bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Study of perceived stress and stressors among undergraduate medical students
Authors: Sethia Renu , Sharma Gaurav , Shekhawat Kirti , Aacharya Aarti , Acharya Rekha , Meena Ratti Ram
Published: March 2019

Background: Recently there is growing concern about stress during undergraduate’s medical training. Undue stress may cause adverse health consequences and lowered academic performance. Objective of the study was to know perceived level of stress and its causes among undergraduate medical students.Methods: A cross sectional survey, using self-structured questionnaire, was conducted among 65 third year medical students. Questionnaires were related to socio-demographic profile, perceived stress scale [PSS] and 32 item list of stressors (grouped as health related, academic and psycho-social). Student’s responses were recorded on five point Likert scale.Results: Mean PSS score was 25.53±5.55 and was significantly higher for females. Psycho-social stressors occurred most frequently, followed by the academic causes.Conclusions: Medical undergraduates face high level of stress and the causes may be varied. They need more interaction, counselling and support from faculty to relieve their stress.
Self-care practices among known type 2 diabetic patients in Haldwani, India: a community based cross-sectional study
Authors: Goyal Neha , Gupta Sudhir Kumar
Published: March 2019

Background: The prevalence of diabetes worldwide is expected to rise to 9.9% by 2045 and with this rising prevalence raises the need for good self-care practices by patients themselves, which play a key role in effective management and prevention of complications.Methods: Present community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 168 type 2 diabetes mellitus patients by interviewing them using a structured questionnaire assessing their self-care practices using summary of diabetes self-care activities (SDSCA) scale. Different domains were diet, exercise, blood glucose monitoring, medication compliance, foot care and smoking and responses were graded according to number of days in previous week a particular self-care activity of a domain was followed. Data analysis was done with help of SPSS version 21.Results: Mean age of diabetic patients in this study subjects was 54.37±13.24 years. 43.45% respondents have poor self-care practice scores. Bivariate analysis showed that self-care practices were significantly poorer among the diabetic patients less than 60 years of age, residing in rural area, either illiterate or studied till primary/intermediate, had diabetes for less than a year and were taking treatment from public health facilities. Poor self-care practices were insignificantly related with gender, marital status, occupation, monthly family income, type of family, food habits, hypertension as comorbidity, family history, BMI and mode of diagnosis. Multivariate analysis indicates that age, education and duration of diabetes are significant predictors for self-care practices.Conclusions: Self-care practices among diabetic patients were poor among 43.45% patients and there is a need for improving them across all assessed domains.
Acceptability of low-priced, socially-marketed sanitary napkins amongst non-users of sanitary napkins in a slum population of Delhi
Authors: Shaikh Zakirhusain , Panda Meely , Gaur Diksha
Published: March 2019

Background: Access to menstrual hygiene resources is a basic human and healthcare right. A substantial number of women in rural areas and urban slums do not use sanitary napkins due to its prohibitive cost and difficult access, leading to consequences like infections and the subsequent morbidity, school absenteeism and decreased social participation. The study explored the reasons for non-usage of sanitary napkins in an urban slum of Delhi. It was further studied if there would be a high acceptance if low-cost product was made available at health-centre.Methods: A cross-sectional study was done to assess the magnitude and reasons for not using sanitary napkins and acceptability of low-priced sanitary napkins provided through RHTC.Results: Most women (47%) do not use sanitary napkins because its price was perceived as high as against the benefit that can be accrued. Difficult in access to product purchase was the second important reason for non-usage. A low-priced sanitary napkin provided through RHTC was an acceptable solution to them.Conclusions: Increasing the accessibility of affordable sanitary napkins through health centers can increase in usage of sanitary napkins.
Common mental disorders among women of reproductive age group in an urban area in Bengaluru
Authors: K. Sathyanarayana Ramya , Manjunatha Shashikala
Published: March 2019

Background: Common mental disorders are commonly encountered in community settings, especially in women. The somatic symptoms often lead to repeated visits to health care practitioners without resolution of the problem. The knowledge of magnitude of common mental disorders and their associated factors has proved useful in psychiatric epidemiological research.Methods: A community based cross-sectional study was carried out among 480 randomly selected women in the reproductive age group using self-reporting questionnaire (SRQ-20), a validated tool developed by World Health Organisation. A standard cut-off score of 7 was used to identify women with common mental disorder. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics and suitable tests of significance in statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) v. 21.0.Results: The prevalence of common mental disorder was found to be 33.5% in the present study. Analysis showed that various socio-demographic characteristics of women like lower educational levels of women, widowed women, and women belonging to lower socio-economic class, belonging to joint family, lower body mass index had statistically significant association with common mental disorders.Conclusions: This study revealed that the prevalence of common mental disorders was high (33.5%) among the women of reproductive age group and there existed statistically significant association between common mental disorders and various socio demographic determinants.
Correlation Between Dysphagia and Malocclusion in Rett Syndrome: A preliminary study
Authors: Cocca Serena , Viviano Massimo , Loglisci Michele , Parrini Stefano , Monciatti Giovanni , Paganelli Ilaria I. , Livi Walter , Mezzedimi Chiara
Published: March 2019

