bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Functional and anatomical outcomes after successful repair of macula‐off retinal detachment: a 12‐month follow‐up of the DOREFA study
Authors: Baudin Florian , Deschasse Clémence , Gabrielle Pierre‐Henry , Berrod Jean P. , Le Mer Yannick , Arndt Carl , Tadayoni Ramin , Delyfer Marie N. , Weber Michel , Gaucher David , Saleh Maher , Chiquet Christophe , Creuzot‐Garcher Catherine
Published: February 2021

Purpose

To report visual and anatomical outcomes and determine predictors of good visual acuity (VA) recovery after macula‐off rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RD).

Methods

Prospective multicentre study including 115 eyes from 115 patients successfully operated on for RD, with assessment of VA and spectral‐domain optical coherence tomography (SD‐OCT) macular images at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months after surgery.

Results

Over the follow‐up period, VA significantly improved from median [IQR] 62 [46; 72] ETDRS letters at 1 month to 75 [67; 80] ETDRS letters at 12 months (p < 0.001) with a concomitant decreased number of eyes with any SD‐OCT lesions (p < 0.001). The presence of subretinal fluid (SRF) significantly decreased (p < 0.001), as did the number of photoreceptor (PR) layer lesions (p = 0.04). At 12 months, lesions in the PR layer and poor VA recovery were significantly associated with a longer time to surgery (p = 0.007 and p < 0.001, respectively). The rate of patients without PR lesions increased from 40.9% at 1 month to 60.0% at 6 months and 73.9% at 12 months (p < 0.001). The incidence of epiretinal membrane (ERM) significantly increased (p < 0.001), while cystoid macular oedema (CME) remained stable over time. Visual acuity (VA) at 3 months postoperatively was a good reflection of final VA recovery (p < 0.001).

Conclusion

Visual acuity (VA) improved in parallel with the decreasing number of eyes with SD‐OCT lesions after macula‐off rhegmatogenous RD. A long time to surgery was the only preoperative factor associated with poor VA recovery after retinal detachment surgery.
Perceived social support and postpartum depression symptoms across geographical contexts: Findings from the 2016 Ohio Pregnancy Assessment survey
Authors: Collins Hannah N. , Oza‐Frank Reena , Marshall Cassondra
Published: February 2021

Background

The purpose of this study was to examine the association between perceived social support and postpartum depression symptoms (PDS) and to understand how this association may differ for urban, suburban, rural Appalachian, and rural non‐Appalachian women in Ohio.

Methods

Data were obtained via the 2016 Ohio Pregnancy Assessment Survey (n = 3382), a representative sample of postpartum women in Ohio. We conducted bivariate analyses to assess the associations between self‐perceived social support and PDS, and covariates. Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were conducted using a modified Poisson distribution to estimate the association between social support and PDS, adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics. We also examined geographical context as an independent predictor of PDS and as an effect modifier for the association between social support and PDS.

Results

15.6% of survey respondents experienced PDS. Women with low levels of social support had slightly higher prevalence (aPR: 1.4, 95% CI: 1.0‐2.1) of PDS compared to women with high social support. Geographic context was an independent predictor of PDS; women in rural Appalachia had significantly lower prevalence (aPR: 0.5, 95% CI: 0.2‐0.9) of PDS compared to women in urban areas. We did not find that geographical context modified the relationship between social support and PDS (Wald P = .5).

Conclusions

Low social support was associated with increased PDS but did not reach statistical significance. Women living in rural Appalachia had a lower prevalence of PDS. Future studies should explore the reasons for lower rates of PDS in rural Appalachia.
Preferences of women with low obstetric risk for cesarean or vaginal birth in Poland: Areas for intervention
Authors: Michalik Anna , Wojcicka Lucyna , Czerwińska‐Osipiak Agnieszka , Zdun‐Ryżewska Agata , Jakitowicz Karolina , Olszewska Jolanta , Krauze Magdalena , Jakitowicz Mateusz
Published: February 2021

Background

In Poland, the rate of cesarean birth (CB) is 43%, which is much higher than the European average of 27%. Optimizing the CB birth rate is of critical importance, especially among women with low‐risk pregnancies. However, the determinants of cesarean preference among low‐risk women in Poland have not been well explored.

Methods

This cross‐sectional study included 1011 pregnant women and aimed to identify associations between selected determinants of women's preferences for CB vs. vaginal birth (VB) in Poland. A descriptive questionnaire was distributed online, and a theoretical model was validated against empirically gathered data. Group comparisons were performed using the Welch t test for continuous data or chi‐square test for categorical data. All statistical analyses were performed using R (R Core Team, 2018).

Results

The mean age of women preferring CB (30.46 years) was 1.25 years higher than that of women preferring VB (29.21 years). Pregnant women who expressed a preference for CB tended to be multigravid, inhabited cities, and were characterized by higher levels of anxiety and depression. Moreover, the majority of women who underwent a previous CB asserted their intention to repeat the procedure for the current pregnancy.

