bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Ensemble of Gene Regulatory Networks at Mutation-Selection Balance
Authors: Yang Chia-Hung , Scarpino Samuel V.
Published: April 2021

The evolution of diverse phenotypes both involves and is constrained by molecular interaction networks. When these networks influence patterns of expression, we refer to them as gene regulatory networks (GRNs). Here, we develop a quasi-species model of GRN evolution. With this model, we prove that–across a broad spectrum of viability and mutation functions–the dynamics converge to a stationary distribution over GRNs. Next, we show from first principles how the frequency of GRNs at equilibrium will be proportional to each GRN’s eigenvector centrality in the genotype network. Finally, we determine the structural characteristics of GRNs that are favored in response to a range of selective environments and mutational constraints. Our work connects GRN evolution to quasi-species models, and thus can provide a mechanistic explanation for the topology of GRNs experiencing various evolutionary forces.
Why most Principal Component Analyses (PCA) in population genetic studies are wrong
Authors: Elhaik Eran
Published: April 2021

Principal Component Analysis (PCA) is a multivariate analysis that allows reduction of the complexity of datasets while preserving data covariance and visualizing the information on colorful scatterplots, ideally with only a minimal loss of information. PCA applications are extensively used as the foremost analyses in population genetics and related fields (e.g., animal and plant or medical genetics), implemented in well-cited packages like EIGENSOFT and PLINK. PCA outcomes are used to shape study design, identify, and characterize individuals and populations, and draw historical and ethnobiological conclusions on origins, evolution, dispersion, and relatedness. The replicability crisis in science has prompted us to evaluate whether PCA results are reliable, robust, and replicable. We employed an intuitive color-based model alongside human population data for eleven common test cases. We demonstrate that PCA results are artifacts of the data and that they can be easily manipulated to generate desired outcomes. PCA results may not be reliable, robust, or replicable as the field assumes. Our findings raise concerns about the validity of results reported in the literature of population genetics and related fields that place a disproportionate reliance upon PCA outcomes and the insights derived from them. We conclude that PCA may have a biasing role in genetic investigations. An alternative mixed-admixture population genetic model is discussed.
Plaque Size Tool: an automated plaque analysis tool for simplifying and standardising bacteriophage plaque morphology measurements
Authors: Trofimova Ellina , Jaschke Paul R
Published: April 2021

Bacteriophage plaque size measurement is essential for phage characterisation, but their manual size estimation requires a considerable amount of time and effort. In order to ease the work of phage researchers, we have developed an automated command-line application called Plaque Size Tool (PST) that can detect plaques of different morphology on the images of Petri dishes and measure plaque area and diameter. Plaque size measurements using PST showed no difference to those obtained with manual plaque size measurement in Fiji, indicating future results using PST are backwards compatible with prior measurements in the literature. PST can be applied to a range of lytic bacteriophages producing oval-shaped plaques, including bull’s-eye morphology. The application can also be used for titer calculation if most of the plaques are stand-alone. As laboratory automation becomes more commonplace, standardised and flexible open-source analytical tools like PST will be important parts of biofoundry and cloud lab bacteriophage workflows.
Crystal structures of Scone, pseudosymmetric folding of a symmetric designer protein
Authors: Mylemans Bram , Killian Theo , Vandebroek Laurens , Van Meervelt Luc , Tame Jeremy R.H. , Parac-Vogt Tatjana N. , Voet Arnout R.D.
Published: April 2021

Recent years have seen a raise in the development of computational proteins including symmetric ones. We recently developed a nine-fold symmetricβ-propeller protein named Cake. Here we wanted to further engineer this protein to a three-fold symmetric nine-bladed propeller using computational design. Two nine-bladed propeller proteins were designed, named Scone-E and Scone-R. Crystallography however revealed the structure of both designs to adopt an eight-fold conformation with distorted termini, leading to a pseudo-symmetric protein. One of the proteins could only be crystallized upon addition of a polyoxometalate highlighting the usefulness of these molecules as a crystallisation additive.
Tourism, environment and hotel management: an innovative perspective to address modern trends in contemporary tourism management
Authors: Huo Chunhui , Hameed Javaria , Sadiq Muhammad Waqas , Albasher Gadah , Alqahtani Wedad
Published: April 2021

Purpose

This paper aims to provide a valid insight into consumers' minds while considering word of mouth (WOM), brand image and uniqueness as independent variables while considering the tourism industry as the primary stakeholder.

Design/methodology/approach

The study adopts qualitative research methods and data collected from 1,033 respondents using convenience sampling methodology. The data are collected from different tourists spots in China and Pakistan. The PROCESS macro was utilized in this study using SPSS version 25.0 to inspect the impacts by using Model 4 and the conditional effects indirectly by utilizing Model 14.

