bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A tale of two unconventional adult diaphragmatic hernias
Authors: Gunia DM , Porter DJ , Alijani A , Patil P
Published: October 2022

Diaphragmatic hernias can be congenital or acquired and are a protrusion of intra-abdominal contents through an abnormal opening in the diaphragm. Acquired defects are rare and occur secondary to direct penetrating injury or blunt abdominal trauma. This case review demonstrates two unconventional cases of large diaphragmatic hernias with viscero-abdominal disproportion in adults. Case 1 is a 27-year-old man with no prior medical or surgical history. He presented following a 24-h history of increasing shortness of breath and left-sided pleuritic chest pain, and no history of trauma. Chest X-ray demonstrated loops of bowel within the left hemithorax with displacement of the mediastinum to the right. Computed tomography (CT) scan confirmed a large diaphragmatic defect causing herniation of most of his abdominal contents into the left hemithorax. He underwent emergency surgery, which confirmed the viscero-abdominal disproportion. He required an extended right hemicolectomy to reduce the volume of the abdominal comtents and laparostomy to reduce the risk of abdominal compartment syndrome and recurrence of the hernia. Case 2 is a 76-year-old man with significant medical comorbidities who presented with acute onset of abdominal pain. He had a history of traumatic right-sided chest injury as a child resulting in right-sided diaphragmatic paralysis. Chest X-ray demonstrated a large right-sided diaphragmatic hernia with abdominal viscera in the right thoracic cavity. CT scan of the chest, abdomen and pelvis demonstrated both small and large bowel loops within the right hemithorax, compression of the right lung and displacement of the mediastinum to the left. The CT scan also demonstarted viscero-abdominal disproportion. Operative management was considered initially but following improvement with basic medical management and no further deterioration, a non-operative approach was adopted. Both cases illustrate atypical presentations of adults with diaphragmatic hernias. In an ideal scenario, these are repaired surgically. When the presumed diagnosis shows characteristics of a viscero-abdominal disproportion and surgery is pursued, the surgeon must consider that primary abdominal closure may not be possible and multiple operations may be necessary to correct the defect and achieve closure. Sacrifice of abdominal viscera may also be necessary to reduce the volume of abdominal contents.
Manipulation of distal radius fractures: a comparison of Bier’s block vs haematoma block
Authors: Oakley B , Busby C , Kulkarni S , Arnold SJ , Kulkarni SS , Ollivere BJ
Published: October 2022

Introduction

Displaced distal radius fractures often require manipulation under anaesthesia. Many anaesthetic techniques are described, with the two most commonly used being Bier’s block (BB) and haematoma block (HB). Despite national guidance preferring a BB, an HB is often performed instead. This study aims to compare the analgesic properties of a BB with those of an HB when manipulating distal radius fractures.

Methods

This is an observational cohort study comparing the management of displaced distal radius fractures requiring reduction across two National Health Service trusts. Patients aged over 18 with isolated, displaced distal radius fractures were recruited. Patient demographics, AO fracture classification and grade of clinician performing the procedure were recorded. A numeric rating scale (NRS) pain score was obtained for each patient after manipulation. The quality of reduction was judged against standardised anatomical parameters.

Results

Some 200 patients were recruited (100 HB, 100 BB). There were no differences in age (BB: median 66.5 years, interquartile range [IQR] 55–74; HB: median 67 years, IQR 55–74; p = 0.79) or fracture characteristics (p = 0.29) between cohorts. Patients undergoing BB had significantly lower pain scores with a lower IQR than those undergoing HB (p < 0.005). Patients undergoing BB manipulation were more likely to have the fracture reduced and normal anatomy restored (p < 0.005). BBs were performed mainly by Foundation Year 2 junior doctors, whereas HB manipulations were performed by a range of clinicians from emergency nurse practitioners to consultants.

Conclusions

BB provides better analgesia than an HB. This can be performed successfully and reliably by Senior House Officer-level junior doctors.
Tunable broadband transmittance and Faraday effect in a magnetophotonic nanostructure with gradient thickness
Authors: Borovkova Olga , Belotelov Vladimir
Published: October 2022

We propose a magnetic photonic crystal (MPC) nanostructure with a gradient thickness of the magnetic layer. Such a nanostructure exhibits on-the-fly adjustment of optical and magneto-optical (MO) properties. Spatial displacement of the input beam allows tuning of the spectral position of the defect mode resonance in the bandgap of both transmission and magneto-optical spectra. Meanwhile, by varying the diameter of the input beam or its focus one can control the resonance width in both optical and magneto-optical spectra.
A vigilant observation to pregnancy associated listeriosis in Africa: Systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Geteneh Alene , Biset Sirak , Tadesse Selamyhun , Admas Alemale , Seid Abdu , Belay Demeke Mesfin
Published: October 2022