Conclusions

The primary factors that were correlated with high CB preference among the low‐risk group included age, previous childbirth experiences, and anxiety. The underlying reasons that drive birth preferences remain poorly understood. However, women who have previously undergone difficult childbirth experiences and are afraid of pain require specialized care.
The opportunity costs of birth in Australia: Hospital resource savings for a post–COVID‐19 era
Authors: Callander Emily J. , Bull Claudia , McInnes Rhona , Toohill Jocelyn
Published: February 2021

Background

COVID‐19 caused significant disruptions to health systems globally; however, restricting the family presence during birth saw an increase in women considering community birth options. This study aimed to quantify the hospital resource savings that could occur if all low‐risk women in Australia gave birth at home or in birth centers.

Methods

A whole‐of‐population linked administrative data set containing all women (n = 44 498) who gave birth in Queensland, Australia, between 01/07/2012 and 30/06/2015 was reweighted to represent all Australian women giving birth in 2017. A static microsimulation model of woman and infant health service resource use was created based on 2017 data. The model was comprised of a base model, representing "current" care, and a counterfactual model, representing hypothetical scenarios where all low‐risk Australian women gave birth at home or in birth centers.

Results

If all low‐risk women gave birth at home in 2017, cesarean rates would have reduced from 13.4% to 2.7%. Similarly, there would have been 860 fewer inpatient bed days and 10.1 fewer hours of women's intensive care unit time per 1000 births. If all women gave birth in birth centers, cesarean rates would have reduced to 6.7%. In addition, over 760 inpatient bed days would have been saved along with 5.6 hours of women's intensive care unit time per 1000 births.

Conclusions

Significant health resource savings could occur by shifting low‐risk births from hospitals to home birth and birth center services. Greater examination of Australian women's preferences for home birth and birth center birth models of care is needed.
How technology can enhance treatment: A scoping review of clinical interventions for anxiety and obsessive‐compulsive spectrum disorders
Authors: Cooper David , Champion Sophie M. , Stavropoulos Lauren , Grisham Jessica R.
Published: February 2021

Objectives

Researchers are increasingly investigating how technology could be used to improve the efficacy of treatment for anxiety and obsessive‐compulsive (OC) spectrum disorders. A broad range of technologies, disorders and therapeutic processes have been examined in the literature. This review summarizes the evidence for using technology in clinical interventions for anxiety and OC‐spectrum disorders and highlights research gaps that should be addressed to improve the evidence base.

Methods

A scoping review was conducted based on systematic searches of three databases. Broadly, the criteria included interventions that had integrated technology into clinical contexts to enhance treatment for anxiety and OC‐spectrum disorders. All records were double‐screened by two reviewers, and data were extracted on the characteristics of interventions, symptom outcomes, and implementation factors.

Results

Searches returned 2,475 studies, of which 117 were eligible for inclusion in this review. Although almost all studies reported pre‐post‐symptom reductions, only one quarter of the controlled studies demonstrated additive effect of technology‐based interventions in between‐group analyses. We noted a trend in underreporting implementation factors.

Conclusions

Technology‐based interventions can improve the efficacy of treatment for anxiety and OC‐spectrum disorders, but there are challenges to achieving this goal. Based on a review of the included studies, we provide four specific recommendations to improve the quality and likelihood of success of future research projects.

Practitioner points

Technology‐based adjuvants are unlikely to improve the efficacy of treatment for anxiety or OC‐spectrum disorders based on their novelty or convenience alone.

A subset of studies gives hope that specific innovations can improve treatment when targeting a therapeutic process that has been problematic.

Clinicians seeking to improve the efficacy of their treatment should first define client‐specific therapeutic factors (e.g., homework compliance) that could be leveraged, then apply a specific innovation to address this factor.
Hick’s law equivalent for reaction time to individual stimuli
Authors: Kvålseth Tarald O.
Published: February 2021

Hick’s law, one of the few law‐like relationships involving human performance, expresses choice reaction time as a linear function of the mutual information between the stimulus and response events. However, since this law was first proposed in 1952, its validity has been challenged by the fact that it only holds for the overall reaction time (RT) across all the stimuli, and does not hold for the reaction time (RTi) for each individual stimulus. This paper introduces a new formulation in which RTi is a linear function of (1) the mutual information between the event that stimulus i occurs and the set of all potential response events and (2) the overall mutual information for all stimuli and responses. Then Hick’s law for RT follows as the weighted mean of each side of the RTi equation using the stimulus probabilities as the weights. The new RTi equation incorporates the important speed–accuracy trade‐off characteristic. When the performance is error‐free, RTi becomes a linear function of two entropies as measures of stimulus uncertainty or unexpectancy. Reanalysis of empirical data from a variety of sources provide support for the new law‐like relationship.
Dynamics of the last Scandinavian Ice Sheet’s southernmost sector revealed by the pattern of ice streams
Authors: Szuman Izabela , Kalita Jakub Z. , Ewertowski Marek W. , Clark Chris D. , Livingstone Stephen J.
Published: February 2021