Findings

Customer's intimacy, search for novel and unexplored destinations highlight WOM interactions and perceived service value. Service value, interactional justice and professional attitude of hotel management mediated all the given relationships significantly. The brand image does not mediate any significant associations. Perceived service value and brand image predict customer's loyalty, and WOM is the direct measure of their intentions, and these variables are market trend indicators. A tourist's response toward different destinations is described in this study with comparative analysis of Chinese and Pakistani tourists. The study results showed a significantly positive relationship between hotel management professional behavior, customer's loyalty, customer's intimacy and WOM.

Research limitations/implications

The recruited population might not be represented as the broader and larger visitor population, resulting in restricting establishing tactics. Moreover, this study's results provide significant insight into a tourism industry, hence providing a chance to manage customer loyalty better.

Social, managerial and theoretical implications

This study contributes significantly to the body of knowledge and provides remarkable insight from the managerial perspective. Interactional justice results in significant value for hotel management directors and top management, front desk staff and operatives and front level employees and managers. Consumer sensitivity of fairness in interpersonal dealings calls for behavioral changes in frontline employees, especially those directly dealing with hotel visitors. Hotel staff and management should formulate a system to deal with the demands and needs of visitors. It should describe the rights and obligations of visitors and ensure that each customer is treated equally and with respect. Customers should be motivated to read the survey questionnaires kept in their rooms and offer their views on the services provided. This strategy might increase the customers' sense of empowerment and leading to notions of fairness in individual encounters.

Originality/value

This study provides an insight into the customer's minds while considering essential variables that include WOM, brand image, perceived service value and uniqueness.
How supply chain professionals learn at work: an investigation of learning mechanisms
Authors: Derwik Pernilla , Hellström Daniel
Published: April 2021

Purpose

Supply chain (SC) professionals and their competence play a key role in creating value and competitive advantage for companies. A considerable amount of this competence is developed at work, but little is known about how this takes place. Drawing on constructivist learning theory, the authors investigate how SC professionals develop their competence at work.

Design/methodology/approach

The study takes off from a theoretical framework of workplace learning mechanisms, followed by a series of in-depth interviews with an expertise panel of profoundly competent and experienced SC professionals.

Findings

The results provide detailed insights into the learning process of SC professionals. The key findings show that SC professionals use a wide range of learning mechanisms throughout their careers, and that the contribution and complexity of these mechanisms differ and change dynamically with seniority. The findings also show that learning mechanisms should not be viewed as isolated phenomena, but closely related to every-day SCM work as well as learning attitude.

Research limitations/implications

By conceptualizing learning as a process, and congregating the fragmented literature into a framework of workplace learning mechanisms, this research provides a theoretical reference point for future studies. The empirical findings bring a new level of detailed knowledge on how SC professionals learn at work.

Practical implications

The results can assist SC professionals, HR managers and academic program leaders in their quest to develop competence in the field of SCM.

Originality/value

This paper makes a unique contribution to the human aspects of SCM literature by presenting the first study that investigates in depth the crucial but complex process of how workplace learning takes place for SC professionals in practice.
Supply chain risk mitigation strategies during COVID-19: exploratory cases of “make-to-order” handloom saree apparel industries
Authors: Dohale Vishwas , Ambilkar Priya , Gunasekaran Angappa , Verma Priyanka
Published: April 2021

Purpose

This study attempts to identify the supply chain risks (SCRs) induced during the COVID-19 disruption in an Indian handloom saree industry and determine suitable risk mitigation strategies (RMSs) to overcome the impact of the epidemic disruption.

Design/methodology/approach

This work determined 11 SCRs through an extensive literature review in the context of the handloom apparel industry and validated through the experts. Further, a multiple case-based approach is used in this research. Within case and cross-case analyses of four relevant Indian handloom “make-to-order” saree manufacturing firms are conducted to determine the severity of the SCRs considering the pandemic situations to identify appropriate strategies to mitigate the shock of SCRs.

Findings

This study identified the critical SCRs in the context of the Indian handloom “make-to-order” saree industries that emerged during the COVID-19 and proposed a risk mitigation strategy matrix (RMSM) to address the SCRs based on their criticality and predictability dimensions.

Research limitations/implications

The study provides a novel contribution to the body of knowledge on supply chain risk management (SCRM) in the form of the RMSM tool. Supply chain managers from the different sectors can extend the proposed RMSM to overcome the SCRs. Multiple case analyses facilitate supply chain professionals working in handloom apparel industries to benchmark and adopt the proposed RMSs in their firm.

Originality/value

This research is one of its kind that carried exploratory investigation of the handloom apparel industry cases to assess and determine the strategies for mitigating the SCRs caused during a pandemic outbreak.
Hedging, managerial ownership and firm value
Authors: Zamzamir@Zamzamin Zaminor , Haron Razali , Othman Anwar Hasan Abdullah
Published: April 2021

Purpose

This study investigates the impact of derivatives as risk management strategy on the value of Malaysian firms. This study also examines the interaction effect between derivatives and managerial ownership on firm value.

Design/methodology/approach

The study examines 200 nonfinancial firms engaged in derivatives for the period 2012–2017 using the generalized method of moments (GMM) to establish the influence of derivatives and managerial ownership on firm value. The study refers to two related theories (hedging theory and managerial aversion theory) to explain its findings. Firm value is measured using Tobin's Q with return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE) as robustness checks.

