bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Tailoring brain–machine interface rehabilitation training based on neural reorganization: towards personalized treatment for stroke patients
Authors: Jia Tianyu , Li Chong , Mo Linhong , Qian Chao , Li Wei , Xu Quan , Pan Yu , Liu Aixian , Ji Linhong
Published: July 2022

Electroencephalogram (EEG)-based brain–machine interface (BMI) has the potential to enhance rehabilitation training efficiency, but it still remains elusive regarding how to design BMI training for heterogeneous stroke patients with varied neural reorganization. Here, we hypothesize that tailoring BMI training according to different patterns of neural reorganization can contribute to a personalized rehabilitation trajectory. Thirteen stroke patients were recruited in a 2-week personalized BMI training experiment. Clinical and behavioral measurements, as well as cortical and muscular activities, were assessed before and after training. Following treatment, significant improvements were found in motor function assessment. Three types of brain activation patterns were identified during BMI tasks, namely, bilateral widespread activation, ipsilesional focusing activation, and contralesional recruitment activation. Patients with either ipsilesional dominance or contralesional dominance can achieve recovery through personalized BMI training. Results indicate that personalized BMI training tends to connect the potentially reorganized brain areas with event-contingent proprioceptive feedback. It can also be inferred that personalization plays an important role in establishing the sensorimotor loop in BMI training. With further understanding of neural rehabilitation mechanisms, personalized treatment strategy is a promising way to improve the rehabilitation efficacy and promote the clinical use of rehabilitation robots and other neurotechnologies.
Connectome-based individualized prediction of reciprocity propensity and sensitivity to framing: a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging study
Authors: Fang Huihua , Liao Chong , Fu Zhao , Tian Shuang , Luo Yuejia , Xu Pengfei , Krueger Frank
Published: July 2022

Background

The social representation theory states that individual differences in reciprocity decisions are composed of a stable central core (i.e., reciprocity propensity, RP) and a contextual-dependent periphery (i.e., sensitivity to the framing effect; SFE, the effect by how the decision is presented). However, the neural underpinnings that explain RP and SFE are still unknown.

Method

Here, we employed prediction and lesion models to decode resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) of RP and SFE for reciprocity decisions of healthy volunteers who underwent RS functional magnetic resonance imaging and completed one-shot trust (give frame) and distrust (take frame) games as trustees.

Results

Regarding the central core, reciprocity rates were positively associated between the give and take frame. Neuroimaging results showed that inter-network RSFC between the default-mode network (DMN; associated with mentalizing) and cingulo-opercular network (associated with cognitive control) contributed to the prediction of reciprocity under both frames. Regarding the periphery, behavioral results demonstrated a significant framing effect-people reciprocated more in the give than in the take frame. Our neuroimaging results revealed that intra-network RSFC of DMN (associated with mentalizing) contributed dominantly to the prediction of SFE.

Conclusion

Our findings provide evidence for distinct neural mechanisms of RP and SFE in reciprocity decisions.
Tuberculosis Treatment Outcomes in Brazil: Different Predictors for Each Type of Unsuccessful Outcome
Authors: Ridolfi Felipe , Peetluk Lauren , Amorim Gustavo , Turner Megan , Figueiredo Marina , Cordeiro-Santos Marcelo , Cavalcante Solange , Kritski Afrânio , Durovni Betina , Andrade Bruno , Sterling Timothy R , Rolla Valeria ,   for the Regional Prospective Observational Research in Tuberculosis (RePORT)–Brazil Consortium
Published: July 2022

Background

Successful tuberculosis (TB) treatment is necessary for disease control. The World Health Organization (WHO) has a target TB treatment success rate of ≥90%. We assessed whether the different types of unfavorable TB treatment outcome had different predictors.

Methods

Using data from Regional Prospective Observational Research for Tuberculosis-Brazil, we evaluated biological and behavioral factors associated with each component of unsuccessful TB outcomes, recently updated by WHO (death, loss to follow-up [LTFU], and treatment failure). We included culture-confirmed, drug-susceptible, pulmonary TB participants receiving standard treatment in 2015–2019. Multinomial logistic regression models with inverse probability weighting were used to evaluate the distinct determinants of each unsuccessful outcome.

Results

Of 915 participants included, 727 (79%) were successfully treated, 118 (13%) were LTFU, 44 (5%) had treatment failure, and 26 (3%) died. LTFU was associated with current drug-use (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 5.3; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.0–9.4), current tobacco use (aOR = 2.9; 95% CI, 1.7–4.9), and being a person with HIV (PWH) (aOR = 2.0; 95% CI, 1.1–3.5). Treatment failure was associated with PWH (aOR = 2.7; 95% CI, 1.2–6.2) and having diabetes (aOR = 2.2; 95% CI, 1.1–4.4). Death was associated with anemia (aOR = 5.3; 95% CI, 1.4–19.7), diabetes (aOR = 3.1; 95% CI, 1.4–6.7), and PWH (aOR = 3.9; 95% CI, 1.3–11.4). Direct observed therapy was protective for treatment failure (aOR = 0.5; 95% CI, .3–.9) and death (aOR = 0.5; 95% CI, .2–1.0).

