bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Machine endowment cost model: task assignment between humans and machines
Authors: Gong Qiguo
Published: March 2023

Although research on human–machine task assignment has presently received academic attention, the theoretical foundation of task assignment requires further development. Based on the two-dimensional characteristics of task flexibility and cognition, a machine endowment cost model is built to examine the economic allocation of tasks between humans and machines. The model derives a machine production possibility curve that directly divides all tasks into two categories, one each for machines and humans. The model shows the dynamic of task allocation between humans and machines as the economic environment evolves, such as wage growth and technological development, and provides conditions wherein task polarization may prevail. The model can be applied to human–machine task assignment decisions in industry and services.
Rayleigh–Taylor instability of viscoelastic self-rewetting film flowing down a temperature-controlled inclined substrate
Authors: An Siyi , Jian Yongjun
Published: March 2023

Rayleigh–Taylor (RT) instability of gravity-driven viscoelastic self-rewetting film flowing under an inclined substrate uniformly heated or cooled is considered. The surface tension of self-rewetting film is considered as a quadratic function of temperature. The long wave hypothesis is used to derive a nonlinear free surface evolution equation of the thin viscoelastic film. Linear stability analysis shows that for a prescribed the viscoelastic coefficient, substrate cooling products instability, while substrate heating remains stability. Furthermore, we analyze the influence of viscoelastic coefficient on RT instability. Results show that the viscoelastic coefficient reinforces the RT instability whether the substrate is heated or cooled. Moreover, we use the line method to numerically simulate the nonlinear evolution equation and systematically examine the space-time variation of the film free surface. The numerical results illustrate that increasing the viscoelastic coefficient can enhance the disturbance amplitude and wave frequency. This means that the viscoelastic coefficient makes the system unstable, which is consistent with result of the linear stability analysis. In addition, the oscillation tends to accumulate downstream of the inclined substrate when the evolution time is long enough. Finally, the variation of film thickness with related parameters for different viscoelastic coefficients is investigated.
Application of shifted lattice model to 3D compressible lattice Boltzmann method
Authors: Huang Hao-Yu , Jin Ke , Li Kai , Zheng Xiao-Jing
Published: March 2023

An additional potential energy distribution function is introduced on the basis of previous D3Q25 model, and the equilibrium distribution function of D3Q25 is obtained by spherical function. A novel three-dimensional (3D) shifted lattice model is proposed, therefore a shifted lattice model is introduced into D3Q25. Under the finite volume scheme, several typical compressible calculation examples are used to verify whether the numerical stability of the D3Q25 model can be improved by adding the shifted lattice model. The simulation results show that the numerical stability is indeed improved after adding the shifted lattice model.
250 AUDIT OF MEMORY CLINIC PATIENTS RECEIVING INDETERMINATE FDGPET BRAIN REPORTS IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH CURRENT CARE
Authors: Lynch J , Byrne T , Murphy B , McGuinness B , Passmore P , Cunningham E
Published: March 2023

Background

Current clinical diagnostic criteria may not be sensitive or specific enough to aid early diagnosis of dementia causing diseases. Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET) computed tomography (CT) brain scans are recommended in cases of diagnostic uncertainty, with patterns of reduced FDG uptake indicating dementia causing diseases eg Alzheimer’s disease. Unfortunately, scans can be reported as indeterminate.

This audit aimed to identify those with indeterminate results and review clinical follow-up and subsequent diagnoses.

Methods

FDGPET scans requested by our service between 01/01/2015 to 31/12/2018 were identified and reviewed (n = 134). Results were initially classed as ‘indeterminate’ if a) there were any areas of reduced FDG uptake reported and b) these were insufficient to constitute a pattern typical of a dementia causing disease (n = 73). The radiology team subsequently reviewed the list and determined n = 22 as being definitively indeterminate, the remaining n = 51 reporting only minor, mild changes.

FDGPET z scores for parietal and post-cingulate areas (quantified by General Electric using the CortexID programme) were reviewed, and deemed significant if >2. Electronic care records were analysed to establish subsequent clinical follow-up and diagnoses.

Results

The age range of patients was 56–85 years (mean 73.3), 15/22 were female. All n = 22 patients had areas of reduced FDG uptake in the temporoparietal region.

All patients with indeterminate scan results had further outpatient follow up. The most recent clinical information, collected January and March 2021, showed 20 patients had developed dementia (11/20 had parietal z scores >2) and 2 had diagnoses of mild cognitive impairment (bilateral parietal and post-cingulate z scores <2).

Conclusion

The majority of patients with indeterminate findings on FDGPETCT in our cohort developed dementia. Patients with indeterminate findings on FDGPETCT, in particular parietal z scores above 2, should be followed up.
251 A POINT PREVALENCE STUDY OF FRAILTY IN ADULTS OVER THE AGE OF 75 IN A TERTIARY HOSPITAL
Authors: Gannon E , Cloney T , Nor N , Khan I , Murphy J , Plant R , Murphy D , Rafferty M , O'Mahony E , Stoneman S , Creed S , Byrne E , Lewis M , Mensch R , Aherne E , Harnedy N , Daly B , O'Sullivan P , O'Connor M , Ducloe T , O'Mahony D , Curtin D , Healy L
Published: March 2023

Background

Early identification and comprehensive assessment of frailty in older adult hospital inpatients is associated with improved outcomes. The aim of this study was to identify the prevalence of frailty amongst inpatients aged over 75 in a tertiary hospital. A secondary aim was to identify older adults inpatients who would have been better admitted under and managed by Geriatric Medicine services.