Findings

The study found evidence on the positive influence of derivatives on firm value as proposed by the hedging theory. However, the study concludes that managers less hedge when they owned more shares based on the negative interaction between derivatives and managerial ownership on firm value. Hedging decision among managers in Malaysian firms therefore does not subscribe to the managerial aversion theory.

Research limitations/implications

This study focuses on the derivatives (foreign currency derivatives, interest rate derivatives and commodity derivatives) and managerial ownership that is deemed relevant and important to the Malaysian firms. Other forms of ownership such as state-/foreign owned and institutional ownership are not covered in this study.

Practical implications

This study has important implications to managers and investors. First is on the importance of risk management using derivatives to increase firm value, second, the influence of derivatives and managerial ownership on firm value and finally, the quality reporting on derivatives exposure by firms in line with the required accounting standard.

Originality/value

There is limited empirical evidence on the impact of derivatives on firm value as well as the influence of managerial ownership on hedging decisions of Malaysian firms. This study analyzes the influence of derivatives on firm value during the period in which reporting on derivatives in financial reports is made mandatory by the Malaysian regulator, hence avoiding data inaccuracy unlike the previous studies on Malaysia. This study therefore fills the gap in the literature in relation to the risk management strategies using derivatives in Malaysia.
Virtual currencies as a quasi-payment tool: the case of frequent-flier programs and money laundering
Authors: Goldbarsht Doron
Published: April 2021

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the various characteristics of frequent-flier programs and the threats they pose to the Australian anti-money laundering regime.

Design/methodology/approach

A thorough literature review was conducted on frequent-flier programs and the associated money-laundering threats. Money laundering (ML) risks were identified in relation to the three stages of ML and effective law enforcement.

Findings

The findings indicate that as ML continues to gravitate towards the weaknesses in the financial system, frequent-flier programs provide yet another avenue for criminals to exploit. The risk factors associated with frequent-flier programs – specifically, anonymity, elusiveness, the rapidity of transactions occurring in a digital environment, ambiguity regarding responsibility for compliance, the global network of participants and members, difficulty in accessing records and an overall lack of oversight – were all integral considerations in establishing the ML risks of such programs.

Practical implications

The global environment in which individuals conduct financial transactions continues to evolve rapidly, exacerbating ML risks for regulators and governments alike. Unless there are globally unified efforts to heighten awareness, the threats posed by virtual currency will increase at a rapid rate. With this in mind, the starting point of this paper is an attempt to analyse the ML risks pursuant to frequent-flier programs in Australia.

Originality/value

The findings from this study can be used to gain greater insights into frequent-flier programs and can have broader application for evaluating other similarly structured loyalty programs, both in Australia and globally. Additionally, the findings from the study can enhance overall awareness of the ever-increasing threat to global financial integrity through the expansion of virtual currency.
Servant leadership and mistreatment at the workplace: mediation of trust and moderation of ethical climate
Authors: Haq Inam Ul , Raja Usman , Alam Imtiaz , De Clercq Dirk , Saleem Sharjeel
Published: April 2021

Purpose

With a foundation in social exchange theory, this study examines the relationship between servant leadership and three types of workplace mistreatment – bullying, incivility and ostracism – while also considering a mediating role of trust in the leader and a moderating role of the ethical climate.

Design/methodology/approach

Three time-lagged sets of data (N = 431) were collected among employees working in various sectors.

Findings

Servant leadership relates significantly to trust in the leader, as well as to workplace bullying, incivility and ostracism. In turn, trust in the leader mediates the relationship between servant leadership and all three types of workplace mistreatment. The results also indicate the presence of moderated mediation, in that the indirect effect of servant leadership on workplace mistreatment is moderated by the ethical climate.

Originality/value

This study adds to extant research by examining the mediating mechanism of trust in leaders with servant leadership and workplace mistreatment, along with interactive effects of ethical climate.
Energetic constraints imposed on trophic interaction strengths enhance resilience in empirical and model food webs
Authors: Li Xiaoxiao , Yang Wei , Gaedke Ursula , de Ruiter Peter C.
Published: April 2021

Food web stability and resilience are at the heart of understanding the structure and functioning of ecosystems. Previous studies show that models of empirical food webs are substantially more stable than random ones, due to a few strong interactions embedded in a majority of weak interactions. Analyses of trophic interaction loops show that in empirical food webs the patterns of the interaction strengths prevent the occurrence of destabilizing heavy loops and thereby enhances resilience. Yet, it is still unexplored which biological mechanisms cause these patterns that enhance food web resilience.

We quantified food web resilience using the real part of the maximum eigenvalue of the Jacobian matrix of the food web from a seagrass bed in the Yellow River Delta (YRD) wetland, that could be parametrized by the empirical data of the food web.