The burden of human listeriosis, an emerging food-borne illness would be higher in Africa due to poor food processing practices. The severity of the disease and the high case fatality rate make human listeriosis an important public health problem. Besides, pregnant women and their fetuses are at higher risk of gaining human listeriosis. Thus, we planned to estimate the pooled prevalence of pregnancy-associated human listeriosis in Africa. Primary studies were exhaustively searched using PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and University of Gondar online research repository. Observational studies (cross-sectional) revealing the pregnancy-associated human listeriosis were incorporated. Eligible studies were selected and critically appraised for quality using the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) quality appraisal checklist. The required data were extracted and exported to Stata version 14 for meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of pregnancy-associated human listeriosis in Africa was estimated using a weighted inverse random effect model. Sensitivity and sub-group analysis were conducted for evidence of heterogeneity. Among 639 reviewed articles, 5 articles were eligible with total study participants of 621. The pooled prevalence of pregnancy-associated listeriosis was found to be 5.17% (95% CI, 1.51, 8.82). The pooled level resistance of isolates was high. Cotrimoxazole and erythromycin were the relative choices of antibiotics for pregnancy-associated listeriosis in Africa. The burden of pregnancy-associated listeriosis in Africa was higher with an increased level of antibiotic resistance. Therefore, we recommend due attention to the deadly emerging disease in terms of health educations and the role of food hygiene particularly for risk groups, pregnant women. The antibiotics of choice should be after performing drug susceptibility test.
A novel abnormality annotation database for COVID-19 affected frontal lung X-rays
Authors: Mittal Surbhi , Venugopal Vasantha Kumar , Agarwal Vikash Kumar , Malhotra Manu , Chatha Jagneet Singh , Kapur Savinay , Gupta Ankur , Batra Vikas , Majumdar Puspita , Malhotra Aakarsh , Thakral Kartik , Chhabra Saheb , Vatsa Mayank , Singh Richa , Chaudhury Santanu
Published: October 2022

Consistent clinical observations of characteristic findings of COVID-19 pneumonia on chest X-rays have attracted the research community to strive to provide a fast and reliable method for screening suspected patients. Several machine learning algorithms have been proposed to find the abnormalities in the lungs using chest X-rays specific to COVID-19 pneumonia and distinguish them from other etiologies of pneumonia. However, despite the enormous magnitude of the pandemic, there are very few instances of public databases of COVID-19 pneumonia, and to the best of our knowledge, there is no database with annotation of abnormalities on the chest X-rays of COVID-19 affected patients. Annotated databases of X-rays can be of significant value in the design and development of algorithms for disease prediction. Further, explainability analysis for the performance of existing or new deep learning algorithms will be enhanced significantly with access to ground-truth abnormality annotations. The proposed COVID Abnormality Annotation for X-Rays (CAAXR) database is built upon the BIMCV-COVID19+ database which is a large-scale dataset containing COVID-19+ chest X-rays. The primary contribution of this study is the annotation of the abnormalities in over 1700 frontal chest X-rays. Further, we define protocols for semantic segmentation as well as classification for robust evaluation of algorithms. We provide benchmark results on the defined protocols using popular deep learning models such as DenseNet, ResNet, MobileNet, and VGG for classification, and UNet, SegNet, and Mask-RCNN for semantic segmentation. The classwise accuracy, sensitivity, and AUC-ROC scores are reported for the classification models, and the IoU and DICE scores are reported for the segmentation models.
Effect of surface water and underground water drip irrigation on cotton growth and yield under two different irrigation schemes
Authors: Niaz Nihal , Tang Cheng
Published: October 2022

To investigate the effect of surface water and underground water drip irrigation on cotton yield, dry matter accumulation and nutrients uptake, two consecutive field experiments were conducted. The first experiment (different mixing ratio irrigation) comprised of five ratios of underground water to surface water including; 1:0 (U), 0:1 (S), 1:1 (U:S = 1:1), 1:2 (U:S = 1:2) and 1:3 (U:S = 1:3). Whereas, the second experiment (round irrigation) comprised of eight treatments including: 1:3 (T1), 2:2 (T2), 3:1 (T3), {S:U 3:1 (T4)}, 2:2 {S:U (T5)}, 1:3 {S:U (T6)}, 4:0 (T7) and 0:4 (T8). The average concentration of leaves dry matter after 8th irrigation in different mixing ratio experiment was significantly increased by 131.2% (S), 34.4% (U: S = 1:1), 59.3% (U: S = 1:2), and 93.7% (U: S = 1:3), respectively, relative to U treatment. Likewise, the stem dry matter increased from 48.5 g (U), to 122.2 g (S) and 101.6 g (U:S = 1:3). The soil available N at 0–20 cm after 8th irrigation recorded an average increase rate of 40.1%, 6.6%, 13.5%, and 29.5%, respectively. However, at 20-40cm an average increase rate of 37.4% (S), 7.1% (U: S = 1:1), 20.0% (U: S = 1:2), and 21.9% (U: S = 1:3) were noted (p < 0.05). The highest cotton yield of 6571 kg h-1 was recorded in S treatment compared with the U treatment (5492 kg h-1), U: S = 1:1 (5502 kg h-1), U: S = 1:2 (5873 kg h-1) and U: S = 1:3 (6111 kg h-1). Contrastingly, in round irrigation experiment the highest leaves dry matter at various growth stages were recorded in T8 treatment. For instance, compared with T7 treatment an average increase rate of 50.6% (growth), 100.9% (boll) and 93.3% (boll opening), in stem dry matter were recorded in T8 treatment. Moreover, the concentration of N in round irrigation at 0–20 cm at different growth stages were 83.3±2.8 (growth stage), 79.01±1.84 (boll stage), and 96.16±3.83 (boll opening stage) in T8. Whereas, in T7 the concentration of N was 36.1±5.9 (growth), 54.51±2.81 (boll), and 53.9±3.83 (boll opening) (p < 0.05). Similarly, cotton yield were substantially higher in T8 applied treatment and follows the sequence of T8 > T1 > T4 > T2 > T5 > T3 > T6 > T7. Overall, our findings provide meaningful information to current irrigation practices in water scarce regions. Improving water use efficiency is a viable solution to the water scarcity. Therefore, surface water irrigation is recommended as an effective irrigation strategies to improve cotton yield and growth.
Predictors of time to recovery of preterm neonates with respiratory distress syndrome admitted in University of Gondar comprehensive specialized hospital neonatal intensive care unit North West Ethiopia
Authors: Yismaw Ayenew Engida , Gelagay Abebaw Addis , Sisay Malede Mequanent , Yismaw Yazacchew Engida
Published: October 2022

Background

Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) is caused by a deficiency of a molecule called surfactant. It occurs in newborns born before 37 weeks of gestation. It is a main cause of morbidity and mortality in the early neonatal period.