Methods

Inpatients over the age of 75 were identified by a search of the electronic patient information system iPIMS on 26/08/2021. Patients attending a day service or needing Critical care were excluded. Information was collected using a paper questionnaire from patient records. Frailty was screened using the Think FRAIL tool. Data was stored on a password protected computer and analysed using Microsoft Excel.

Results

336 patients were initially identified from the electronic census. Following exclusion criteria 192 patients were included in data collection. Overall prevalence of frailty reached 89% (n = 171). New or worsening functional impairment was identified in 70% of patients (n = 135), altered mental status was present in 40% (n = 80). The Geriatric Emergency Medicine (Front Door Frailty) Service assessed 17% (n = 33) of patients.

31% (n = 59) of patients had a Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment. Inpatients under a Geriatric Medicine service accounted for 34% (n = 66). Of those not admitted under a Geriatric Medicine service (n = 151) 47% were identified as having needs better met by Geriatric Medicine admission.

Conclusion

Slaintecare and ICPOP (Enhancec Community care) policies and guidance recommend early identification and assessment of older adults living with frailty to improve outcomes. We found a high prevalence of frailty in our inpatient population and a low % of early assessment. To implement ‘Right care, right time, right place, given by the right team’ policy we need to re-design our hospital services to meet needs of older adults in our hospitals. Geriatric Medicine must advocate for this at local and national level.
Nest material preferences in wild hazel dormiceMuscardinus avellanarius: testing predictions from optimal foraging theory
Authors: Collins Sarah A , Lane Sarah M , Ishibashi Minako , Hamston Tracey
Published: March 2023

Obtaining nesting material presents an optimal foraging problem, collection of materials incurs a cost in terms of risk of predation and energy spent and individuals must balance these costs with the benefits of using that material in the nest. The hazel dormouse, Muscardinus avellanarius is an endangered British mammal in which both sexes build nests. However, whether material used in their construction follows the predictions of optimal foraging theory is unknown. Here, we analyze the use of nesting materials in forty two breeding nests from six locations in Southwest England. Nests were characterized in terms of which plants were used, the relative amount of each plant, and how far away the nearest source was. We found that dormice exhibit a preference for plants closer to the nest, but that the distance they are prepared to travel depends on the plant species. Dormice traveled further to collect honeysuckle Lonicera periclymenum, oak Quercus robur, and beech Fagus sylvatica than any other plants. Distance did not affect the relative amount used, although the proportion of honeysuckle in nests was highest, and more effort was expended collecting honeysuckle, beech, bramble Rubus fruticosus and oak compared to other plants. Our results suggest that not all aspects of optimal foraging theory apply to nest material collection. However, optimal foraging theory is a useful model to examine nest material collection, providing testable predictions. As found previously honeysuckle is important as a nesting material and its presence should be taken account when assessing suitability of sites for dormice.
Fast and accurate protein function prediction from sequence through pretrained language model and homology-based label diffusion
Authors: Yuan Qianmu , Xie Junjie , Xie Jiancong , Zhao Huiying , Yang Yuedong
Published: March 2023

Protein function prediction is an essential task in bioinformatics which benefits disease mechanism elucidation and drug target discovery. Due to the explosive growth of proteins in sequence databases and the diversity of their functions, it remains challenging to fast and accurately predict protein functions from sequences alone. Although many methods have integrated protein structures, biological networks or literature information to improve performance, these extra features are often unavailable for most proteins. Here, we propose SPROF-GO, a Sequence-based alignment-free PROtein Function predictor, which leverages a pretrained language model to efficiently extract informative sequence embeddings and employs self-attention pooling to focus on important residues. The prediction is further advanced by exploiting the homology information and accounting for the overlapping communities of proteins with related functions through the label diffusion algorithm. SPROF-GO was shown to surpass state-of-the-art sequence-based and even network-based approaches by more than 14.5, 27.3 and 10.1% in area under the precision-recall curve on the three sub-ontology test sets, respectively. Our method was also demonstrated to generalize well on non-homologous proteins and unseen species. Finally, visualization based on the attention mechanism indicated that SPROF-GO is able to capture sequence domains useful for function prediction. The datasets, source codes and trained models of SPROF-GO are available at https://github.com/biomed-AI/SPROF-GO. The SPROF-GO web server is freely available at http://bio-web1.nscc-gz.cn/app/sprof-go.
iEnhancer-ELM: improve enhancer identification by extracting position-related multiscale contextual information based on enhancer language models
Authors: Li Jiahao , Wu Zhourun , Lin Wenhao , Luo Jiawei , Zhang Jun , Chen Qingcai , Chen Junjie
Published: March 2023

Motivation

Enhancers are important cis-regulatory elements that regulate a wide range of biological functions and enhance the transcription of target genes. Although many feature extraction methods have been proposed to improve the performance of enhancer identification, they cannot learn position-related multiscale contextual information from raw DNA sequences.