We found that the empirically based Jacobian matrix of the YRD food web indicated a much higher resilience than random matrices with the same element values but arranged in random ways. Investigating the trophic interaction loops revealed that the high resilience was due to a negative correlation between the negative and positive interaction strengths (per capita top‐down and bottom‐up effects, respectively) within positive feedback loops with three species. The negative correlation showed that when the negative interaction strengths were strong the positive was weak, and vice versa.

Our invented reformulation of loop weight in terms of biomasses and specific production rates showed that energetic properties of the trophic groups in the loop and mass‐balance constraints, for example, the food uptake has to balance all losses, created the negative correlation between the interaction strengths. This result could be generalized using a dynamic intraguild predation model, which delivered the same pattern for a wide range of model parameters.

Our results shed light on how energetic constraints at the trophic group and food web level create a pattern of interaction strengths within trophic interaction loops that enhances food web resilience.
An equivalence analysis of provider education in youth mental health care
Authors: McGuier Elizabeth A. , Rothenberger Scott D. , Friedman Abbey , Kolko David J.
Published: April 2021

Objective

To test for equivalence between providers with and without advanced degrees in multiple domains related to delivery of evidence‐based treatment.

Data Source

Provider and client data from an effectiveness trial of Alternatives for Families: A Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (AF‐CBT) in a major metropolitan area in the United States.

Study Design

We tested for equivalence between providers (N = 182) with and without advanced degrees in treatment‐related knowledge, practices, and attitudes; job demands and stress; and training engagement and trainer‐rated competence in AF‐CBT. We also conducted exploratory analyses to test for equivalence in family clinical outcomes.

Data Collection

Providers completed measures prior to randomization and at 6‐month follow‐up, after completion of training and consultation in AF‐CBT. Children and caregivers completed assessments at 0, 6, 12, and 18 months.

Principal Findings

Providers without advanced degrees were largely non‐inferior to those with advanced degrees in treatment‐related knowledge, practices, and attitudes, while findings for job demands and stress were mixed. Providers without advanced degrees were non‐inferior to providers with advanced degrees in consultation attendance (B = −1.42; confidence interval (CI) = −3.01‐0.16; margin of equivalence (Δ) = 2), number of case presentations (B = 0.64; CI = −0.49‐1.76; Δ = 2), total training hours (B = −4.57; CI = −10.52‐1.37; Δ = 3), and trainer‐rated competence in AF‐CBT (B = −0.04; CI = −3.04‐2.96; Δ = 4), and they were significantly more likely to complete training (odds ratio = 0.66; CI = 0.10‐0.96; Δ = 30%). Results for clinical outcomes were largely inconclusive.

Conclusions

Provider‐level outcomes for those with and without advanced degrees were generally comparable. Additional research is needed to examine equivalence in clinical outcomes. Expanding evidence‐based treatment training to individuals without advanced degrees may help to reduce workforce shortages and improve reach of evidence‐based treatments.
Physiological and inflammatory consequences of high and low respiratory rate in acute respiratory distress syndrome
Authors: Retamal Jaime , Damiani Luis Felipe , Basoalto Roque , Benites Martín H. , Bruhn Alejandro , Larsson Anders , Bugedo Guillermo
Published: April 2021

Using protective mechanical ventilation strategies with low tidal volume is usually accompanied by an increment of respiratory rate to maintain adequate alveolar ventilation. However, there is no robust data that support the safety of a high respiratory rate concerning ventilator‐induced lung injury. Several experimental animal studies have explored the effects of respiratory rate over lung physiology, using a wide range of frequencies and different models. Clinical evidence is scarce and restricted to the physiological impact of increased respiratory rate. Undoubtedly, the respiratory rate can influence respiratory mechanics in various ways as a factor of multiplication of the power of ventilation, and gas exchange, and also on alveolar dynamics. In this narrative review, we present our point of view over the main experimental and clinical evidence available regarding the effect of respiratory rate on ventilator‐induced lung injury development.
Innovations and earnings non‐synchronicity: evidence from industry M&A activities
Authors: Chou Shih‐Chu , Chu Yu‐Fang
Published: April 2021

This paper investigates how earnings non‐synchronicity impacts associated with firm‐level research and development (R&D) investment vary as a function of industry‐level mergers and acquisitions (M&A) intensity. Investing in R&D enables firms to differentiate and gain competitive advantages; differentiation strategies increase idiosyncratic variation in firms’ earnings. We introduce an industry‐level contextual variable, industry‐level M&A, to capture variations in innovation novelty. We show that the positive relationship between R&D investment and earnings non‐synchronicity is increasing in the intensity of inside‐industry M&A but not outside‐industry M&A. This is consistent with our conjecture that M&A within an industry facilitate knowledge base expansion and induce more innovative R&D through complementary effects.
Adherence to best practice: Preventing surgical site infection following caesarean section in Australia
Authors: Martin Elizabeth , Beckmann Michael , Blythe Robin , Merollini Katharina , Graves Nicholas
Published: April 2021

Background

Surgical site infection (SSI) following caesarean section is a serious but underreported problem with an estimated incidence of 5–9%. It is essential to identify adherence to established prevention strategies to reduce the incidence rate.