Therefore, this study aims to assess median time to recovery and predictors of preterm neonates with respiratory distress syndrome admitted in University of Gondar comprehensive specialized hospital Northwest Ethiopia 2020.

Methods

Institution based retrospective follow up study was conducted on 386 preterm neonates with hyaline membrane disease who were admitted in the neonatal intensive care unit from January, 2016 to December 2018. The data were entered in to EPI info version 7.0 and transferred to Stata version 14.0 for analysis. Both bi-variable and multi variable Weibull parametric model were fitted to identify predictors with 95% confidence interval of hazard ratio (HR) and p-value. P-value less than 0.05 in the multivariable model showed the presence of significant association between covariates and the dependent variable.

Results

The overall median length of recovery were 11 day with an interquartile range of (7, 16) neonate-days. Being a product of multiple pregnancy (AHR 1.67; 95%CI (1.25, 2.23)), vaginal mode of delivery (AHR 1.6; 95%CI (1.13, 2.26)), and neonatal hypothermia at admission (AHR 1.6; 95%CI (1.13, 2.26)) were found to be significant predictors of time to recovery.

Conclusion

In this study the median time to recovery of preterm neonates with respiratory distress syndrome was slower than the clinical recommendations. Receiving bag and mask ventilation and hypothermia decreased the recovery whereas, vaginal delivery gestational age at birth, being multiple pregnancy, birth weight ≥2000grams were enhance the recovery of preterm neonates with RDS.
Quality of life in older adults with chronic kidney disease and transient changes in renal function: Findings from the Oxford Renal cohort
Authors: Busa Isabella , Ordóñez-Mena José M. , Yang Yaling , Wolstenholme Jane , Petrou Stavros , Taylor Clare J. , O’Callaghan Chris A. , Fraser Simon D. S. , Taal Maarten W. , McManus Richard J. , Hirst Jennifer A. , Hobbs F. D. Richard
Published: October 2022

Background

Quality of life (QoL) is an important measure of disease burden and general health perception. The relationship between early chronic kidney disease (CKD) and QoL remains poorly understood. The Oxford Renal Study (OxRen) cohort comprises 1063 adults aged ≥60 years from UK primary care practices screened for early CKD, grouped according to existing or screen-detected CKD diagnoses, or biochemistry results indicative of reduced renal function (referred to as transient estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) reduction).

Objectives

This study aimed to compare QoL in participants known to have CKD at recruitment to those identified as having CKD through a screening programme.

Methods

Health profile data and multi-attribute utility scores were reported for two generic questionnaires: 5-level EuroQol-5 Dimension (EQ-5D-5L) and ICEpop CAPability measure for Adults (ICECAP-A). QoL was compared between patients with existing and screen-detected CKD; those with transient eGFR reduction served as the reference group in univariable and multivariable linear regression.

Results

Mean and standard deviation utility scores were not significantly different between the subgroups for EQ-5D-5L (screen-detected:0.785±0.156, n = 480, transient:0.779±0.157, n = 261, existing CKD:0.763±0.171, n = 322, p = 0.216) or ICECAP-A (screen-detected:0.909±0.094, transient:0.904±0.110, existing CKD:0.894±0.115, p = 0.200). Age, smoking status, and number of comorbidities were identified as independent predictors of QoL in this cohort.

Conclusion

QoL of participants with existing CKD diagnoses was not significantly different from those with screen-detected CKD or transient eGFR reduction and was similar to UK mean scores for the same age, suggesting that patient burden of early CKD is minor. Moreover, CKD-related comorbidities contribute more significantly to disease burden in earlier stages of CKD than renal function per se. Larger prospective studies are required to define the relationship between QoL and CKD progression more precisely. These data also confirm the essentially asymptomatic nature of CKD, implying that routine screening or case finding are required to diagnose it.
Predictive validity of the quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score for the mortality in patients with sepsis in Vietnamese intensive care units
Authors: Do Son Ngoc , Luong Chinh Quoc , Nguyen My Ha , Pham Dung Thi , Nguyen Nga Thi , Huynh Dai Quang , Hoang Quoc Trong Ai , Dao Co Xuan , Vu Thang Dinh , Bui Ha Nhat , Nguyen Hung Tan , Hoang Hai Bui , Le Thuy Thi Phuong , Nguyen Lien Thi Bao , Duong Phuoc Thien , Nguyen Tuan Dang , Le Vuong Hung , Pham Giang Thi Tra , Bui Tam Van , Bui Giang Thi Huong , Phua Jason , Li Andrew , Pham Thao Thi Ngoc , Nguyen Chi Van , Nguyen Anh Dat
Published: October 2022

Background

The simple scoring systems for predicting the outcome of sepsis in intensive care units (ICUs) are few, especially for limited-resource settings. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the accuracy of the quick Sequential (Sepsis-Related) Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score in predicting the mortality of ICU patients with sepsis in Vietnam.

