bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Transcriptomic analyses reveal increased expression of dioxygenases, monooxygenases, and other metabolizing enzymes involved in anthracene degradation in the marine alga Ulva lactuca
Authors: González Alberto , Osorio Héctor , Romero Stephanie , Méndez Patricia , Sepúlveda Muriel , Laporte Daniel , Gutierrez-Cutiño Marlen , Santander Rocío , Castro-Nallar Eduardo , Moenne Alejandra
Published: September 2022

To analyze the mechanisms involved in anthracene (ANT) degradation in the marine algaUlva lactuca, total RNA was obtained from the alga cultivated without ANT and with 5 μM of ANT for 24 h, and transcriptomic analyses were performed. Ade novotranscriptome was assembled, transcripts differentially expressed were selected, and those overexpressed were identified. Overexpressed transcripts potentially involved in ANT degradation were: one aromatic ring dioxygenase, three 2-oxoglutarate Fe (II) dioxygenases (2-OGDOs), and three dienelactone hydrolases that may account for anthraquinone, phthalic anhydride, salicylic acid, and phthalic acid production (pathway 1). In addition, two flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD)-dependent monooxygenases, four cytP450 monooxygenases, two epoxide hydrolase, one hydroxyphenylpyruvic acid dioxygenase (HPPDO), and two homogentisic acid dioxygenases (HGDOs) were identified that may also participate in ANT degradation (pathway 2). Moreover, an alkane monooxygenase (alkB), two alcohol dehydrogenases, and three aldehyde dehydrogenases were identified, which may participate in linear hydrocarbon degradation (pathway 3). Furthermore, the level of transcripts encoding some of mentioned enzymes were quantified by qRT-PCR are in the alga cultivated with 5 μM of ANT for 0–48 h, and those more increased were 2-OGDO, HGDO, and alkB monooxygenase. Thus, at least three pathways for ANT and linear hydrocarbons degradation may be existed inU. lactuca. In addition, ANT metabolites were analyzed by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry (GC–MS), allowing the identification of anthraquinone, phthalic anhydride, salicylic acid, and phthalic acid, thus validating the pathway 1.
Isolation and identification of SiCOL5, which is involved in photoperiod response, based on the quantitative trait locus mapping of Setaria italica
Authors: Li Fei-fei , Niu Jia-hong , Yu Xiao , Kong Qing-hua , Wang Run-feng , Qin Ling , Chen Er-ying , Yang Yan-bing , Liu Zhen-yu , Lang Li-na , Zhang Hua-wen , Wang Hai-lian , Guan Yan-an
Published: September 2022

Foxtail millet (Setaria italica) is a versatile grain and fodder crop grown in arid and semi-arid regions. It is an especially important crop for combating malnutrition in certain poverty-stricken areas of the world. Photoperiod sensitivity is a major constraint to the distribution and utilization of foxtail millet germplasm resources. Foxtail millet may be suitable as a model species for studying the photoperiod sensitivity of C4 crops. However, the genetic basis of the photoperiod response of foxtail millet remains poorly studied. To detect the genetic basis of photoperiod sensitivity-related traits, a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population consisting of 313 lines derived from a cross between the spring-sown cultivar “Longgu 3” and the summer-sown cultivar “Canggu 3” was established. The RIL population was genotyped using whole-genome re-sequencing and was phenotyped in four environments. A high-density genetic linkage map was constructed with an average distance between adjacent markers of 0.69 cM. A total of 21 quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were identified by composite interval mapping, and 116 candidate genes were predicted according to gene annotations and variations between parents, among which three genes were considered important candidate genes by the integration and overall consideration of the results from gene annotation, SNP and indel analysis, cis-element analysis, and the expression pattern of different genes in different varieties, which have different photoperiod sensitivities. A putative candidate gene, SiCOL5, was isolated based on QTL mapping analysis. The expression of SiCOL5 was sensitive to photoperiod and was regulated by biological rhythm-related genes. Function analysis suggested that SiCOL5 positively regulated flowering time. Yeast two-hybrid and bimolecular fluorescence complementation assays showed that SiCOL5 was capable of interacting with SiNF-YA1 in the nucleus.
Crop phenotype prediction using biclustering to explain genotype-by-environment interactions
Authors: Pham Hieu , Reisner John , Swift Ashley , Olafsson Sigurdur , Vardeman Stephen
Published: September 2022