Results

In this article, we propose a novel enhancer identification method (iEnhancer-ELM) based on BERT-like enhancer language models. iEnhancer-ELM tokenizes DNA sequences with multi-scale k-mers and extracts contextual information of different scale k-mers related with their positions via an multi-head attention mechanism. We first evaluate the performance of different scale k-mers, then ensemble them to improve the performance of enhancer identification. The experimental results on two popular benchmark datasets show that our model outperforms state-of-the-art methods. We further illustrate the interpretability of iEnhancer-ELM. For a case study, we discover 30 enhancer motifs via a 3-mer-based model, where 12 of motifs are verified by STREME and JASPAR, demonstrating our model has a potential ability to unveil the biological mechanism of enhancer.

Availability and implementation

The models and associated code are available at https://github.com/chen-bioinfo/iEnhancer-ELM

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics Advances online.
Unmixing biological fluorescence image data with sparse and low-rank Poisson regression
Authors: Wang Ruogu , Lemus Alex A , Henneberry Colin M , Ying Yiming , Feng Yunlong , Valm Alex M
Published: March 2023

Motivation

Multispectral biological fluorescence microscopy has enabled the identification of multiple targets in complex samples. The accuracy in the unmixing result degrades (i) as the number of fluorophores used in any experiment increases and (ii) as the signal-to-noise ratio in the recorded images decreases. Further, the availability of prior knowledge regarding the expected spatial distributions of fluorophores in images of labeled cells provides an opportunity to improve the accuracy of fluorophore identification and abundance.

Results

We propose a regularized sparse and low-rank Poisson regression unmixing approach (SL-PRU) to deconvolve spectral images labeled with highly overlapping fluorophores which are recorded in low signal-to-noise regimes. First, SL-PRU implements multipenalty terms when pursuing sparseness and spatial correlation of the resulting abundances in small neighborhoods simultaneously. Second, SL-PRU makes use of Poisson regression for unmixing instead of least squares regression to better estimate photon abundance. Third, we propose a method to tune the SL-PRU parameters involved in the unmixing procedure in the absence of knowledge of the ground truth abundance information in a recorded image. By validating on simulated and real-world images, we show that our proposed method leads to improved accuracy in unmixing fluorophores with highly overlapping spectra.

Availability and implementation

The source code used for this article was written in MATLAB and is available with the test data at https://github.com/WANGRUOGU/SL-PRU.
Antiviral activity of glucosylceramide synthase inhibitors in alphavirus infection of the central nervous system
Authors: Avraham Roy , Melamed Sharon , Achdout Hagit , Erez Noam , Israeli Ofir , Barlev-Gross Moria , Pasmanik-Chor Metsada , Paran Nir , Israely Tomer , Vitner Einat B
Published: March 2023

Virus-induced CNS diseases impose a considerable human health burden worldwide. For many viral CNS infections, neither antiviral drugs nor vaccines are available. In this study, we examined whether the synthesis of glycosphingolipids, major membrane lipid constituents, could be used to establish an antiviral therapeutic target. We found that neuroinvasive Sindbis virus altered the sphingolipid levels early after infection in vitro and increased the levels of gangliosides GA1 and GM1 in the sera of infected mice. The alteration in the sphingolipid levels appears to play a role in neuroinvasive Sindbis virus replication, as treating infected cells with UDP-glucose ceramide glucosyltransferase (UGCG) inhibitors reduced the replication rate. Moreover, the UGCG inhibitor GZ-161 increased the survival rates of Sindbis-infected mice, most likely by reducing the detrimental immune response activated by sphingolipids in the brains of Sindbis virus-infected mice. These findings suggest a role for glycosphingolipids in the host immune response against neuroinvasive Sindbis virus and suggest that UGCG inhibitors should be further examined as antiviral therapeutics for viral infections of the CNS.
Low-level language processing in brain-injured patients
Authors: Jain Parul , Conte Mary M , Voss Henning U , Victor Jonathan D , Schiff Nicholas D
Published: March 2023

Assessing cognitive function—especially language processing—in severely brain-injured patients is critical for prognostication, care, and development of communication devices (e.g. brain–computer interfaces). In patients with diminished motor function, language processing has been probed using EEG measures of command-following in motor imagery tasks. While such tests eliminate the need for motor response, they require sustained attention. However, passive listening tasks, with an EEG response measure can reduce both motor and attentional demands. These considerations motivated the development of two assays of low-level language processing—identification of differential phoneme-class responses and tracking of the natural speech envelope. This cross-sectional study looks at a cohort of 26 severely brain-injured patient subjects and 10 healthy controls. Patients’ level of function was assessed via the coma recovery scale–revised at the bedside. Patients were also tested for command-following via EEG and/or MRI assays of motor imagery. For the present investigation, EEG was recorded while presenting a 148 s audio clip of Alice in Wonderland. Time-locked EEG responses to phoneme classes were extracted and compared to determine a differential phoneme-class response. Tracking of the natural speech envelope was assessed from the same recordings by cross-correlating the EEG response with the speech envelope. In healthy controls, the dynamics of the two measures were temporally similar but spatially different: a central parieto-occipital component of differential phoneme-class response was absent in the natural speech envelope response. The differential phoneme-class response was present in all patient subjects, including the six classified as vegetative state/unresponsive wakefulness syndrome by behavioural assessment. However, patient subjects with evidence of language processing either by behavioural assessment or motor imagery tests had an early bilateral response in the first 50 ms that was lacking in patient subjects without any evidence of language processing. The natural speech envelope tracking response was also present in all patient subjects and responses in the first 100 ms distinguished patient subjects with evidence of language processing. Specifically, patient subjects with evidence of language processing had a more global response in the first 100 ms whereas those without evidence of language processing had a frontopolar response in that period. In summary, we developed two passive EEG-based methods to probe low-level language processing in severely brain-injured patients. In our cohort, both assays showed a difference between patient subjects with evidence of command-following and those with no evidence of command-following: a more prominent early bilateral response component.
Greed and Grievance: Corporations, States and International Investment Law in Times of Conflict
Authors: Sattorova Mavluda
Published: March 2023