Methods

We did a multicenter cross-sectional study of patients with sepsis (≥18 years old) presenting to 15 adult ICUs throughout Vietnam on the specified days (i.e., 9th January, 3rd April, 3rd July, and 9th October) representing the different seasons of 2019. The primary and secondary outcomes were the hospital and ICU all-cause mortalities, respectively. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) was calculated to determine the discriminatory ability of the qSOFA score for deaths in the hospital and ICU. The cut-off value of the qSOFA scores was determined by the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. Upon ICU admission, factors associated with the hospital and ICU mortalities were assessed in univariable and multivariable logistic models.

Results

Of 252 patients, 40.1% died in the hospital, and 33.3% died in the ICU. The qSOFA score had a poor discriminatory ability for both the hospital (AUROC: 0.610 [95% CI: 0.538 to 0.681]; cut-off value: ≥2.5; sensitivity: 34.7%; specificity: 84.1%; PAUROC = 0.003) and ICU (AUROC: 0.619 [95% CI: 0.544 to 0.694]; cutoff value: ≥2.5; sensitivity: 36.9%; specificity: 83.3%; PAUROC = 0.002) mortalities. However, multivariable logistic regression analyses show that the qSOFA score of 3 was independently associated with the increased risk of deaths in both the hospital (adjusted odds ratio, AOR: 3.358; 95% confidence interval, CI: 1.756 to 6.422) and the ICU (AOR: 3.060; 95% CI: 1.651 to 5.671).

Conclusion

In our study, despite having a poor discriminatory value, the qSOFA score seems worthwhile in predicting mortality in ICU patients with sepsis in limited-resource settings.

Clinical trial registration

Clinical trials registry–India: CTRI/2019/01/016898
Bio-efficacy, physical integrity, use and attrition of long-lasting insecticidal nets under operational conditions for malaria prevention in Ghana
Authors: Adageba Stephen Kantum , Kanmiki Edmund Wedam , Asoala Victor , Oduro Abraham Rexford , Baidoo Philip Kweku
Published: October 2022

Background

Malaria remains a public health challenge in endemic countries of the world. The use of Long-lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINs) is one of the major ways of malaria vector control. Recent evidence however suggests some LLINs are unable to maintain their effectiveness over their useful life span. This study assessed the bio-efficacy, physical integrity, use and attrition at 6 and 12-months post-distribution of LLINs (LifeNet).

Methods

Following a mass distribution of LLINs in the West Mamprusi District of the North-East region of Ghana in 2018, a total of 147 LLINs were sampled for physical integrity and attrition assessment using hole size and the number of holes as a measure of the proportionate hole index (pHI). Bioassays were conducted on sixty randomly selected LLINs using the WHO guidelines for bio-efficacy testing (cone tests), (20 each at baseline, midline and endline) over a one-year study period. Bed net ownership and use as well as malaria vector resistance status were also assessed.

Results

Findings indicate high bio-efficacy of approximately 100% average mortalities of mosquitoes at baseline, 6-months and 12-months post-distribution. A small proportion of LLINs (0.8% and 5.6% at the 6 and 12-months surveys respectively) were damaged beyond maintenance while 62.4% and 62.7% of LLINs were used the night before the survey for 6 and 12-months post-distribution respectively. Households with electricity were less likely to use LLINs compared to those without electricity (P-value = 0.016, OR = 0.39). There were 20 fewer LLINs recovered at the 12-months relative to the 6-months resulting in 14.3% attrition rate. Susceptibility testing showed high pyrethroid and organochlorine resistance (18%, 67.5% and 3.8%) to local malaria vectors respectively), whereas organophosphates and carbamates recorded vector susceptibility of 100% for pirimiphos-methyl and 98.7% for bendiocarb.

Conclusion

Biological efficacy, physical integrity and net attrition during the study period were in conformity with respect to the WHOPES one year net use. LLINs remained effective after one-year of usage. Net ownership was high in the study households. There should be continuous and regular distribution campaigns to maintain high coverage.
Breath detection algorithms affect multiple-breath washout outcomes in pre-school and school age children
Authors: Oestreich Marc-Alexander , Wyler Florian , Frauchiger Bettina S. , Latzin Philipp , Ramsey Kathryn A.
Published: October 2022

Background

Accurate breath detection is essential for the computation of outcomes in the multiple-breath washout (MBW) technique. This is particularly important in young children, where irregular breathing is common, and the designation of inspirations and expirations can be challenging.

Aim

To investigate differences between a commercial and a novel breath-detection algorithm and to characterize effects on MBW outcomes in children.

Methods

We replicated the signal processing and algorithms used in Spiroware software (v3.3.1, Eco Medics AG). We developed a novel breath detection algorithm (custom) and compared it to Spiroware using 2,455 nitrogen (N2) and 325 sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) trials collected in infants, children, and adolescents.

Results

In 83% of N2 and 32% of SF6 trials, the Spiroware breath detection algorithm rejected breaths and did not use them for the calculation of MBW outcomes. Our custom breath detection algorithm determines inspirations and expirations based on flow reversal and corresponding CO2 elevations, and uses all breaths for data analysis. In trials with regular tidal breathing, there were no differences in outcomes between algorithms. However, in 10% of pre-school children tests the number of breaths detected differed by more than 10% and the commercial algorithm underestimated the lung clearance index by up to 21%.

