bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Clinging to Flesh: Embodied Experience in Contemporary Women’s Dystopias
Authors: Schneider Ana-Karina
Published: April 2022

In much contemporary speculative fiction by women, the cyborgization of the body is metaphoric rather than physical, suggesting ambivalence toward artificial enhancements and reproduction. Drawing on the recent material turn in feminism, this essay analyzes representations of the agency of matter and the interdependencies of nature and culture that shape women’s experiences and thus help envision alternative futures. Rather than replicate patriarchal and rationalist representational patterns, the figure of the childbearing woman in novels from Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale to Louise Erdrich’s Future Home of the Living God thematizes both the inescapability of corporeality and the subtle forms of exploitation, whose persistence is inscribed on the pregnant female, racialized, or even cyborgized body. Its foregrounding, I argue, is a form of ethical activism.
PCRMS: a database of predicted cis-regulatory modules and constituent transcription factor binding sites in genomes
Authors: Ni Pengyu , Su Zhengchang
Published: April 2022

More accurate and more complete predictions of cis-regulatory modules (CRMs) and constituent transcription factor (TF) binding sites (TFBSs) in genomes can facilitate characterizing functions of regulatory sequences. Here, we developed a database predicted cis-regulatory modules (PCRMS) (https://cci-bioinfo.uncc.edu) that stores highly accurate and unprecedentedly complete maps of predicted CRMs and TFBSs in the human and mouse genomes. The web interface allows the user to browse CRMs and TFBSs in an organism, find the closest CRMs to a gene, search CRMs around a gene and find all TFBSs of a TF. PCRMS can be a useful resource for the research community to characterize regulatory genomes.

Database URL: https://cci-bioinfo.uncc.edu/
Phenology, Density and Parasitism of Asian Chestnut Gall Wasp (Dryocosmus kuriphilus) (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) in Recently Invaded Chestnut (Castanea spp.) Orchards in Michigan
Authors: Labbate Louise , McCullough Deborah G
Published: April 2022

Asian chestnut gall wasp (ACGW) (Dryocosmus kuriphilus Yasumatsu), an invasive pest native to China, was detected in Michigan, the largest chestnut producer in North America, in 2015. Along with quantifying gall densities, we tracked dates and cumulative growing degree days corresponding to ACGW life stages in five, seven, and nine orchards in 2017–2019, respectively. Gall formation, triggered by the onset of feeding by overwintered larvae, began soon after bud break. Most adult wasps emerged in mid summer, after pollen production peaked. Density of ACGW in all sites dropped sharply in 2019, probably as a result of larval mortality caused by severely cold temperatures in late January. Gall density was generally lower on Chinese chestnut (Castanea mollisima Blume) trees and C. mollisima hybrids, which share some coevolutionary history with ACGW, than on cultivars of European chestnut (C. sativa Miller) and Japanese-European (C. crenata Sieb. & Zucc. x C. sativa) trees, including the popular Colossal cultivar. Torymus sinensis Kamijo (Hymenoptera: Torymidae), a larval parasitoid previously introduced into the U.S. and several countries in Asia and Europe for ACGW biocontrol, appears to be spreading with ACGW in Michigan. Parasitoid larvae were recorded in four, six, and eight of the infested sites we sampled in 2017–2019, respectively, and parasitism rates ranged from 5 to70% of galls.
Long-term outcomes of percutaneous tricuspid annuloplasty with Cardioband device
Authors: Pardo Sanz Ana , Gómez José Luis Zamorano , Tahoces Luisa Salido , Ruiz Juan Manuel Monteagudo , Martín Ana García , Gómez Ariana González , Baydes Rocío Hinojar , Sequeiros María Abellás , Fernández Marcelo Sanmartín , Barceló José Luis Mestre , Ferrer Eduardo González , Santos Sara Fernández , Lobán Covadonga Fernández-Golfín , Recalde Ángel Sánchez
Published: April 2022

Aims

Severe tricuspid regurgitation (TR) has adverse effects on outcomes, with limited therapeutic options. We report the outcomes of patients undergoing percutaneous annuloplasty as a treatment of  ≥severe functional TR in a single centre.

Methods and results

Prospective, single-arm, single-centre study that enrolled 24 consecutive patients with at least severe functional TR undergoing percutaneous annuloplasty with Cardioband system between 2019 and 2021. Clinical and echocardiographic data were prospectively collected, with a mean follow-up of 279 ± 246 days. At baseline, 66.6% were in New York Heart Association (NYHA) Classes III and IV and 100% had significant oedema. Technical success was 91.6%. At the end of follow-up, there was one death. Echocardiography showed a significant reduction in septolateral annular diameter of 10.4 mm (P < 0.001) that remained stable at the end of follow-up. The severity of the TR was also reduced. About 81.8% of patients were in NYHA Classes I and II. The number of patients with significant oedema decreased to 46% (P = 0.01). Six-minute walk distance improved by 68.8 m (P = 0.12).