For those on the ground, conflict brings about devastation and displacement. For foreign investors who frequently seek commercial opportunities far and wide, conflict is not just a fellow traveller but also a crucial element of the environment in which international investment law was conceived and later took shape. This review essay seeks to uncover some of the fundamental and overarching themes underpinning the relationships between foreign corporations, states and local communities in times of conflict. By focusing on the distinct roles played by the corporation in situations of conflict – as a victim, contributor, beneficiary, perpetrator and accomplice – the essay aims to cast light on international law’s troublesome origins, biases and complicities and to highlight a growing concern over the enduring lack of effective avenues for corporate accountability.
Towards decolonizing L2 writing pedagogy: translingual and transmodal resources
Authors: Rabbi Shakil
Published: March 2023

Scholarly conversations in writing pedagogy increasingly centre our roles in reproducing epistemic and structural biases, and consequently the need to decolonize our curriculum. These conversations can be especially informative for L2 writing instruction, given its focus on the academic socialization of ESL for non-Western students. This article argues for translingual and transmodal resources as a way towards decolonizing L2 writing pedagogy. Framing these approaches to writing instruction in terms of ‘border thinking’, I argue that they open the classroom space for L2 and L1 students during process-based writing instruction. They enable students to use the various semiotic and material resources to produce knowledge and learn authentically. I end by illustrating pedagogic activities I use in the classroom shaped by these paradigms in terms of their alignment with Indigenous and non-Western traditions, and how they position L2 writers in the academy as resourceful learners.
Strong habitat-specific phenotypic plasticity but no genome-wide differentiation across a rainforest gradient in an African butterfly
Authors: Zhen Ying , Dongmo Michel A K , Harrigan Ryan J , Ruegg Kristen , Fu Qi , Hanna Rachid , Bonebrake Timothy C , Smith Thomas B
Published: March 2023

Habitat-specific thermal responses are well documented in various organisms and likely determine the vulnerability of populations to climate change. However, the underlying roles of genetics and plasticity that shape such habitat-specific patterns are rarely investigated together. Here we examined the thermal plasticity of the butterfly Bicyclus dorothea originating from rainforest and ecotone habitats in Cameroon under common garden conditions. We also sampled wild-caught butterflies from forest and ecotone sites and used RADseq to explore genome-wide population differentiation. We found differences in the level of phenotypic plasticity across habitats. Specifically, ecotone populations exhibited greater sensitivity in wing eyespot features with variable development temperatures relative to rainforest populations. Known adaptive roles of wing eyespots in Bicyclus species suggest that this morphological plasticity is likely under divergent selection across environmental gradients. However, we found no distinct population structure of genome-wide variation between habitats, suggesting high level of ongoing gene flow between habitats is homogenizing most parts of the genome.
Drivers of bacterial and fungal root endophyte communities: understanding the relative influence of host plant, environment, and space
Authors: Brigham Laurel M , Bueno de Mesquita Clifton P , Spasojevic Marko J , Farrer Emily C , Porazinska Dorota L , Smith Jane G , Schmidt Steven K , Suding Katharine N
Published: March 2023

Bacterial and fungal root endophytes can impact the fitness of their host plants, but the relative importance of drivers for root endophyte communities is not well known. Host plant species, the composition and density of the surrounding plants, space, and abiotic drivers could significantly affect bacterial and fungal root endophyte communities. We investigated their influence in endophyte communities of alpine plants across a harsh high mountain landscape using high-throughput sequencing. There was less compositional overlap between fungal than bacterial root endophyte communities, with four ‘cosmopolitan’ bacterial OTUs found in every root sampled, but no fungal OTUs found across all samples. We found that host plant species, which included nine species from three families, explained the greatest variation in root endophyte composition for both bacterial and fungal communities. We detected similar levels of variation explained by plant neighborhood, space, and abiotic drivers on both communities, but the plant neighborhood explained less variation in fungal endophytes than expected. Overall, these findings suggest a more cosmopolitan distribution of bacterial OTUs compared to fungal OTUs, a structuring role of the plant host species for both communities, and largely similar effects of the plant neighborhood, abiotic drivers, and space on both communities.
Stem cell therapy: light in the tunnel for penetrating Crohn's disease
Authors: Lan Nan , Wu Xianrui , Shen Bo
Published: March 2023

Patients with Crohn's disease frequently suffer from fistula resulting from adverse sequelae of persistent complicated active disease or surgical intervention. Fistula affects a patient's quality of life and is directly associated with the need for surgical intervention. Diagnosis of fistula can be made through CT enterography, MR enterography, gastrograffin-based imaging, and transanal ultrasound. Treatment for fistula mainly consists of medication, endoscopic procedures, and surgery. There are emerging approaches under current investigation, such as stem cell therapy. The results showed a decent response in patients with perianal and rectovaginal fistula with minimal side effects. Further investigation is still needed for other internal fistula.
The Impact of Wages on Care Home Quality in England
Authors: Allan Stephen , Vadean Florin
Published: March 2023

Background and Objectives

In many countries, a large proportion of long-term care staff are paid at, or near, minimum wage, leading to concerns of negative effects on care outcomes. This study analyzed the effect of staff wages on care home quality ratings in England.