Phenotypic variation in plants is attributed to genotype (G), environment (E), and genotype-by-environment interaction (GEI). Although the main effects of G and E are typically larger and easier to model, the GEI interaction effects are important and a critical factor when considering such issues as to why some genotypes perform consistently well across a range of environments. In plant breeding, a major challenge is limited information, including a single genotype is tested in only a small subset of all possible test environments. The two-way table of phenotype responses will therefore commonly contain missing data. In this paper, we propose a new model of GEI effects that only requires an input of a two-way table of phenotype observations, with genotypes as rows and environments as columns that do not assume the completeness of data. Our analysis can deal with this scenario as it utilizes a novel biclustering algorithm that can handle missing values, resulting in an output of homogeneous cells with no interactions between G and E. In other words, we identify subsets of genotypes and environments where phenotype can be modeled simply. Based on this, we fit no-interaction models to predict phenotypes of a given crop and draw insights into how a particular cultivar will perform in the unused test environments. Our new methodology is validated on data from different plant species and phenotypes and shows superior performance compared to well-studied statistical approaches.
Optimizing predictions in IRRI’s rice drought breeding program by leveraging 17 years of historical data and pedigree information
Authors: Khanna Apurva , Anumalla Mahender , Catolos Margaret , Bhosale Sankalp , Jarquin Diego , Hussain Waseem
Published: September 2022

Prediction models based on pedigree and/or molecular marker information are now an inextricable part of the crop breeding programs and have led to increased genetic gains in many crops. Optimization of IRRI’s rice drought breeding program is crucial for better implementation of selections based on predictions. Historical datasets with precise and robust pedigree information have been a great resource to help optimize the prediction models in the breeding programs. Here, we leveraged 17 years of historical drought data along with the pedigree information to predict the new lines or environments and dissect the G × E interactions. Seven models ranging from basic to proposed higher advanced models incorporating interactions, and genotypic specific effects were used. These models were tested with three cross-validation schemes (CV1, CV2, and CV0) to assess the predictive ability of tested and untested lines in already observed environments and tested lines in novel or new environments. In general, the highest prediction abilities were obtained when the model accounting interactions between pedigrees (additive) and environment were included. The CV0 scheme (predicting unobserved or novel environments) reveals very low predictive abilities among the three schemes. CV1 and CV2 schemes that borrow information from the target and correlated environments have much higher predictive abilities. Further, predictive ability was lower when predicting lines in non-stress conditions using drought data as training set and/or vice-versa. When predicting the lines using the data sets under the same conditions (stress or non-stress data sets), much better prediction accuracy was obtained. These results provide conclusive evidence that modeling G × E interactions are important in predictions. Thus, considering G × E interactions would help to build enhanced genomic or pedigree-based prediction models in the rice breeding program. Further, it is crucial to borrow the correlated information from other environments to improve prediction accuracy.
Effect of soil management systems on the rhizosphere bacterial community structure of tobacco: Continuous cropping vs. paddy-upland rotation
Authors: Wang Peng , Yan Shen , Zhang Wenshui , Xie Xiaodan , Li Mingjie , Ren Tianbao , Gu Li , Zhang Zhongyi
Published: September 2022

Rhizosphere bacteria play important role in soil nutrient cycling and plant growth, and their richness and diversity are influenced by soil management systems. However, the specific changes in tobacco rhizosphere bacterial community structure in continuous and tobacco-rice rotation cropping systems remain uninvestigated. In this study, soil properties and the composition of the rhizosphere bacterial community in tobacco monocropping and tobacco-rice rotation cropping systems were analyzed. Moreover, the comparison of rhizosphere bacterial community structure between tobacco continuous and tobacco-rice rotation cropping systems was performed via high-throughput sequencing. The changes in the composition of the rhizosphere bacterial community were investigated at different tobacco growth stages. The results showed that continuous tobacco cropping increased the soil soluble organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), and the content of other nutrients (e.g., available phosphorus and available potassium) compared to tobacco-rice rotation cropping. However, monocropping decreased bacterial alpha-diversity and altered the community composition when compared to the rotation cropping system. At the phylum level, the relative abundance of Proteobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes, and Bacteroidetes increased in the continuous cropping soil, while that of Acidobacteria, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteria decreased. At the genera level, the average abundance of the dominant genus Bacillus varied from 12.96% in continuous cropping libraries to 6.33% in the rotation cropping libraries (p < 0.05). Additionally, several other taxa, such as o_Acidobacteriales and Candidatus_Solibacter decreased from 7.63 to 6.62% (p < 0.05) and 4.52 to 2.91% (p < 0.05), respectively. However, the relative abundance of f_Gemmatimonadaceae and c_Subgroup_6 showed an increase of 1.46% (p < 0.05) and 1.63% (p < 0.05) in the tobacco-rice rotation cropping system, respectively. The results of NMDS indicated that the rhizobacteria community structure differed in the two cropping systems. In tobacco, the rhizosphere bacterial community structure showed no significant changes in the prosperous long-term stage and topping stage, but the composition changed significantly in the mature stage.
Genome-wide analysis of the carotenoid cleavage dioxygenases gene family in Forsythia suspensa: Expression profile and cold and drought stress responses
Authors: Zhao Xiao-Liang , Yang Ya-Lin , Xia He-Xiao , Li Yong
Published: September 2022