Conclusion

Percutaneous annuloplasty with Cardioband system is an effective and safe treatment for patients with symptomatic, ≥severe functional TR. Annular reduction and TR severity reduction remained significant and sustained for 1 year. Patients experienced improvements in quality of life and exercise capacity.
How useful is it to teach affixes in intermediate classes?
Authors: Ur Penny
Published: April 2022

It is assumed by many teachers and materials writers that it is important to teach at all levels the forms and meanings of derivational prefixes and suffixes, as an important aid to learning new words in English. However, corpus evidence suggests that knowledge of the meanings of such components occurring within the most common 5,000 words in English—a rough upper target vocabulary level for intermediate-level (B1) students—does not, in most cases, help learners at this level to understand the words of which they form a part. It is concluded that probably only a relatively small number of prefixes and suffixes are worth teaching in courses for intermediate classes.
Which ‘imperfect vaccines’ encourage the evolution of higher virulence?
Authors: Bull James J , Antia Rustom
Published: April 2022

Background and objectives

Theory suggests that some types of vaccines against infectious pathogens may lead to the evolution of variants that cause increased harm, particularly when they infect unvaccinated individuals. This theory was supported by the observation that the use of an imperfect vaccine to control Marek’s disease virus in chickens resulted in the virus evolving to be more lethal to unvaccinated birds. This raises the concern that the use of some other vaccines may lead to similar pernicious outcomes. We examine that theory with a focus on considering the regimes in which such outcomes are expected.

Methodology

We evaluate the plausibility of assumptions in the original theory. The previous theory rested heavily on a particular form of transmission–mortality–recovery trade-off and invoked other assumptions about the pathways of evolution. We review alternatives to mortality in limiting transmission and consider evolutionary pathways that were omitted in the original theory.

Results

The regime where the pernicious evolutionary outcome occurs is narrowed by our analysis but remains possible in various scenarios. We propose a more nuanced consideration of alternative models for the within-host dynamics of infections and for factors that limit virulence. Our analysis suggests imperfect vaccines against many pathogens will not lead to the evolution of pathogens with increased virulence in unvaccinated individuals.

Conclusions and implications

Evolution of greater pathogen mortality driven by vaccination remains difficult to predict, but the scope for such outcomes appears limited. Incorporation of mechanistic details into the framework, especially regarding immunity, may be requisite for prediction accuracy.

Lay Summary

A virus of chickens appears to have evolved high mortality in response to a vaccine that merely prevented disease symptoms. Theory has predicted this type of evolution in response to a variety of vaccines and other interventions such as drug treatment. Under what circumstances is this pernicious result likely to occur? Analysis of the theory in light of recent changes in our understanding of viral biology raises doubts that medicine-driven, pernicious evolution is likely to be common. But we are far from a mechanistic understanding of the interaction between pathogen and host that can predict when vaccines and other medical interventions will lead to the unwanted evolution of more virulent pathogens. So, while the regime where a pernicious result obtains may be limited, caution remains warranted in designing many types of interventions.
Technology, labour market institutions and early retirement
Authors: Yashiro Naomitsu , Kyyrä Tomi , Hwang Hyunjeong , Tuomala Juha
Published: April 2022

There are two important barriers to increasing the employment of older workers under rapid technological change. First, older workers engaged in codifiable, routine tasks are particularly prone to the risk of being displaced by computers and robots. Second, several countries have in place various labour market institutions that encourage early retirement, such as exceptional entitlements or looser criteria for unemployment and disability benefits applied to older individuals. We present evidence that these two factors reinforce each other to push older workers out of employment. We find that older workers who are more exposed to digital technologies face a higher risk of exiting employment and that this effect is significantly magnified when they are eligible for an extension of unemployment benefits until the earliest age for drawing old age pension. Furthermore, we present a simple simulation to illustrate that a policy reform that tightens the eligibility for the benefits extension increases mostly the employment of older workers that are more exposed to digital technologies. Our findings provide an important implication on policies to promote longer working lives under rapid technological change. They highlight the importance of closing institutional pathways to early retirement to encourage employers and older workers to make the necessary investment that would allow older workers to keep up with technological change and work longer.
Improved agricultural input delivery systems for enhancing technology adoption: evidence from a field experiment in Ethiopia
Authors: Yitayew Asresu , Abdulai Awudu , Yigezu Yigezu A
Published: April 2022

In this study, we test the hypothesis that small-scale testing can reduce the risk and uncertainty of trying new technologies. We conducted a field experiment, in a cluster randomised control trial setting, to examine whether the availability of divisible packages of seeds influences smallholder farmers’ decisions to try a new wheat variety. Our results show that the adoption of the newly introduced wheat variety was higher in the villages where small seed packages were introduced. We find that smallholder farmers tend to experiment on the newly introduced variety on their farmland and are less likely to adopt the new variety as a coping mechanism for risk exposure at the stage of experimentation. The results from treatment heterogeneity reveal that supplying seed in small bags had differential causal effects on individual farmers. The intervention which made small seed bags available impacted relatively younger and poorer farmers the most. This finding provides an insight into the significance of seed delivery in small bags to improve the use of seeds of new varieties by smallholders.
Heart transplantation: focus on donor recovery strategies, left ventricular assist devices, and novel therapies
Authors: Crespo-Leiro Maria Generosa , Costanzo Maria Rosa , Gustafsson Finn , Khush Kiran K , Macdonald Peter S , Potena Luciano , Stehlik Josef , Zuckermann Andreas , Mehra Mandeep R
Published: April 2022