Objectives: Rett syndrome (RS) is a severe neurological developmental disorder characterised by stereotypical hand movements, epileptic seizures, craniofacial dysmorphism and digestive dysfunction. This study aimed to examine the correlation between the severity of malocclusion and dysphagia in patients with RS. Methods: This preliminary study was conducted at the Ear, Nose & Throat Clinic of the University Hospital of Siena, Siena, Italy, from January 2014 to December 2017. A total of 56 patients with RS were examined and grouped according to the severity of dysphagia (absent, mild, moderate or severe) and malocclusion (<2 mm, 2–3 mm, 3–4 mm or >4 mm). Results: All of the patients were female and the mean age was 11.3 years. Eight (14.3%) patients had mild, 18 (32.1%) had moderate and 30 (53.6%) had severe dysphagia. Four (7.1%) patients had <2 mm occlusion, 10 (17.9%) had 2–3 mm occlusion, 26 (46.4%) had 3–4 mm occlusion and 16 (28.6%) had >4 mm occlusion. Mild dysphagia was observed in 100% and 40% of patients with <2 and 2–3 mm malocclusion, respectively, while moderate dysphagia was present in 60% and 38.5% of patients with 2–3 and 3–4 mm malocclusion, respectively. Severe dysphagia was observed in 28.6% and 87.5% of patients with 3–4 and >4 mm malocclusion, respectively. There was a significant correlation between dysphagia and malocclusion severity (P <0.001). Conclusion: A higher degree of malocclusion was associated with more severe dysphagia among a cohort of patients with RS.Keywords: X-Linked Mental Retardation; Rett Syndrome; Dysphagia; Malocclusion; Feeding and Eating Disorders of Childhood.
The Role of Combination Calcipotriol plus Betamethasone Dipropionate Gel in the Treatment of Moderate-to-Severe Scalp Seborrhoeic Dermatitis
Authors: Yap Felix B.
Published: March 2019

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the off-label use of a combination calcipotriol plus betamethasone dipropionate (CBD) gel in the treatment of moderate-to-severe scalp seborrhoeic dermatitis (SSD). Methods: This retrospective study involved 32 patients with SSD who were prescribed CBD gel at the Subang Jaya Medical Centre, Selangor, Malaysia, between January 2016 and December 2017. The Physician Global Assessment Scale was used to assess disease severity. Itching/discomfort was evaluated using a visual analogue scale. Results: The mean age was 35.8 ± 6.9 years. Severe disease was seen in 53.1%. Complete clearance was recorded in 15.6%, 40.6% and 59.4% of patients at weeks two, six and 10, respectively. By week 10, 87.5% had achieved marked improvement. Both mean itching and discomfort scores significantly improved at weeks two, six and 10 (P <0.001). Better outcomes were significantly associated with disease duration and itching intensity and discomfort at presentation (P <0.050). Conclusion: CBD gel should be considered as an option for SSD cases not adequately controlled by prior conventional treatment.Keywords: Seborrheic Dermatitis; Scalp Dermatosis; Betamethasone Dipropionate, Calcipotriol Drug Combination; Off-Label Use; Treatment Effectiveness.
A Missed Late Presentation of a Congenital Pulmonary Airway Malformation as a Large Infected Bulla
Authors: Lee Chung Y. , Osman Syazarina S. , Noor Helmee M. , Isa Nur S. A.
Published: March 2019

A congenital pulmonary airway malformation (CPAM) is a rare cystic anomaly that may occur during development of the fetal airways. The vast majority of CPAMs are detected in neonates; as such, it is unusual for diagnosis to occur in adulthood. We report a 21-year-old male patient who presented to the emergency department of the Hospital Ampang, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2015 with chest pain, breathlessness and tachypnoea. Based on an initial chest X-ray, the patient was misdiagnosed with pneumothorax and underwent urgent chest tube insertion; however, his condition deteriorated over the course of the next three days. Further imaging was suggestive of infected bullae or an undiagnosed CPAM. The patient therefore underwent video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery, during which a large infected bulla was resected. A diagnosis of an infected CPAM was confirmed by histopathological examination. Following the surgery, the patient recovered quickly and no bullae remnants were found at a one-month follow-up.Keywords: Respiratory System Abnormalities; Congenital Cystic Adenomatoid Malformation of Lung; Adult; Respiratory Tract Infection; Pneumothorax; Video-Assisted Thoracic Surgery; Case Report; Malaysia.
Primary Essential Cutis Verticis Gyrata: A scalp condition that may appear in various disorders
Authors: García-Arpa Mónica , Flores-Terry Miguel A. , González-Ruiz Lucía , Franco-Muñoz Monserrat , Calvo-García Manolo
Published: March 2019

Interesting Medical Image
《电子商务法》的正式实施，电商未来将何去何从
Authors: 晨 杨 , 正德 鲍 , 静 杨 , 晨曦 李
Published: March 2019

自2013年底开始，中国全国人大常委会便正式启动了《中华人民共和国电子商务法》（以下简称《电子商务法》）的立法进程，历时五年，于十三届全国人大常委会第五次会议表决通过《电子商务法》，决定该法律自2019年1月1日起施行。通俗的来说，《电子商务法》是为了规范通过电子商务渠道进行商事活动的消费者、商家以及政府之间的关系的法律，要求政府依托法律鼓励支持电商的发展，而商家企业享受权利的同时理应尽到各种义务，这些对规范当前电商市场环境，维护消费者合法权益提供了强有力的法律支撑。而本文将基于对《电子商务法》与当前电商市场环境的研究，客观的分析出《电子商务法》对当前电商市场的影响，并给出未来电商发展的建议，助力于推动中国电子商务事业发展。
浅谈Web数据挖掘技术在信息管理中的实际应用
Authors: 莉瑶 刘 , 正德 鲍 , 晨曦 李
Published: March 2019