Forsythia suspensa is a famous ornamental and medicinal plant in Oleaceae. CCD family is involved in the synthesis of pigments, volatiles, strigolactones, and abscisic acid (ABA) in plants. In this study, the CCD family in F. suspensa was analyzed at the genome level. A total of 16 members of the CCD family were identified, which included 11 members of the carotenoid cleavage dioxygenases (CCD) subfamily and 5 members of the 9-cis epoxycarotenoid dioxygenases (NCED) subfamily. The expression analysis of different tissues demonstrated that three FsCCD1 genes might be involved in the synthesis of pigments and volatiles in flowers and fruits. Three CCD4 genes were effectively expressed in flowers, while only FsCCD4-3 was effectively expressed in fruits. Comparison of CCD4 between Osmanthus fragrans and F. suspensa showed that the structure of FsCCD4-1 is was comparable that of OfCCD4-1 protein, indicating that the protein might be performing, especially in catalyzing the synthesis of β-ionone. However, further comparison of the upstream promoter regions showed that the proteins have major differences in the composition of cis-elements, which might be responsible for differences in β-ionone content. On the other hand, four NCED genes were significantly up-regulated under cold stress while two were up-regulated in drought stress. The data showed that these genes might be involved in the synthesis of ABA. Taken together, our data improves understanding of the CCD family and provides key candidate genes associated with cold and drought stresses in F. suspensa.
Impact of Plantago ovata Forsk leaf extract on morpho-physio-biochemical attributes, ions uptake and drought resistance of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) seedlings
Authors: Alharbi Khadiga , Alhaithloul Haifa Abdulaziz Sakit , Alayafi Aisha A. M. , Al-Taisan Wafa’a A. , Alghanem Suliman Mohammed , Al-Mushhin Amina A. M. , Soliman Mona H. , Alsubeie Moodi Saham , Vodnar Dan C. , Marc Romina Alina
Published: September 2022

The present study was conducted to examine the potential role of Plantago ovata Forsk leaf extract (POLE) which was applied at various concentration levels (control, hydropriming, 10, 20, 30, and 40% POLE) to the wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) seedlings. Drought stressed was applied at 60% osmotic potential (OM) to the T. aestivum seedlings to study various parameters such as growth and biomass, photosynthetic pigments and gas exchange characteristics, oxidative stress and response of various antioxidants and nutritional status of the plants. Various growth parameters such as gaseous exchange attributes, antioxidants and nutritional status of T. aestivum were investigated in this study. It was evident that drought-stressed condition had induced a negative impact on plant growth, photosynthetic pigment, gaseous exchange attributes, stomatal properties, and ion uptake by different organs (roots and shoots) of T. aestivum. The decrease in plant growth resulted from oxidative stress and overcome by the antioxidant (enzymatic and non-enzymatic) compounds, since their concentration increased in response to dehydration. Seed priming with POLE positively increased plant growth and photosynthesis, by decreasing oxidative stress indicators and increasing activities of antioxidant (enzymatic and non-enzymatic) compounds, compared to the plants which were grown without the application of POLE. Our results also depicted that optimum concentration of POLE for T. aestivum seedlings under drought condition was 20%, while further increase in POLE (30 and 40%) induced a non-significant (P < 0.05) effect on growth (shoot and root length) and biomass (fresh and dry weight) of T. aestivum seedling. Here we concluded that the understanding of the role of seed priming with POLE in the increment of growth profile, photosynthetic measurements and nutritional status introduces new possibilities for their effective use in drought-stressed condition and provides a promising strategy for T. aestivum tolerance against drought-stressed condition.
The impact of mindfulness practice on physician burnout: A scoping review
Authors: Malik Hani , Annabi Carrie Amani
Published: September 2022

Background

Physician burnout is a growing phenomenon in current health systems worldwide. With the emergence of COVID-19, burnout in healthcare is progressively becoming a serious concern. Increasing emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal accomplishment threaten the effective delivery of healthcare. Compassion fatigue and moral injury are a considerable risk to the doctor-patient relationship. These issues can potentially be mitigated by mindfulness practice, which has shown promising results in reducing burnout, restoring compassion, and preventing moral injury in physicians.

Methodology

A scoping review was conducted to investigate the effects of mindfulness practice on physician burnout. High-ranking journals were targeted to analyze high-quality studies and synthesize common themes in the literature. Studies conducted on current practicing physicians were included. Mindfulness practice of varying forms was the main intervention studied. Gray literature and studies conducted only on allied health personnel were excluded from this review.