Research Design and Methods

A national staffing database of long-term care providers was matched with local-area information on needs and supply to construct a 3-year panel (2016–2018) of English care home observations. Using multiple imputation methods to address missing data provided a data set of 12,055 observations of 5,556 care facilities (both residential and nursing homes). We analyzed the effect of the facility-level average hourly wage of care staff on national regulator quality ratings. A measure of the impact of exogenous changes in the national minimum wage on care facilities was used as an instrument for wage.

Results

We find that wages positively affect care home quality ratings. Other things equal, a 10% increase in the average hourly wage of direct care workers would lead to a 7.1% increase in the likelihood that a care home will have a high-quality rating. The wage effect on quality was significant when controlling for staff skill mix, measured as the share of registered nurses in nursing home staff.

Discussion and Implications

This study provides important evidence of the positive impact that staff pay can have on the quality of long-term care. Our finding has important implications for appropriate levels of pay and the funding of long-term care.
Real time Gutenberg–Richterb-value estimation for an ongoing seismic sequence: an application to the 2022 marche offshore earthquake sequence (ML 5.7 central Italy)
Authors: Spassiani I , Taroni M , Murru M , Falcone G
Published: March 2023

We estimate the b-value parameter of the Gutenberg–Richter law for earthquake magnitudes in the early stage of the Costa Marchigiana (Italy) seismic sequence, starting on 2022 November 9, with an ML 5.7 event in the Adriatic sea. In particular, we estimate both the completeness magnitude Mc and the b-value within the first 4 and 7 d after the initial strong event in the sequence. Our work represents a practical example of b-value estimation in ‘true’ real time, that is, during the seismic sequence, and its possible interpretation in terms of short-term forecasting. We highlight some critical issues to consider both in estimating/intepreting the b-value, and in evaluating the real time estimation of Mc. These issues are mainly due to the fact that preliminary catalogues available in real time are quite different from the revised ones, which are usually delivered after a few months. The criticalities are linked to the raw data recorded at an early-stage, an unreliable evaluation of the Mc with statistical approaches, the Short Term Aftershock Incompleteness entailed after the initial strong event, and the magnitude binning. Our results show that real time estimation of the b-value can give insights into the evolution of an ongoing seismic sequence, when attention is paid to data quality and quantity.
Assessing the inequalities in demand for family planning satisfied in Ghana: evidence from the 1993–2014 Demographic and Health Surveys
Authors: Azure Simon Agongo , Budu Eugene , Okyere Joshua , Mensah Felix , Ahinkorah Bright Opoku , Seidu Abdul-Aziz , Ameyaw Edward Kwabena
Published: March 2023

Background

Family planning is essential in promoting the well-being of women and their families and communities and ensuring quality of care in contraceptive use. This study sought to assess the trend and inequalities in the demand for family planning satisfied (DFPS) in Ghana from 1993 to 2014.

Methods

The World Health Organization's Health Equity Assessment Toolkit was employed to analyse the data. We disaggregated DFPS by five equity stratifiers: age, economic status, education, residence and region. Inequality was measured using difference (D), population attributable risk (PAR), ratio (R) and population attributable fraction (PAF).

Results

The study showed an increment in DFPS from 17.8% to 38.7% between 1993 and 2014. With respect to age, we noted substantial inequality in 2003 (D=21.9 [95% confidence interval {CI} 15.2 to 28.7]), 1993 (D=4.8 [95% CI −1.8 to 11.4]) and 2014 (D=15 [95% CI 3 to 26.9]). The greatest economic inequality occurred in 1993 (PAF=69.7 [95% CI 50.8 to 88.6]; D=20.1 [95% CI 14.8 to 25.4]). Regarding education, significant inequality existed in 1993 (PAF=112 [95% CI 100.8 to 123.2]; D=29.7 [95% CI 21.9 to 37.4]). Ashanti and the Upper West regions reported significant inequalities (PAF=55.6 [95% CI 33.1 to 78.2]; D=16.1 [95% CI 8.9 to 23.3]).

Conclusions

There are age-, education-, wealth-, residence- and region-related inequalities with respect to DFPS. Policymakers will have to prioritize the needs of women with no formal or low educational attainment in order to improve DFPS coverage. Special attention needs to be given to adolescent girls since they suffer greater inequalities than adult women.
Spatial distribution of sexual network locations used by long-distance truck drivers along the Northern Corridor highway, Kenya
Authors: Mutie Cyrus , Kairu-Wanyoike Salome , Mambo Susan , Ngoge Reagan , Gachohi John
Published: March 2023

Background

In Kenya, long-distance truck drivers (LDTDs) using the Northern Corridor highway have a high prevalence of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) due to their risky sexual networks. However, the spatial distribution of the sexual network locations used by LDTDs is not well understood. Consequently, healthcare stakeholders have found it difficult to provide spatially targeted HIV/STI interventions among LDTDs. Thus, the study sought to establish the spatial distribution of sexual network locations used by LDTDs along the Northern Corridor highway, to inform efficient distribution and use of limited HIV/STI-prevention resources.