Aims

The aims of this study were to quantify unwarranted variation from evidence‐based practice on the prevention of SSI at caesarean section in Australia; and to identify predictors of not implementing an existing infection prevention bundle: pre‐incision antibiotic prophylaxis, vaginal preparation and spontaneous placenta removal.

Materials and methods

An online cross‐sectional survey of obstetricians and obstetric Diplomates was conducted in 2016. The primary outcome was adherence to an existing infection prevention bundle, with demographic and clinical variables predicting adherence through multivariable binary logistic regression.

Results

Forty‐nine percent of respondents (response rate 39.6%) reported implementing zero or only one element of the infection prevention bundle. The types of respondents most likely to have poor adherence were Diplomates (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 2.58), obstetricians practising in private hospitals (aOR 3.34), those usually practising in public and private hospitals (aOR 2.23), and those not usually implementing a surgical safety checklist (aOR 3.77).

Conclusions

Adherence to best practice at caesarean section is low among many Australian obstetricians. Infection control practitioners and obstetricians need to collaboratively implement surgical safety checklists at caesarean section, and monitor implementation using process key performance indicators, and audit and feedback. These strategies will reduce unwarranted variation from evidence‐based infection control practice.
Clinical concern for necrotising fasciitis: a review of referrals to plastic surgery units at two tertiary centres
Authors: Sacks Brett , Dela Cruz Giselle , Capstick Robert , Seifman Marc
Published: April 2021

Objectives

To evaluate the impact of clinical suspicion on the diagnosis of necrotising fasciitis (NF) in two inpatient plastic surgery units.

Methods

A multicentre retrospective audit of all referrals of adult patients to the inpatient plastic surgery units of two Melbourne metropolitan tertiary centres from 1 February 2018 to 31 December 2018.

Results

A total of 53 patients (37 male, 16 female) were referred to evaluate for NF. There were 20 patients (37.04%) who underwent operative debridement. Of those, 15 were pre‐operatively suspected of having NF and there were seven confirmed cases of NF (13.21%). Laboratory risk indicator for NF (LRINEC) score ≥ 6 had a statistically significant association with a diagnosis of NF (P = 0.03) and with operative debridement (P = 0.04). The incidence of NF in the cohort where the referrer had clinical concern for NF was 13.21% (P < 0.001) and when the referrer and the plastic surgeon suspected NF was 46.67% (P < 0.001). The number of patients needed to be referred for one case of NF to be diagnosed was 7.58.

Conclusions

Clinical suspicion of NF is essential for diagnosis and clinicians who suspect NF should not hesitate to refer to the appropriate surgical unit. Prompt review is required of patients in whom NF is clinically suspected as these patients have a 13.21% incidence of NF. The laboratory risk indicator for NF score is not sufficiently specific nor sensitive to exclude or to diagnose NF as a stand‐alone diagnostic tool but may have a role as an adjunct.
Survival outcomes for breast cancer patients who decline recommended treatment: a propensity score‐matched analysis
Authors: Shingde Rashmi , Salindera Shehnarz , Aherne Noel J. , Millard‐Newton Lee , Houlton Adelene , Sanderson Erica , Bowers Phillipa , Shakespeare Thomas P. , Ross William
Published: April 2021

Background

For patients with breast cancer who decline recommended treatments, available data examining survival outcomes are sparse. We compared overall survival and relapse‐free survival outcomes between patients with breast cancer who declined recommended primary treatments and those who received recommended primary treatments.

Methods

Using data from the BreastSurgANZ Quality Audit database, a retrospective cohort study was performed for patients diagnosed with breast carcinoma (stage 0–IV) between 2001 and 2014 who were treated in our integrated cancer centre. A propensity score‐matched analysis was performed to compare overall survival and relapse‐free survival between patients who either declined or received the standard recommended treatment.

Results

A total of 56/912 (6.1%) patients declined one or more recommended therapies. Five‐year overall survival for those who declined or received treatment as recommended was 81.8% versus 88.9% (P = 0.17), respectively. Ten‐year survival was 61.3% versus 67.8% (P = 0.22), respectively. For patients who declined treatments, 5‐year relapse‐free survival was 72.4%, compared to 87.4% for those who received them (P = 0.005). Ten‐year relapse‐free survival was 61.0% versus 80.6% (P = 0.002), respectively. On adjusted Cox regression analysis, treatment refusal was associated with poorer relapse‐free survival (adjusted hazard ratio 2.76 (95% confidence interval 1.52–5.00), P < 0.001).