Results

31 studies were included in this scoping review. Mindfulness practice decreased emotional exhaustion and depersonalization while improving mood, responses to stress, and vigor. Self-awareness, compassion, and empathy were also increased in study participants. From this review, four themes emerged: innovations in mindfulness practice, mindfulness and positive psychology, the impact of mindfulness on work and patient care, and barriers and facilitators to physician mindfulness practice.

Conclusion

Mindfulness was widely reported to benefit mental health and well-being, but the studies reviewed seemed to adopt a mono focus and omitted key considerations to healthcare leadership, systems-level culture, and practices. Mindfulness practice is a quintessential component of positive psychology and is inherently linked to effective leadership. A mindful and compassionate physician leader will play a crucial role in addressing current practice gaps, prioritizing staff mental health, and providing a supportive platform for innovation.
Early life adverse experiences and loneliness among young adults: The mediating role of social processes
Authors: Landry Jyllenna , Asokumar Ajani , Crump Carly , Anisman Hymie , Matheson Kimberly
Published: September 2022

Loneliness has been described as endemic among young people. Such feelings of social isolation ‘even in a crowd’ are likely linked to adverse early life experiences that serve to diminish perceptions of social support and intensify negative social interactions. It was suggested in the present series of survey studies that childhood abuse, which compromises a child’s sense of safety in relationships, may affect social processes that contribute to loneliness in young adulthood. Study 1 assessed different adverse childhood and adult experiences in relation to loneliness among young adults (N = 171). Linear regression analyses indicated that childhood abuse was uniquely associated with greater loneliness, and this relationship was partially mediated by the perceived availability of social support. Study 2 (N = 289) assessed different forms of childhood abuse and demonstrated that early life emotional abuse was a unique predictor of loneliness, and this relationship was fully mediated by lower perceived support or value in social connections (social connectedness) and more frequent unsupportive interactions with friends. Study 3 evaluated the implications of the age of occurrence of abuse (N = 566). Both emotional and sexual abuse predicted young adult loneliness regardless of age; abuse that was recalled to have occurred at very early ages (0–5 years) was not predictive of loneliness over and above consideration of events that happened in older childhood. These relationships were at least partially mediated by perceived social support, social connectedness, and in the case of emotional abuse, unsupportive interactions with friends. Our results add to mounting evidence pointing to the prevalence of loneliness among young adults and the links to adverse early life experiences that may serve to shape appraisals of safety, value, and personal worth in social relationships.
Environmental, social, and governance information disclosure and stock price crash risk: Evidence from Chinese listed companies
Authors: Xu Nengrui , Liu Jing , Dou Huan
Published: September 2022

According to information asymmetry theory and stakeholder theory, this article explores the impact and mechanism of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information disclosure on the company’s future stock price crash risk based on the A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2019. We find that ESG information disclosure significantly reduces the company’s future stock price crash risk. This conclusion remains robust after a series of robustness tests, such as PSM-DID. The heterogeneity analysis shows that the negative relationship between ESG disclosure and stock price crash risk is more significant in state-owned enterprises, companies with higher agency costs, and when companies in the bull market. The mechanism is that companies choose to disclose ESG information to alleviate information asymmetry problems and enhance corporate reputation capital, thus reducing the future stock price crash risk. This article shows that strengthening ESG construction will help improve the efficiency of China’s resource allocation and promote the capital market development.
Implementation of a web-based system to measure, monitor, and promote school engagement strategies. A Chilean experience
Authors: Saracostti Mahia , de Toro Ximena , Rossi Andrea , Lara Laura , Sotomayor María Belen
Published: September 2022

This paper presents the implementation and usability of a technology-based web system and the available evidence on educational engagement’s predictive capacity to influence students’ educational trajectories in Chilean schools. The web-based system was developed through collaborative work between universities, the information technology team, school communities, and stakeholders (government institutions). It is an online system composed of six steps whose axis is centered on a decision-making space between teachers-students-parents (School Engagement Board) tasked with applying online and scientifically validated school engagement and contextual factors measurement instruments, checking specific report results for each actor involved in the system (teacher, School Engagement Board coordinator, school) as well as reviewing promotion strategies relevant to the school context and managing the implementation of strategies supported by the management datasheets that the model offers to schools. The objective of this paper is to present the usability of the system through a case study of the implementation in Chilean public schools. In order to discuss about what elements should be incorporated to adjust and improve the usability of the system and to guarantee its effective implementation, the paper describes those aspects that have favored and/or hindered the use of this educational technological platform in the Chilean case. The results show that there have been more difficulties related to management aspects than IT aspects, which indicates that these conditions are critical for implementation, even when system for evaluation, monitoring and strategies for the promotion of student engagement and contextual factors (SIESE) is designed for stand-alone use. Although there are aspects to be improved, such as extending its use to other browsers, improving the intervention guidelines and other systems functionalities, this web-based system has been considered by the educational communities as a simple, useful, and intuitive platform. The paper concludes on the importance of having this type of platform in Chile and other Latin American countries, for its contribution to school management -being helpful for day-to-day educational practice- due to the different technical facilitators.
Why should I consult? The impact of social support on patient consultation in online healthcare communities
Authors: Liu Xiaochen , Xu Zhen , Yu Xintao , Oda Tetsuaki
Published: September 2022