传统的信息管理方法已经不能极大限度的利用数据为决策者提供数据背后隐藏的有意义的信息，而现有的web数据挖掘技术恰好可以实现这一功能。能够从广大的数据信息集中快速挖掘出我们需要的信息，并对这些信息进行筛选而形成有意义的信息，这就是数据挖掘技术的作用。数据挖掘技术的相关算法在信息管理领域中也有着举足轻重的地位。本文在数据挖掘技术的概念的基础上，着重分析了数据挖掘技术的相关算法在信息管理领域中发挥的功能，重点阐述了以下三种算法在信息管理领域中的实际应用：关联规则、决策树算法、聚类分析。
变截面单侧支模U型槽背贴贝雷片施工研究
Authors: 兆巍 袁
Published: March 2019

目前许多道路交叉口施工的U型槽、地下通道等地下工程与用地红线距离较近，同时随着深基坑支护技术的发展，垂直支护被广泛采用，很多地下工程的墙体施工采用双侧支模无法实现，必须采用单侧支模。传统的单侧支模工艺是采用钢管搭设排架或型钢三角桁架作为模板的支撑体系。钢管排架工艺使用钢管扣件用量大，所需支撑费用大；不安全因素多；劳动强度较大；需考虑增加施工缝留置数量；易出现模板侧移、胀模，影响结构尺寸、轴线位置、平整度差等缺陷；所需工期太长；对于高度较大墙体支模，施工难度更大。型钢三角桁架自重大，依靠人力难以搬动，安装需要依赖塔吊或大型设备，机械成本高；造价高，虽然拆卸下的型钢桁架周转利用的可能性不大，导致项目施工成本增加；由于型钢桁架自重大，施工不当易发生倾覆伤人事故。
邱集煤矿内部审计与纪检监察协同工作浅析
Authors: 家祥 郭
Published: March 2019

当前，国有企业正逐步形成大监督格局，内部审计部门与纪检监察部门的工作配合已然成为国企管理的必然趋势，加强两个部门的配合对于国企健康发展意义重大。本文阐述了内部审计部门与纪检监察部门工作配合的主要内容，就加强内部审计与纪检监察之间的联系合作和工作协调配合, 谈点个人肤浅看法。
路面施工质量控制—粗粒式沥青砼AC-25型下面层
Authors: 绍朋 李
Published: March 2019

本文根据府前大道合同段的施工经验，论述了粗粒式沥青砼AC-25型路面下面层材料组成设计，沥青混和料调试、生产及摊铺、碾压的施工质量控制要点，以及施工过程中应注意的问题。
Integration of teamwork and critical thinking skills in the process of teaching students
Authors: Plotnikova N.F. , Strukov E. N.
Published: March 2019

Reforms taking place in the educational process of higher professional school impose new requirements on the quality of training students. Today, graduates of higher educational institutions are required to have new professional thinking, high mobility, competence, tolerance and focus on intra-group activities carried out in teams. With the team form of the organisation of training, an environment is created that allows students to master not only the skills and abilities of business interaction and cooperation, but also to form their ability to think critically, which includes the ability to think creatively, use new information and apply the knowledge in practice. Theoretical justification jointly with quantitative and qualitative data obtained as a result of the experimental work carried out by the authors confirms the efficiency of team learning, which contributes to developing critical thinking skills in higher education students.

Keywords: Students, education, formation, interaction, critical thinking, team, skills, competences
Treatment Duration With Steroid Monotherapy in Dogs With Steroid Responsive Meningitis-Arteritis
Authors: Lawn Richard William
Published: March 2019

PICO question

In dogs suspected of having steroid responsive meningitis-arteritis (SRMA), how long should immunosuppressive monotherapy with steroids be undertaken in order to achieve clinical resolution without relapse of clinical signs?
Clinical bottom line

Based on the currently available literature, steroid treatment using the protocol outlined in Lowrie et al. (2009) at a gradually tapering dose over a course of 6 months, appeared to lead to clinical remission in all cases, with a disease free post treatment interval of at least 6 months. However, further research is needed as there are currently three published papers with a low number of cases, so a definitive time course cannot be suggested until stronger evidence is available.

  
Labor Migration and Business Activity in Russia: Analysis of the Tabarman Business Platform
Authors: Peshkova Vera M.
Published: March 2019

The article focuses on the entrepreneurial activity of migrants from Kyrgyzstan in Russia (on the example of Moscow and the Moscow region). The article analyzes the activity of the business platform “Tabarman” created by the entrepreneurs of Kyrgyz origin. The empirical part of the study is based on the event analysis of information about the activities of the tabarman business platform in social networks and the Internet, as well as on the analysis of the survey of participants of the first business forum organized by The platform, held on may 22, 2018. The analysis of the forum audience gives an opportunity to get an idea about the peculiarities of business activity of entrepreneurs of Kyrgyz origin, and the analysis of the platform as a business project-manifestations of the diversity of migrant infrastructure. The emergence of the Tabarman business platform is a vivid example of the quantitative and qualitative accumulation of personal and group resources of migrants from Kyrgyzstan, which has led to the complication of the interests and needs of recent migrant workers and the growth of entrepreneurial activity among them.
Fragility of Labor and Employment in the Modern World
Authors: Sizova Irina L. , Grigoryeva Irina A.
Published: March 2019