Conclusions

The treatment success rate was below the WHO target. Behavioral factors were most associated with LTFU, whereas clinical comorbidities were correlated with treatment failure and death. Because determinants of unsuccessful outcomes are distinct, different intervention strategies may be needed to improve TB outcomes.
Congenital Tuberculosis After In Vitro Fertilization: A Case for Tuberculosis Screening of Women Evaluated for Infertility
Authors: Sands Ashley , Santiago Maria T , Uduwana Shanika , Glater-Welt Lily , Ezhuthachan Idil D , Coscia Gina , Hayes Lisa , Berry Gregory J , Rubin Lorry G , Hagmann Stefan H F
Published: July 2022

We report a case of multidrug-resistant congenital tuberculosis (TB) in an infant conceived by in vitro fertilization and review 22 additional infant–mother pairs in the literature. Females evaluated for infertility should be screened for TB risk, and those at risk require a TB-specific diagnostic evaluation before receiving assisted reproductive treatment.
Magnitude and Determinants of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Household Transmission: A Longitudinal Cohort Study
Authors: Kelly J Daniel , Lu Scott , Anglin Khamal , Garcia-Knight Miguel , Pineda-Ramirez Jesus , Goldberg Sarah A , Tassetto Michel , Zhang Amethyst , Donohue Kevin , Davidson Michelle C , Romero Mariela , Diaz Sanchez Ruth , Djomaleu Manuella , Mathur Sujata , Chen Jessica Y , Forman Carrie A , Servellita Venice , Montejano Rubi D , Shak Joshua R , Rutherford George W , Deeks Steven G , Abedi Glen R , Rolfes Melissa A , Saydah Sharon , Briggs-Hagen Melissa , Peluso Michael J , Chiu Charles , Midgley Claire M , Andino Raul , Martin Jeffrey N
Published: July 2022

Background

Households have emerged as important venues for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) transmission. Little is known, however, regarding the magnitude and determinants of household transmission in increasingly vaccinated populations.

Methods

From September 2020 to January 2022, symptomatic nonhospitalized individuals with SARS-CoV-2 infection by RNA detection were identified within 5 days of symptom onset; all individuals resided with at least 1 other SARS-CoV-2–uninfected household member. These infected persons (cases) and their household members (contacts) were subsequently followed with questionnaire-based measurement and serial nasal specimen collection. The primary outcome was SARS-CoV-2 infection among contacts.

Results

We evaluated 42 cases and their 74 household contacts. Among the contacts, 32 (43%) became infected, of whom 5 (16%) were asymptomatic; 81% of transmissions occurred by 5 days after the case’s symptom onset. From 21 unvaccinated cases, 14-day cumulative incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection among contacts was 18/40 (45% [95% confidence interval {CI}, 29%–62%]), most of whom were unvaccinated. From 21 vaccinated cases, 14-day cumulative incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection was 14/34 (41% [95% CI, 25%–59%]) among all contacts and 12/29 (41% [95% CI, 24%–61%]) among vaccinated contacts. At least 1 comorbid condition among cases and 10 or more days of RNA detection in cases were associated with increased risk of infection among contacts.

Conclusions

Among households including individuals with symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection, both vaccinated-to-vaccinated and unvaccinated-to-unvaccinated transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to household contacts was common. Because vaccination alone did not notably reduce risk of infection, household contacts will need to employ additional interventions to avoid infection.
Non-actionable Results, Accuracy, and Effect of First- and Second-line Line Probe Assays for Diagnosing Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis, Including on Smear-Negative Specimens, in a High-Volume Laboratory
Authors: Pillay Samantha , de Vos Margaretha , Derendinger Brigitta , Streicher Elizabeth Maria , Dolby Tania , Scott Leeré Ann , Steinhobel Amy Debra , Warren Rob Mark , Theron Grant
Published: July 2022

Background

Rapid tuberculosis (TB) drug susceptibility testing (DST) is crucial. Genotype MTBDRsl is a widely deployed World Health Organization (WHO)–endorsed assay. Programmatic performance data, including non-actionable results from smear-negative sputum, are scarce.

Methods

Sputa from Xpert MTB/RIF individuals (n = 951) were routinely-tested using Genotype MTBDRplus and MTBDRsl (both version 2). Phenotypic DST was the second-line drug reference standard. Discrepant results underwent Sanger sequencing.

Findings

89% (849 of 951) of individuals were culture-positive (56%, 476 of 849 smear-negative). MTBDRplus had at least 1 nonactionable result (control and/or TB-detection bands absent or invalid, precluding resistance reporting) in 19% (92 of 476) of smear-negatives; for MTBDRsl, 40% (171 of 427) were nonactionable (28%, 120 of 427 false-negative TB; 17%, 51 of 427 indeterminate). In smear-negatives, MTBDRsl sensitivity for fluoroquinolones was 84% (95% confidence interval, 67%–93), 81% (54%–95%) for second-line injectable drugs, and 57% (28%–82%) for both. Specificities were 93% (89%–98%), 88% (81%–93%), and 97% (91%–99%), respectively. Twenty-three percent (172 of 746) of Xpert rifampicin-resistant specimens were MTBDRplus isoniazid-susceptible. Days-to-second-line-susceptibility reporting with the programmatic advent of MTBDRsl improved (6 [5–7] vs 37 [35–46]; P < .001).