Conclusion

Accurate breath detection is challenging in young children. As the MBW technique relies on the cumulative analysis of all washout breaths, the rejection of breaths should be limited. We provide an improved algorithm that accurately detects breaths based on both flow reversal and CO2 concentration.
Effect of benzo(a)pyrene on oxidative stress and inflammatory mediators in astrocytes and HIV-infected macrophages
Authors: Kumar Asit , Sinha Namita , Kodidela Sunitha , Zhou Lina , Singh Udai P. , Kumar Santosh
Published: October 2022

Background

Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), an important polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) component of cigarette/tobacco smoking, is known to cause adverse health effects and is responsible for various life-threatening conditions including cancer. However, it is not yet clear whether BaP contributes to the macrophage- and astrocyte-mediated inflammatory response.

Methods

We examined the acute (up to 72 h) effects of BaP on the expression of antioxidant enzymes (AOEs), cytokines/chemokines, and cytochromes P450 (CYP) enzymes in astrocytic cell lines, SVGA, and chronically HIV-infected U1 macrophage. The treated cells were examined for mRNA, protein levels of CYPs, AOEs superoxide dismutase-1 (SOD1) and catalase (CAT), cytokines/chemokines, using Western blot, multiplex ELISA, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) by flow cytometry analysis.

Results

Upon acute exposure, BaP (1 μM) showed a significant increase in the mRNA levels of CYPs (CYP1A1 and CYP1B1), and pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-1β in SVGA cells following BaP for 24, 48, and 72h. In addition, we observed a significant increase in the mRNA levels of SOD1 and CAT at 24h of BaP treatment. In contrast, BaP did not exert any change in the protein expression of AOEs and CYP enzymes. In U1 cells, however, we noticed an interesting increase in the levels of MCP-1 as well as a modest increase in TNFα, IL-8 and IL-1β levels observed at 72 h of BaP treatment but could not reach to statistically significant level.

Conclusions

Overall, these results suggest that BaP contributes in part to macrophage and astrocyte-mediated neuroinflammation by mainly inducing IL-1β and MCP-1 production, which is likely to occur with the involvement of CYP and/or oxidative stress pathways.
Two is better than one: Using a single emotion lexicon can lead to unreliable conclusions
Authors: Czarnek Gabriela , Stillwell David
Published: October 2022

Emotion lexicons became a popular method for quantifying affect in large amounts of textual data (e.g., social media posts). There are multiple independently developed emotion lexicons which tend to correlate positively with one another but not entirely. Such differences between lexicons may not matter if they are just unsystematic noise, but if there are systematic differences this could affect conclusions of a study. The goal of this paper is to examine whether two extensively used, apparently domain-independent lexicons for emotion analysis would give the same answer to a theory-driven research question. Specifically, we use the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) and NRC Word-Emotion Association Lexicon (NRC). As an example, we investigate whether older people have more positive expression through their language use. We examined nearly 5 million tweets created by 3,573 people between 18 to 78 years old and found that both methods show an increase in positive affect until age 50. After that age, however, according to LIWC, positive affect drops sharply, whereas according to NRC, the growth of positive affect increases steadily until age 65 and then levels off. Thus, using one or the other method would lead researchers to drastically different theoretical conclusions regarding affect in older age. We unpack why the two methods give inconsistent conclusions and show this was mostly due to a particular class of words: those related to politics. We conclude that using a single lexicon might lead to unreliable conclusions, so we suggest that researchers should routinely use at least two lexicons. If both lexicons come to the same conclusion then the research evidence is reliable, but if not then researchers should further examine the lexicons to find out what difference might be causing inconclusive result.
Endothelial derived miRNA-9 mediated cardiac fibrosis in diabetes and its regulation by ZFAS1
Authors: Feng Biao , Liu Jieting , Wang Eric , Su Zhaoliang , Chakrabarti Subrata
Published: October 2022

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is one of the most prevalent causes of morbidity and mortality in diabetic patients. Hyperglycemia induces increased expression/deposition of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins including fibronectin (FN) and collagen (Col) and plays an important role in fibrosis in diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM). The roles of RNAs including microRNA (miRNA) and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNA) have begun to be understood in many conditions. In this study, we investigated the role of a specific miRNA, miR-9, and its interactions with lncRNA ZFAS1 in mediating fibrosis in DCM. Treatment with 25 mM glucose (HG) decreased miR-9 expression and increased expressions of ZFAS1, ECM proteins and inflammatory markers, compared to 5 mM glucose (NG) in the HCMECs by using qRT-PCR. Glucose-induced upregulation of ECM proteins can be prevented by ZFAS1 siRNA or miR-9 mimic transfection. Luciferase assay was confirmed miR-9 binding to FN 3’-UTR. miR-9 expression can be regulated by ZFAS1 through polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) components using RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays. In thein vivoexperiment, hyperglycemia-induced the ECM production can be prevented by the miR-9 overexpression in the fibrosis in DCM. These studies showed a novel glucose-induced molecular mechanism in which ZFAS1 participates in the transcriptional regulation of ECM protein production in diabetes through miR-9.
Position biases in sequential location selection: Effects of region, choice history, and visibility of previous selections
Authors: Hübner Ronald
Published: October 2022

