination and neighbouring site at high temperatures, whereas these split copper sites are well defined at lower temperatures. One particle potential is used to describe the behaviour of atoms at these copper sites. Such behaviour may be the structural reason for changes in magnetic properties.
Bis(mefloquinium) butanedioate ethanol monosolvate: crystal structure and Hirshfeld surface analysis
Authors: Wardell James L. , Jotani Mukesh M. , Tiekink Edward R. T.
Published: July 2019

The asymmetric unit of the centrosymmetric title salt solvate, 2C17H17F6N2O+· C4H4O42−·CH3CH2OH, (systematic name: 2-{[2,8-bis(trifluoromethyl)quinolin-4-yl](hydroxy)methyl}piperidin-1-ium butanedioate ethanol monosolvate) comprises two independent cations, with almost superimposable conformations and each approximating the shape of the letterL, a butanedioate dianion with an all-transconformation and an ethanol solvent molecule. In the crystal, supramolecular chains along thea-axis direction are sustained by charge-assisted hydroxy-O—H...O(carboxylate) and ammonium-N—H...O(carboxylate) hydrogen bonds. These are connected into a layerviaC—F...π(pyridyl) contacts and π–π stacking interactions between quinolinyl-C6and –NC5rings of the independent cations of the asymmetric unit [inter-centroid separations = 3.6784 (17) and 3.6866 (17) Å]. Layers stack along thec-axis direction with no directional interactions between them. The analysis of the calculated Hirshfeld surface reveals the significance of the fluorine atoms in surface contacts. Thus, by far the greatest contribution to the surface contacts,i.e.41.2%, are of the type F...H/H...F and many of these occur in the inter-layer region. However, these contacts occur at separations beyond the sum of the van der Waals radii for these atoms. It is noted that H...H contacts contribute 29.8% to the overall surface, with smaller contributions from O...H/H...O (14.0%) and F...F (5.7%) contacts.
Crystal structure, DFT study and Hirshfeld surface analysis of 1-nonyl-2,3-dihydro-1H-indole-2,3-dione
Authors: Rayni Ibtissam , El Bakri Youness , Lai Chin-Hung , Sebhaoui Jihad , Essassi El Mokhtar , Mague Joel T.
Published: July 2019

In the title molecule, C17H23NO2, the dihydroindole portion is planar (r.m.s. deviation = 0.0157 Å) and the nonyl substituent is in an `extended' conformation. In the crystal, the nonyl chains intercalate and the dihydroindoledione units are associated through C—H...O hydrogen bonds to form micellar blocks. Based on the Hirshfeld surface analysis, the most important intermolecular interaction is the H...H interaction.
Syntheses, crystal structures and Hirshfeld surface analyses of (3aR,4S,7R,7aS)-2-(perfluoropyridin-4-yl)-3a,4,7,7a-tetrahydro-4,7-methanoisoindole-1,3-dione and (3aR,4S,7R,7aS)-2-[(perfluoropyridin-4-yl)oxy]-3a,4,7,7a-tetrahydro-4,7-methanoisoindole-1,3-dione
Authors: Peloquin Andrew J. , Balaich Gary J. , Iacono Scott T.
Published: July 2019

The syntheses and crystal structures of the title compounds, C14H8F4N2O2 and C14H8F4N2O3, are reported. In each crystal, the packing is driven by C—H...F intertactions, along with a variety of C—H...O, C—O...π, and C—F...π contacts. Hirshfeld surface analysis was conducted to aid in the visualization of these various influences on the packing: they showed that the largest contributions to the surface contacts arise from H...F/F...H interactions, followed by H...H and O...H/H...O.
Ethyl 4-(4-chloro-3-fluorophenyl)-6-methyl-2-sulfanylidene-1,2,3,4-tetrahydropyrimidine-5-carboxylate
Authors: Shraddha K. N. , Devika S. , Begum Noor Shahina
Published: July 2019

In the title compound, C14H14ClFN2O2S, the dihydropyrimidine ring adopts a shallow-boat conformation and subtends a dihedral angle of 81.91 (17)° with the phenyl ring. In the crystal, N—H...O, N—H...S and C—H...F hydrogen bonds and C—H...π interactions are found.
Bis(2-methyllactato)borate tetrahydrate
Authors: Gokila Govindharajan , Thiruvalluvar Aravazhi Amalan , Ramachandra Raja Chidambaram
Published: July 2019

The asymmetric unit of the title compound (systematic name: 3,3,8,8-tetramethyl-1,4,6,9-tetraoxa-λ4-boraspiro[4.4]nonane-2,7-dione tetrahydrate), C8H12BO6·4H2O, consists of half a bis(2-methyllactato)borate molecule and two water molecules of solvation. In the crystal, O—H...O hydrogen bonds link the components into a three-dimensional network.
Six Sigma with C-K theory for innovations in operational excellence: a case study
Authors: Sony Michael , Naik Subhash
Published: July 2019