Conclusions

MTBDRsl did not generate a result in 4 of 10 smear-negatives, resulting in substantial missed resistance. However, if MTBDRsl generates an actionable result, that is accurate in ruling-in resistance. Isoniazid DST remains crucial. This study provides real-world, direct, second-line susceptibility testing performance data on non-actionable results (that, if unaccounted for, cause an overestimation of test utility), accuracy, and care cascade impact.
The Ross procedure in adult patients: a single-centre analysis of long-term results up to 28 years
Authors: Oeser Claudia , Uyanik-Uenal Keziban , Kocher Alfred , Laufer Guenther , Andreas Martin
Published: July 2022

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to provide an in-depth insight into our single-centre experience with the Ross procedure.

METHODS

All adults who underwent the Ross procedure between 1991 and 2014 were included. Based on the total number of Ross procedures performed by each surgeon at our centre during this 24-year period, surgeon volume was classified as low (<25 procedures), intermediate (25–44 procedures) and high (≥45 procedures). Survival, complications and reinterventions were evaluated. A single cardiologist assessed the pulmonary autograft’s function and the neoaortic root diameter by echocardiography.

RESULTS

The outcomes of 224 patients {176 men, 48 women; mean age 37.2 [standard deviation (SD) 10.0] years} were analysed. Patients operated on by a low-volume surgeon had 7.22 times higher odds (P < 0.001) for a serious adverse event during the intraoperative or early postoperative course than patients operated on by a high-volume surgeon. Early mortality was 1.8%. Overall survival was 87.3% at 20 years. Compared with the demographically matched general population, the patients’ survival was significantly lower (P = 0.002). The cumulative incidence of autograft and right ventricular outflow tract conduit reintervention was 21.5% and 5.9% at 20 years, respectively. Patients with preoperative aortic regurgitation had 6.25 times the subdistribution hazard of autograft reintervention (Bonferroni-adjusted P = 0.042) and a higher neoaortic root z-score [1.37 (SD 2.04) vs 0.17 (SD 1.81), P = 0.004] than patients with aortic stenosis. In patients with preoperative aortic regurgitation, autograft wrapping (remnant aortic wall and/or Vicryl® mesh) was associated with a 74% reduction in the subdistribution hazard of autograft reintervention (Bonferroni-adjusted P = 0.002) and with a reduced incidence of neoaortic root dilatation (P = 0.037).

CONCLUSIONS

The Ross procedure performed by a specialized surgeon provides very satisfying long-term results. The higher risk of autograft reintervention in preoperative aortic regurgitation may be counteracted by supporting the autograft.
Uric acid and sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibition with empagliflozin in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction: the EMPEROR-reduced trial
Authors: Doehner Wolfram , Anker Stefan D , Butler Javed , Zannad Faiez , Filippatos Gerasimos , Ferreira João Pedro , Salsali Afshin , Kaempfer Carolyn , Brueckmann Martina , Pocock Stuart J , Januzzi James L , Packer Milton
Published: July 2022

Background

The sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitor empagliflozin decreases the risk of cardiovascular death or hospitalization for heart failure (HF) in patients with HF with reduced ejection fraction. Empagliflozin reduces serum uric acid (SUA), but the relevance of this effect in patients with HF is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the effect of empagliflozin on SUA levels and the therapeutic efficacy of empagliflozin in relation to SUA.

Methods

The association between SUA and the composite primary outcome of cardiovascular death or hospitalization for worsening HF, its components, and all-cause mortality was investigated in 3676 patients of the EMPEROR-Reduced trial (98.6% of the study cohort). The treatment effect of empagliflozin was studied in relation to SUA as continuous variable, to clinical hyperuricaemia (SUA >5.7 mg/dL for women, >7.0 mg/dL for men) and in subgroups of patients of tertiles of SUA.

Results

Hyperuricaemia was prevalent in 53% of patients with no sex differences. Elevated SUA (highest tertile, mean SUA 9.38 ± 1.49 mg/dL) was associated with advanced severity of HF and with worst outcome [composite outcome, hazard ratio (HR) 1.64 (95% confidence interval, CI 1.28–2.10); cardiovascular mortality, HR 1.98 (95% CI 1.35–2.91); all-cause mortality, HR 1.8 (95% CI 1.29–2.49), all P < 0.001] in multivariate adjusted analyses, as compared with the lowest tertile. SUA was reduced following treatment with empagliflozin at 4 weeks (vs. placebo: −1.12 ± 0.04 mg/dL, P < 0.0001) and remained lower throughout follow-up, with a similar reduction in all prespecified subgroups. Empagliflozin reduced events of clinically relevant hyperuricaemia (acute gout, gouty arthritis or initiation of anti-gout therapy) by 32% [HR 0.68 (95% CI 0.52–0.89), P = 0.004]. The beneficial effect of empagliflozin on the primary endpoint was independent of baseline SUA [HR 0.76 (95% CI 0.65–0.88), P < 0.001) and of the change in SUA at 4 weeks [HR 0.81 (95% CI 0.69–0.95), P = 0.012]. As a hypothesis-generating finding, an interaction between SUA and treatment effect suggested a benefit of empagliflozin on mortality (cardiovascular and all-cause mortality) in patients in elevated SUA (P for interaction = 0.005 and = 0.011, respectively).