The COVID-19 epidemic put the traditional healthcare system and offline consultation method under strain. Patient consultations through online healthcare communities (OHCs) provide patients and physicians with a more convenient and secure route. Based on the social support theory, this study explores the impact of three dimensions of social support from physicians—information diagnosticity, source credibility, and emotional support—on patient consultations in OHCs and their moderating effect on patients’ compliments. We utilized Python Spiders to retrieve data from Haodf.com and gathered 2,982 physician reports. The model uses OLS regression with fixed effect estimations. The results show that these three dimensions of social support are positively impacted by consultation. Furthermore, patients’ compliments weaken the positive relationship between the three dimensions of physicians’ social support and patient consultations. This study contributes to the literature on social support theory in OHCs by exploring the physicians’ social support dimension and its impact on patient consultation. Moreover, this study makes practical contributions to physicians and platform administrators in OHCs.
Magnetic resonance imaging of the dopamine system in schizophrenia – A scoping review
Authors: Schulz Julia , Zimmermann Juliana , Sorg Christian , Menegaux Aurore , Brandl Felix
Published: September 2022

For decades, aberrant dopamine transmission has been proposed to play a central role in schizophrenia pathophysiology. These theories are supported by human in vivo molecular imaging studies of dopamine transmission, particularly positron emission tomography. However, there are several downsides to such approaches, for example limited spatial resolution or restriction of the measurement to synaptic processes of dopaminergic neurons. To overcome these limitations and to measure complementary aspects of dopamine transmission, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based approaches investigating the macrostructure, metabolism, and connectivity of dopaminergic nuclei, i.e., substantia nigra pars compacta and ventral tegmental area, can be employed. In this scoping review, we focus on four dopamine MRI methods that have been employed in patients with schizophrenia so far: neuromelanin MRI, which is thought to measure long-term dopamine function in dopaminergic nuclei; morphometric MRI, which is assumed to measure the volume of dopaminergic nuclei; diffusion MRI, which is assumed to measure fiber-based structural connectivity of dopaminergic nuclei; and resting-state blood-oxygenation-level-dependent functional MRI, which is thought to measure functional connectivity of dopaminergic nuclei based on correlated blood oxygenation fluctuations. For each method, we describe the underlying signal, outcome measures, and downsides. We present the current state of research in schizophrenia and compare it to other disorders with either similar (psychotic) symptoms, i.e., bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder, or dopaminergic abnormalities, i.e., substance use disorder and Parkinson’s disease. Finally, we discuss overarching issues and outline future research questions.
The COVID-19 pandemic and mental health in pregnant women: A review article
Authors: Arzamani Niloufar , Soraya Shiva , Hadi Fatemeh , Nooraeen Sara , Saeidi Mahdieh
Published: September 2022

A rapid spreading of the COVID-19 virus in recent years had a great impact on every single aspect of live and the world faced with unexpected and unpredictable crisis in both physical and mental condition. As with any crisis, vulnerable individuals like pregnant women were the concern of societies. Several physiological and psychological changes occur during pregnancy which put individuals in a risk of mental health problems. During the outbreak of the COVID-19, pregnant women have experienced more psychological stresses, fear, anxiety, and depression. The prenatal mental distresses and psychiatric disorders may cause poor compliance, reduce help-seeking behaviors, and neglect to take the follow up screening visits and risk of harm for mother and others. Addressing the mental health in pregnant women is crucial to prevent the consequences. The purpose of this narrative review was to investigate the available literature on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health in pregnant women and provide some recommendations to improve mental health in them. It also shed some light on providing mental health services for women during pregnancy and can be used by health professionals and policymakers.
Mobile phone addiction is associated with impaired cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression of negative emotion
Authors: Liu Jin , Xu Zhaojun , Zhu Lili , Xu Renliying , Jiang Zhaocai
Published: September 2022

Previous studies have demonstrated people characterized by mobile phone addiction (MPA) are more prone to emotion regulation difficulties. However, no study has tested the effectiveness of their emotion regulation strategies in experimental conditions. In the present study, by instructing the MPA and control groups to regulate negative emotion through cognitive reappraisal (CR) or expressive suppression (ES), we compared their emotional states in the emotional visual search task after watching a negative emotion evoked video. A multi-factor mixed design of 2(group: MPA/control)×2(emotion regulation strategy: CR/ES)×3(image type: positive expression/negative expression/neutral expression) was conducted. We found the MPA group recognized the negative expression faster than control group after both emotion regulation strategies, indicating ES and CR were both impaired for MPA. The implications of these results were further discussed.
The inconsistent mediating effect of catechol O methyl transferase Val158Met polymorphism on the sex difference of cognitive impairment in schizophrenia patients
Authors: Xu Hang , Zhou Yongjie , Xiu Meihong , Chen Dachun , Wang Weiwen , Wang Li , Zhang Xiangyang
Published: September 2022