The Polish sector of the last Scandinavian Ice Sheet is a key area for studying ice‐sheet drainage and decay from its local Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) extent, as it is located at the terrestrial terminus of the large and dynamic Baltic Ice Stream Complex. Geomorphological mapping, based on a 0.4‐m LiDAR digital elevation model, revealed about 940 streamlined bedforms, many of which are shown for the first time and consisting of mega‐scale glacial lineations and drumlins. The lineation flowsets together with associated landforms were used to identify 17 ice streams, occupying 80% of the study area. We demonstrated that subtle topographic variations played an important role in influencing the ice‐sheet dynamics. Variations in ice dynamics were a response to external climatic forcing that controlled deglaciation at the ice‐sheet scale as well as to internal reorganization due to the influence of topography, subglacial hydrology and glacier thermal regime. During the local LGM, the southern sector of the Scandinavian Ice Sheet in Poland was dominated by four simultaneously operating ice streams, likely active for several millennia, followed by fast active recession interrupted by three main periods of ice stream stagnation. Increased ice‐flow dynamics during the period of the Young Baltic advances are suggested to be caused by variations in subglacial hydrology and the polythermal structure of the ice sheet.
Cognitive decline in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Neuropathological substrate and genetic determinants
Authors: Borrego‐Écija Sergi , Turon‐Sans Janina , Ximelis Teresa , Aldecoa Iban , Molina‐Porcel Laura , Povedano Mónica , Rubio Miguel Angel , Gámez Josep , Cano Antonio , Paré‐Curell Martí , Bajo Lorena , Sotoca Javier , Clarimón Jordi , Balasa Mircea , Antonell Anna , Lladó Albert , Sánchez‐Valle Raquel , Rojas‐García Ricard , Gelpi Ellen
Published: February 2021

Cognitive impairment and behavioral changes in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are now recognized as part of the disease. Whether it is solely related to the extent of TDP‐43 pathology is currently unclear. We aim to evaluate the influence of age, genetics, neuropathological features, and concomitant pathologies on cognitive impairment in ALS patients. We analyzed a postmortem series of 104 ALS patients and retrospectively reviewed clinical and neuropathological data. We assessed the burden and extent of concomitant pathologies, the role of APOE ε4 and mutations, and correlated these findings with cognitive status. We performed a logistic regression model to identify which pathologies are related to cognitive impairment. Cognitive decline was recorded in 38.5% of the subjects. Neuropathological features of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) were found in 32.7%, explaining most, but not all, cases with cognitive impairment. Extent of TDP‐43 pathology and the presence of hippocampal sclerosis were associated with cognitive impairment. Mutation carriers presented a higher burden of TDP‐43 pathology and FTLD more frequently than sporadic cases. Most cases (89.4%) presented some degree of concomitant pathologies. The presence of concomitant pathologies was associated with older age at death. FTLD, but also Alzheimer’s disease, were the predominant underlying pathologies explaining the cognitive impairment in ALS patients. In sum, FTLD explained the presence of cognitive decline in most but not all ALS cases, while other non‐FTLD related findings can influence the cognitive status, particularly in older age groups.
Breaking down shell strength: inferences from experimental compression and future directions enabled by3Dprinting
Authors: Johnson Erynn H.
Published: February 2021

Mollusc and brachiopod shells have served as biological armour for hundreds of millions of years. Studying shell strength in compression experiments can provide insights into macroevolution, predator–prey dynamics, and anthropogenic impacts on aquatic ecosystems. These studies have been conducted across fields including palaeontology, ecology, conservation biology and engineering using a range of techniques for a variety of purposes. Using this approach, studies have demonstrated that predators can cause changes in prey shell morphology in the laboratory over both short timescales and over longer evolutionary timescales. Similarly, environmental factors such as nutrient concentration and ocean acidification have been shown to influence shell strength. Experimental compression tests have been used to study the functional morphology of shell‐crushing predators and to test how the taphonomic state of shells (e.g. presence of drill holes, degree of shell degradation) may influence their likelihood of being preserved in the fossil record. This review covers the basic principles and experimental design of compression tests used to infer shell strength. Although many investigations have used this methodology, few provide a detailed explanation of how meaningfully to interpret data generated using compression experiments for those unfamiliar with this method. Furthermore, this review provides a compilation of the findings of studies that have employed these experimental methods to address specific themes: taphonomy, morphology, predation, environmental variables, and climate change. Many authors have used experimental compression tests, however, disparities among methodologies (e.g. in experimental design, taxa, specimen preservation, etc.) limit the applicability of findings from taxon‐specific studies to broader eco‐evolutionary questions. The review highlights confounding factors, such as shell thickness, size, damage, microstructure, and taphonomic state, and address how they can be mitigated using three‐dimensional (3D)‐printed model shells. 3D prints have been demonstrated as valuable proxies for understanding aspects of shell morphology that cannot otherwise be experimentally isolated. Using 3D printed models allows simplification of complex biological systems for idealized experimental studies. Such studies can isolate specific aspects of shell morphology to establish fundamental relationships between form and function. Establishing standardized methods of testing shell strength in this way will not only permit comparison across studies but also will enable investigators systematically to add complexity to their models.
PD‐L1 positively regulates MET phosphorylation through inhibiting PTP1B
Authors: Lu Shangyun , Sun Zhenou , Hu Wenli , Yin Shutao , Zhao Chong , Hu Hongbo
Published: February 2021