In some situations, e.g., when filling out lottery tickets, it can be advantageous to select random locations. However, people usually have difficulties with this, because they are biased by preferences for certain regions, such as the center of an area. According to ideas from art theory, the preferred regions reflect the hidden structure of perceptual forces within an area. In the present study, these structures were investigated and modeled under different conditions for areas with square and rectangular shape. The general task was to sequentially place a number of dots at random locations in an area by clicking with the computer mouse at corresponding positions on the screen. Whereas in a single-dot condition each dot had to be placed in an empty area, the previously placed dots remained visible in a multiple-dots condition. In three experiments it was found that dots were preferentially placed at the center, the diagonals, and the principal axes. This preference was more pronounced in the single than in the multiple-dot condition. Moreover, sequential analyses revealed that dot placing was not only planned in advance, but that the participants also agreed to some extent in their sequential selections, which produced surprisingly similar sequential spatial patterns across participants, at least for the first dots. Altogether, the results indicate that people have great difficulties with the random selection of locations. Their selections are strongly affected by the attraction of specific regions, by previous selections, and by sequential habits.
Association of anthropometric indices with the development of multimorbidity in middle-aged and older adults: A retrospective cohort study
Authors: Geng Shuoji , Chen Xuejiao , Shi Zhan , Bai Kaizhi , Shi Songhe
Published: October 2022

Background

Previous studies have explored the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and multimorbidity. However, the relationship between other obesity indicators and their dynamic changes and multimorbidity has not been systematically estimated. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the association of BMI and other obesity indicators, including waist circumference (WC), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), waist divided by height0.5 (WHT.5R), and body roundness index (BRI) and their changes and the risk of multimorbidity in middle-aged and older adults through a retrospective cohort study.

Methods

Data collected from annual health examination dataset in the Jinshui during 2017 and 2021. Cox regression models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to evaluate the effect of baseline and dynamic changes in the anthropometric indices on the risk of multimorbidity.

Results

A total of 75,028 individuals were included in the study, and 5,886 participants developed multimorbidity during the follow-up. Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed a progressive increase in the risk of multimorbidity with increasing anthropometric indicators (BMI, WC, WHtR, WHT.5R, and BRI) (all P<0.001). Regardless of general obesity status at baseline, increased WC was associated with a high risk of multimorbidity. Compared to the subjects with baseline BMI<24 kg/m2 and WC<90 (men)/80 (women), the HRs (95% CI) of the baseline BMI<24 kg/m2 and WC≥90 (men)/80 (women) group and BMI≥24 kg/m2 and WC≥90 (men)/80 (women) group were 1.31 (1.08, 1.61) and 1.82 (1.68, 1.97), respectively. In addition, the dynamics of WC could reflect the risk of multimorbidity. When subjects with baseline WC<90 (men)/80 (women) progressed to WC≥90 (men)/80 (women) during follow-up, the risk of multimorbidity significantly increased (HR = 1.78; 95% CI, 1.64, 1.95), while the risk of multimorbidity tended to decrease when people with abnormal WC at baseline reversed to normal at follow-up (HR = 1.40; 95% CI, 1.26, 1.54) compared to those who still exhibited abnormal WC at follow-up (HR = 2.00; 95% CI, 1.82, 2.18).

Conclusions

Central obesity is an independent and alterable risk factor for the occurrence of multimorbidity in middle-aged and elderly populations. In addition to the clinical measurement of BMI, the measurement of the central obesity index WC may provide additional benefits for the identification of multimorbidity in the Chinese middle-aged and elderly populations.
Mainstreaming communication of adaptation to climate change: Some initiatives from Central Africa
Authors: Sonwa Denis Jean , Mbede Emmanuel , Bele Mekou Youssoufa , Abilogo Edith , Ngaunkam Precilia
Published: October 2022

Despite its low carbon emission, Africa is one of the regions most impacted by the adverse effects of climate change. Because of its impacts on health, infrastructure, settlements, agriculture and food security, and forest ecosystems, climate change is an additional burden to sustainable development in Central Africa. As such, there is an urgent need to transfer lifesaving information about the environment and especially the effects and adaptation to climate change in the region. However, in a region where there is still a relatively high incidence of illiteracy, very localized languages and dialects and remote settlements, communicating information can be a challenge. In addition, communication schools and journalists are insufficiently equipped to respond to this demand. A survey in Cameroon revealed that journalists are faced with some challenges (such as lack of training and lack of resource persons) in covering environment topics, especially those related to forest and climate change adaptation. In order to address these challenges and contribute to the improvement of the journalistic style of reporting topics on forest and climate change adaptation with more scientific knowledge and to create a stronger scientific base of event coverage, pilot capacity-building initiatives were initiated with the specific objectives as follows: (1) training of journalists during workshops; (2) fellowships award for research activities to communication master students; (3) mentoring of senior and junior journalists and (4) open reflection on how to mainstream forests and adaptation to climate change in curricula of communication schools in Central Africa. This last initiative of mainstreaming forests and adaptation to climate change in the school curricula was seen as a possible sustainable way to promote scientific and environmental communication in Central Africa. These activities initiated by CIFOR (Center for International Forestry Research) under the framework of CoFCCA project (Congo Basin Forest and Climate Change Adaptation) were pilot initiatives aiming to inspire others on capacity building and research related to scientific and environmental communication in Central Africa.
MERGE and Pair-Merge of Heads
Authors:   The Society Of Modern Grammar, Shim Jae-Young
Published: October 2022