Conclusion

In conclusion, patients who declined recommended treatment for breast cancer had poorer relapse‐free survival compared to those who received them. These data may help clinicians assist patients with breast cancer in their decision‐making.
Psychosocial stress and trauma during the COVID‐19 pandemic: Evidence from Bangladesh
Authors: Hossain Md. Ismail , Mehedi Nafiul , Ahmad Iftakhar , Ali Isahaque , Azman Azlinda
Published: April 2021

The COVID‐19 outbreak has become a global health crisis affecting both the physical and mental health of people across the world. Likewise, the people of Bangladesh are going through a menacing mental health catastrophe with the outbreak of coronavirus that resulting in stress and trauma. Hence, this situation is altering people's lifestyles and generating complexities in psychological well‐being. The study was based on the review of published articles and media reports related to stress and trauma during the COVID‐19 pandemic in Bangladesh. A total of 10 peer‐reviewed articles and 45 newspaper reports were included following an extensive literature search. The contents were searched on Google, Google Scholar, PubMed, local online newspapers, social networking sites, and different webpages and published articles in different journals on COVID‐19 from March 5 to October 25, 2020. The review study finds that the mental health of people in Bangladesh has severely been affected by the outbreak of coronavirus. All of the government, voluntary, and civil organizations need to give further emphasis on psychosocial and bereavement counseling in order to support those experiencing mental shocks resulting from the COVID‐19 crisis. There is the need to strengthen more consultative and collaborative efforts from all public health experts, social workers, psychologists, and policymakers in doing so. Social workers in this context will be able to make meaningful contributions in supporting those affected people to better adjust to the challenging situation.
Patch testing with sodium disulfite: North American Contact Dermatitis Group experience, 2017 to 2018
Authors: Warshaw Erin M. , Buonomo Michele , DeKoven Joel G. , Atwater Amber R. , Reeder Margo J. , Belsito Donald V. , Silverberg Jonathan I. , Taylor James S. , Maibach Howard I. , Zug Kathryn A. , Sasseville Denis , Fowler Joseph F. , Pratt Melanie D. , DeLeo Vincent A. , Zirwas Matt J.
Published: April 2021

Background

Sodium disulfite (SD), also known as sodium metabisulfite, is an increasingly recognized cause of allergic contact dermatitis.

Objectives

The objective of this work was to characterize individuals with positive patch test reactions to SD as well as analyse reaction strength, clinical relevance, and sources.

Methods

This is a retrospective analysis of patients patch tested with SD (1% petrolatum) by the North American Contact Dermatitis Group (NACDG), 2017 to 2018.

Results

Of 4885 patients patch tested with SD, 132 (2.7%) had a positive reaction. Common primary anatomic sites of dermatitis were face (28.8%), hands (20.5%), and a scattered/generalized distribution (13.6%). Compared with SD‐negative patients, SD‐positive patients were more likely male (odds ratio 2.81, 95% confidence interval 1.98‐4.00) and/or over 40 years (odds ratio 1.95, 95% confidence interval 1.30‐2.94). Reactions were most commonly + (50.4%) or ++ (34.1%); 65.2% were considered currently relevant. About 15.2% were definitively confirmed in sources, commonly personal care products (18.9%, especially hair dye), and drugs/medications/alcoholic beverages (9.1%). Only 2.3% of positive reactions were linked to occupation.

Conclusions

Positive reactions to SD occurred in 2.7% of tested patients. Reactions were often clinically relevant and linked to personal care products and drugs/medications/alcoholic beverages.
A phase III randomized trial evaluating chemotherapy followed by pelvic reirradiation versus chemotherapy alone as preoperative treatment for locally recurrent rectal cancer – GRECCAR 15 trial protocol
Authors: Denost Quentin , Frison Eric , Salut Cécile , Sitta Remy , Rullier Anne , Harji Deena , Maillou‐Martinaud Helene , Rullier Eric , Smith Denis , Vendrely Veronique ,   on behalf the GRECCAR Group
Published: April 2021

Aim

Treatment strategies in locally recurrent rectal cancer (LRRC) are complex and need to be balanced against previous treatments received for the primary rectal cancer. Radiotherapy is an important component of treatment in LRRC. However, there is little high‐quality evidence on the role of reirradiation in this cohort. Therefore, the aim of this trial is to assess the efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by pelvic reirradiation versus neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone on the rate of curative surgery (R0) in previously irradiated patients with LRRC.

Method

GRECCAR 15 is a prospective, multicentre, open‐label, outcome assessor‐blinded, superiority randomized controlled phase III clinical trial comparing neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by pelvic reirradiation versus neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone in patients with LRRC previously irradiated for the primary cancer. Adult patients (>18 years old) with a histologically proven resectable LRRC, who have previously received pelvic radiotherapy for their primary rectal cancer at a dose of 25–50.4 Gy, and an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of <2 will be eligible to participate. The pelvic reirradiation will consist of conformational intensity‐modulated external irradiation, delivering a dose of 30.6 Gy with concomitant chemotherapy using capecitabine. The primary outcome of this trial is the R0 resection rate. Overall, GRECCAR 15 aims to recruit 186 patients to detect an absolute difference of 20% in the R0 resection rate with 80% power and 5% two‐sided significance level.