Increasing bodies of evidence support the involvement of tumor‐intrinsic action in PD‐L1‐mediated cancer progression. However, the mechanisms underlying the tumor‐intrinsic function of PD‐L1 are less well understood. In the present study, we found a positive correlation between PD‐L1 expression and MET phosphorylation in lung cancer and melanoma cell lines. PD‐L1 inhibition led to a decrease in MET phosphorylation, while PD‐L1 induction by IFN‐γ resulted in a PD‐L1‐dependent increase of MET phosphorylation both in vitro and in vivo. The results indicated that MET phosphorylation can be positively regulated by PD‐L1. Furthermore, we identified PTP1B as a mediator contributing to the regulation of MET phosphorylation by PD‐L1. In agreement with the induction of MET phosphorylation by PD‐L1, inhibition of PD‐L1 caused reduced phosphorylation of ERKs, a known downstream kinase of MET, and inhibited cell proliferation. Collectively, the present study demonstrated for the first time that the MET pathway, as a downstream of PD‐L1, contributed to its tumor‐intrinsic effect, and provided a novel mechanistic explanation for the tumor‐intrinsic function of PD‐L1 and a rationale for the combination of immunotherapy and MET‐targeted therapy in cancer treatment.
Prenatal ultrasonographic findings and fetal/neonatal outcomes of body stalk anomaly
Authors: Nagase Hiromi , Ohyama Makiko , Yamamoto Masafumi , Akamatsu Chika , Miyake Yumi , Nagashima Ami , Sasaki Megumi , Ishikawa Hiroshi
Published: February 2021

We studied 27 cases that were post or prenatally diagnosed with body stalk anomaly (BSA) using medical records of prenatal ultrasound findings, pregnancy outcomes, and fetal/neonatal prognosis during 1992 to 2018. Termination of pregnancy was chosen in 15 cases. Of the remaining 12 cases, seven were stillbirths and five were live births. Of seven stillbirths, intrauterine fetal demise occurred before onset of labor in four cases at 17 to 20th weeks of pregnancy. Pregnancy was continued in eight cases. Median gestational age of delivery was 33rd weeks of pregnancy. Median birth weight was 1198 g (range:482‐1914 g). Vaginal delivery was chosen in six and caesarean delivery in two cases. Among six vaginally delivered cases, three (50%) fetuses were stillborn. All five live born neonates died within a few hours (16‐133 minutes). Eighteen cases were confirmed as BSA postnatally by placental examination or autopsy at our hospital. Main prenatal ultrasonographic findings of them were abdominal wall defect (100%), absence of the umbilical cord (72%), abnormal spine (61%), and abnormal legs (50%). The most characteristic prenatal ultrasonography findings of BSA were the absence of free umbilical cord in the amniotic cavity and the presence of abdominal organs into the extraembryonic celom through abdominal wall defects. The autopsy showed severe pulmonary hypoplasia with the median lung/body weight ratio of 0.61% (range:0.34‐0.85%). There were no cases of maternal morbidities. Our study provides important information about the pregnancy outcome and the fetal/neonatal outcome of BSA cases for the parents whose fetuses are diagnosed with BSA prenatally.
Curiosity Is Contagious: A Social Influence Intervention to Induce Curiosity
Authors: Dubey Rachit , Mehta Hermish , Lombrozo Tania
Published: February 2021

Our actions and decisions are regularly influenced by the social environment around us. Can social cues be leveraged to induce curiosity and affect subsequent behavior? Across two experiments, we show that curiosity is contagious: The social environment can influence people's curiosity about the answers to scientific questions. Participants were presented with everyday questions about science from a popular on‐line forum, and these were shown with a high or low number of up‐votes as a social cue to popularity. Participants indicated their curiosity about the answers, and they were given an opportunity to reveal a subset of those answers. Participants reported greater curiosity about the answers to questions when the questions were presented with a high (vs. low) number of up‐votes, and they were also more likely to choose to reveal the answers to questions with a high (vs. low) number of up‐votes. These effects were partially mediated by surprise and by the inferred usefulness of knowledge, with a more dramatic effect of low up‐votes in reducing curiosity than of high up‐votes in boosting curiosity. Taken together, these results highlight the important role social information plays in shaping our curiosity.
Metabolomics analysis of the serum from children with urolithiasis using UPLC‐MS
Authors: Wen Junxiang , Cao Yinyin , Li Yang , Zhu Fenhua , Yuan Meifen , Xu Jin , Li Jian
Published: February 2021

