bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Research on the wound healing effect of Shengji Huayu Formula ethanol extract-derived fractions in streptozotocin-induced diabetic ulcer rats
Authors: Zhang Jing-Ting , Wu Min-Feng , Ma Ming-Hua , Zhao Liang , Zhu Jian-Yong , Nian Hua , Li Fu-Lun
Published: March 2023

Background

Diabetic ulcer is a common complication of diabetes. It is characterized by a long-term disease course and high recurrence rate. Shengji Huayu Formula (SHF) is an effective formula for treating diabetic ulcers. However, the specific effective parts of SHF remain unclear. Clarifying the active polar site of SHF would be helpful to refine research on the components in SHF that promote wound healing. This research aims to focus on evaluating the activity of polar fractions.

Methods

A diabetic rat model was established by intraperitoneally injecting streptozotocin (STZ) and was adopted to confirm the therapeutic effect of SHF. Four different polarity parts were extracted from SHF and prepared into a cream to evaluate the activity. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to detect chemical constituents in chloroform extracts.

Results

It was discovered that dracorhodin, aloe-emodin, rhein, imperatorin, emodin, isoimperatorin, chrysophanol, physcion, and tanshinone IIA were the main components of the chloroform extract from SHF. The results revealed that chloroform extract could effectively accelerate diabetic wound healing by promoting collagen regeneration and epidermal repair. Chloroform extract of SHF could stimulate the generation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). The results are also indicated that the effective active fraction was the chloroform part, and the method of detecting the main chemical constituents in the active part was successfully established.

Conclusion

SHF could improve diabetic ulcers by promoting granulation tissue synthesis. In this study, four polar parts (petroleum ether, chloroform, ethylacetate, n-butanol) were extracted from a 95% ethanol extract. In contrast, chloroform polar parts showed a higher wound closure rate, stimulated more collagen regeneration and promoted more production of vascular endothelial cells. In conclusion, the chloroform extract of SHF was the effective polar part in ameliorating diabetic wound healing.
Validation of IFMSA social accountability assessment tool: exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis
Authors: Coşkun Özlem , Timurçin Utku , Kıyak Yavuz Selim , Budakoğlu Işıl İrem
Published: March 2023

Background

IFMSA Social Accountability Assessment Tool has been developed for medical students by medical students to assess medical schools. However, its psychometric characteristics are unknown since it was developed without any analysis. We aimed to reveal its reliability and validity.

Methods

1122 undergraduate medical students from various years in Gazi University Faculty of Medicine have participated in the study. They have answered the Turkish version of IFMSA Social Accountability Assessment Tool created through a translation process by experts. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were carried out.

Results

Exploratory factor analysis showed that factor loadings were between 0.46 and 0.73 for Factor 1, 0.68 and 0.87 for Factor 2. The two-factor model, which consists of “Community Centeredness” and “Socio-Demographic Characteristics”, was evaluated through confirmatory factor analysis. The goodness-of-fit statistics of the model showed well-fit: CMIN/df 4.46, GFI 0.96, CFI 0.95, RMSEA 0.05, SRMR 0.03. Standardized regression weights were between 0.43 and 0.77.

Conclusion

The tool has acceptable psychometric characteristics, with good reliability and validity. It could be considered as a point of departure for the change in the way of being socially accountable since it enables medical students to explore the weak areas of their medical schools in terms of social accountability.
Towards more efficient and robust evaluation of sepsis treatment with deep reinforcement learning
Authors: Yu Chao , Huang Qikai
Published: March 2023

Background

In recent years, several studies have applied advanced AI methods, i.e., deep reinforcement learning, in discovering more efficient treatment policies for sepsis. However, due to a paucity of understanding of sepsis itself, the existing approaches still face a severe evaluation challenge, that is, how to properly evaluate the goodness of treatments during the learning process and the effectiveness of the final learned treatment policies.