Conclusion

Hyperuricaemia is common in HF and is an independent predictor of advanced disease severity and increased mortality. Empagliflozin induced a rapid and sustained reduction of SUA levels and of clinical events related to hyperuricaemia. The benefit of empagliflozin on the primary outcome was observed independently of SUA.
Sensing Multiconfessionality in Early Modern Germany
Authors: Christ Martin
Published: July 2022

This article brings together sensory history and research on multiconfessionalism in early modern Germany. It argues that research has not yet paid sufficient attention to the fact that many of the towns in the Holy Roman Empire were not monoconfessional but instead highly diverse, home to a range of religious groups, which influenced the respective town’s sensescape. For a fuller understanding of multiconfessional settings, we can adopt the senses as an analytical category. Focusing on shared churches (Simultankirchen) in the Holy Roman Empire, the article shows that what parishioners heard, saw and smelled in these settings was influenced by the presence of multiple confessions. And confessional coexistence influenced sensory stimuli not only inside the ecclesial space, but also across the town as a whole. The senses are, the article argues, key to our understanding of the experience of multiconfessionalism.
Systematic review of the effectiveness of health promotion interventions targeting obesity prevention in school-based staff
Authors: Hill Amy , Alston Laura , Needham Cindy , Peeters Anna , LaMontagne Anthony D , Nichols Melanie
Published: July 2022

School-based employee interventions can benefit the health of staff and have the potential to influence the health of school students through role-modelling. However, interventions within schools typically focus on students, with very few studies addressing obesity and related health behaviours among school staff. A systematic review of the peer-reviewed literature published between January 2000 and May 2020 was undertaken to synthesize the evidence on the impact that school-based obesity prevention programmes have on the staff they employ. Search terms were derived from four major topics: (i) school; (ii) staff; (iii) health promotion and (iv) obesity. Terms were adapted for six databases and three independent researchers screened results. Studies were included if they reported on the outcomes of body weight, dietary behaviours and/or physical activity. Of 3483 papers identified in the search, 13 studies met the inclusion criteria. All 13 studies included an intervention that focussed on improving nutrition, physical activity or both. All included studies demonstrated a positive outcome for either dietary intake, weight or body mass index or physical activity outcomes, however not all results were statistically significant. The included studies showed promising, although limited, impacts on employee health outcomes. This review demonstrated a lack of global focus and investment in interventions targeting school staff, particularly in contrast to the large amount of research on school-based health promotion initiatives focussed on students. There is a need for further research to understand effective interventions to promote health and prevent obesity in this large, diverse and influential workforce.
Marginalized COVID-19 patients and their significant others in Kashmir (India): manifesting the hidden structural vulnerabilities
Authors: Jahangir Mohmad Saleem , Gadda Zakir Hussain , Ganayee Shameem Ahamad
Published: July 2022

Using a qualitative approach, this study aimed to undertake an in-depth exploration of the experiences of COVID-19 patients and their significant others among the economically weaker sections in Kashmir. The study was conducted on 18 participants of different households solely from rural Kashmir while using the purposive sampling technique to recruit the participants and the principle of data saturation to determine the sample size. Data were collected using semi-structured in-depth interviews and analyzed through Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis framework. From the data analysis, six overarching themes of diagnosis, healthcare, treatment, survival thereof, social support and stigma were arrived at, which delineated the direct or indirect experiences of participants with COVID-19. The findings of the study revealed that the economically weaker sections of rural Kashmir are deprived of requisite healthcare facilities, which further intensifies their vulnerabilities to COVID-19 and associated health issues. They lie at the core of acute health disadvantage amid the COVID-19 crisis, and are hence drifted toward extreme marginality and socioeconomic adversity.
Pacific women's anti-nuclear poetry: centring Indigenous knowledges
Authors: Hogue Rebecca H , Maurer Anaïs
Published: July 2022

This article expands feminist IR research on global nuclear politics by presenting a heretofore unassembled archive of Indigenous Pacific women's anti-nuclear poetry and by arguing for the importance of this poetry as a transformative mover of international discourse on nuclear imperialisms. Pacific activists, and especially women, have been some of the world's most active opponents to the global nuclear industrial complex, systematically working on the frontline of grassroots organizing in the Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific (NFIP) movement. Yet, the role played by Pacific women in the movement is understudied. To begin rectifying this omission, we chronologically retrace the evolution and the complexity of women's role in the global anti-nuclear movement by outlining the history of the development of anti-nuclear conferences in the 1970s understood alongside and also through Pacific women's poetic reflection on and activism against nuclearization in the Pacific. The poems by Pacific women presented in this article contribute to debates about nuclear politics in feminist IR and beyond, as they bring Pacific Islander voices into view and provide a more complex picture of Indigenous organizing, highlighting tensions based on gender and class within organizations such as the NFIP movement. In addition, these poems also contribute to ongoing challenges in IR to what constitutes valid forms of political discourse, by pushing back against the field's patriarchal tendency to favour administrative language and statistical reports at the expense of embodied knowledge and emotional experience. As such, this article also addresses broader questions of knowledge production in IR, particularly in the context of debates about decolonizing the field, and advocates for centring Indigenous knowledges of international politics.
Unaccompanied Children in Limbo: The Causes and Consequences of Uncertain Legal Status
Authors: Lelliott Joseph
Published: July 2022