Pediatric urolithiasis is a common urologic disease with high morbidity and recurrence rates. Recent studies have shown that metabolic dysfunction plays a vital role in the pathogenesis of urolithiasis, especially in children, but the specific mechanism is still unclear. Metabolomics is an ideal technology for exploring the mechanism of metabolic disorders in urolithiasis. In the present study, a serum metabolomics based on ultra‐performance liquid chromatography mass spectrometry was performed. A total of 50 children subjects were recruited for the study, including 30 patients with kidney stones and 20 normal controls (NCs). Principal component analysis and orthogonal partial least‐squares determinant analysis were carried, and 40 metabolites were found to be significantly altered in patients with kidney stones, mainly involving retinol metabolism, steroid hormone biosynthesis, and porphyrin and chlorophyll metabolism. The kidney stone group appeared to have a lower serum level of bilirubin, but a relative higher level of retinal, all‐transretinoic acid, progesterone, and prostaglandin E2 compared with those of the NC group. All the findings suggest that patients with urolithiasis have several metabolic characteristics, which are related to stone formation or compensation. These metabolites and pathways are very likely associated with development of kidney stones and should be considered as potential novel targets for treatment and prevention.
Supply network resilience learning: An exploratory data analytics study
Authors: Chen Kedong , Li Yuhong , Linderman Kevin
Published: February 2021

When a supplier experiences a disruption, it learns how to better prevent and recover from future disruptions. As suppliers learn to become more resilient, the overall supply network also learns to become more resilient. This research draws on the organizational learning literature to introduce the concept of supply network resilience learning, which we define as the improvement of supply network resilience when suppliers learn from their own disruptions. The analysis integrates agent‐based modeling, experimental design, data analytics, and analytical modeling to investigate how supplier learning improves supply network learning. We examine how two types of supplier learning, namely, learning‐to‐prevent and learning‐to‐recover, affect supply network learning. The results show that suppliers' learning‐to‐prevent results in a disruption‐free supply network when time approaches infinity. However, the results differ across a more realistic finite time horizon. In this setting, learning‐to‐recover improves network learning when suppliers face a lower chance of disruption. The analysis also shows that centrally located suppliers enhance network learning, except when the risk of a disruption is high and the chance of diffusing a disruption to another supplier is high. In this setting, noncentral suppliers become more critical to supply network learning. This research provides a framework that will help practitioners understand the contingencies that influence the effect of supplier learning on the overall supply network resilience learning.
Enhancing patient participation in healthcare operations through patient training and education using the theoretical lens of media synchronicity
Authors: Damali Uzay , Fredendall Lawrence D. , Miller Janis L. , Moore DeWayne , Dye Cheryl J.
Published: February 2021

The article proposes and tests a model that examines the type of communication media (personal meetings, group classes, and written materials) that is most effective to train and educate patients how to perform two critical self‐management tasks in the treatment of diabetes. The model is based on media synchronicity theory (MST), a media selection theory. The model was tested by surveying 326 patients diagnosed with diabetes. We found that patients best mastered coproduction tasks that required conveying large amounts of information when written documents were provided. However, when coproduction tasks required comprehension of information that had multiple interpretations, patients increased their coproduction task behaviors when the training was face‐to‐face. Also, as predicted by MST, when learning the healthcare task required conveying little new information that patients could comprehend without struggling, patients trained with face‐to‐face media performed this task better. Finally, as expected, when patients increased the number of task behaviors they performed, their health outcomes improved. We discuss how these findings apply not only to healthcare operations, but also to other services that require extensive customer coproduction.
Risk of intellectual disability and maternal history of spontaneous abortion: a nationwide cohort study
Authors: Ji Honglei , Yu Yongfu , Miao Maohua , Qian Xu , Yuan Wei , Lin Yi , Liang Hong , Li Jiong
Published: February 2021

Aim

To investigate the association between a maternal history of spontaneous abortion and intellectual disability in children.

Method

This cohort study included 1 778 786 children (913 340 males, 865 085 females, 361 missing data; mean age 15y 2mo, SD 8y 11mo, range birth to 40y) born in Denmark between 1977 and 2016. Cox proportional hazard regression was used to estimate the hazard ratios (HRs) of intellectual disability.

Results

The overall HR of intellectual disability for children with a maternal history of spontaneous abortion was 1.17 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.12–1.22) and the risk for multiple spontaneous abortions (HR=1.30, 95% CI 1.20–1.40) was higher than for a single spontaneous abortion (HR=1.13, 95% CI 1.07–1.18). When only cases of inpatient intellectual disability were included, the estimates increased slightly: the overall HR was 1.22 (95% CI 1.12–1.32), the HR for multiple spontaneous abortions was 1.37 (95% CI 1.20–1.58), and the HR for a single spontaneous abortion was 1.17 (95% CI 1.07–1.28). The risks were similar regardless of whether spontaneous abortion occurred before or after the index delivery. Estimates were nearly unchanged after adjusting for preterm birth, low birthweight, or Apgar score.

Interpretation

Children born to mothers with spontaneous abortion, especially multiple spontaneous abortions, may be at a higher risk of intellectual disability in later life, regardless of whether spontaneous abortion occurred before or after the index delivery. The findings have clinical implications for targeted early intervention of children with intellectual disability.