Heart transplantation is advocated in selected patients with advanced heart failure in the absence of contraindications. Principal challenges in heart transplantation centre around an insufficient and underutilized donor organ pool, the need to individualize titration of immunosuppressive therapy, and to minimize late complications such as cardiac allograft vasculopathy, malignancy, and renal dysfunction. Advances have served to increase the organ donor pool by advocating the use of donors with underlying hepatitis C virus infection and by expanding the donor source to use hearts donated after circulatory death. New techniques to preserve the donor heart over prolonged ischaemic times, and enabling longer transport times in a safe manner, have been introduced. Mechanical circulatory support as a bridge to transplantation has allowed patients with advanced heart failure to avoid progressive deterioration in hepato-renal function while awaiting an optimal donor organ match. The management of the heart transplantation recipient remains a challenge despite advances in immunosuppression, which provide early gains in rejection avoidance but are associated with infections and late-outcome challenges. In this article, we review contemporary advances and challenges in this field to focus on donor recovery strategies, left ventricular assist devices, and immunosuppressive monitoring therapies with the potential to enhance outcomes. We also describe opportunities for future discovery to include a renewed focus on long-term survival, which continues to be an area that is under-studied and poorly characterized, non-human sources of organs for transplantation including xenotransplantation as well as chimeric transplantation, and technology competitive to human heart transplantation, such as tissue engineering.
Adding salt to foods and hazard of premature mortality
Authors: Ma Hao , Xue Qiaochu , Wang Xuan , Li Xiang , Franco Oscar H , Li Yanping , Heianza Yoriko , Manson JoAnn E , Qi Lu
Published: April 2022

Aims

We analyzed whether the frequency of adding salt to foods was associated with the hazard of premature mortality and life expectancy.

Methods and results

A total of 501 379 participants from UK biobank who completed the questionnaire on the frequency of adding salt to foods at baseline. The information on the frequency of adding salt to foods (do not include salt used in cooking) was collected through a touch-screen questionnaire at baseline. We found graded relationships between higher frequency of adding salt to foods and higher concentrations of spot urinary sodium or estimated 24-h sodium excretion. During a median of 9.0 years of follow-up, 18 474 premature deaths were documented. The multivariable hazard ratios [95% confidence interval (CI)] of all-cause premature mortality across the increasing frequency of adding salt to foods were 1.00 (reference), 1.02 (0.99, 1.06), 1.07 (1.02, 1.11), and 1.28 (1.20, 1.35) (P-trend < 0.001). We found that intakes of fruits and vegetables significantly modified the associations between the frequency of adding salt to foods and all-cause premature mortality, which were more pronounced in participants with low intakes than those with high intakes of these foods (P-interaction = 0.02). In addition, compared with the never/rarely group, always adding salt to foods was related to 1.50 (95% CI, 0.72–2.30) and 2.28 (95% CI, 1.66–2.90) years lower life expectancy at the age of 50 years in women and men, respectively.

Conclusions

Our findings indicate that higher frequency of adding salt to foods is associated with a higher hazard of all-cause premature mortality and lower life expectancy.
Characteristics, management, and outcomes of patients with multiple native valvular heart disease: a substudy of the EURObservational Research Programme Valvular Heart Disease II Survey
Authors: Tribouilloy Christophe , Bohbot Yohann , Kubala Maciej , Ruschitzka Frank , Popescu Bogdan , Wendler Olaf , Laroche Cécile , Bartha Elektra , Ince Huseyin , Simkova Iveta , Vahanian Alec , Iung Bernard
Published: April 2022

Aims

To assess the characteristics, management, and survival of patients with multiple native valvular heart disease (VHD).

Methods and results

Among the 5087 patients with ≥1 severe left-sided native VHD included in the EURObservational VHD II Survey (maximum 3-month recruitment period per centre between January and August 2017 with a 6-month follow-up), 3571 had a single left-sided VHD (Group A, 70.2%), 363 had one severe left-sided VHD with moderate VHD of the other ipsilateral valve (Group B, 7.1%), and 1153 patients (22.7%) had ≥2 severe native VHDs (left-sided and/or tricuspid regurgitation, Group C). Patients with multiple VHD (Groups B and C) were more often women, had greater congestive heart failure (CHF) and comorbidity, higher left atrial volumes and pulmonary pressures, and lower ejection fraction than Group A patients (all P ≤ 0.01). During the index hospitalization, 36.7% of Group A (n = 1312), 26.7% of Group B (n = 97), and 32.7% of Group C (n = 377) underwent valvular intervention (P < 0.001). Six-month survival was better for Group A than for Group B or C (both P < 0.001), even after adjustment for age, sex, body mass index, and Charlson index [hazard ratio (HR) 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.62 (1.10–2.38) vs. Group B and HR 95% CI 1.72 (1.32–2.25) vs. Group C]. Groups B and C had more CHF at 6 months than Group A (both P < 0.001). Factors associated with mortality in Group C were age, CHF, and comorbidity (all P < 0.010).