Methods

We propose a deep inverse reinforcement learning with mini-tree model that integrates different aspects of factors into the reward formulation, including the critical factors in causing mortality and the key indicators in the existing sepsis treatment guidelines, in order to provide a more comprehensive evaluation of treatments during learning. A new off-policy evaluation method is then proposed to enable more robust evaluation of the learned policies by considering the weighted averaged value functions estimated until the current step.

Results

Results in the MIMIC-III dataset show that the proposed methods can achieve more efficient treatment policies with higher reliability compared to those used by the clinicians.

Conclusions

A more sound and comprehensive evaluation of treatments of sepsis should consider the most critical factors in infulencing the mortality during treatment as well as those key indicators in the existing sepsis diagnosis guidelines.
Enzyme-catalyzed synthesis of selenium-doped manganese phosphate for synergistic therapy of drug-resistant colorectal cancer
Authors: Pei Manman , Liu Kaiyuan , Qu Xiao , Wang Kairuo , Chen Qian , Zhang Yuanyuan , Wang Xinyue , Wang Zheng , Li Xinyao , Chen Feng , Qin Huanlong , Zhang Yang
Published: March 2023

Background

The development of multidrug resistance (MDR) during postoperative chemotherapy for colorectal cancer substantially reduces therapeutic efficacy. Nanostructured drug delivery systems (NDDSs) with modifiable chemical properties are considered promising candidates as therapies for reversing MDR in colorectal cancer cells. Selenium-doped manganese phosphate (Se-MnP) nanoparticles (NPs) that can reverse drug resistance through sustained release of selenium have the potential to improve the chemotherapy effect of colorectal cancer.

Results

Se-MnP NPs had an organic–inorganic hybrid composition and were assembled from smaller-scale nanoclusters. Se-MnP NPs induced excessive ROS production via Se-mediated activation of the STAT3/JNK pathway and a Fenton-like reaction due to the presence of manganese ions (Mn2+). Moreover, in vitro and in vivo studies demonstrated Se-MnP NPs were effective drug carriers of oxaliplatin (OX) and reversed multidrug resistance and induced caspase-mediated apoptosis in colorectal cancer cells. OX@Se-MnP NPs reversed MDR in colorectal cancer by down-regulating the expression of MDR-related ABC (ATP binding cassette) transporters proteins (e.g., ABCB1, ABCC1 and ABCG2). Finally, in vivo studies demonstrated that OX-loaded Se-MnP NPs significantly inhibited proliferation of OX-resistant HCT116 (HCT116/DR) tumor cells in nude mice.

Conclusions

OX@Se-MnP NPs with simple preparation and biomimetic chemical properties represent promising candidates for the treatment of colorectal cancer with MDR.
The effect of endoscopic transsphenoidal somatotroph tumors resection on pituitary hormones: systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Nie Ding , Fang Qiuyue , Wong Wakam , Gui Songbai , Zhao Peng , Li Chuzhong , Zhang Yazhuo
Published: March 2023

Purpose

Currently, endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery is the main treatment for pituitary neuroendocrine tumors (PitNETs). Excision of the tumor may have positive or negative effects on pituitary endocrine function, and the pituitary function of somatotroph tumors is a point of particular concern after the operation. This study aimed to conduct a meta-analysis on the effect of endoscopic transsphenoidal somatotroph tumor resection on pituitary function.

Methods

A systematic literature search was conducted for articles that included the evaluation of pituitary target gland before and after endoscopic transsphenoidal pituitary tumor resection and were published between 1992 and 2022 in PubMed, Cochrane, and Ovid MEDLINE.