Unaccompanied children seeking international protection often find themselves with forms of discretionary, time-limited, or otherwise uncertain legal status in countries outside their own. This may be due to the available options for legal status or to long delays in determination of protection claims, among other factors. While the legal and policy reasons for this vary, of particular concern is the imposition of such uncertainty to discourage children from persisting with protection claims, to deter others from arriving, to delay status resolution until adulthood, or to facilitate removal. Children possessing a legal status that is insecure or uncertain may be described as being in ‘legal limbo’. This article explores this issue and examines the often deleterious consequences of limbo for unaccompanied children. Through an analysis and comparison of Australia and the United Kingdom, it explains ‘legal limbo’ as a function of States’ desire to deter, control, and punish irregular migration. This article argues that an approach based on rights, as opposed to migration control, must guide the availability of secure legal status to unaccompanied children. To this end, it articulates the basis of an obligation to provide these children such status, drawing on their rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and on the commentary of treaty bodies. The article concludes by calling for better pathways to permanent stay for unaccompanied children.
The Settler Coloniality of Free Speech
Authors: Leigh Darcy
Published: July 2022

Public and scholarly debates surrounding free speech often assume free speech is a public good and/or should be approached as a problem of “drawing the line” between free and regulated or benign and harmful speech. In contrast, this article provides a genealogy of free speech in which liberal freedom of expression has, since its inception, been integral to white supremacist settler colonialism in the United Kingdom and its former settler colonies, the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The article argues that, far from a noble struggle against regulation, liberal politics around free speech establish oppositions between white “civilized” speech and its Indigenized racially darkened “others” as well as controlling or silencing Indigenous, Black and/or otherwise racially othered speech across the Anglosphere. The article first traces free speech through two significant moments in its emergence: early European Enlightenment colonial expansion (embodied in John Locke's “toleration”) and 1800s British colonial industrialization (embodied in John Stuart Mill's “marketplace of ideas”). The article then examines how this genealogy informs the contemporary case study of contestation over free speech in universities, showing that engagements with free speech across the political spectrum extend its settler colonial rationality.
Political Obligations of Refugees
Authors: Gates Andrew , Klosko George
Published: July 2022

In the literature on refugees, scholars generally focus on obligations that states have toward refugees, but do not address obligations refugees themselves bear to their new countries. While this situation has been remedied to some extent in recent literature, scholars have not provided an adequate explanation why these obligations hold. We explore the moral basis of refugees’ obligations, with special attention to the need to extend traditional principles of political obligation to address it. We consider two categories of refugees. Obligations of “settled refugees,” who attempt to integrate into new societies, are largely encompassed by traditional Westphalian norms of state–citizen relationships and grounded in consent and fair play. Refugees in camps exist farther outside of the traditional Westphalian categories. Most notable for them are divided political obligations—stemming from the divided nature of camp governance—grounded mainly by principles of fair play and natural duties of justice.
To What Extent the Arabic WeeFIM Is Reliable and Feasible in Egyptian Children With Burns? An Observational Cross-sectional Study
Authors: Mohamed Othman Eman , Aly Doaa A
Published: July 2022

This is an observational cross-sectional study design aimed to assess the feasibility and reliability of the Arabic version of WeeFIM in Egyptian children with healed burns with two measurements within a 2-week time period in a sample of 53 patients with healed burns who were aged 3 to 16 years and treated in the outpatient burn clinic, Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo University, and Om Elmisryeen Hospital. All patients who met the inclusive criteria were enrolled in the study. The adaptation of the Arabic WeeFIM instrument to an interview format suitable for burned children with communicative and/or cognitive problems and evaluation of its feasibility and reliability. The reliability was assessed by a test-retest procedure. Feasibility was evaluated by the assessment of the frequency of missing answers per item and administration time. The Arabic Index of Content Validity (was used for content validity assessment. The Arabic version of WeeFIM has borderline reliability (Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.619 and Pearson correlation coefficient: r = 0.986). There was an acceptable percent to have a feasible test as 83.963% of the filled questionnaires had no missing answers and the mean of administration time was 7.4 and 5.5 for first and second assessments, respectively. The Index of Content Validity of adapted WeeFIM items showed that all the questions were relevant except for two questions only. The Arabic version of WeeFIM has high test-retest reliability, moderate internal consistency, and excellent feasibility in measuring and reporting the functional independence and burden of care for children with healed burns.
Eleutheroside E functions as anti-cervical cancer drug by inhibiting the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase pathway and reprogramming the metabolic responses
Authors: Cai Yipin , Zhang Jie , Xin Tiantian , Xu Songyuan , Liu Xiaoli , Gao Yu , Huang Haiwei
Published: July 2022

Objectives

Cervical cancer (CC) is the common female malignant tumour with non-negligible morbidity and mortality. Eleutheroside E (EE) has anti-oxidative stress, anti-inflammatory and anti-proliferation effects in diverse disease models. However, its anti-tumour role remains unclear.

Methods

The cell viability, apoptosis rate and protein expressions were detected by CCK-8, flow cytometry and western blot assays, respectively. The metabolic profile was performed by GC/MS analysis. Furthermore, the effect of EE on CC was verified in nude mice.