Conclusion

Multiple VHD is common, encountered in nearly 30% of patients with left-sided native VHD, and associated with greater cardiac damage and leads to higher mortality and more heart failure at 6 months than single VHD, yet with lower rates of surgery.
Landiolol for refractory tachyarrhythmias in the intensive care unit: case reports
Authors: Gangl Clemens , Krychtiuk Konstantin A , Schoenbauer Robert , Speidl Walter S
Published: April 2022

Tachyarrhythmias are common complications of critically ill patients treated on intensive care units. Landiolol is an ultra-short acting beta-blocker with a very high beta1-selectivity. Therefore, landiolol effectively reduces heart rate with only minimal negative effects on blood pressure and inotropy. This article describes two cases of successful treatment of supraventricular and ventricular tachycardias with landiolol in critically ill patients.
Effectiveness and reporting of nutrition interventions in cardiac rehabilitation programmes: a systematic review
Authors: Kocanda Lucy , Schumacher Tracy L , Plotnikoff Ronald C , Whatnall Megan C , Fenwick Matthew , Brown Leanne J , Rollo Megan E , Jansson Anna , Burrows Tracy L , Duncan Mitch J , Britton Ben , May Jennifer , Kerr Jane , Rutherford Julie , Boyle Andrew , Inder Kerry , Collins Clare E
Published: April 2022

Aims

Dietary modification is essential for the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease. However, there are limited published evidence syntheses to guide practice in the cardiac rehabilitation (CR) setting. This systematic review’s objective was to assess effectiveness and reporting of nutrition interventions to optimize dietary intake in adults attending CR.

Methods and results

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of nutrition interventions within CR were eligible for inclusion and had to have measured change in dietary intake. MEDLINE, Embase, Emcare, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Scopus, and The Cochrane Library were searched from 2000 to June 2020, limited to publications in English. Evidence from included RCTs was synthesized descriptively. The risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias 2 tool. This review is registered on PROSPERO; CRD42020188723. Of 13 048 unique articles identified, 11 were eligible. Randomized controlled trials were conducted in 10 different countries, included 1542 participants, and evaluated 29 distinct dietary intake outcomes. Five studies reported statistically significant changes in diet across 13 outcomes. Most nutrition interventions were not reported in a manner that allowed replication in clinical practice or future research.

Conclusion

There is a gap in research testing high-quality nutrition interventions in CR settings. Findings should be interpreted in the light of limitations, given the overall body of evidence was heterogenous across outcomes and study quality; 6 of 11 studies were conducted more than 10 years old. Future research should investigate strategies to optimize and maintain nutrition improvements for patients attending CR.

Registration

PROSPERO; CRD42020188723.
Multi-national survey on the methods, efficacy, and safety on the post-approval clinical use of pulsed field ablation (MANIFEST-PF)
Authors: Ekanem Emmanuel , Reddy Vivek Y , Schmidt Boris , Reichlin Tobias , Neven Kars , Metzner Andreas , Hansen Jim , Blaauw Yuri , Maury Philippe , Arentz Thomas , Sommer Philipp , Anic Ante , Anselme Frederic , Boveda Serge , Deneke Tom , Willems Stephan , van der Voort Pepijn , Tilz Roland , Funasako Moritoshi , Scherr Daniel , Wakili Reza , Steven Daniel , Kautzner Josef , Vijgen Johan , Jais Pierre , Petru Jan , Chun Julian , Roten Laurent , Füting Anna , Rillig Andreas , Mulder Bart A , Johannessen Arne , Rollin Anne , Lehrmann Heiko , Sohns Christian , Jurisic Zrinka , Savoure Arnaud , Combes Stephanes , Nentwich Karin , Gunawardene Melanie , Ouss Alexandre , Kirstein Bettina , Manninger Martin , Bohnen Jan Eric , Sultan Arian , Peichl Petr , Koopman Pieter , Derval Nicolas , Turagam Mohit K , Neuzil Petr ,   MANIFEST-PF Cooperative
Published: April 2022

Aims

Pulsed field ablation (PFA) is a novel atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation modality that has demonstrated preferential tissue ablation, including no oesophageal damage, in first-in-human clinical trials. In the MANIFEST-PF survey, we investigated the ‘real world’ performance of the only approved PFA catheter, including acute effectiveness and safety—in particular, rare oesophageal effects and other unforeseen PFA-related complications.

Methods and results

This retrospective survey included all 24 clinical centres using the pentaspline PFA catheter after regulatory approval. Institution-level data were obtained on patient characteristics, procedure parameters, acute efficacy, and adverse events. With an average of 73 patients treated per centre (range 7–291), full cohort included 1758 patients: mean age 61.6 years (range 19–92), female 34%, first-time ablation 94%, paroxysmal/persistent AF 58/35%. Most procedures employed deep sedation without intubation (82.1%), and 15.1% were discharged same day. Pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) was successful in 99.9% (range 98.9–100%). Procedure time was 65 min (38–215). There were no oesophageal complications or phrenic nerve injuries persisting past hospital discharge. Major complications (1.6%) were pericardial tamponade (0.97%) and stroke (0.4%); one stroke resulted in death (0.06%). Minor complications (3.9%) were primarily vascular (3.3%), but also included transient phrenic nerve paresis (0.46%), and TIA (0.11%). Rare complications included coronary artery spasm, haemoptysis, and dry cough persistent for 6 weeks (0.06% each).