What this paper adds

A maternal history of spontaneous abortion was associated with a risk of intellectual disability in offspring.

The risk was higher in children whose mothers previously had multiple spontaneous abortions.

Similar risks were observed regardless of whether spontaneous abortion occurred before or after childbirth.
Status of Nutrition In Hemodialysis Patients Survey (SNIPS): Malnutrition risk by diabetes status
Authors: Boaz Mona , Azoulay Odile , Kaufman‐Shriqui Vered , Weinstein Talia
Published: February 2021

Background

Increased malnutrition risk has been observed in more than 40% people on haemodialysis in Israel. It is not clear that this risk is homogeneously distributed among people with versus without diabetes.

Objectives

To examine the influence of diabetes on malnutrition risk among people on haemodialysis.

Methods

This cross‐sectional study included a representative sample of 375 individuals on haemodialysis treated in hospital dialysis centres throughout Israel. Of these, 126 had diabetes. Dietary intake, biochemistry, anthropometric and hemodynamic measures were recorded. Malnutrition risk categories were defined: “minimal”: body mass index (BMI) ≥23 kg/m2 and serum albumin ≥38 mmol/L; “mild”: BMI <23 kg/m2 and albumin ≥38 mmol/L; “moderate”: BMI ≥23 kg/m2 and albumin <38 mmol/L; “severe”: BMI<23 k/m2 and serum albumin <38 mmol/L. These categories were dichotomized to “minimal” versus elevated malnutrition risk.

Results

Despite greater BMI, elevated malnutrition risk was identified in 58.8% of individuals with versus 39.3% without diabetes. Adherence to International Society for Renal Nutrition and Metabolism nutrition guidelines was poor regardless of diabetes status. In multivariable logistic regression analysis, diabetes: OR 2.15; C‐reactive protein (nmol/L): OR 1.02; delivered dialysis dose (Kt/V): OR 6.07; and haemoglobin (g/L): OR 0.79, predicted elevated malnutrition risk, even after controlling for age, sex and years on haemodialysis.

Discussion

Individuals on haemodialysis who have diabetes have elevated malnutrition risk compared to those without diabetes despite greater BMI.
Phenology in freshwaters: a review and recommendations for future research
Authors: Woods Taylor , Kaz Anna , Giam Xingli
Published: February 2021

Phenology changes are increasingly recognized as a common response of species to ongoing global change. Phenology can be influenced by environmental cues that impact the initiation or duration of life history events as well as intrinsic organismal traits that may affect how different species respond to such environmental cues. Despite the importance of phenology for biodiversity conservation as demonstrated by terrestrial and marine research, freshwater phenology is understudied. Therefore, we conducted a literature review on freshwater phenology research to summarize the spatial, taxonomic and temporal biases of studies; as well as relationships between phenology metrics, environmental cues and intrinsic species traits studied in these systems. We find that phenology research in freshwaters may be limited by a lack of long‐term time‐series data, especially in lotic habitats. Phenology metrics studied differed between lotic and lentic habitats, with limnological research focused on planktonic population growth whereas macroinvertebrate emergence and fish spawning seasons are the most frequently studied aspects of phenology in streams and rivers. Across habitats, temperature is the most investigated environmental cue, with additional research attention to resources and hydrology in influencing phenology events in lentic and lotic environments, respectively. Knowledge gaps in contemporary freshwater phenology research include relationships between phenology and environmental cues in tropical systems, understanding of non‐salmonid fish phenology and testing hypotheses related to intrinsic traits. We recommend that future research broaden the biological, spatial and temporal scales of phenology studies in these systems, and make use of novel data sources, methods and technologies to address contemporary research gaps.
Impacts of dual tax system on foreign capital status*
Authors: Wang Yaqi , Zou Jingxian
Published: February 2021

Foreign enterprises in China have long enjoyed ‘super‐national treatment’. This paper aims to explore the role of tax benefits in observed transitioning from domestic into foreign enterprise. Using firm‐level data, we find that the preferential tax policies enjoyed by foreign firms increase the probability of transitioning from domestic to foreign firms. To examine the effects of imported foreign direct investment (FDI), we separate introduced FDI into ‘genuine’ and ‘fake’ types according to the share of the host firm's registered capital, and it is seen that only ‘genuine’ FDI can improve the targeted firm's productivity and financial situation.
Ant species but not trait diversity increases at the edges: insights from a micro‐scale gradient in a semi‐natural Mediterranean ecosystem
Authors: Frasconi Wendt Clara , Frizzi Filippo , Aiello Giulia , Balzani Paride , Santini Giacomo
Published: February 2021

1. Different habitat types are generally associated with shifts in ant species and traits, and even along a micro‐scale woodland–grassland gradient, ant biodiversity may change at the edge proximities as a result of abiotic alterations. However, to the best of authors' knowledge, the changes in ant diversity along this type of gradient are understudied, especially from a functional perspective.