This article reveals the key factors (economic, technological, demographic, socio-cultural, gender) and the ongoing/emerging changes in the social and labor system of society. Changes affect all spheres and contexts without exception (labor market, organization and working conditions, population employment system, management and labor processes, content, workplace culture and ethics.) At the same time, they are often contradictory, and not necessarily tangible, perceived or evaluated as changes. Multiplicity and scale, acceleration and capacity of changes form the conditions for the development of a new quality of the system — its fragility. The fragility is understood as the actual distribution of essentially new and uncontrolled processes and phenomena within the social labor system behind the external facade of its integrity and stability. Experts and politicians everywhere are asking questions about whether it is possible to overcome the current state of affairs and what the future is going to be for social labor and employment. It is important for the scientific community to determine the principles of theoretical analysis and the means of modern labor sphere investigating.
Thixotropic effect of some biochemical factors in ischaemic stroke
Authors: Kowal Piotr , Marcinkowska-Gapinska Anna
Published: March 2019

Background. Yield shear stress (YSS) well characterizes the thixotropic status of blood, that exemplifies a reversible loss of blood fluidity due to a low shear rate. At the stable haematocrit ratio YSS depends mainly on the fibrinogen level.Aim. Since the role of other biochemical factors in the YSS phenomenon in cerebral ischaemia has not been well known, we have undertaken this problem in a group of stroke patients. Material and Methods. The study was carried out in 36 patients with acute ischaemic stroke and in 12 controls. YSS was estimated by means of microviscometric method. In all subjects the concentration of the following biochemical factors were assayed: albumin, IgG, IgA, IgM, apolipoprotein A, and B, cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL, HDL and fibrinogen. Then the thixotroipic effect of all biochemical factors and their correlations to fibrinogen were estimated by means of mathematical formulas.Results. We found a positive correlation in relation to the following thixotropic effects: for all subjects and separately for patients’ group: Alb(YSS) (p < 0.001), ApoA(YSS) (p < 0.001), ApoB(YSS) (p < 0.05), chol(YSS) (p < 0.01), HDL(YSS) (p < 0.05); for patients group without additional diseases: Alb(YSS) (p < 0.05), ApoA(YSS) (p < 0.005), chol(YSS) (p < 0.05), HDL(YSS) (p < 0.02), LDL(YSS) (p < 0.05). There were not any significant correlations in controls.Conclusions. Results of the study indicated that in the interaction between the red cells and fibrinogen some additional factors appearing or activating during ischaemic process may play a role.
Baby-Led-Weaning (BLW) from maternal perspective: Polish experience
Authors: Poniedziałek Barbara , Paszkowiak Natalia , Rzymski Piotr
Published: March 2019

Background. Baby-Led-Weaning (BLW) is increasingly popular as a complementary feeding practice although its safety, limitations and advantages have not been widely studied as yet. Material and Methods. The present survey employed an anonymous online questionnaire to learn from experience (their concerns, perceived advantages, disadvantages, and overall satisfaction) of Polish mothers (n = 373) that adopted BLW.Results. Most of surveyed mothers adopting BLW had tertiary education and good economic status, and inhabited urban areas. Non-scientific online resources were the most important source of knowledge on BLW; none of surveyed mentioned healthcare professionals as having played any role in this respect. The risk of choking was the greatest concern expressed while considering the BLW prospect. At least one choking event during B:W adoption was reported by 55.6%, mostly involving an apple, occurring at beginning of introduction, and perceived as non-serious. The BLW advantages included: (i) promotion of infant self-reliance, motor skills, biting and chewing of food and speech), sensory learning of food, and (ii) motivation to eat family meals and make more healthier dietary choices. The greatest disadvantage was an in-house mess. Nearly all mothers recommended the BLW adoption to other caregivers.Conclusion. In view of the scarcity of data on this feeding practice, the maternal experience demonstrated in the present study may offer valuable information for health professionals as well as future caregivers who consider the adoption of BLW to be a complementary feeding practice.
Health Care System Structure in the State of Israel
Authors: Sabbah Mohammad Yasser
Published: March 2019

The health care system in the State of Israel consists of two sectors - the public sector, which includes government-owned hospitals and medical institutes. The public health sector includes the community health system, health funds, family medicine, the general care system and the mental health care system. The second sector is the private sector, which includes private hospitals and medical institutes. Both sectors are supervised by the Israeli Ministry of Health, which is the supreme governmental authority through which it implements its policy in the entire health system in Israel. The law provides and guarantees medical insurance for every resident of Israel, the right to receive medical treatment, the prohibition of discrimination, informed consent to medical treatment, the right to receive an additional medical opinion, the dignity and privacy of the patient and the right to attend. Health funds in Israel were established before the State of Israel was established. The ideological concept of the health funds was based on the principle of equality and mutual assistance.
PERBANDINGAN KUAT TEKAN DAN KUAT TARIK LANGSUNG POLIMER MODIFIED MORTAR BERSERAT AGAVE CANTULLA ROXB DENGAN POLIMER MODIFIED MORTAR BERSERAT KACA
Authors: Prabowo Bagas , Purwanto Edy , Kristiawan Stefanus Adi
Published: March 2019

Concrete has some advantages and some deficiencies. The advantage of concrete is the character that concrete can resist from compressive strength and the deficiency of concrete is the character that concrete can’t resist from tensile strength. One of the solution to increase the resistance of concrete from tensile strength is mix the concrete with fiber. The fiber will be used are natural fiber and fabrication fiber. The natural fiber is Agave Cantula Roxb and the fabrication fiber is fiber glass. The fiber that will be mixed to Polymer Modified Mortar is a short fiber that spread randomly. the adding of short fiber has two aspects the first is fiber length and the second is volume fraction. The fiber length is 1,0 cm, 1,5 cm, 2,0 cm, 2,5 cm, 3,0 cm and the volume fraction is 1%, 2%, 3% from the volume of cylinder test object. The test object will be test on 3 days and 28 days for tensile strength test, for compressive strength test the test object will be test on 3 days, 7 days and 28 days. Result of testing is natural fiber have highest tensile strength on fiber length 2,0 cm and the volume fraction is 3% while the fabrication fiber has highest tensile strength on fiber length 2,0 cm and the volume fraction is 2%. The compressive strength and the tensile strength of Polymer Modified Mortar with Agave Cantula Roxb Fiber is not far different from the compressive strength and the tensile strength of Polymer Modified Mortar with Fiber Glass.
Biodiversity of Bacteria Associated with Eight Pleurotus ostreatus (Fr.) P. Kumm. Strains from Poland, Japan and the USA
Authors: ADAMSKI MARIUSZ , PIETR STANISLAW J.
Published: March 2019