Conclusion

In a large cohort of unselected patients, PFA was efficacious for PVI, and expressed a safety profile consistent with preferential tissue ablation. However, the frequency of ‘generic’ catheter complications (tamponade, stroke) underscores the need for improvement.
Combined epicardial and endocardial approach for redo radiofrequency catheter ablation in patients with persistent atrial fibrillation: a randomized clinical trial
Authors: Lee Kwang No , Kim Do Young , Boo Ki Yung , Kim Yun Gi , Roh Seung Young , Shim Jaemin , Choi Jong Il , Kim Young Hoon
Published: April 2022

Aims

An epicardial approach is an effective means to detect and eliminate residual potentials in non-transmural lesions created during prior endocardial ablation. We sought to determine the impact of a combined epicardial and endocardial approach compared with a conventional endocardial approach, on recurrence-free survival after redo ablation.

Methods and results

Participants with recurred persistent atrial fibrillation after prior endocardial ablation were randomized (1:1) to undergo treatment with the combined approach (epicardial followed by endocardial ablation) for the treatment group or conventional approach (endocardial ablation only) for the control group. The primary outcome was the time to recurrence of atrial fibrillation or atrial tachycardia following a 90-day blanking period within 12 months after the procedure. The secondary safety outcome was the occurrence of procedure-related complications within 24 h after the procedure. Of 100 randomized participants {median age, 59.0 [(interquartile range (IQR): 53.8–64.3] years, including 16% women, with one prior ablation (IQR: 1–1)}, 93 (93%) completed the trial. Events relevant to the primary outcome occurred in 16 patients in the treatment group and in 21 patients in the control group {Kaplan–Meier estimator percentages, 32 vs. 42%; hazard ratio, 0.71 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.37–1.37]}. The periprocedural complication rate was lower in the treatment group [2 vs. 16%; odds ratio, 0.11 (95% CI: 0.00–0.87)] with similar achievement of the procedural endpoint in the two groups.

Conclusion

In the redo procedure for persistent atrial fibrillation, the combined approach had no significant difference of recurrence-free survival and a lower procedural complication rate compared with the conventional approach.
The politics of vaccine hesitancy in Europe
Authors: Stoeckel Florian , Carter Charlie , Lyons Benjamin A , Reifler Jason
Published: April 2022

Background

Vaccine hesitancy threatens public health. Some evidence suggests that vaccine hesitancy in Europe may be linked with the success of populist parties, but more systematic analysis is needed.

Methods

We examine the prevalence of individual-level vaccine hesitancy across the European Union (EU) and its association with political orientations. We also analyze whether success of populist parties is linked with vaccine hesitancy and uptake. We draw on individual-level Eurobarometer data from 2019, with a total of 27 524 respondents across the EU. We also rely on national and regional-level populist party vote shares. Finally, for a time-series analysis, we rely on aggregated populist party support as measured in the European Social Survey waves 1–9 (2002–18), and national immunization coverage rates from the WHO from 2002 to 2018.

Results

While vaccine hesitancy is confined to a minority of the population, this group is large enough to risk herd immunity. Political orientations on a left-right dimension are not strongly linked to vaccine hesitancy. Instead, vaccine hesitancy is associated with anti-elite world views and culturally closed rather than cosmopolitan positions.

Conclusions

Vaccine hesitancy is not only present in all EU member states but also maps on broader dimensions of cultural conflict. Hesitancy is rooted in a broader worldview, rather than misperceptions about health risks. Pro-vaccine interventions need to consider the underlying worldview, rather than simply targeting misperceptions.
Chemical fumigation and biofumigation alter soil bacterial community diversity and composition
Authors: Sennett Louise B , Goyer Claudia , Burton David L , Zebarth Bernie J , Whitney Sean
Published: April 2022

Chemical fumigation and biofumigation are used to reduce soil-borne diseases in agricultural production systems; however, nontargeted soil microorganisms may also be affected. This study compared the effects of chemical fumigation, either used alone or combined with an organic amendment, and biofumigation on soil bacterial community diversity and composition under controlled conditions over 160 days. Treatments included: fumigation with chloropicrin (CP), fumigation with metam sodium used alone (MS) or combined with barley plant residues (MSBR), biofumigation with mustard plant residues, addition of barley plant residues and untreated control. Biofumigation had a greater impact on bacterial diversity at early time points, transiently decreasing species evenness and yielding the most dissimilar β-diversity after 3 days. MS fumigation did not affect bacterial diversity indices; however, MSBR transiently decreased species evenness after 8 days. CP-treated soil had decreased species evenness that did not recover over time and had the most dissimilar β-diversity at the end of the incubation compared with all other treatments. This study demonstrated that CP fumigation had the greatest and most persistent impact on bacterial diversity, whereas MS fumigation and biofumigation led to transient decreases in bacterial diversity.
Regular diet is non-inferior to restricted diet after polypectomy with decreased hospitalization length of stay and cost: a randomized–controlled trial
Authors: Huang Rong , Huang Shaohui , Xu Li , Mandip Rai , Chen Baomei , Fan Jiayi , Bai Yang , Wang Yusi , Han Zelong , Wang Zhiqing , Liu Side , Li Yue
Published: April 2022

Background

There are no data comparing a regular diet with a restricted diet after endoscopic polypectomy in patients with colorectal polyps. The current guidelines also did not provide the detailed information of dietary patterns after polypectomy. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of different diets on post-polypectomy outcomes.