Objective

Schizophrenia is a multifaceted mental disorder characterized by heterogeneous positive/negative symptoms and cognitive deficits. Sex differences have been reported in various aspects of the disease. However, the underlying genetic reasons remain unelucidated. Recent studies show that the influence of COMT Val158Met (rs4680) variation is sexually dimorphic. Thus, this study aims to explore whether there is an effect of the interaction between COMT Val158Met (rs4680) polymorphism and sex on patients’ clinical characteristics and cognitive function.

Materials and methods

We recruited 367 in patients with chronic schizophrenia (246 males and 121 females) and 419 healthy controls (172 males and 247 females). The cognitive performance was assessed by Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS), and the COMT Val158Met (rs4680) polymorphism is genotyped. The psychopathological symptoms of the patients were assessed by the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS).

Results

We find that male patients had a significantly higher proportion of carrying the Val allele and Val/Val carriers exhibited more severe positive symptoms and cognitive impairment than Met carriers. COMT Val158Met (rs4680) polymorphism inconsistently mediated the relationship between sex and cognitive performance in schizophrenia patients.

Conclusion

These findings suggest that COMT Val158Met (rs4680) polymorphism is associated with the risk and severity of schizophrenia in a sexually dimorphic way and contributes more to the clinical symptoms and cognitive impairment in male patients with schizophrenia.
The impact of adult children rural–urban migration on left-behind parents' health: Evidence from China
Authors: Zhang Chi , Lyu Kaiyu , Cheng Xiaoyu , Zhang Chongshang
Published: September 2022

Population aging and rural–urban migration have posed challenges to the elderly support system in developing countries that lack social safety net and services. Given that there is no consistent conclusion in the literature on whether adult children's internal migration can improve or impair their left-behind parents' health, little is known about the effect mechanisms. This paper investigates the comprehensive impact of adult children's migration on the health of their parents in rural China by analyzing the income effect and time allocation effect. The empirical analysis uses the rural sample of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) in 2013, 2015, and 2018. We found that adult children migration can improve parents' physical health, mainly thanks to the income effect. The analysis of the mechanism found that although the income effect has a positive effect on parents' health, the time allocation effect has a negative effect on parents' health because of the lack of care and increased working hours of parents. Our findings suggest that providing social care services and enhancing intergenerational communication can be practical strategies to mitigate the negative effect of children's migration to rural left-behind elderly parents.
A re-evaluation of Stuart's police officer stigma scale: Measuring mental health stigma in first responders
Authors: Burzee Zachery , Bowers Clint , Beidel Deborah
Published: September 2022

Stigma about mental illness is often identified as one of the most prominent obstacles to seeking mental health services. This seems to be particularly true among first responders. Unfortunately, the research regarding stigma in first responders is lacking. This may be due, in part, to the absence of appropriate measurement tools to allow such research. Police Officer Stigma Scale (POSS) has recently been developed to address this issue, but its psychometric properties have gone largely untested. Therefore, this study sought to identify the underlying factor structure and internal consistency of the POSS. This paper used a sample of 135 first responders. Using factor analysis with an orthogonal rotation on Stuart's 11-item POSS, the participant's results revealed two main components, accounting for a total of 72.79% of the overall variance. Factor one is “maltreatment of colleagues with a mental disorder,” and is associated with six of the 11 items on the scale, such as “Most police officers believe that a colleague who has had a mental illness is not trustworthy.” Factor two is “fear of disclosing a mental disorder.” It includes items such as “Most police officers would not disclose to a supervisor/manager if they were experiencing a mental illness.” Findings from this research are similar to the results of previous studies with components such as unwillingness to disclose a mental health condition, fear of how the public will treat an individual with a mental disorder, and anger toward those who decide to seek treatment or get diagnosed with a mental illness. These findings imply that Stuart's POSS is reliable but needs to include two components rather than one. With the two main components, further research can now be conducted to understand why and ultimately mitigate maltreatment or stigma against first responders with a mental health condition.
Epidemiological, clinical, and laboratory features of patients infected with Elizabethkingia meningoseptica at a tertiary hospital in Hefei City, China
Authors: Li Yajuan , Liu Tingting , Shi Cuixiao , Wang Bo , Li Tingting , Huang Ying , Xu Yuanhong , Tang Ling
Published: September 2022

Background

Elizabethkingia meningoseptica is a bacterium causing potential nosocomial infections and is associated with a high mortality rate; however, the date of patients in the Hefei population who have been diagnosed with this infection is generally limited.