Purpose

Six Sigma is a well-established powerful business strategy for achieving operational excellence (OPEX). However, previous studies have suggested that the Six Sigma may negatively impact organizational creativity and innovation. The C-K theory is one of the most widely used technique for design reasoning which promotes the creativity and innovation. The purpose of this paper is to integrate the Six Sigma methodology and C-K theory for enhancing innovative capacity of Six Sigma for achieving OPEX.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper proposes an integration methodology of C-K theory and Six Sigma using the extant literature. Also, a case study is conducted based on the proposed integration model.

Findings

The paper suggests a step-by-step integration methodology for integrating Six Sigma with C-K theory for both (DMAIC and DMADV). The methodology when applied to a live case in mining logistics the results are very encouraging. The solution was cost effective and also technically superior compared to previous solutions.

Practical implications

The paper proposes a step-by-step methodology for the integration of Six Sigma with C-K tools. The methodology is practically applied in a live case. Organizations can use findings from this paper to implement an integration model of Six Sigma with C-K theory.

Originality/value

This is the first paper that proposes an integration methodology of Six Sigma with C-K theory to enhance the innovation capability to achieve the OPEX.
Divergent host plant utilization by adults and offspring is related to intra‐plant variation in chemical defences
Authors: Mason Charles J. , Long David C. , Lindroth Richard L. , Hoover Kelli
Published: July 2019

Adult and juvenile herbivores of the same species can use divergent feeding strategies, and thus may inhabit and consume different parts of the plant. Because the expression of chemical defences often differs between host plant tissues, this variation may result in disparate performance outcomes for adult and juvenile conspecifics that feed on distinct dietary substrates.

The goal of this study was to evaluate how host range may differ between adults and juveniles in a generalist herbivore. We addressed the impacts of among‐ and within‐plant defence variation using the wood‐feeding Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) and three host plants having a range of putative resistance.

Impacts of host plants on adult and offspring performance were assessed using a series of controlled bioassays. We evaluated adult‐feeding and egg‐laying behaviours in choice and no‐choice experiments using the different hosts, and subsequent offspring establishment. We then evaluated host plant chemical composition related to nutrition and defence.

Different plants had strong impacts on adult performance, but these patterns did not extend to effects on offspring. Females were capable of developing eggs when provided Acer rubrum, but not Populus deltoides or Populus tomentosa. Females that produced eggs by feeding on A. rubrum, however, deposited eggs into all three plant species. Larvae hatched and consumed tissues in all three hosts. The differences between adult and juvenile utilization of Populus spp. were reflected in markedly higher salicinoid phenolic concentrations in bark (>2% dw), while wood had trace quantities.

Our results demonstrate that plant resistance mechanisms can differentially act upon adult and juvenile life stages of a polyphagous herbivore when there is differential expression of chemical defences among plant tissue types. Anoplophora glabripennis has been a globally successful invader due in part to its broad host range, and our results suggest a mechanism that permits the beetle to exploit marginally resistant plants. This study has implications for how host range differs between insect feeding stages, which is particularly important for invasive, polyphagous species encountering novel food sources.
Global distribution of Trebouxiophyceae diversity explored by high‐throughput sequencing and phylogenetic approaches
Authors: Metz Sebastian , Singer David , Domaizon Isabelle , Unrein Fernando , Lara Enrique
Published: July 2019

Trebouxiophyceae are a ubiquitous class of Chlorophyta encountered in aquatic and terrestrial environments. Most taxa are photosynthetic, and many acts as photobionts in symbiotic relationships, while others are free‐living. Trebouxiophyceae have also been widely investigated for their use for biotechnological applications. In this work, we aimed at obtaining a comprehensive image of their diversity by compiling the information of 435 freshwater, soil and marine environmental DNA samples surveyed with Illumina sequencing technology in order to search for the most relevant environments for bioprospecting. Freshwater and soil were most diverse and shared more than half of all operational taxonomic units (OTUs), however, their communities were significantly distinct. Oceans hosted the highest genetic novelty, and did not share any OTUs with the other environments; also, marine samples host more diversity in warm waters. Symbiotic genera usually found in lichens such as Trebouxia, Myrmecia and Symbiochloris were also abundantly detected in the ocean, suggesting either free‐living lifestyles or unknown symbiotic relationships with marine planktonic organisms. Altogether, our study opens the way to new prospection for trebouxiophycean strains, especially in understudied environments like the ocean.
Incidence and patterns of malignancies in a multi‐ethnic cohort of rheumatoid arthritis patients
Authors: Lim Xin Rong , Xiang Wenwei , Tan Justina Wei Lynn , Koh Li Wearn , Lian Tsui Yee , Leong Khai Pang , Koh Ee‐Tzun ,   TTSH Rheumatoid Arthritis Study Group
Published: July 2019

Aim

This study was undertaken to determine the incidence and patterns of malignancies in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients in our cohort.