Few publications report the occurrence of bacteria associated with fungal cells. The presence of bacteria associated with one strain of Pleurotus ostreatus (Fr.) P. Kumm. was described in the literature. We describe the biodiversity of bacteria associated with eight oyster mushroom strains from Japan, Poland, and the USA. The presence of microorganisms associated with all tested P. ostreatus strains was confirmed using fluorescent microscopy. Among 307 sequences, 233 of clones representing 34 genera and 74 sequences were identified as Bacteria. Most of the bacteria associated with the strain PUSAS were related to E. coli and two clones were related to Cupriavidus genus. The biodiversity of clones isolated from fungal strains originating from Japan and Poland ranged from 15 to 32 different bacterial clones. The most often the bacteria related to genus Curvibacter, Pseudomonas, Bacillus, Cupriavidus, Pelomonas, and Propionibacterium were associated with the strains of fungi mentioned above. Laccase-like (LMCO) genes were identified in whole bacterial DNA isolated from the associated bacteria but β-glucosidase and β-xylanase genes were not detected.
Dengue Outbreaks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), Pakistan in 2017: An Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response System (IDSRS)-Based Report
Authors: ABDULLAH  , ALI SHER , SALMAN MUHAMMAD , DIN MISBAHUD , KHAN KACHKOL , AHMAD MUNIB , KHAN FAISAL HAYAT , ARIF MUHAMMAD
Published: March 2019

The current study is a retrospective epidemic report regarding dengue fever (DF) virus infection cases (2017) from fifteen districts of KPK, Pakistan. Medical records of 120 948 patients were reviewed retrospectively for demographic, clinical and laboratory data. The presence of dengue infection was confirmed by NS1-ELISA and RT-PCR, respectively. The total positive cases (of suspected DF samples) were 24 938 (20.6%), whereas seventy cases (0.28%) had a fatal outcome. Mean age ± SD of the dengue patients was 26 ± 19.8 years, while; the most affected age group was from 16 to 30 years (Chi-square: 12 820.125, p: 0.00). The infected males were 65.3%, and that of the female was 34.7%. All the dengue-infected patients were observed with symptoms of severe fever (100%), body aches (95%), gums and nose bleeding (5%), skin rashes (30%), vomiting (70%). The highest infection rate was found in district Peshawar and that of the lowest was in Bannu, Hungu and Luki Marwat. A high rate of dengue infection was found in post-monsoon months i.e. October (41%) and September (32%) of the year. The results proved that if the dengue outbreaks reveal further in KPK, it could alarmingly increase the mortality rate. Therefore, the Department of Public Health in KPK, Pakistan may take proper measures to avoid and control dengue epidemics in the future.
Estimation of Outcrossing Rate in Napier Grass
Authors: de Souza Flávia Rangel , da Silva Lédo Francisco José , Machado Juarez Campolina , Machado Marco Antonio , Pereira Antonio Vander , de Oliveira Fernando Rodrigues , Azevedo Ana Luisa Sousa
Published: March 2019

Napier grass [Cenchrus purpureus (Schumach.) Morrone], also known as elephant grass, is an important tropical forage that has the potential to become an alternative feedstock for energy production. Knowledge about the mode of reproduction and outcrossing rate is essential to select the best strategy to apply in breeding programs to develop new cultivars for application in energy and forage production systems. The objective of this work was to evaluate the outcrossing rate in two Napier grass breeding populations. Six microsatellite markers were used to genotype 28 half‐sibling families totaling 588 individuals, and pollen viability was checked by fluorescein diacetate test (FDA) methodology. A total of 14,603 pollen grains were assessed; 7751 (53%) were considered viable, and 6852 (47%) were considered sterile. Forty‐two alleles were found among all evaluated individuals, and analysis of molecular variance results showed that 14% of variance occurred among half‐siblings and 86% occurred within half‐siblings. Comparison of molecular data among parental and half‐sibling populations found 95.3% of seeds derived from outcrossing, indicating that Napier grass is predominantly allogamous. Currently, directional crosses and hybrid formation in Napier grass depend on the inflorescence protection and pollen collection of selected individuals. Since our results suggest that the self‐fecundation rate is very low (5%), other strategies like unprotected directional crosses can be applied to implementation of large‐scale hybrid production.
Decadal Change in Soil Chemistry of Northern Hardwood Forests on the White Mountain National Forest, New Hampshire, USA
Authors: Fraser Olivia L. , Bailey Scott W. , Ducey Mark J.
Published: March 2019

Core Ideas

Soils in the northeastern United States show signs of recovery from acidification between 2001‐2002 and 2014.

Variation in soil chemistry at the landscape and plot‐scales was similar, informing study design.

Soils influenced by shallow groundwater were more dynamic than well‐drained soils.