Conclusion

The GRECCAR 15 trial is the first, definitive, phase III trial to investigate reirradiation in LRRC. The results of this trial will inform definitively the neoadjuvant treatment strategy in previously irradiated patients and assess whether there is any associated benefit of reirradiation in combination with induction chemotherapy in improving R0 resection rates.
Determinants of kidney transplant candidates’ decision to accept organ donor intervention transplants and participate in post‐transplant research: A conjoint analysis
Authors: Gordon Elisa J. , Abt Peter , Lee Jungwha , Knopf Elizabeth , Phillips Caitlin , Bermudez Francisca , Krishnamurthi Lakshman , Karaca Huseyin S. , Veatch Robert , Knight Richard , Conway Paul T. , Dunn Sue , Reese Peter P.
Published: April 2021

Deceased organ donor intervention research aims to increase organ quality and quantity for transplantation. We assessed the proportion of kidney transplant candidates who would accept “intervention organs,” participate in organ intervention research, and factors influencing acceptance. Kidney transplant candidates were presented 12 hypothetical scenarios, which varied three attributes, donor age, predicted waiting time to receive another organ offer, and research risk to the organ. Candidates were also randomly assigned to one of two conditions varying recipient risk. For each scenario, candidates agreed to accept the intervention organ or remain waitlisted. We fit a multivariable logit model to determine the association between scenario attributes and the acceptance decision. Of 249 participants, most (96%) accepted intervention organs under some or all conditions. Factors independently associated with candidates’ greater likelihood of accepting an intervention organ included: low risk to the kidney from the intervention (OR 20.53 [95% Confidence Interval (CI), 13.91‐30.29]); younger donor age (OR 3.72 [95% CI, 2.83‐4.89]), longer time until the next organ offer (OR 3.48 [95% CI, 2.65‐4.57]), and greater trust in their transplant physician (OR 1.03 [95% CI, 1.00‐1.06]). Candidates with a lower likelihood of acceptance had been waitlisted longer (OR 0.97 per month [95% CI, 0.96‐0.99]) and were Black (OR 0.21 [95% CI, 0.08‐0.55]). Most candidates would accept an intervention organ, which should encourage transplant leaders to conduct deceased donor organ intervention trials.
Multiple myxoid cellular neurothekeomas in a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus
Authors: Lau Sean K. , Cassarino David S. , Koh Stephen S.
Published: April 2021

Cellular neurothekeoma is a cutaneous tumor with a distinctive histopathologic appearance characterized by a dermal‐based multinodular proliferation of epithelioid to spindled cells. Although the tumor may show varying amounts of myxoid stroma, extensive myxoid change is uncommon. The tumor typically presents as a solitary nodule with a predilection for the head and neck and upper limbs; examples of multiple cellular neurothekeomas are decidedly rare. The present report describes a unique case of multiple myxoid cellular neurothekeomas arising in a 60‐year‐old female with systemic lupus erythematosus. Two papular lesions were identified involving the skin inferior to the umbilicus and the left inguinal crease. Both lesions were histopathologically similar, forming a nodular mass composed of epithelioid cells in a prominent myxoid stroma. By immunohistochemistry the lesional cells expressed NKI/C3, microphthalmia transcription factor (MiTF), and CD68, with focal staining for PGP9.5, factor XIIIa, and CD10 also observed. The tumors were negative for S‐100, SOX‐10, epithelial membrane antigen, desmin, smooth muscle actin, glial fibrillary acid protein, and CD34. The present case confirms that cellular neurothekeoma can present clinically as multiple lesions and can have a predominantly myxoid appearance, potentially mimicking other cutaneous myxoid lesions.
The long‐term view for cerebral palsy research and care
Authors: Hurvitz Edward A
Published: April 2021

This commentary is on the original article by Jonsson et al. on pages 839–845 of this issue.
A practitioner's guide to understanding equine infectious disease diagnostics in the United Kingdom. Part 1: How to optimise sampling approaches and a guide to agent detection testing methods
Authors: Whitlock F. M. , Newton J. R.
Published: April 2021

Diagnostic testing is routinely performed by the equine clinician when dealing with suspected infectious disease cases and outbreaks. Optimal sample timing, choice and handling are fundamental to attain an accurate diagnosis, and a good understanding of laboratory‐based sample analysis techniques, and their validation is necessary for effective diagnostic test result interpretation. This two‐part series highlights the importance of interpreting results bearing testing limitations and specific clinical findings in mind, and on these foundations, the treating clinician should always be well placed to deal with equine infectious diseases. Part 1 in this series will provide a treating clinician with an overview of the importance of testing horses in infectious disease outbreaks and how this is achieved. The different laboratory testing options available for agent detection and their methods will also be discussed. Part 2 will summarise serological (antibody) testing techniques, sample processing (including how tests are performed and validated) and result interpretation.
The dystrophia myotonica WD repeat‐containing protein DMWD and WDR20 differentially regulate USP12 deubiquitinase
Authors: Olazabal‐Herrero Anne , Bilbao‐Arribas Martin , Carlevaris Onintza , Sendino Maria , Varela‐Martinez Endika , Jugo Begoña M. , Berra Edurne , Rodriguez Jose Antonio
Published: April 2021