Methods

A cross-sectional study design was used. The study adopted a systematic sampling technique. 296 LDTDs were interviewed using interviewer-administered questionnaires at the Mlolongo weighbridge in Kenya. The LDTDs listed their history of sexual interactions and highway stopovers used during the week preceding data collection. Geospatial modelling techniques, using R statistical software packages for spatial mapping, were employed. Shapefiles were created and overlaid over a map of Kenya using R statistical software to create maps of sexual networks.

Results

Forty-two highway stopovers used by LDTDs were spatially distributed along the highway, from the Kenya coast to the Kenya–Uganda border. In general, LDTDs’ sexual network hotspots were restricted to the outskirts of major cities along the Northern Corridor highway (Nairobi, Mombasa and Nakuru) as well as the Kenya–Uganda international border.

Conclusions

On the Northern Corridor highway, stopovers situated proximal to major urban areas, as well as those at international border points, frequently serve as sexual network hotspots among LDTDs and their sexual partners. Thus, healthcare stakeholders should improve access to HIV/STI-prevention services targeted for LDTDs at the sexual network hotspots identified in this study.
Assessing the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes and birth defects reporting in women exposed to ganciclovir or valganciclovir during pregnancy: a pharmacovigilance study
Authors: Contejean Adrien , Leruez-Ville Marianne , Treluyer Jean-Marc , Tsatsaris Vassilis , Ville Yves , Charlier Caroline , Chouchana Laurent
Published: March 2023

Objectives

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the leading cause of congenital infection worldwide. Reference anti-CMV treatment is valganciclovir/ganciclovir, which is contraindicated in pregnancy given questions about teratogenicity.

Methods

We analysed reports from VigiBase, the world’s largest safety database, and performed a disproportionality analysis of adverse pregnancy outcomes associated with (val)ganciclovir compared with any other drugs or with (val)aciclovir as comparators.

Results

Among 3 104 984 reports related to childbearing-age women or to pregnancy topics, 6186 were exposed to (val)ganciclovir or (val)aciclovir including 251 adverse pregnancy outcomes with (val)ganciclovir (n = 34) or (val)aciclovir (n = 217). We did not evidence any increased reporting of any adverse pregnancy outcome [miscarriage, stillbirth, small weight for gestational age, preterm birth (<37 weeks of gestation)] or birth defects with (val)ganciclovir compared with the use of (val)aciclovir during pregnancy. Four cases of oesophageal and anorectal atresia were identified with (val)ganciclovir, which may be related to concomitant drugs/medical conditions and require further analyses.

Conclusions

These preliminary results require confirmation but suggest the possibility for trial evaluation of val(ganciclovir) in severe maternal or fetal CMV infections.
Treadmill Versus Overground Gait Training in Patients with Lower Limb Burn Injury: A Comparative Study
Authors: Arshad Zunera , Rehan Muhammad , Iqbal Tariq , Waheed Usman , Zafar Hirza , Pervaiz Sehrish , -ain Qurat-ul , Shais Khan Muhammad , Hassaan Tariq Muhammad
Published: March 2023

The primary goal of the rehabilitation services offered to patients with lower limb burns is to enhance gait function. Exercise on a treadmill and conventional overground gait training are the two most widespread gait-training methods. Numerous studies have been published in the literature that claim treadmill training helps people walk more easily. Therefore, it would be intriguing to investigate whether treadmill gait training affects the progress made by post-lower limb burn patients compared to traditional overground gait training.

The goal of the current study was to compare the effectiveness of treadmill training and traditional physical therapy therapies for improving gait after lower limb burn injury.

A comparative study was conducted between January to August 2022 at a burns care unit, in Islamabad. All the participants were informed about the study procedure and consent was taken before initiating the study. All the participants received the set standard of Burn Rehabilitation by the American Burn Association (ABA). The program consists of ROM exercises, mobilization, functional mobility, stretching, balance training, and resisted exercises for enhancing muscle power. Statistical analyses were performed using IBM SPSS 24.0 software.

The study subjects selected were 30 burn patients, aged above 18 years, vitally stable, and had lower limb burn injuries with an average TBSA (total burn surface area) of 20-30%. The mean for the Experimental is 18.86 and for the control group is 21.13. Patients were randomly either assigned to an experimental group or a control group. The Experimental group had a lower Time Up and Go test score of 11.86 ± 3.58 (9.50-24.07) as compared to the control group’s TUG score (of 12.78 ± 4.41 (6.30-24.07). Functional mobility significantly improved as the P < 0.05. The total mean scores calculated on the Tampa Kinesiophobia scale for the Experimental group were 35.66 ± 6.32 which was less compared with those of the control group 37.93 ± 6.36. It demonstrates that fear of movement was reduced for treadmill training participants. Comparison of pre-distance (350.9 ± 86.82), pre-velocity (62.78 ± 20.20), and post-distance (385.02 ± 32.29), post-velocity 40.48 ± 21.91 of the experimental group with the control group pre-distance (339.26 ± 98.17), pre-velocity (55.07 ± 22.63), post-distance (383.07 ± 36.914), and post-velocity (40.57 ± 21.95) showed significant changes in results.