Jae-Young Shim. 2022. MERGE and Pair-Merge of Heads. Studies in Modern Grammar 115, 1-26. Chomsky (2019a,b, 2020) reformulates the standardly assumed conception of Merge in terms of workspace, arguing that the operation only operates over syntactic objects placed in a workspace. Alongside this revised version of Merge, often referred to as ‘(capital) MERGE’ in the literature, he proposes a principle of Resource Restriction which, he claims, MERGE ought to meet. In this paper, I first review the workspace-based operation MERGE and present its empirical and conceptual advantages over its predecessor, Merge.
I then examine the two proposals on pair-Merge of heads put forward in Chomsky (2015) and Epstein, Kitahara and Seely (2016) with discussions on their potential conceptual problems with respect to rule ordering and Anti-Locality. I further show that possible implementations of pair-Merge of heads in the MERGE-based system give rise to some new problems in terms of accessibility defined by Minimal Search. Finally, focusing on pair-MERGE of R and v*, I present an alternative analysis to resolve the addressed problems, arguing that the pair-merged structure of R and v* is generated, not in the course of derivation but inside the Lexicon via a merging process I call Lexical Merger, or l-merger.
Effects of Focus on Forms and Focus on Form Instruction on Middle-Aged and Elderly Learners’ English Grammar Acquisition
Authors:   The Society Of Modern Grammar, Choi Kyungmi , Seog Daria Soon-Young , Choi Incheol
Published: October 2022

Kyungmi Choi, Daria Soon-Young Seog, and Incheol Choi. 2022. Studies in Modern Grammar 115, 119-137. Effects of Focus on Forms and Focus on Form Instruction on Middle-Aged and Elderly Learners’ English Grammar Acquisition.
This study, to find an effective way for older adult learners to acquire English, aims to investigate the extent instruction needs to be intentional or explicit.
Traditionally, the issue was dealt with in terms of the effect of two instructional approaches—focus on forms (FonFs) and focus on form (FonF). The results of the grammaticality judgment test with audio stimuli show that FonFs instruction is a more appropriate method for middle-aged and elderly groups’ acquisition of grammatical knowledge than FonF instruction. In addition, it suggests that even among older adult learners, age still matters. That is, “the younger, the better” applies to adult learners of age 40 and above.
복합명사구 통사 정보에 따른 문장처리 시선 추적 분석: 관계절 내에서 동사 수 일치 처리양상
Authors:   The Society Of Modern Grammar, Park Boon-Joo
Published: October 2022

Boon-Joo Park, 2022. Eye-movement Analysis of Sentence Processing with Complex Noun Phrase: Number Agreement within the Relative Clause. Studies in Modern Grammar 115, 139-157. The current study aims to investigate how ESL university students undergo the syntactic process of relative clause with complex noun phrases. The target sentences have two kinds of complex noun phrase varied with the numbers: one consists of single noun (N1) and plural noun(N2) phrases and the other consists of plural noun(N1) and single noun (N2) phrases. The data collection through tracking eye-movement during language processing enables us to investigate the process more in-depth level and to have wide range of insight of language learners’ processing. The results from eye-movement analysis showed that the participants underwent different process the two mismatched types of relative clause with complex noun phrases (singular – plural NPs vs. plural-singular NPs).
한국어 원인ㆍ이유 연결형 문법ㆍ표현의 기계번역 양상 —카카오아이, 구글, 파파고 번역기를 중심으로—
Authors:   The Society Of Modern Grammar, Lee Jiyong
Published: October 2022

Jiyong Lee. 2022. A Study on Machine Translation Aspects of Korean Cause and Reason Connection Grammar and Expression Items: Focusing on Kakaoi, Google, and Papago Translator. Studies in Modern Grammar 115, 207-226.
Along with the 4th Industrial Revolution, the era of artificial intelligence has arrived. Artificial intelligence technology is already actively being used in many areas that were considered to be areas that only humans could do. A representative example of this situation is an artificial intelligence-based translator. As time goes by, it is obvious that a high-performance translator will be developed. However, it is time to discuss how translators can be used for learning foreign languages. Therefore, this study aims to examine how the items presented as similar grammar items in Korean language education are calculated in the artificial intelligence translator. Korean similar grammar items are one of the most difficult for teachers and learners in the field of Korean grammar education. This is because grammar items with similar functions exist in various forms. This study aims to analyze how equivalent grammar items that perform these similar functions are realized through machine translation.
The results presented in three types of translators are compared, and furthermore, the accuracy is determined by using the reverse translation method. Based on these research contents, it is expected that it is possible to think about the parts to be supplemented in machine translation and the parts to be considered when using them in Korean language education.
Derivation of [XP-NUN?] Revisited: Reply to Park (2021)
Authors:   The Society Of Modern Grammar, Chung Daeho
Published: October 2022

Daeho Chung. 2022. Derivation of [XP-NUN?] Revisited: Reply to Park (2021).
Studies in Modern Grammar 115, 51-76. Contra Chung’s (2021a) contrastive topic (CT) movement analysis of the so-called contrastive topic fragment (CTF) of the form [XP-NUN?], Park (2021) claims the following: (i) The pre-NUN remnant can be a contrastive focus (CF) (as well as a CT); (ii) the CTF is derived from a cleft-like wh-construction with ettehkey ‘how’ in the pivot; and (iii) the remnants undergo scrambling. This paper makes the following three points: (i) given the generally accepted definitions of topic, the pre-NUN element behaves like a CT, as suggested in Chung (2021a); (ii) Park’s cleft-like construction based derivation faces non-trivial problems, especially with respect to the available interpretation of the CTF; and (iii) Park’s generalized question [XP-NUN etteh/ettehkey ‘how’ ...?] can in fact be viewed as a derived structure due to a clausal replacement by etteh/ettehkey, analogous to the kuleh/kulehkey replacement entertained in Park (2013) and Sohn (2019).
Fuelling compression ignition engine by mineral diesel fuel mixture with synthetic hydrocarbons
Authors: Łodygowski Kamil
Published: October 2022