Methods

Between 2001 and 2013, we analyzed 1117 patients in the prospective Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) RA Registry. Patients who developed malignancies after the onset of RA were identified from this registry. Age‐ and sex‐adjusted standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were calculated to compare observed to expected numbers of malignancies based on data from the Singapore Cancer Registry.

Results

Out of 19 839 person‐years of follow‐up, 132 incident malignancies were diagnosed during the observation period. There were 114 (86.4%) solid‐organ tumors and 18 (13.6%) hematological malignancies. The SIR (95% confidence interval) for all malignancies combined was 1.28 (0.88‐1.87) for males and 1.21 (1.00‐1.46) for females. Compared to the general population, we found a 4‐ to 5‐fold increase in lymphoma among our RA patients compared to the general population (SIR 5.05 [1.90‐13.46] for males and 3.75 [1.95‐7.20] for females). The SIR of lung malignancy in male RA patients is 2.36 (1.23‐4.53) and SIR of cervical malignancy in female RA patients is 3.72 (2.20‐6.23).

Conclusion

There is a trend toward an overall increased malignancy risk in our RA patients compared to the general population. Specifically, there is an increased risk of lymphomas in all RA patients, lung malignancy in male patients, and cervical malignancy in female patients, compared to the general population.
Born this way: Hippocampal neurogenesis across the lifespan
Authors: Kozareva Danka A. , Cryan John F. , Nolan Yvonne M.
Published: July 2019

The capability of the mammalian brain to generate new neurons through the lifespan has gained much attention for the promise of new therapeutic possibilities especially for the aging brain. One of the brain regions that maintains a neurogenesis‐permissive environment is the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. Here, new neurons are generated from a pool of multipotent neural progenitor cells to become fully functional neurons that are integrated into the brain circuitry. A growing body of evidence points to the fact that neurogenesis in the adult hippocampus is necessary for certain memory processes, and in mood regulation, while alterations in hippocampal neurogenesis have been associated with a myriad of neurological and psychiatric disorders. More recently, evidence has come to light that new neurons may differ in their vulnerability to environmental and disease‐related influences depending on the time during the life course at which they are exposed. Thus, it has been the topic of intense research in recent years. In this review, we will discuss the complex process and associated functional relevance of hippocampal neurogenesis during the embryonic/postnatal period and in adulthood. We consider the implications of hippocampal neurogenesis during the developmentally critical periods of adolescence and older age. We will further consider the literature surrounding hippocampal neurogenesis and its functional role during these critical periods with a view to providing insight into the potential of harnessing neurogenesis for health and therapeutic benefit.
The Rise and Fall of “Civil Society” in Bolivia
Authors: Shakow Miriam
Published: July 2019

Anthropologists have criticized “civil society” as a Eurocentric, bourgeois, and individualist concept that brands the Global South and Eastern Europe as inherently inferior. In this article, I introduce an understudied meaning of civil society as collective action inspired by indigenous cultural institutions, which has been operative in Bolivia during the 1990s and early 2000s, and, I suggest, more widely in the Global South. This variant of civil society, however, served as a framework for development professionals to blame failures of development upon local people. But I also argue that civil society's meaning is historically contingent. The concept diminished in Bolivia following Evo Morales's government's return to central state patronage after a decade of austerity and liberal state decentralization. Massive new funding for development in central Bolivia allayed development workers’ concerns that locals weren't doing their part to achieve development. If the reemergence of the civil society concept in Bolivia marked the rise of citizen participation as a substitute for state‐funded development, the decline of “civil society” marked the return to state‐led development. [civil society, neoliberalism, decentralization, development, indigeneity, Bolivia]
Expression of pluripotency‐related genes is highly dependent on trichostatin A‐assisted epigenomic modulation of porcine mesenchymal stem cells analysed for apoptosis and subsequently used for generating cloned embryos
Authors: Samiec Marcin , Romanek Joanna , Lipiński Daniel , Opiela Jolanta
Published: July 2019