In contrast to traditional gait training, treadmill training significantly improves walking ability in burn patients with lower limb damage.
Efficacy of four systemic insecticides for reducing Nantucket pine tip moth (Rhyaciona frustrana) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) infestation levels and improving growth metrics in loblolly pines
Authors: McCarty E , Cassidy V C , Clabo D , Dickens D , Asaro C , Gandhi K J K
Published: March 2023

The Nantucket pine tip moth (NPTM) (Rhyacionia frustrana Comstock) is a native, regeneration pest of young loblolly pines (Pinus taeda L.), causing shoot dieback, tree deformity, and growth and volume declines. Soil applications of systemic insecticides may be an effective strategy to suppress NPTM populations. The study objective was to assess the efficacy of four systemic insecticide treatments (chlorantraniliprole, dinotefuran, fipronil, and imidacloprid) for two growing seasons in outplanted bareroot and containerized seedling trials. Response variables included NPTM infestation rates, along with tree height, groundline diameter, volume index, and stem form. Infestation rates significantly decreased for each systemic insecticide treatment during the first year compared to controls, although dinotefuran and imidacloprid provided season-long control in one trial. Chlorantraniliprole reduced NPTM infestation rates for two growing seasons in both trials. While imidacloprid treatments did not alter growth metrics except for one comparison, fipronil and dinotefuran treatments improved several growth metrics. Chlorantraniliprole consistently improved growth metrics throughout the study.
Expressions and functions of RR-1 cuticular protein genes in the integument of Mythimna separata
Authors: Li Fuyuan , Xing Gaoliang , Li Yixuan , Chen Peng , Hu Qin , Chen Ming , Li Yiyu , Cao Haiqun , Huang Yong
Published: March 2023

As the most outer layer between itself and the environment, integuments are necessary for insects with various important functions. Cuticular proteins (CPs) are the main components in integuments, while the functions of CP genes remain unknown in Mythimna separata (Walker), which is a devastating agricultural pest. In this study, 79 CP genes were identified from the transcriptomes of larval integuments, 57 of which were from the family containing conserved Rebers & Riddiford (R&R) consensus (CPR family). Amongst these CPRs, 44 genes belonged to the subfamily with RR-1 motif (RR-1 genes) and clustered into three clades, with the top 15 most abundant RR-1 genes identified based on fragments per kilobase per million mapped fragments (FPKM) values. RT-qPCR analysis showed that most of RR-1 genes such as MsCPR1-4 were highly expressed at larval stages and in their integuments. The expression levels of RR-1 genes were generally decreased at the beginning but increased at the late stage of molting process. RNAi was applied for six RR-1 genes, and MsCPR1-4 were knocked down significantly. Silence of MsCPR2 resulted in abnormal integument formed after molting, while knockdown of MsCPR3 and MsCPR4 led to failure of molting, respectively. No phenotype was obtained for the RNAi of MsCPR1. Therefore, the expression of RR-1 genes and their functions were analyzed in the development of integuments in M. separata, providing new insights of RR-1 genes and potential targets for the development of growth regulators and new insecticides for M. separata.
Piceatannol-3ʹ-O-β-d-glucopyranoside alleviates nephropathy via regulation of High mobility group B-1 (HMGB1)/Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)/Nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) signalling pathway
Authors: Du Shi-Hao , Yang Ming-Yan , Gan Hai-Lin , Song Ze-Yu , Wang Meng-Ying , Li Zhen-Yuan , Liu Ke , Qi Dong , Fan Hua-Ying
Published: March 2023

Objectives

Nephrotic syndrome (NS) remains a therapeutic challenge for nephrologists. Piceatannol-3ʹ-O-β-d-glucopyranoside (PG) is a major active ingredient in Quzha. The purpose of the study was to assess the renoprotection of PG.

Methods

In vitro, the podocyte protection of PG was assessed in MPC-5. SD rats were injected with adriamycin to induce nephropathy in vivo. The determination of biochemical changes and inflammatory cytokines was performed, and pathological changes were examined by histopathological examination. Immunostaining and western blot analyses were used to analyse expression levels of proteins.

Key findings

The results showed that PG improved adriamycin-induced podocyte injury, attenuated nephropathy, improved hypoalbuminemia and hyperlipidaemia, and lowered cytokine levels. The podocyte protection of PG was further verified by reduction of desmin and increasing synaptopodin expression. Furthermore, treatment with PG down-regulated the expression of HMGB1, TLR4 and NF-κB along with its upstream regulator, IKKβ and yet up-regulated IκBα expression by western blot analysis.