W artykule przedstawione zostały zagadnienia związane z zastosowaniem perspektywicznej biomieszaniny składającej się z mineralnego oleju napędowego oraz syntetycznych węglowodorów, jako nowego składnika paliw motorowych, celem spełnienia wymagań NCW (Narodowy Cel Wskaźnikowy). Badania nad nową formułą paliwa zostały zrealizowane na nowej generacji silniku o zapłonie samoczynnym wyposażonym w zasobnikowy układ zasilania typu common rail. Badania wykonane były w warunkach prędkościowych charakterystyk zewnętrznych dla określonych wartości prędkości obrotowych wału korbowego i pełnych obciążeń. W eksperymencie użyto dwóch mieszanin paliwa zawierającego 5% oraz 10% (vol/vol) węglowodorów syntetycznych. Paliwo syntetyczne jest wynikiem procesu katalitycznej konwersji bioetanolu do mieszaniny węglowodorów, realizowanego według technologii ETG. Otrzymana frakcja olejowa jest mieszaniną węglowodorów mieszającą się w dowolnym stosunku z węglowodorami ropopochodnymi, całkowicie pozbawioną benzenu, alkoholi, siarki, fosforu i metali. Celem dokonania analizy ekologicznej silnika spalinowego o zapłonie samoczynnym zasilanym paliwem z dodatkiem syntetycznym podczas badań było rejestrowane stężenie toksycznych składników spalin (m. in. HC, CO, NOx) oraz gazów uznawanych za cieplarniane (CO2). Wykazano, że paliwa z dodatkiem syntetycznym cechują się mniejszą degradacją środowiska przy jednoczesnym wzroście mocy silnika w stosunku do zastosowania konwencjonalnych paliw.
Analysis of the reasonableness of using electric drives in motor vehicles
Authors: Kieracińska Anna , Piórkowski Piotr
Published: October 2022

Celem polityki transportowej UE jest plan znacznej redukcji emisji CO2 rozłożonej na lata 2020‑2030‑2050. Stopniowo wprowadzane będą obostrzenia dla pojazdów z napędem spalinowym, aż do całkowitego ich wyeliminowania z ruchu miejskiego do 2050 r. Pojazdy o napędach alternatywnych, niskoemisyjnych będą z kolei promowane. Wysokie ceny trakcyjnych baterii elektrochemicznych sprawiają, że stanowią one znaczny udział w cenie pojazdu, a pojazdy elektryczne są znacznie droższe od pojazdów z napędem konwencjonalnym. Wysokie ceny zakupu są rekompensowane niskimi kosztami energii elektrycznej w stosunku do paliw węglowodorowych. Obecne technologie baterii są technologiami przejściowymi i nie należy ich traktować, jako docelowe, a w ciągu kilku lat mogą okazać się rozwiązaniami drogimi i przestarzałymi. Z kolei trakcyjne silniki elektryczne są budowane, rozwijane i eksploatowane od wielu lat i ryzyko związane z ich awarią jest niższe niż w przypadku baterii. Z procesem ładowania baterii zawsze wiąże się konieczność zapewnienia odpowiedniej infrastruktury sieci energetycznej. Pojazdy elektryczne, a szczególnie baterie i systemy ładowania, są ciągle w fazie rozwoju, jeszcze bez wykrystalizowanej wizji docelowych rozwiązań. Problemem jest też brak infrastruktury i standaryzacji. Mimo to można przypuszczać, że w długim terminie napęd elektryczny (w tym wodorowy), jako zero-emisyjny, będzie napędem docelowym i dominującym.
Comparison of the environmental effect of M1 category vehicles fed with traditional and alternative fuels
Authors: Bukrejewski Paweł , Skolniak Marta , Kowalski Łukasz
Published: October 2022

W artykule przedstawiono krótką charakterystykę porównywanych paliw oraz składników gazów spalinowych. Porównano emisję zanieczyszczeń pojazdów zasilanych paliwami tradycyjnymi oraz gazem ziemnym, zgodne ze standardem emisji Euro 5 i Euro 6 w kategorii pojazdów M1. Przeanalizowano emisję pojazdów takich jak: Fiat Panda, Volkswagen UP, Volkswagen Passat, Volkswagen Touran, Volkswagen Caddy zgodnie z badaniami homologacyjnymi oraz z normami Euro 5 i Euro 6. Przedstawiono dane dotyczące poziomu natężenia hałasu w poszczególnych opisywanych pojazdach oraz zużycie paliwa i koszty eksploatacyjne (koszty paliwa) związane z zasilaniem pojazdów, zarówno paliwami konwencjonalnymi, jak i paliwami alternatywnymi. Na podstawie danych przedstawionych w niniejszym artykule wynika, iż pojazdy zasilane CNG charakteryzowały się mniejszą emisją drogową tlenku węgla w porównaniu do analogicznych pojazdów zasilanych benzyną, natomiast mniejszą emisję drogową węglowodorów i tlenków azotu wykazały pojazdy zasilane benzyną w stosunku do analogicznych pojazdów zasilanych CNG za wyjątkiem testów dotyczących pojazdu Volkswagen Passat. We wszystkich analizowanych pojazdach zasilanych CNG emisja drogowa ditlenku węgla jest mniejsza niż w analogicznych pojazdach zasilanych paliwami konwencjonalnymi.