2. The authors sampled ant species in eight micro‐scale woodland–grassland gradients in a Mediterranean ecosystem, each comprising 16 m, to assess how ant species diversity, community composition, functional structure, and single‐ and multi‐trait functional diversity change at the edge and in the two adjacent habitats (woodland and grassland) as the distance from the edge increases.

3. No differences in species richness, species diversity, and community composition were found within the woodland and grassland habitats. Distance from the edge into the adjacent habitats explained changes in functional structure and diversity, which mainly increased in the grassland habitat; body length, leg length, sugar‐based diet, dominant behaviour, and multi‐trait diversity increased in the grassland. Along the micro‐scale gradient, edges showed the highest species diversity and community composition that resulted from the overlap of the communities from the adjacent habitats.

4. This study shed light on changes in ant species and traits along a micro‐scale woodland–grassland gradient, and it highlights the importance of integrating different diversity approaches (functional and taxonomic) at a micro‐spatial scale.
Internationalisation by demarcating the role of higher education in Sustainable Development Goals: The case of Israel
Authors: Yemini Miri
Published: February 2021

Many policy makers and scholars consider higher education to be a key driver for states' implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); however, the impact of higher education in national SDGs adoption likely differs, based on features and characteristics of particular states. Hence, this study has two aims: (a) to analyse the public discourse on the engagement of the State of Israel with SDG implementation, focusing on the role of higher education in this process; and (b) to discuss the unique position of Israel in implementing and discussing SDGs, given the state's characteristic as a high‐income OECD country involved in an intractable geo‐political conflict that profoundly affects its society. Following an analysis of documents, I highlight the discrepancies between the potential role of higher education in implementing the SDGs and the role of higher education as articulated by the state and public discourse. Two significant discrepancies are found: first, the complete absence of Israel's national conflict in the discourse on SDGs reflected in formal documents published both by the state and by Israeli NGOs. Second, the misalignment between the structure and function of higher education in Israel in terms of internationalisation strategies adopted and the specific role ascribed to higher education within the SDG discourse.
Multiple spatial behaviours govern social network positions in a wild ungulate
Authors: Albery Gregory F. , Morris Alison , Morris Sean , Pemberton Josephine M. , Clutton‐Brock Tim H. , Nussey Daniel H. , Firth Josh A.
Published: February 2021

The structure of wild animal social systems depends on a complex combination of intrinsic and extrinsic drivers. Population structuring and spatial behaviour are key determinants of individuals’ observed social behaviour, but quantifying these spatial components alongside multiple other drivers remains difficult due to data scarcity and analytical complexity. We used a 43‐year dataset detailing a wild red deer population to investigate how individuals’ spatial behaviours drive social network positioning, while simultaneously assessing other potential contributing factors. Using Integrated Nested Laplace Approximation (INLA) multi‐matrix animal models, we demonstrate that social network positions are shaped by two‐dimensional landscape locations, pairwise space sharing, individual range size, and spatial and temporal variation in population density, alongside smaller but detectable impacts of a selection of individual‐level phenotypic traits. These results indicate strong, multifaceted spatiotemporal structuring in this society, emphasising the importance of considering multiple spatial components when investigating the causes and consequences of sociality.
An evolutionary trade‐off between parasite virulence and dispersal at experimental invasion fronts
Authors: Nørgaard Louise S. , Zilio Giacomo , Saade Camille , Gougat‐Barbera Claire , Hall Matthew D. , Fronhofer Emanuel A. , Kaltz Oliver
Published: February 2021

Exploitative parasites are predicted to evolve in highly connected populations or in expanding epidemics. However, many parasites rely on host dispersal to reach new populations, potentially causing conflict between local transmission and global spread. We performed experimental range expansions in interconnected microcosms of the protozoan Paramecium caudatum, allowing natural dispersal of hosts infected with the bacterial parasite Holospora undulata. Parasites from range front treatments facilitated host dispersal and were less virulent, but also invested less in horizontal transmission than parasites from range cores. These differences were consistent with parameter estimates derived from an epidemiological model fitted on population‐level time‐series data. Our results illustrate how dispersal selection can have profound consequences for the evolution of parasite life history and virulence. Decrypting the eco‐evolutionary processes that shape parasite 'dispersal syndromes' may be important for the management of spreading epidemics in changing environments, biological invasions or in other spatial non‐equilibrium settings.
Experimental nitrogen fertilisation globally accelerates, then slows decomposition of leaf litter
Authors: Gill Allison L. , Schilling Jonathan , Hobbie Sarah E.
Published: February 2021