Soils are subject to a variety of stressors including human land use, air pollution and climate change. A challenge for detecting temporal change is disentangling heterogeneity at multiple spatial scales. Forty permanent plots were sampled across the US White Mountain National Forest (WMNF) in 2001 or 2002 and resampled in 2014. Paired t tests detected significant increases in carbon and base cations concentrations and a decrease in Al in the Oa horizon while base cations decreased and Al increased in some mineral horizons. A subset of six plots were intensively resampled in 2015. Pooled variances were calculated using all the six intensively sampled plots from 2014 to 2015. Within‐site variability was comparable to overall variability across the WMNF. When study sites were stratified into hydrologic groups, we found a strong signal in the Oa horizon of increasing carbon and base cation concentrations from 2001–2002 to 2014, suggesting that soils influenced by shallow groundwater contributions from upslope may be more responsive to acidification recovery than soils influenced only by vertical percolation. The initial study design did not consider the role of hydrologic pathways in susceptibility of soils to temporal change and did not include enough plots in each hydrologic group to maximize the power of this stratification approach. However, these results illustrate the potential for hydrologic stratification to improve change detection and interpretation in forest soil monitoring programs. The combined approach to hydrologic stratification and estimating variance components simultaneously at the landscape and within‐plot scales is crucial for calculating sample size needed to detect temporal change.
EDUCAÇÃO E BARBÁRIE: POR UMA ECONOMIA POLÍTICA DAS DESIGUALDADES NO ESPAÇO ESCOLAR
Authors: Morais Ronaldo Queiroz
Published: March 2019

O presente artigo compõe uma leitura crítica que expõe os elementos de barbárie que habitam o social e a educação e que resultam de políticas de construção de desigualdades. A barbárie moderna consiste na produção de ambiente de placidez publicitária em meio à violência que impera. Sendo assim, a questão primeira da pedagogia crítica é a de desbarbarizar o espaço escolar a partir de estratégicas e táticas de resistência e de transformação democrática com o propósito de garantir que Auschwitz não se repita.
CHALLENGES FOR NON-AMERICAN-ENGLISH-SPEAKING TEACHERS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE CLASSROOMS IN BRAZIL
Authors: Hitotuzi Nilton
Published: March 2019

In this reflection paper, it is discussed the issue of prestige varieties of English mostly in terms of accent preference and, based on the literature, American and British English are pointed out as the varieties dominating English language teaching textbooks around the world. At the same time, it is suggested that the American variety is predominantly favoured worldwide, especially in Brazil. Furthermore, it is maintained that, because of the American linguistic hegemony in this country, non-American-English-speaking teachers of English can be faced with some institutional and pedagogical challenges. Finally, some suggestions on how to cope with “Americanised” classrooms are offered.
The applicability of Generic Self-Evolving Takagi-Sugeno-Kang neuro-fuzzy model in modeling rainfall–runoff and river routing
Authors: Ashrafi Mohammad , Chua Lloyd H. C. , Quek Chai
Published: March 2019

Recent advancements in neuro-fuzzy models (NFMs) have made possible the implementation of dynamic rule base systems. This is in comparison with static applications commonly seen in global NFMs such as the Adaptive-Network-Based Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) model widely used in hydrological modeling. This study underlines key differences between local and global NFMs with an emphasis on rule base dynamics, in the context of two common flow forecast applications. A global NFM, ANFIS, and two local NFMs, Dynamic Evolving Neural-Fuzzy Inference System (DENFIS) and Generic Self-Evolving Takagi-Sugeno-Kang (GSETSK), were tested. Results from all NFMs compared favorably when benchmarked against physically based models. Rainfall–runoff modeling is a complex process which benefits from the advanced rule generation and pruning mechanisms in GSETSK, resulting in a more compact rule base. Although ANFIS resulted in the same number of rules, this came about at the expense of having the need for a large training dataset. All NFMs generated a similar number of rules for the river routing application, although local NFMs yielded better results for forecasts at longer lead times. This is attributed to the fact that the routing procedure is less complex and can be adequately modeled by static NFMs.
Mineralization of organic matter and productivity of tifton 85 grass (Cynodon spp.) in soil incorporated with stabilized sludge from a vertical flow constructed wetland
Authors: Silva Diogo André P. , Matos Antonio T. , Matos Mateus P.
Published: March 2019

Little is known regarding how to discard the sludge accumulated in vertical flow constructed wetlands (VF-CWs) and what the potential impacts could be. The objective of this paper was to evaluate the mineralization of organic matter (OM) in soil and productivity of tifton 85 grass (Cynodon spp.) after incorporating sludge collected at different depths from a VF-CW (used to treat septic tank sludge), to a tropical soil (Oxisol). Sludge samples were collected at depths of 0–5, 5–10 and 10–15 cm from a VF-CW that was used over a period of three years. The sludge collected at each depth was incorporated into the soil at a dose equivalent to 30 g m–2 year–1 of total nitrogen, and the experimental area was planted. During a period of 215 days, total and easily oxidizable carbon, total, ammonia, nitric and organic nitrogen in the residue-soil mixtures were analyzed. Based on the data obtained, the mineralization fractions (MF) were estimated for the specific monitoring period and annually considering first order and two-phase kinetic equations. The annual MF of the OM were higher than 96% and the sludge-amended soil resulted in an increase in grass yield.