Key findings

EE notably decreased the viability and increased the cell apoptosis, which could be reversed with 740Y-P treatment. EE treatment changed the metabolic categories of SiHa cells. The fatty acids signalling pathway was the most outstanding differential pathway. Myo-inositol prominently enhanced the level of phosphorylated Akt in a dose-dependent way. Moreover, EE declined the tumour volume and weight and the proliferation, but promoted the apoptosis in vivo. EE reduced the relative expression of phosphorylated PI3K and Akt. However, all these in-vivo results were observably antagonized with myo-inositol treatment.

Conclusions

EE plays an anti-tumour role in CC via inhibiting the PI3K pathway and reprogramming the metabolic responses.
Transcriptional and metabolic changes associated with internode development and reduced cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase activity in sorghum
Authors: Ferreira Sávio Siqueira , Goeminne Geert , Simões Marcella Siqueira , Pina André Vicioli de Almeida , Lima Leydson Gabriel Alves de , Pezard Jade , Gutiérrez Ana , Rencoret Jorge , Mortimer Jenny C , del Río José C , Boerjan Wout , Cesarino Igor
Published: July 2022

The molecular mechanisms associated with secondary cell wall (SCW) deposition in sorghum remain largely uncharacterized. Here, we employed untargeted metabolomics and large-scale transcriptomics to correlate changes in SCW deposition with variation in global gene expression profiles and metabolite abundance along an elongating internode of sorghum, with a major focus on lignin and phenolic metabolism. To gain deeper insight into the metabolic and transcriptional changes associated with pathway perturbations, a bmr6 mutant [with reduced cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD) activity] was analyzed. In the wild type, internode development was accompanied by an increase in the content of oligolignols, p-hydroxybenzaldehyde, hydroxycinnamate esters, and flavonoid glucosides, including tricin derivatives. We further identified modules of genes whose expression pattern correlated with SCW deposition and the accumulation of these target metabolites. Reduced CAD activity resulted in the accumulation of hexosylated forms of hydroxycinnamates (and their derivatives), hydroxycinnamaldehydes, and benzenoids. The expression of genes belonging to one specific module in our co-expression analysis correlated with the differential accumulation of these compounds and contributed to explaining this metabolic phenotype. Metabolomics and transcriptomics data further suggested that CAD perturbation activates distinct detoxification routes in sorghum internodes. Our systems biology approach provides a landscape of the metabolic and transcriptional changes associated with internode development and with reduced CAD activity in sorghum.
Determination of QPO properties in the presence of strong broad-band noise: a case study on the data of MAXI J1820+070
Authors: Zhou Deng-Ke , Zhang Shuang-Nan , Song Li-Ming , Qu Jin-Lu , Zhang Liang , Ma Xiang , Tuo You-Li , Ge Ming-Yu , Wang Yanan , Zhang Shu , Tao Lian
Published: July 2022

Accurate calculation of the phase lags of quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) will provide insight into their origin. In this paper, we investigate the phase lag correction method that has been applied to calculate the intrinsic phase lags of the QPOs in MAXI J1820+070. We find that the traditional additive model between broad-band noise (BBN) and QPOs in the time domain is rejected, but the convolution model is accepted. By introducing a convolution mechanism in the time domain, the Fourier cross-spectrum analysis shows that the phase lags between QPOs components in different energy bands will have a simple linear relationship with the phase lags between the total signals, so that the intrinsic phase lags of the QPOs can be obtained by linear correction. The power density spectrum (PDS) thus requires a multiplicative model to interpret the data. We briefly discuss a physical scenario for interpreting the convolution. In this scenario, the corona acts as a low-pass filter, Green’s function containing the noise is convolved with the QPOs to form the low-frequency part of the PDS, while the high-frequency part requires an additive component. We use a multiplicative PDS model to fit the data observed by the Insight-Hard X-ray Modulation Telescope (HXMT). The overall fitting results are similar compared to the traditional additive PDS model. Neither the width nor the centroid frequency of the QPOs obtained from each of the two PDS models was significantly different, except for the rms of the QPOs. Our work thus provides a new perspective on the coupling of noise and QPOs.
Could the ‘Wow’ signal have originated from a stochastic repeating beacon?
Authors: Kipping David , Gray Robert
Published: July 2022

The famous ‘Wow’ signal detected in 1977 remains arguably the most compelling SETI signal ever found. The original Big Ear data require that the signal turned on/off over the span of ∼3 min (time difference between the dual antennae), yet persisted for 72 s (duration of a single beam sweep). Combined with the substantial and negative follow-up efforts, these observations limit the allowed range of signal repeat schedules, to the extent that one might question the credibility of the signal itself. Previous work has largely excluded the hypothesis of a strictly periodic repeating source, for periods shorter than 40 h. However, a non-periodic, stochastic repeater remains largely unexplored. Here, we employ a likelihood emulator using the Big Ear observing logs to infer the probable signal properties under this hypothesis. We find that the maximum a-posteriori solution has a likelihood of 32.3 per cent, highly compatible with the Big Ear data, with a broad 2σ credible interval of signal duration 72 s<T < 77 min and mean repeat rate 0.043 d−1 < λ < 59.8 d−1. We extend our analysis to include 192 h of subsequent observations from META, Hobart, and ATA, which drops the peak likelihood to 1.78 per cent, and thus in tension with the available data at the 2.4σ level. Accordingly, the Wow signal cannot be excluded as a stochastic repeater with available data, and we estimate that 62 d of accumulated additional observations would be necessary to surpass 3σ confidence.
The Pristine dwarf galaxy survey – IV. Probing the outskirts of the dwarf galaxy Boötes I
Authors: Longeard Nicolas , Jablonka Pascale , Arentsen Anke , Thomas Guillaume F , Aguado David S , Carlberg Raymond G , Lucchesi Romain , Malhan Khyati , Martin Nicolas , McConnachie Alan W , Navarro Julio F , Sánchez-Janssen Rubén , Sestito Federico , Starkenburg Else , Yuan Zhen
Published: July 2022