Conclusions

Overall, our data showed that PG has a favourable renoprotection in experimental nephrosis, apparently by amelioration of podocyte injury. PG might mediate these effects via modulation of the HMGB1/TLR4/NF-κB signalling pathway. The study first provides a promising leading compound for the treatment of NS.
A rare care of Lomentospora prolificans sternal wound infection post aortic valve replacement—an approach to surgical management
Authors: Chan Stephanie , Kemp Ursula , Peeceeyen Sheen C
Published: March 2023

A 77-year-old woman underwent surgical aortic valve replacement via hemisternotomy. Her post-operative course was unremarkable. Owing to travel and contact restrictions during the COVID pandemic, she was unable to attend routine follow up. She continued review with her local medical officer in regional New South Wales. Post 6 months following her index surgery, she was referred to the Infectious Disease Clinic of her local hospital with a non-healing lesion at the base of her hemi-sternotomy wound. Computed tomography revealed a deep sternal wound infection which extended deep to bone. She was admitted to hospital for treatment. The primary pathogen identified was Lomentospora prolificans—a dangerous fungus that affects immunosuppressed patients. Strong antifungal and adjunctive antibiotics did not contribute much to clearance of infection. Radical surgical debridement was required to obtain clean tissue margins.
Genetic variation in the glycine-rich protein gene BnGRP1 contributes to low phosphorus tolerance in Brassica napus
Authors: Xu Ping , Li Haiyuan , Xu Ke , Cui Xiaoyu , Liu Zhenning , Wang Xiaohua
Published: March 2023

Lack of phosphorus (P) is a major environmental factor affecting rapeseed (Brassica napus. L) root growth and development. For breeding purposes, it is crucial to identify the molecular mechanisms underlying root system architecture traits that confer low-P tolerance in rapeseed. Natural variations in the glycine-rich protein gene BnGRP1 were analysed in the natural population of 400 rapeseed cultivars under low-P stress through genome-wide association study and transcriptome analysis. Based on 11 single nucleotide polymorphism mutations in the BnGRP1 sequence, 10 haplotypes (Hap) were formed. Compared with the other types, the cultivar BnGRP1Hap1 in the panel demonstrated the longest root length and heaviest root weight. BnGRP1Hap1 overexpression in rapeseed led to enhanced low-P tolerance. CRISPR/Cas9-derived BnGRP1Hap4 knockout mutations in rapeseed can lead to sensitivity to low-P stress. Furthermore, BnGRP1Hap1 influences the expression of the phosphate transporter 1 gene (PHT1) associated with P absorption. Overall, the findings of this study highlight new insights into the mechanisms of GRP1 enhancement of low-P tolerance in rapeseed.
Context of instauration and evolution under isavuconazole, a 2-year prospective real-life study
Authors: Pieragostini Rémi , Xhaard Aliénor , Sauvageon Hélène , Madelaine Isabelle , Touratier Sophie , Denis Blandine
Published: March 2023

To describe reasons for initiation and evolution under isavuconazole (ISZ), a 2-year prospective and observational study was performed. Anonymized data collected during the first 3 months of treatment were indications of treatment, efficacy, overall survival (OS), evolution of toxicity markers, and ISZ trough levels. Fifty-one (26 invasive aspergillosis, 16 prophylaxis, and 9 mucormycosis) patients started on isavuconazole. Isavuconazole was initiated upfront in 12/51 cases, especially to avoid toxicities from other antifungals. As second-line therapy (39/51 patients), isavuconazole was mostly initiated after toxicities of the previous treatments (66.7%; 26/39 cases). An improvement in toxicity markers was reported in most patients. However, five patients experienced adverse events. The mean ISZ trough levels measured from 179 samples collected in 37 patients was 3.33 ± 1.64 mg/l. The mean ISZ through levels was significantly lower (P = .003) in alloHSCT recipients (3.10 ± 1.45 mg/l) than in other patients (3.76 ± 1.88 mg/l) but still within the expected range of efficacy. After 12 weeks, the OS was 69.2% (n = 18/26) in the invasive aspergillosis intention-to-treat (ITT) group and 44.4% (n = 4/9) in the mucormycosis ITT group. After 2 years, the OS was respectively 46.2% (n = 12/26) and 33.3% (n = 3/9) in these two groups.
The GALAH survey: new diffuse interstellar bands found in residuals of 872 000 stellar spectra
Authors: Vogrinčič Rok , Kos Janez , Zwitter Tomaž , Traven Gregor , Beeson Kevin L , Čotar Klemen , Munari Ulisse , Buder Sven , Martell Sarah L , Lewis Geraint F , De Silva Gayandhi M , Hayden Michael R , Bland-Hawthorn Joss , D’Orazi Valentina
Published: March 2023

We use more than 872 000 mid- to high-resolution (R ∼ 20 000) spectra of stars from the GALactic Archaeology with HERMES (GALAH) survey to discern the spectra of diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs). We use four windows with the wavelength ranges 4718–4903, 5649–5873, 6481–6739, and 7590–7890 Å, giving a total coverage of 967 Å. We produce ∼400 000 spectra of interstellar medium (ISM) absorption features and correct them for radial velocities of the DIB clouds. Ultimately, we combine the 33 115 best ISM spectra into six reddening bins with a range of 0.1 < E(B − V) < 0.7 mag. A total of 183 absorption features in these spectra qualify as DIBs, and their fitted model parameters are summarized in a detailed catalogue. From these, 64 are not reported in the literature, of which 17 are certain, 14 are probable and 33 are possible. We find that the broad DIBs can be fitted with a multitude of narrower DIBs. Finally, we create a synthetic DIB spectrum at unit reddening. This should allow us to narrow down the possible carriers of DIBs, to explore the composition of the ISM, and ultimately to model dust and star formation better as well as to correct Galactic and extragalactic observations. The majority of certain DIBs show a significant excess of equivalent width when compared with reddening. We explain this with observed lines of sight penetrating more uniform DIB clouds compared with clumpy dust clouds.