Methods

A total of 302 patients with colorectal polyps who underwent polypectomy were prospectively enrolled between March 2019 and December 2019 in Nanfang Hospital (Guangzhou, China). Enrolled patients were then randomly assigned to a regular diet group or a restricted diet group after polypectomy. The study is a non-inferior design and the primary end point was the post-operative adverse events (AE) rate. Secondary end points included length of stay (LOS) and hospitalization cost.

Results

Among all the included patients, 148 patients received a restricted diet and 154 patients received a regular diet after polypectomy. A total of 376 polyps were removed, with 183 polyps in the restricted diet group and 193 polyps in the regular diet group. Shorter LOS (4.0 ± 1.4 vs 4.8 ± 1.7, P < 0.001) and lower hospitalization costs (7,701.63 ± 2,579.07 vs 8,656.05 ± 3,138.53, P = 0.001) were observed in the regular diet group. In particular, there was no significant difference in 3-day AE rates between the restricted diet and the regular diet group (1.35% [2/148] vs 2.60% [4/154], P = 0.685). Subgroup analysis looking at the number of polyps removed in each patient and different treatment modalities also showed similar findings.

Conclusion

Regular diet should be recommended after polypectomy for polyps <20 mm as it can shorten LOS and save hospitalization costs.
Comparative Analyses of Complete Peronosporaceae (Oomycota) Mitogenome Sequences—Insights into Structural Evolution and Phylogeny
Authors: Winkworth Richard C. , Neal Grace , Ogas Raeya A. , Nelson Briana C. W. , McLenachan Patricia A. , Bellgard Stanley E. , Lockhart Peter J.
Published: April 2022

Members of the Peronosporaceae (Oomycota, Chromista), which currently consists of 25 genera and approximately 1,000 recognized species, are responsible for disease on a wide range of plant hosts. Molecular phylogenetic analyses over the last two decades have improved our understanding of evolutionary relationships within Peronosporaceae. To date, 16 numbered and three named clades have been recognized; it is clear from these studies that the current taxonomy does not reflect evolutionary relationships. Whole organelle genome sequences are an increasingly important source of phylogenetic information, and in this study, we present comparative and phylogenetic analyses of mitogenome sequences from 15 of the 19 currently recognized clades of Peronosporaceae, including 44 newly assembled sequences. Our analyses suggest strong conservation of mitogenome size and gene content across Peronosporaceae but, as previous studies have suggested, limited conservation of synteny. Specifically, we identified 28 distinct syntenies amongst the 71 examined isolates. Moreover, 19 of the isolates contained inverted or direct repeats, suggesting repeated sequences may be more common than previously thought. In terms of phylogenetic relationships, our analyses of 34 concatenated mitochondrial gene sequences resulted in a topology that was broadly consistent with previous studies. However, unlike previous studies concatenated mitochondrial sequences provided strong support for higher-level relationships within the family.
The Legacies of 1936: Hitler’s Olympic Grounds and Berlin’s Bid to Host the 2000 Olympic Games
Authors: Johnson Molly Wilkinson
Published: April 2022

Although the 1936 ‘Nazi Olympics’ in Berlin have landmark status both in the history of Nazi Germany and in the history of the modern Olympic Games, it was not until the early 1990s that Berlin begin to reckon with their architectural and historical legacies. The impetus for these discussions was the city’s bid to host the 2000 Olympic Games, for which it planned to reuse the 1936 Olympic Stadium. This article begins by analysing the strategies used by Berlin’s bid coordinators to distance the 2000 bid from the racist aspects of the 1936 Games. Their primary strategy was to honour the victims of Nazism by incorporating the concentration camp Theresienstadt into the proposed route for the Olympic torch. The article then analyses public debates about the best ways to counterbalance the Nazi ideology embedded in the statues and architecture of the Olympic grounds. Simultaneously, it shows the efforts of some Berlin residents to argue that the architectural and cultural legacies of the 1936 Games precluded Berlin from hosting the 2000 Games altogether. The article next examines the grassroots, municipal and federal historical initiatives at the site which emerged in the years after Berlin’s failed bid. These efforts culminated in two permanent historical exhibits at the Olympic grounds, developed to coincide with the 2006 soccer World Cup. Yet, as the article concludes, the Olympic complex remains a living site today, subject to continued discussions and debates about how best to balance recreational, historical and political engagement with the infamous site.
Age and Framing Effects in the Balloon Analogue Risk Task
Authors: Schulman Adam T , Chong Amy W , Löckenhoff Corinna E
Published: April 2022

Objectives

Prior research has documented age differences in risky decisions and indicates that they are susceptible to gain versus loss framing. However, previous studies focused on “decisions from description” that explicitly spell out the probabilities involved. The present study expands this literature by examining the effects of framing on age differences in the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), a widely used and ecologically valid measure of experience-based risky decision making that involves pumping a virtual balloon.