We present a new spectroscopic study of the dwarf galaxy Boötes I (Boo I) with data from the Anglo-Australian Telescope and its AAOmega spectrograph together with the Two Degree Field multi-object system. We observed 36 high-probability Boo I stars selected using Gaia Early Data Release 3 proper motions and photometric metallicities from the Pristine survey. Out of those, 27 are found to be Boo I stars, resulting in an excellent success rate of 75 per cent at finding new members. Our analysis uses a new pipeline developed to estimate radial velocities and equivalent widths of the calcium triplet lines from Gaussian and Voigt line profile fits. The metallicities of 16 members are derived, including 3 extremely metal-poor stars ([Fe/H] < −3.0), which translates into a success rate of 25 per cent at finding them with the combination of Pristine and Gaia. Using the large spatial extent of our new members that spans up to 4.1 half-light radii and spectroscopy from the literature, we find a systemic velocity gradient of 0.40 ± 0.10 km s−1 arcmin−1 and a small but resolved metallicity gradient of −0.008 ± 0.003 dex arcmin−1. Finally, we show that Boo I is more elongated than previously thought with an ellipticity of ϵ = 0.68 ± 0.15. Its velocity and metallicity gradients as well as its elongation suggest that Boo I may have been affected by tides, a result supported by direct dynamical modelling.
Implications from secondary emission from neutral impact on Cassini plasma and dust measurements
Authors: Johansson F L , Vigren E , Waite J H , Miller K , Eriksson A I , Edberg N J T , Dreyer J
Published: July 2022

We investigate the role of secondary electron and ion emission from impact of gas molecules on the Cassini Langmuir probe (RPWS-LP or LP) measurements in the ionosphere of Saturn. We add a model of the emission currents, based on laboratory measurements and data from comet 1P/Halley, to the equations used to derive plasma parameters from LP bias voltage sweeps. Reanalysing several hundred sweeps from the Cassini Grand Finale orbits, we find reasonable explanations for three open conundrums from previous LP studies of the Saturn ionosphere. We find an explanation for the observed positive charging of the Cassini spacecraft, the possibly overestimated ionospheric electron temperatures, and the excess ion current reported. For the sweeps analysed in detail, we do not find (indirect or direct) evidence of dust having a significant charge-carrying role in Saturn’s ionosphere. We also produce an estimate of H2O number density from the last six revolutions of Cassini through Saturn’s ionosphere in greater detail than reported by the Ion and Neutral Mass Spectrometer. Our analysis reveals an ionosphere that is highly structured in latitude across all six final revolutions, with mixing ratios varying with two orders of magnitude in latitude and one order of magnitude between revolutions and altitude. The result is generally consistent with an empirical photochemistry model balancing the production of H+ ions with the H+ loss through charge transfer with e.g. H2O, CH4, and CO2, for which water vapour appears as the likeliest dominant source of the signal in terms of yield and concentration.
Advanced asteroseismic modelling: breaking the degeneracy between stellar mass and initial helium abundance
Authors: Verma Kuldeep , Rørsted Jakob L , Serenelli Aldo M , Aguirre Børsen-Koch Víctor , Winther Mark L , Stokholm Amalie
Published: July 2022

Current stellar model predictions of adiabatic oscillation frequencies differ significantly from the corresponding observed frequencies due to the non-adiabatic and poorly understood near-surface layers of stars. However, certain combinations of frequencies – known as frequency ratios – are largely unaffected by the uncertain physical processes as they are mostly sensitive to the stellar core. Furthermore, the seismic signature of helium ionization provides envelope properties while being almost independent of the outermost layers. We have developed an advanced stellar modelling approach in which we complement frequency ratios with parameters of the helium ionization zone while taking into account all possible correlations to put the most stringent constraints on the stellar internal structure. We have tested the method using the Keplerbenchmark star 16 Cyg A and have investigated the potential of the helium glitch parameters to constrain the basic stellar properties in detail. It has been explicitly shown that the initial helium abundance and mixing-length parameters are well constrained within our framework, reducing systematic uncertainties on stellar mass and age arising for instance from the well-known anticorrelation between the mass and initial helium abundance. The modelling of six additional Kepler stars including 16 Cyg B reinforces the above findings and also confirms that our approach is mostly independent of model uncertainties associated with the near-surface layers. Our method is relatively computationally expensive, however, it provides stellar masses, radii and ages precisely in an automated manner, paving the way for analysing numerous stars observed in the future during the ESA PLATO mission.
A Bayesian approach to high-fidelity interferometric calibration – I. Mathematical formalism
Authors: Sims Peter H , Pober Jonathan C , Sievers Jonathan L
Published: July 2022