This article has been made Open Access thanks to the generous support of a global network of libraries as part of the Knowledge Unlatched Select initiative.
W czterdzieści lat po publikacji "Wojen sprawiedliwych i niesprawiedliwych" Michaela Walzera. Kilka uwag na temat zasady równego statusu moralnego uczestników działań zbrojnych
Authors: Cebula Adam
Published: March 2019

Artykuł zawiera szkicową analizę jednego z najważniejszych założeń teorii wojny sprawiedliwej zaprezentowanej przez Michaela Walzera w jego głównym dziele poświęconym etyce wojny. Zgodnie z postulatem autora Wojen sprawiedliwych i niesprawiedliwych, kontrowersyjny charakter zasady moralnej równości żołnierzy wyeksponowany zostaje poprzez jej konfrontację z rzeczywistym przebiegiem zdarzeń wyznaczających początek konfliktu zbrojnego, stanowiącego główny przedmiot rozważań Walzera, tj. drugiej wojny światowej. Wykluczenie indywidualnej odpowiedzialności osób biorących udział w operacji militarnej, która nie znajduje żadnego moralnego uzasadnienia, wydaje się pociągać za sobą szereg konsekwencji stanowiących poważne obciążenie dla całościowego modelu Walzera. Utrzymanie niezbędnego poziomu koherencji teorii wojny sprawiedliwej łączy się z koniecznością modyfikacji walzerowskiej zasady równości – przynajmniej w odniesieniu do uczestników tzw. wojny wyniszczającej.
The Impact of Natural Compounds on the Treatment of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Authors: da S. Hage-Melim Lorane I. , Ferreira Jaderson V. , de Oliveira Nayana K.S. , Correia Lenir C. , Almeida Marcos R.S. , Poiani João G.C. , Taft Carlton A. , de Paula da Silva Carlos H.T.
Published: March 2019

Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) are characterized by a progressive deterioration of the motor and/or cognitive function, that are often accompanied by psychiatric disorders, caused by a selective loss of neurons in the central nervous system. Among the NDDs we can mention Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), Huntington’s disease (HD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), spinocerebellar ataxia 3 (SCA3), spinal and bulbar muscular atrophy (SBMA) and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). AD and HD are characterized mainly by massive neuronal loss. PD, ALS, SCA3 and SBMA are agerelated diseases which have characteristic motor symptoms. CJD is an NDD caused by prion proteins. With increasing life expectancy, elderly populations tend to have more health problems, such as chronic diseases related to age and disability. Therefore, the development of therapeutic strategies to treat or prevent multiple pathophysiological conditions in the elderly can improve the expectation and quality of life. The attention of researchers has been focused on bioactive natural compounds that represent important resources in the discovery and development of drug candidates against NDDs. In this review, we discuss the pathogenesis, symptoms, potential targets, treatment and natural compounds effective in the treatment of AD, PD, HD, ALS, SCA3, SBMA and CJD.
Identification of tRNA-Derived Fragments Expression Profile in Breast Cancer Tissues
Authors: Wang Xiaoming , Yang Yining , Tan Xuyan , Mao Xuelian , Wei Da , Yao Yufeng , Jiang Pan , Mo Dongping , Wang Ting , Yan Feng
Published: March 2019

Background:

In recent years, tRFs(transfer RNA-Derived Fragments) and transfer RNADerived
Stress-induced RNAs (or tRNA halves) have been shown to have vital roles in cancer biology.
We aimed to reveal the expression profile of tRNA-derived fragments in breast cancer tissues in
the study, and to explore their potential as biomarkers of breast cancer.

Methods:

We characterized the tRNA-derived fragments expression profile from 6 paired clinical
breast cancer tissues and adjacent normal samples. Then we selected 6 significantly expressed tRNAderived
fragments and screened the genes for validation by using Quantitative Real-time PCR. Gene
Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes biological pathway were finally analyzed.

Results:

We found 30 differentially expressed tRNA-derived fragments across our dataset, out of
which 17 were up-regulated, and 13 were down-regulated. Compared with 16 clinical breast cancer
tissues and adjacent normal tissues by qPCR, the results demonstrated that tRF-32-Q99P9P9NH57SJ
(FC = -2.6476, p = 0.0189), tRF-17-79MP9PP (FC = -4.8984, p = 0.0276) and tRF-32-
XSXMSL73VL4YK (FC = 6.5781, p = 0.0226) were significantly expressed in breast cancer tissues
(p < 0.001). tRF-32-XSXMSL73VL4YK was significantly up-regulated, and tRF-32-
Q99P9P9NH57SJ and tRF-17-79MP9PP were significantly down-regulated in which the expression
patterns were similar to the sequencing results. The top ten significant results of GO and KEGG pathways
enrichment analysis were presented.

Conclusion:

Our studies have demonstrated that there were significantly expressed tRNA-derived
fragments in breast cancer tissues. They are hopefully to become biomarkers and would be valuable
researches in this area.
Anti-Virulence Strategy against the Multidrug-Resistant Bacterial Pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa: Pseudolysin (Elastase B) as a Potential Druggable Target
Authors: Galdino Anna Clara M. , de Oliveira Matheus P. , Ramalho Teodorico C. , de Castro Alexandre A. , Branquinha Marta H. , Santos André L.S.
Published: March 2019