Methods

In a preregistered study, younger (aged 18–30, n = 129) and older adults (aged 60 and older, n = 125) were randomly assigned to either a gain version of the BART, where pumping the balloon added monetary gains, or a loss version, where pumping the balloon avoided monetary losses.

Results

We found a significant age by frame interaction on risk-taking: in the loss frame, older adults pumped more frequently and experienced more popped balloons than younger adults, whereas in the gain frame no significant age differences were found. Total performance on the BART did not vary by age or frame. Supplementary analyses indicated that age differences in pumping rates were most pronounced at the beginning of the BART and leveled off in subsequent trials. Controlling for age differences in motivation, personality, and cognition did not account for age differences in risk-taking.

Discussion

In combination, findings suggest that age differences in risk-taking on the BART are more pronounced when the task context emphasizes avoiding losses rather than achieving gains.
More Positive or Less Negative? Emotional Goals and Emotion Regulation Tactics in Adulthood and Old Age
Authors: Wolfe Hannah E , Livingstone Kimberly M , Isaacowitz Derek M
Published: April 2022

Objectives

Despite declines in physical and cognitive functioning, older adults report higher levels of emotional well-being (Charles, S. T., & Carstensen, L. L. (2010). Social and emotional aging. Annual Review of Psychology, 61, 383–409. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.093008.100448). Motivational accounts suggest that differences in goals lead to age-related differences in affect through differences in emotion regulation behaviors, but evidence for age differences in emotion regulation strategy use is inconsistent. Emotion regulation tactics (i.e., how a strategy is implemented) may reveal greater age differences. Specifically, this study tested whether older adults rely more on positivity-seeking or negativity-avoidance tactics and whether goals alter tactic use.

Methods

An adult lifespan sample (ages 18–90, N = 211) completed 3 different emotion regulation tasks while being assigned to 1 of 4 goal conditions: just view, information-seeking, increase-positive, or decrease-negative. Three tactics were measured—positivity-seeking, negativity-avoidance, and negativity-seeking—by comparing time spent engaging with positive, negative, and neutral stimuli.

Results

Goal instructions only influenced tactic use and affective outcomes in some instances. Instead, younger adults tended to consistently prefer positivity-seeking tactics and older adults preferred negativity-avoidance tactics.

Discussion

Older age may be characterized more by an avoidance of negativity than engagement with positivity; manipulation of goals may not modify these age-related tendencies.
Prediction in the Aging Brain: Merging Cognitive, Neurological, and Evolutionary Perspectives
Authors: Brown Rachel M , Gruijters Stefan L K , Kotz Sonja A
Published: April 2022

Although the aging brain is typically characterized by declines in a variety of cognitive functions, there has been growing attention to cognitive functions that may stabilize or improve with age. We integrate evidence from behavioral, computational, and neurological domains under the hypothesis that over the life span the brain becomes more effective at predicting (i.e., utilizing knowledge) compared to learning. Moving beyond mere description of the empirical literature—with the aim of arriving at a deeper understanding of cognitive aging—we provide potential explanations for a learning-to-prediction shift based on evolutionary models and principles of senescence and plasticity. The proposed explanations explore whether the occurrence of a learning-to-prediction shift can be explained by (changes in) the fitness effects of learning and prediction over the life span. Prediction may optimize (a) the allocation of limited resources across the life span, and/or (b) late-life knowledge transfer (social learning). Alternatively, late-life prediction may reflect a slower decline in prediction compared to learning. By discussing these hypotheses, we aim to provide a foundation for an integrative neurocognitive–evolutionary perspective on aging and to stimulate further theoretical and empirical work.
A closed-loop simulation framework and indicator approach for evaluating impacts of retrospective patterns in stock assessments
Authors: Huynh Quang C , Legault Christopher M , Hordyk Adrian R , Carruthers Tom R
Published: April 2022

A retrospective pattern within a stock assessment occurs when historical estimates systematically increase or decrease as data are removed and has been cited as a cause of persistent overfishing. For two case studies, Gulf of Maine cod and New England pollock, we demonstrated how closed-loop simulation can be used to evaluate the impacts of retrospective patterns with respect to management objectives. Operating models (OM) representing alternative states of nature were developed and various management procedures (MP) that account for retrospective patterns in the fitted assessment models were applied. From the cod example, downward adjustment of the catch advice based on Mohn's rho was more beneficial over model averaging (MA) to meeting biomass objectives from the cod example and avoiding stock crashes. For pollock, downward adjustment and MA were robust to meeting biomass objectives at the cost of foregone catch. The ability to discriminate OMs, using indicators generated from the simulated projections, varied by MP and time for cod, but was poorer overall for pollock. This framework could be used to identify if retrospective issues generate poor management outcomes and, in some cases, alleviate pressure to identify the single most credible state of nature.
Increases of opportunistic species in response to ecosystem change: the case of the Baltic Sea three-spined stickleback
Authors: Olin Agnes B , Olsson Jens , Eklöf Johan S , Eriksson Britas Klemens , Kaljuste Olavi , Briekmane Laura , Bergström Ulf
Published: April 2022