Purpose

The clinical and laboratory data of patients from a tertiary hospital in Hefei City who had E. meningoseptica infection were evaluated in this retrospective analysis.

Patients and methods

From May 2017 to November 2021, there were 24 patients infected with E. meningoseptica in the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University. Data were gathered from the hospital's electronic medical records for all patients.

Results

The most prevalent symptom among the 24 patients was fever (83.3%), followed by edema (41.7%), cough (37.5%), altered consciousness (41.7%), and sputum (37.5%), and laboratory results presented with anemia (75%), hypoproteinemia (75%), elevated C-reactive protein (CRP) (66.7%), neutrophilia (54.2%), and leukocytosis (50.0%). Hepatic disease (1 vs. 7, P = 0.009) was the only significant risk factor for underlying diseases. The mean value of lymphocyte (LYMPH#) (1.4 vs. 0.83 × 109/L, P = 0.033) counts was higher in the survival group than death group, while both anemia (8 vs. 10, P = 0.024) and hypoproteinemia (8 vs. 10, P = 0.024) occurred more frequently in the death group compared with the survival one.

Conclusion

Fever was the most common symptom and the only significant factor of underlying diseases was hepatic disease (P = 0.009) that often occurred in death groups. In this investigation, the risk factors for death in patients were anemia, hypoproteinemia, and lymphocyte count. The susceptibility of some quinolones, piperacillin-tazobactam, and cotrimoxazole was relatively high, suggesting that they may be the preferred drugs for the treatment of E. meningoseptica infection. As E. meningoseptica can produce biofilm to pollute the hospital environment and cause infection in patients, the disinfection of the hospital environment should be strengthened and medical staff should pay attention to aseptic operations.
Benefits of an online multimodal nursing program among patients with peripherally inserted central catheter-related thrombosis
Authors: Huang Xin , Xie Meilian , Zhao Shan , Chen Yingtong , Wu Liying , Zeng Xiuqun
Published: September 2022

Background

Asymptomatic peripherally inserted central catheter-related thrombosis (PICC-RT) is one of the most common and dangerous complications caused by peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) insertion. A variety of factors might lead to huge psychological pressures on patients and markedly affect their quality of life. The aim of this study was to evaluate the benefits of an online multimodal nursing program on the quality of life and psychological resilience of asymptomatic PICC-RT patients with ovarian cancer.

Methods

This was a prospective cohort study on patients with asymptomatic PICC-RT. Patients in the control group received routine nursing care, while patients in the intervention group obtained extra assistance through an online multimodal nursing program. Individual guidance, psychological support, and real-time consultation were provided to patients in the intervention group. All participants were followed for 3 months. The health-related quality of life and psychological resilience of patients were evaluated by using the 36-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) and Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), respectively.

Results

Compared to baseline, most of the items in the SF-36 scores were significantly increased in both intervention and control groups after 3 months (all p < 0.05), except for the role emotional domain (p = 0.085 in control group). However, the SF-36 scores of the intervention group were significantly higher than those of the control group in All health domains, including physical functioning (p = 0.001), role physical (p = 0.004), bodily pain (p = 0.003), general health (p < 0.001), vitality (p < 0.001), social functioning (p < 0.001), role emotional (p = 0.002), mental health (p < 0.001) and health transition (p < 0.001). For CD-RISC scores, the mean value of the control group was 42.03 ± 4.42 at baseline and increased to 50.36 ± 4.70 after 3 months (p < 0.001), while the intervention group was 40.00 ± 6.61 at baseline and increased to 65.12 ± 5.21 after 3 months (p < 0.001). Moreover, the CD-RISC score in the intervention group was significantly higher than that in the control group after 3 months (p < 0.001).

Conclusion

The application of an online multimodal nursing program could significantly improve the health-related quality of life and psychological resilience of asymptomatic PICC-RT patients. These findings provide evidence to support the necessity of an online multimodal nursing program in routine long-term follow-up, especially in the era of COVID-19.
Predictive models based on machine learning for bone metastasis in patients with diagnosed colorectal cancer
Authors: Li Tianhao , Huang Honghong , Zhang Shuocun , Zhang Yongdan , Jing Haoren , Sun Tianwei , Zhang Xipeng , Lu Liangfu , Zhang Mingqing
Published: September 2022

Background

This study aimed to develop an artificial intelligence predictive model for predicting the probability of developing BM in CRC patients.

Methods

From SEER database, 50,566 CRC patients were identified between January 2015 and December 2019 without missing data. SVM and LR models were trained and tested on the dataset. Accuracy, area under the curve (AUC), and IDI were used to evaluate and compare the models.