The present study sought to examine whether trichostatin A (TSA)‐assisted epigenetic transformation of porcine bone marrow (BM)‐derived mesenchymal stem cells (BM‐MSCs) affects the transcriptional activities of pluripotency‐related genes (Oct4, Nanog, c‐Myc, Sox2 and Rex1), multipotent stemness‐related gene (Nestin) and anti‐apoptotic/anti‐senescence‐related gene (Survivin). Epigenetically transformed or non‐transformed BM‐MSCs that had been transcriptionally profiled by qRT‐PCR and had been analysed for different stages of apoptosis progression provided a source of nuclear donor cells for the in vitro production of cloned pig embryos. TSA‐mediated epigenomic modulation has been found to enhance the multipotency extent, stemness and intracellular anti‐ageing properties of porcine BM‐MSCs. This has been confirmed by the relative abundances for Nanog, c‐Myc Rex1, Sox2 and Survivin mRNAs in TSA‐exposed BM‐MSCs that turned out to be significantly higher than those of TSA‐unexposed BM‐MSCs. Additionally, TSA‐assisted epigenomic modulation of BM‐MSCs did not impact the caspase‐8 activity, Bax protein expression and the incidence of TUNEL‐positive cells. In conclusion, the considerably elevated quantitative profiles of Sox2, Rex1, c‐Myc, Nanog and Survivin mRNA transcripts seem to trigger improved reprogrammability of TSA‐treated BM‐MSC nuclei in cloned pig embryos that thereby displayed remarkably increased blastocyst formation rates as compared to those noticed for embryos derived from TSA‐untreated BM‐MSCs.
Teachers’ perceptions of the impact of the Incredible Years® Teacher Classroom Management programme on their practice and on the social and emotional development of their pupils
Authors: Allen Kate , Hansford Lorraine , Hayes Rachel , Allwood Matthew , Byford Sarah , Longdon Bryony , Price Anna , Ford Tamsin
Published: July 2019

Background

The Incredible Years® (IY) Teacher Classroom Management (TCM) programme may be an effective way to reduce teacher stress levels, improve child behaviour, and promote positive socio‐emotional development. However, few studies have considered what teachers think of the course and how it might work.

Aims

In this paper, we examine teachers’ perceptions of the impact of the TCM programme and how it might work in the classroom.

Sample(s)

Forty‐four UK primary school teachers who attended the TCM programme as part of the STARS trial (Ford et al., 2018, Psychol. Med., 49, 828).

Methods

Focus groups and interviews were held with teachers two months after completing the TCM programme. Thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006, Qual. Res. Psychol., 3, 77) was employed to explore the subsequent data.

Results

Three main themes were identified: impact on the teacher; on children; and on parent‐teacher relationships. Impact on the teacher included a positive change in their ethos. Teachers reported being more able to see things from the child's perspective; placing a greater focus on building positive relationships; thinking before responding; feeling calmer, more confident, and in control; and employing strategies to create positive interactions with children. Teachers felt this had had a positive impact on their pupils’ development and relationships with parents. Feedback on whether or not TCM was effective in tackling particularly challenging behaviour was more mixed.

Conclusions

Our findings suggest that teachers experience the TCM programme as beneficial. This is discussed alongside other qualitative and quantitative studies in this field.
Detrusor overactivity is missed by stopping urodynamic investigation at a bladder volume of 500 mL
Authors: Baumeister Philipp , Kozomara Marko , Seifert Burkhardt , Mehnert Ulrich , Kessler Thomas M.
Published: July 2019

Objectives

To investigate whether detrusor overactivity (DO) is missed in a relevant percentage of patients if the urodynamic investigation (UDI) is stopped at a filling volume of 500 mL due to the fear of bladder overdistention, in patients with lower urinary tract symptoms and high bladder capacity.

Patients and Methods

A consecutive series of 1598 patients with a bladder capacity of >500 mL in the bladder diary undergoing UDI due to lower urinary tract dysfunction (LUTD) was prospectively investigated. UDI was performed according to Good Urodynamic Practices recommended by the International Continence Society. UDI was stopped at strong desire to void or in case of autonomic dysreflexia, vesico‐uretero‐renal reflux, bladder pain or discomfort.

Results

Of the 1598 patients (594 women, 1004 men), 1282 (80%) and 316 (20%) had neurogenic and non‐neurogenic LUTD, respectively. Overall, DO was detected in 66% (1048/1598), in 71% (910/1282) with neurogenic and in 44% (138/316) with non‐neurogenic LUTD. DO occurred in 16% (263/1598, 95% confidence interval [CI] 14.7–18.4%) only at a bladder volume >500 mL. This phenomenon was significantly (P < 0.001) more frequent in patients with neurogenic (18% [236/1282], 95% CI 16.4–20.6%) compared with non‐neurogenic (9% [27/316], 95% CI 5.9–12.1%) LUTD.

Conclusions

In both neurological and non‐neurological patients with high bladder capacity, we strongly recommend not to stop UDI at a bladder volume of 500 mL, as DO might be missed in a relevant percentage leading to inappropriate patient treatment.