Plant litter decomposition is a central process in the carbon (C) cycle and sensitive to ongoing anthropogenic nitrogen (N) fertilisation. Previous syntheses evaluating the effect of N fertilisation on litter decomposition relied largely on models that define a constant rate of mass loss throughout decomposition, which may mask hypothesised shifts in the effect of N fertilisation on litter decomposition dynamics. In this meta‐analysis, we compared the performance of four empirical decomposition models and showed that N fertilisation consistently accelerates early‐stage but slows late‐stage decomposition when the model structure allows for flexibility in decomposition rates through time. Within a particular substrate, early‐stage N‐stimulation of decomposition was associated with reduced rates of late‐stage decay. Because the products of early‐ vs. late‐stage decomposition are stabilised in soils through distinct chemical and physical mechanisms, N‐induced changes in the litter decomposition process may influence the formation and cycling of soil C, the largest terrestrial C pool.
Brief potentially ictal rhythmic discharges and paroxysmal fast activity as scalp electroencephalographic biomarkers of seizure activity and seizure onset zone
Authors: Yoo Ji Yeoun , Jetté Nathalie , Kwon Churl‐Su , Young James , Marcuse Lara V. , Fields Madeline C. , Gaspard Nicolas , Hirsch Lawrence J.
Published: February 2021

Objective

The electroencephalographic (EEG) terms “brief potentially ictal rhythmic discharges” (BIRDs) and “paroxysmal fast activity” (PFA) are considered distinct entities; however, their definitions overlap, and they may have similar clinical significance. We investigated their clinical significance and their association with seizures and the seizure onset zone (SOZ).

Methods

We retrospectively identified an adult cohort (July 2015 to March 2018) whose long‐term (>12 h) EEGs in any setting reported BIRDs (>4 Hz, lasting .5–10 s) and/or PFA. Different frequency cutoffs for PFA (>13 Hz or ≥8 Hz) were tested to compare their clinical significance. Patient demographics, clinical history, and EEG features were recorded.

Results

We identified 94 patients with BIRDs/PFA out of 3520 patients (3%); 36 were critically ill (12 with epilepsy), and 58 were noncritically ill (all with epilepsy). The frequency of BIRDs/PFA was largely dependent on EEG background: it tended to be slower (theta) in the absence of a posterior dominant rhythm or in the presence of continuous focal slowing in the same region (p = .01). Sixty‐two of 94 patients (66%; 32/36 [89%] critically ill, 30/58 [52%] noncritically ill) had electrographic seizures during the recording. The scalp EEG SOZ colocalized with BIRDs/PFA in all cases. BIRDs with faster frequency (also qualifying as PFA by definition) had similar seizure risk to that of slower BIRDs (62%–71%), regardless of frequency cutoff used to define PFA. In addition, 30 of 30 (100%) patients with evolving BIRDs/PFA (which lasted a median of 6 s, range = 2–9.5 s) had electrographic seizures (>10 s), compared to 32 of 64 (50%) with nonevolving BIRDs (median = 1 s, range = .5–3.5 s; p < .01).

Significance

A high proportion of patients with BIRDs/PFA had seizures on EEG, regardless of their frequency (i.e., whether they also qualified as PFA), and their location colocalized with scalp SOZ in all cases. BIRDs appear to be a scalp EEG biomarker of uncontrolled seizure activity and a reliable localizing sign of the SOZ.
First record of fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) in Syria
Authors: Heinoun K. , Muhammad E. , Abdullah Smadi H. , Annahhas D. , Abou Kubaa R.
Published: February 2021

The fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda is a lepidopteran pest that can damage and destroy a wide variety of crops. It is widely present in the Americans and has been invasive in Africa since 2016. Larvae of S. frugiperda were found for the first time in four rural farms on maize plants (Zea mays) located in Tafas town (Dara’a Governorate, in the south‐west of Syria) in November 2020. Infested maize showed the typical damage symptoms caused by S. frugiperda. Furthermore, morphological identification of larvae based on standard parameters of larvae confirmed the identity of the pest as fall armyworm. Considering the recent introduction of the pest into the EPPO region, it could be concluded that the pest probably entered Syria through natural spread (active flight and via wind currents) from Jordan, which borders Syria in the southern part and where the pest was found very recently.
The Couple Flourishing Measure
Authors: Sanri Çağla , Halford William Kim , Rogge Ronald D. , von Hippel William
Published: February 2021

Couple satisfaction has been extensively investigated, but little attention has been paid to the nature and assessment of high‐quality, flourishing couple relationships. Particularly, current measures of relationship quality are insensitive at the upper end of the continuum, which in turn hinders progress toward understanding and facilitating flourishing couple relationships. Drawing on concepts developed in positive psychology, we proposed a theoretical framework of couple flourishing that incorporates hedonic and eudemonic components. Items to assess these aspects of couple flourishing were generated and administered online to a sample of 1,116 participants. Using combined methods of classical test theory and item response theory (IRT), we selected the most informative items to form 4‐, 8‐, 16‐item versions of a Couple Flourishing Measure (CFM). IRT analyses show that the CFM discriminated variation at the upper range of relationship quality better than widely used measures of relationship satisfaction. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that couple flourishing was related to, but distinguishable from, relationship satisfaction. In an independent sample of 330 participants, we replicated the unifactorial structure of the CFM, and the distinguishability of couple flourishing from couple satisfaction. This research offers new insight into the concept of relationship flourishing. The sensitivity of the CFM at the high end of relationship quality makes it possible to test for predictors of relationship flourishing and evaluate interventions that seek to enhance flourishing.