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a non-fermentative, gram-negative bacterium that is one of the most common pathogens responsible for hospital-acquired infections worldwide. The management of the infections caused by P. aeruginosa represents a huge challenge in the healthcare settings due to the increased emergence of resistant isolates, some of them resistant to all the currently available antimicrobials, which results in elevated morbimortality rates. Consequently, the development of new therapeutic strategies against multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa is urgent and needful. P. aeruginosa is wellrecognized for its extreme genetic versatility and its ability to produce a lush variety of virulence factors. In this context, pseudolysin (or elastase B) outstands as a pivotal virulence attribute during the infectious process, playing multifunctional roles in different aspects of the pathogen-host interaction. This protein is a 33-kDa neutral zinc-dependent metallopeptidase that is the most abundant peptidase found in pseudomonal secretions, which contributes to the invasiveness of P. aeruginosa due to its ability to cleave several extracellular matrix proteins and to disrupt the basolateral intercellular junctions present in the host tissues. Moreover, pseudolysin makes P. aeruginosa able to overcome host defenses by the hydrolysis of many immunologically relevant molecules, including antibodies and complement components. The attenuation of this striking peptidase therefore emerges as an alternative and promising antivirulence strategy to combat antibiotic-refractory infections caused by P. aeruginosa. The anti-virulence approach aims to disarm the P. aeruginosa infective arsenal by inhibiting the expression/activity of bacterial virulence factors in order to reduce the invasiveness of P. aeruginosa, avoiding the emergence of resistance since the proliferation is not affected. This review summarizes the most relevant features of pseudolysin and highlights this enzyme as a promising target for the development of new anti-virulence compounds.
One-year Follow-up Study of Hippocampal Subfield Atrophy in Alzheimer's Disease and Normal Aging
Authors: Madusanka Nuwan , Choi Heung-Kook , So Jae-Hong , Choi Boo-Kyeong , Park Hyeon Gyun
Published: March 2019

Background:

In this study, we investigated the effect of hippocampal subfield atrophy
on the development of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) by analyzing baseline magnetic resonance images
(MRI) and images collected over a one-year follow-up period. Previous studies have suggested that
morphological changes to the hippocampus are involved in both normal ageing and the development of AD. The volume of the hippocampus is an authentic imaging biomarker for AD. However,
the diverse relationship of anatomical and complex functional connectivity between different subfields implies that neurodegenerative disease could lead to differences between the atrophy rates of
subfields. Therefore, morphometric measurements at subfield-level could provide stronger biomarkers.

Methods:

Hippocampal subfield atrophies are measured using MRI scans, taken at multiple time
points, and shape-based normalization to a Montreal neurological institute (MNI) ICBM 152 nonlinear atlas. Ninety subjects were selected from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative
(ADNI), and divided equally into Healthy Controls (HC), AD, and mild cognitive impairment
(MCI) groups. These subjects underwent serial MRI studies at three time-points: baseline, 6
months and 12 months.

Results:

We analyzed the subfield-level hippocampal morphometric effects of normal ageing and
AD based on radial distance mapping and volume measurements. We identified a general trend and
observed the largest hippocampal subfield atrophies in the AD group. Atrophy of the bilateral CA1,
CA2- CA4 and subiculum subfields was higher in the case of AD than in MCI and HC. We observed the highest rate of reduction in the total volume of the hippocampus, especially in the CA1
and subiculum regions, in the case of MCI.

Conclusion:

Our findings show that hippocampal subfield atrophy varies among the three study
groups.
Effect of Substitution Pro32Thr on the Interaction between Dimer Subunits of Human Phosphatase ITPA
Authors: Dushanov Ermuhammad B. , Koltovaya Natalia A.
Published: March 2019

Background:

Cells have specific enzymes (nucleoside triphosphate pyrophosphohydrolase)
that hydrolyze non-canonic nucleoside triphosphates into nucleoside monophosphophates and pyrophosphate,
thus removing them from the metabolic processes. This class of enzymes includes inosine
triphosphate pyrophosphatase (ITPA) which has specificity to ITP, dITP, XTP and dXTP.

Objective:

The mutation (94C→A) rather often occurs in humans and can affect the sensitivity of patients
to medicines. This mutation leads to a Pro32Thr substitution in the human ITPA protein. The
mechanism for the inactivating effect of the mutation is unknown yet.

Methods:

Molecular modeling of the polymorphic form of inosine triphosphate pyrophosphohydrolase
Р32Т-hITPA showing the greatest decrease in the enzyme activity is performed. The analysis is
given for four dimer variants: wild-type (P32/P32) and mutant (T32/T32) homodimers and two mutant
heterodimers (Р32/Т32 and Т32/Р32).

Results:

The analysis does not show the motion of the loop between α2 and β2 where mutation localized.
Thus, the hypothesis of the flipped-out hydrophobic residue and subsequent of protein degradation
have not been confirmed. Dimer displacements were much higher than subunit displacements.
The analysis of hydrogen bonds between subunits shows that there are the more stable hydrogen
bonds in the wild-type homodimer and fewer in the mutant homodimer, while heterodimers have intermediate
stability.

Conclusion:

The results confirm the assumption of possible weakening of bonds between the mutant
subunits
Automated Post-Column Sample Manipulation Prior to Detection in Liquid Chromatography: A Review of Pharmaceutical and Bioanalytical Applications
Authors: Manousi Natalia , K. Zacharis Constantinos
Published: March 2019

:

Automated post-column sample manipulation is undoubtedly one of the most challenging
approaches in liquid chromatography for the improvement of method selectivity and sensitivity. With
the post-column analyte derivatization being the most-abundant approach approach of this category,
other strategies typically comprise post-column infusion of internal standard or other reagents prior
to mass spectrometric detection to enhance the ionization efficiency of the analyte or to compensate
the ion suppression/enhancement.

:

In this review, on-line post column methodologies focused on the quality control of pharmaceuticals
and biomedical applications will be presented and discussed. Emphasis will be given on the
automation capabilities of such systems.
Withdrawal Notice: Speckle Noise Reduction Using Ant Colony Based Gabor Filter Methodology for Improved Fetal Parameter Estimation of US Images
Authors: Krishnan P Hari
Published: March 2019

The article has been withdrawn at the request of the authors and editor of the journal Current Signal Transduction Therapy

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