Under rapid environmental change, opportunistic species may exhibit dramatic increases in response to the altered conditions, and can in turn have large impacts on the ecosystem. One such species is the three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), which has shown substantial increases in several aquatic systems in recent decades. Here, we review the population development of the stickleback in the Baltic Sea, a large brackish water ecosystem subject to rapid environmental change. Current evidence points to predatory release being the central driver of the population increases observed in some areas, while both eutrophication and climate change have likely contributed to creating more favourable conditions for the stickleback. The increasing stickleback densities have had profound effects on coastal ecosystem function by impairing the recruitment of piscivorous fish and enhancing the effects of eutrophication through promoting the production of filamentous algae. The increase poses a challenge for both environmental management and fisheries, where a substantial interest from the pelagic fisheries fleet in exploiting the species calls for urgent attention. While significant knowledge gaps remain, we suggest that the case of the Baltic Sea stickleback increase provides generalisable lessons of value for understanding and managing other coastal ecosystems under rapid change.
Entangled legalities in the postnational space
Authors: Krisch Nico
Published: April 2022

Law is typically conceived on the model of the modern, Western state of the twentieth century—as a relatively self-contained system which establishes clear relations between its own norms and the norms of other legal systems. Yet this model stands in contrast to how law has been practiced for much of its history, and how it is practiced today, in particular in contexts in which transnational and international norms have gained significant weight. This article argues that, in order to account for such practices, we better frame law in terms of entanglement rather than system—as an order in which the multiplicity and interaction of legalities is often constitutive and in which the relations between norms from different origins are construed in more complex and fluid ways than the systemic image suggests. The article traces recent theoretical engagements with legal multiplicity and puts forward the concept of entanglement—borrowed from scholarship in history and cultural studies—to capture the broader forms of interaction visible in historical and contemporary studies with an empirical focus. It then develops a typology of these forms and analyzes the varying dynamics behind and consequences of entangled legalities. Charting different responses to multiplicity in contemporary law, the article shows how entanglement reflects and structures today’s complex institutional and normative landscape, characterized by a diffusion of authority and competing forces of integration and distancing. Oscillating between these forces, entangled legalities emerge as a key element of the contemporary postnational legal order.
Reinforcing the binary and disciplining the subject: The constitutional right to gender recognition in the Italian case law
Authors: Osella Stefano
Published: April 2022

The article addresses the reasons why the Italian Constitutional Court requires trans people to transform their physical, psychological, and behavioral characteristics in order to obtain the legal recognition of their gender identity. It discusses how such a doctrine is implemented. Examining the case law of the Constitutional Court and of the Court of Cassation in light of queer theory, the article argues that such requirements are intended to benefit the “certainty of legal relations,” which, in this context, is inextricably tied to the preservation of the heterosexual matrix of family law. Developing a Foucauldian analysis of a consistent sample of decisions by courts of first instance, the article reasons that the application of such requirements amounts to the exercise of disciplinary power, which defines and regulates binary gendered subjects. By focusing on the underexplored doctrine of the Italian Constitutional Court on gender recognition, the article offers a case study which innovatively contributes to the bourgeoning debate on the right to gender recognition.
Long-term paracorporeal pulsatile mechanical circulatory support in adolescent and adult patients
Authors: Kremer Jamila , El-Dor Abbas , Sommer Wiebke , Tochtermann Ursula , Warnecke Gregor , Karck Matthias , Ruhparwar Arjang , Meyer Anna Lassia
Published: April 2022

OBJECTIVES

Our goal was to analyse adverse events in adolescent and adult patients with the Berlin Heart EXCOR and to assess the outcome of a subsequent heart transplant (HTX).

METHODS

From 2006 to 2020, a total of 58 patients (12–64 years old) received a biventricular assist device (BIVAD) at our institution and were included in this study.

RESULTS

The causes of biventricular heart failure were nonischaemic cardiomyopathy (62.1%), ischaemic cardiomyopathy (22.4%) and myocarditis (15.5%). The median INTERMACS score was I (I—III). The median age was 49 years (interquartile range, 34–55 years), and 82.8% were male. Causes of death were multiorgan failure (25.0%), septic shock (17.9%), cerebral haemorrhage (14.3%), bleeding (14.3%) and embolic events (14.3%). Major bleeding was more frequent in the patients who died while on BIVADs (60.7 vs 6.7%, P < 0.001). Wound infections were more prevalent in HTX recipients (n = 21, 70.0%). After BIVAD thrombosis, 104 chamber exchanges were performed in 28 patients (48.3%). HTXs were performed in 52.6% of the patients after a BIVAD support time of 316 ± 240 days. The mean time to follow-up of 30 HTX recipients was 1722 ± 1368 days. One-, 6- and 12-month survival after an HTX were 96.7%, 90.0% and 76.7%, respectively. Long-term survival after 5 and 10 years was 69.7%.

CONCLUSIONS

Pump thrombosis, infections and bleeding after receiving a BIVAD did not preclude a successful HTX. Although only 50% of patients with BIVADs were successfully given a transplant, long-term survival after an HTX in patients with BIVAD was noninferior compared to that of other recipients.