Results

For bone metastases in the entire cohort, SVM model with poly as kernel function presents the best performance, whose accuracy is 0.908, recall is 0.838, and AUC is 0.926, outperforming LR model. The top three most important factors affecting the model's prediction of BM include extraosseous metastases (EM), CEA, and size.

Conclusion

Our study developed an SVM model with poly as kernel function for predicting BM in CRC patients. SVM model could improve personalized clinical decision-making, help rationalize the bone metastasis screening process, and reduce the burden on healthcare systems and patients.
Pitiful rooftop solar uptake in sunny South Africa: A policy, funding and service delivery perspective
Authors: McKay Tracey , Hendricks Donavan
Published: September 2022

Despite rolling blackouts, high electricity prices, a favorable climate and the size of the South African economy, rooftop photovoltaic (PV) solar products have low levels of middle-income residential market penetration. This study sought to establish the reasons for this. It was found, firstly, that households opt rather for demand side management (DSM) tools such as energy-efficient lamps or inverters. Secondly, they switch to gas (at least for cooking) or a generator rather than solar. This is because rooftop PV is expensive, in part due to costly batteries and inverters, but also as support measures such as feed-in tariff funding, tax rebates and subsidies are non-existent. In addition, South African banks are reluctant to finance rooftop PV, as return on investment (ROI) is extremely long term, and there are few, if any, bank-accredited PV suppliers. There is also no political pressure on banks to provide attractive PV financing. Furthermore, middle-income consumers struggle to understand PV technology and do not trust the suppliers thereof. For instance, rooftop PV companies seldom market themselves or their products adequately, and most do not sell PV with a maintenance service plan or offer credit. It is recommended that rooftop PV companies work with banks offer innovative, cost-effective modular PV packages, and build their brand to create a relationship of trust with the community to increase sales.
Splenocolic fistula in a patient with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: A case report and review of literature
Authors: Luca Tonia , Sergi Mauro , Coco Onella , Leone Emanuela , Chisari Giulia , Fontana Paolo , Castorina Sergio
Published: September 2022

A fistula that connects the bowel to other organs, such as the urinary bladder or small intestine, is a relatively frequent complication, often associated with inflammatory diseases such as diverticulitis, Crohn's disease, colorectal cancer, or lymphoma. Splenocolic fistula is an extremely rare condition described in the literature. It can occur in cases of splenic tumors, including splenic diffuse large B cell lymphoma. We report the case of an 82-year-old man who presented with melaena, worsening asthenia, hypotension, and abdominal pain in the left flank and the ipsilateral lumbar region. Ultrasound and computed tomography documented splenomegaly, thickening of the splenic flexure of the colon, and the presence of a fistulous passage between the colon and the splenic hilum. The diagnosis of lymphoma was made following laparotomy and caudal splenopancreatectomy. Due to the aggressive clinical behavior of this type of lymphoma, splenectomy is the main treatment in patients with splenomegaly, abdominal pain, and tumor expansion.
The use of probiotics in nutrition and herd health management in large Hungarian dairy cattle farms
Authors: Várhidi Zsóka , Máté Marietta , Ózsvári László
Published: September 2022

In the European Union, there is an increasing need for farm animal nutrition products whose positive effects can replace antibiotics that have been heavily used for decades. Thus, the use of probiotics started to increase in the past few years. In this study, a survey on the practical use of probiotics in Hungarian dairy cattle farms and the related experience of farm nutrition experts was conducted. In addition, we surveyed the state of Hungary for probiotics production and distribution. After direct request via phone, nutrition experts responsible for farm feeding programs in 23 large commercial dairy cattle farms and eight managers in different feed distributor companies in Hungary filled out the relevant online questionnaires in 2018. The results show that 69.6% of the surveyed farms used probiotics, most often aiming at the optimization of rumen fermentation, protection against stressors, and supplementation of medical treatments. The most common expected beneficial effects of probiotics were more effective calf raising, larger milk yield, more stable rumen fermentation, and improved stress resistance. None of the respondents experienced any negative effects. In Hungary, five out of eight surveyed feed companies produced probiotic products for cattle, and one just distributed them. Company managers generally thought that farm nutrition experts did not have up-to-date knowledge on probiotics, which is why, these products are often not used in an effective way, and the experts' knowledge should be increased. The own experiments of the distributor companies showed that the probiotic products can improve feed digestibility, the efficacy of calf raising, and the reproductive performance of cows. According to the expectations of distributors, the next generation of probiotic products will be microencapsulated and will contain multiple strains and species of bacteria and prebiotics, too. The goal of the product development is to create probiotics with better effectiveness at a reasonable price, having a complex impact and easier application on the herd level. The study showed that probiotics are already frequently used to prevent diseases in Hungarian dairy herds. However, it can be concluded that there is room for improvement, especially concerning the knowledge transfer about the most effective use of probiotic products.