High-fidelity radio interferometric data calibration that minimizes spurious spectral structure in the calibrated data is essential in astrophysical applications, such as 21 cm cosmology, which rely on knowledge of the relative spectral smoothness of distinct astrophysical emission components to extract the signal of interest. Existing approaches to radio interferometric calibration have been shown to impart spurious spectral structure to the calibrated data if the sky model used to calibrate the data is incomplete. In this paper, we introduce BayesCal: a novel solution to the sky-model incompleteness problem in interferometric calibration, designed to enable high-fidelity data calibration. The BayesCal data model supplements the a priori known component of the forward model of the sky with a statistical model for the missing and uncertain flux contribution to the data, constrained by a prior on the power in the model. We demonstrate how the parameters of this model can be marginalized out analytically, reducing the dimensionality of the parameter space to be sampled from and allowing one to sample directly from the posterior probability distribution of the calibration parameters. Additionally, we show how physically motivated priors derived from theoretical and measurement-based constraints on the spectral smoothness of the instrumental gains can be used to constrain the calibration solutions. In a companion paper, we apply this algorithm to simulated observations with a HERA-like array and demonstrate that it enables up to four orders of magnitude suppression of power in spurious spectral fluctuations relative to standard calibration approaches.
Recent advances in IgG4-related kidney disease
Authors: Kawano Mitsuhiro , Saeki Takako , Ubara Yoshifumi , Matsui Shoko
Published: July 2022

Recent advances in the management and understanding of immunoglobulin (Ig)G4-related kidney disease (RKD) have emphasized the importance of urgent treatment in IgG4-related tubulointerstitial nephritis. On the other hand, to avoid long-term glucocorticoid toxicity, strategies for early withdrawal of steroids or combination of immunosuppressants, such as rituximab, and the minimum dose of steroids have been pursued. However, disease recurrence after reducing or stopping steroid therapy hampers early withdrawal of glucocorticoid maintenance therapy. In addition, knowledge has accumulated in diagnostic approaches including differential diagnosis of anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibodies-associated vasculitis, idiopathic multicentric Castleman’s disease, and Rosai–Dorfman disease with kidney lesion, which leads to earlier and precise diagnosis of IgG4-RKD. This review summarizes recent progress in the differential diagnosis of IgG4-RKD and related treatment strategies and recent topics of hypocomplementaemia, membranous glomerulonephritis, and IgG4-related pyelitis and periureteral lesion.
Early predictors of colchicine resistance in familial Mediterranean fever
Authors: Mosad Mosa Doaa , Shokry Doaa , Ahmed Dina B , Sobh Ali
Published: July 2022

Objective

To explore early features that can predict colchicine resistance in familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) patients.

Methods

It included FMF cases who fulfilled the Yalcinkaya–Ozen criterion and were on colchicine for at least 6 months. Data were collected from medical files and interpreted with respect to clinical parameters, incluing the auto-inflammatory diseases activity index (AIDAI) and FMF severity score. FMF50 score assessed the treatment response. Laboratory findings and genetic analysis of Mediterranean fever (MEFV) mutations were evaluated according to the standard technique. Patients were classified into two groups according to their response to colchicine. Both groups were compared, and significant variables were entered into a logistic regression model to detect independent predictors. The diagnostic accuracy of these predictors was assessed using the receiver operating characteristic curve.

Results

In all, 120 FMF children were included. After the exclusion of 16 non-compliant patients (13.3%), colchicine responders were 66 (63.4%) (group I) and colchicine-resistant cases (group II) were 38 (36.5%). The fever duration after colchicine, number of attacks before/after colchicine, skin rash/erysipelas-like erythema, myalgia/protracted febrile myalgia, AIDAI before/after treatment, FMF severity score, and the maximum colchicine dose were higher in group II. Furthermore, high C-reactive protein and neutropenia were frequent in group II. However, different MEFV mutations, including M694V were similar between the two groups. Eight variables were detected in the regression analysis model, and independent predictors were utilized to generate a scoring model.

Conclusion

This study constructed a prediction model for colchicine nonresponse based on clinical and laboratory profiles. This model will be valuable for the treatment decisions of FMF children.
The European Kidney Health Alliance (EKHA) and the Decade of the KidneyTM
Authors: Vanholder Raymond , Conway Paul T , Gallego Daniel , Scheres Eveline , Wieringa Fokko
Published: July 2022

The European Kidney Health Alliance (EKHA) is an advocacy organization that defends the case of the kidney patients and the nephrological community at the level of the European Union (EU), and from there, top to bottom, also at the national level of the EU member states and the EU-associated countries. The Decade of the KidneyTM is a global initiative launched by the American Association of Kidney Patients (AAKP) to create greater awareness and organize patient demands for long overdue innovation in kidney care. This article describes the medical and patient burden of kidney disease, the history of EKHA, its major activities and tools for policy action, and the need for innovation of kidney care. We then describe the Decade of the KidneyTM initiative, the rationale behind why EKHA joined this activity to emanate parallel action at the European side, the novel professionalized structure of EKHA, and its immediate targets. The final aim is to align all major stakeholders for an action plan on kidney disease comparable to Europe's successful Beating Cancer Plan, with the additional intent that the EKHA model is applied also by the respective national kidney-related societies to create a broad mobilization at all levels. The ultimate aims are that the EU considers chronic kidney disease (CKD) as a major health and health-economic problem, to consequently have CKD included as a key health research target by the European Commission, and to improve quality of life and outcomes for all kidney patients.