Despite its potential clinical relevance, the product of the DMWD (dystrophia myotonica, WD repeat containing) gene is a largely uncharacterized protein. The DMWD amino acid sequence is similar to that of WDR20, a known regulator of the USP12 and USP46 deubiquitinases (DUBs). Here, we apply a combination of in silico and experimental methods to investigate several aspects of DMWD biology. Molecular evolution and phylogenetic analyses reveal that WDR20 and DMWD, similar to USP12 and USP46, arose by duplication of a common ancestor during the whole genome duplication event in the vertebrate ancestor lineage. The analysis of public human gene expression datasets suggests that DMWD expression is positively correlated with USP12 expression in normal tissues and negatively correlated with WDR20 expression in tumors. Strikingly, a survey of the annotated interactome for DMWD and WDR20 reveals a largely nonoverlapping set of interactors for these proteins. Experimentally, we first confirmed that DMWD binds both USP12 and USP46 through direct coimmunoprecipitation of epitope‐tagged proteins. We found that DMWD and WDR20 share the same binding interface in USP12, suggesting that their interaction with the DUB may be mutually exclusive. Finally, we show that both DMWD and WDR20 promote USP12 enzymatic activity, but they differentially modulate the subcellular localization of the DUB. Altogether, our findings suggest a model whereby mutually exclusive binding of DMWD and WDR20 to USP12 may lead to formation of deubiquitinase complexes with distinct subcellular localization, potentially targeting different substrate repertoires.
Drivers of native and non‐native freshwater fish richness across North America: Disentangling the roles of environmental, historical and anthropogenic factors
Authors: Anas M. U. Mohamed , Mandrak Nicholas E.
Published: April 2021

Aim

A better understanding of native and non‐native species responses to environmental conditions, historical processes, and human pressures is crucial in the face of global environmental changes affecting biodiversity. Here, we evaluate the relative roles of environmental, historical and anthropogenic factors in influencing species richness of native and non‐native freshwater fishes in watersheds across North America.

Location

North America (exclusive of Mexico).

Time period

Recent.

Major taxa studied

Freshwater fishes.

Methods

We compiled an extensive dataset of native and non‐native fish richness in 2,993 watersheds across North America, together with corresponding data for environmental (climatic, geographic), historical and anthropogenic factors. We used variance partitioning and hierarchical partitioning to quantify the relative importance of environmental, historical and anthropogenic factors in explaining richness variation in native and non‐native [overall, and by geographic origin (foreign/translocated) and pathway (authorized/unauthorized)] fishes, while accounting for correlations among explanatory variables and spatial autocorrelation.

Results

Overall importance of environmental and anthropogenic factors was greater than historical factors in explaining both native and non‐native richness. Precipitation‐related factors were more important in explaining native richness, whereas non‐native richness was largely associated with temperature‐related factors. However, richness related to authorized introductions was less constrained by temperature than unauthorized introductions. Dam density, road density and urbanization gradient were major anthropogenic factors related to non‐native richness, yet their relative importance varied among origin‐ and pathway‐based categories.

Conclusions

Our findings indicate different environmental drivers influence native and non‐native fish richness patterns in North America. The accumulation of non‐native species in watersheds depends on the interaction between environmental conditions and anthropogenic‐based processes related to introduction history including geographic origin, introduction pathway, and propagule pressure, where the latter likely plays a major role. Warmer regions with high human population densities and more impoundments are more prone to fish invasions, mostly via unauthorized introductions.
The historical avulsion of the Tista River, and its relationship to the Brahmaputra: Map and archive evidence from 1750 to 1835
Authors: Richards Keith , Brammer Hugh , L. Saunders Patricia
Published: April 2021

Alluvial fans are constructed when river deposition raises local elevations until the river “avulses” to an alternative lower elevation alignment. Avulsions may be triggered by exogenous events, such as floods that locally overtop the river’s banks; they may then cause extreme flooding on a fan and have major impacts. Rivers draining the Himalayas into the Gangetic plain have behaved historically in this way; for example, the Kosi River’s historical westward migration (1731–1963), and its recent eastward shift (1980). In the major fan‐delta of the Bengal Basin, the Brahmaputra and its tributary, the Tista, have both undergone historical avulsions, with some suggestion that these may have been causally linked. Between the Rennell survey of Bengal (1765–77) and the partial re‐survey by Wilcox and Ommanney (1828–35), the Brahmaputra River substantially changed its course. In Rennell’s time it turned south‐east into the Sylhet Basin leaving the higher land of the Madhupur Tract on its right; by 1830, it flowed due south with the Tract on its left. One hypothesis for the timing and cause of this avulsion relates it to the impact of a major flood and avulsion in the River Tista in 1787. This paper examines the evidence of the Rennell maps, the East India Company archives of correspondence between District Collectors about flooding and avulsion in the Tista, and the diaries of Francis Hamilton Buchanan who travelled along the Tista in 1807–11. From these contemporary sources it is possible to re‐construct the changes in the River Tista in the late 18th century, and to conclude that its avulsion had little direct influence on that of the Brahmaputra, although it went through some radical rearrangements of its own.