Results

Sixty-eight studies that included biochemical remission rates in 4524 somatotroph tumors were concluded. According to the 2000 consensus, the biochemical remission rate after transsphenoidal endoscopic surgery was 66.4% (95%CI, 0.622–0.703;P = 0.000), the biochemical remission rate was 56.2% according to the 2010 consensus (95%CI, 0.503–0.620;P = 0.041), and with the rate of biochemical remission ranging from 30.0 to 91.7% with investigator’s definition. After endoscopic resection, adrenal axis dysfunction was slightly higher than that before surgery, but the difference was not statistically significant. Hypothyroidism was 0.712 times higher risk than that before surgery (OR = 0.712; 95%CI, 0.527–0.961;P = 0.027). Hypogonadism was 0.541 times higher risk than that before surgery (OR = 0.541; 95%CI, 0.393–0.746;P = 0.000). Hyperprolactinemia was 0.131 times higher risk than that before surgery (OR = 0.131; 95%CI, 0.022–0.783;P = 0.026). The incidence of pituitary insufficiency was 1.344 times the risk before surgery after endoscopic resection of somatotroph tumors, but the difference was not statistically significant.

Conclusions

In patients with somatotroph tumors after undergoing endoscopic surgery, the risk of dysfunction and pituitary insufficiency tend to increase, while preoperative thyroid insufficiency, gonadal insufficiency, and hyperprolactinemia will be partially relieved.
Association between colorectal cancer and expression levels of miR-21, miR-17-5P, miR-155 genes and the presence of Fusobacterium nucleatum in biopsy samples obtained from Iranian patients
Authors: Bostanshirin Nazila , Hajikhani Bahareh , Vaezi Amir Abbas , Kermanian Fatemeh , Sameni Fatemeh , Yaslianifard Somayeh , Goudarzi Mehdi , Dadashi Masoud
Published: March 2023

Background

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is considered the second-deadliest and third-most common malignancy worldwide. Studying the carcinogenic mechanism of bacteria or their role in aggravating cancer can be precious. Fusobacterium nucleatum (F. nucleatum) is one of the important bacteria in the occurrence and spread of CRC. In this study, we investigated the expression levels of miR-21, miR-17-5P, miR-155, and the relative frequency of F. nucleatum in biopsy samples from patients with CRC.

Method

DNA and RNA samples were extracted using a tissue extraction kit, and then cDNAs were synthesized using a related kit. Based on the sequence of miR-17-5P, miR-21, and miR-155 genes, F. nucleatum specific 16srRNA and bacterial universal16srRNA specific primers were selected, and the expression levels of the target genes were analyzed using the Real-Time PCR method.

Results

The expression level of miR-21, miR-17-5P, and miR-155 genes showed a significant increase in the cancer group. Also, the expression of the mentioned miRNAs was significantly raised in the positive samples for F. nucleatum presence. The relative frequency of F. nucleatum in the cancer group was significantly increased compared to the control group.

Conclusion

Due to the changes in the expression of genes involved in causing CRC in the presence of F. nucleatum, it is possible to prompt identification and provide therapeutic solutions to cancer patients by studying their microbial profiles and the expression changes of different selected genes.
Retraction Note: Long non-coding RNA PTPRG-AS1 promotes cell tumorigenicity in epithelial ovarian cancer by decoying microRNA-545-3p and consequently enhancing HDAC4 expression
Authors: Shi Juanjuan , Xu Xijian , Zhang Dan , Zhang Jiuyan , Yang Hui , Li Chang , Li Rui , Wei Xuan , Luan Wenqing , Liu Peishu
Published: March 2023

This article has been retracted. Please see the Retraction Notice for more detail: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13048-020-00723-7.
Surgical treatment versus observation in moderate intermittent exotropia (SOMIX): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial
Authors: Shen Tao , Chen Jingchang , Kang Ying , Deng Daming , Lin Xiaoming , Wu Heping , Li Jinrong , Wang Zhonghao , Qiu Xuan , Jin Ling , Yan Jianhua
Published: March 2023

Background

Intermittent exotropia (IXT) is the most common type of strabismus in China, but the best treatment and optimal timing of intervention for IXT remain controversial, particularly for children with moderate IXT who manifest obvious exodeviation frequently but with only partial impairment of binocular single vision. The lack of randomized controlled trial (RCT) evidence means that the true effectiveness of the surgical treatment in curing moderate IXT is still unknown. The SOMIX (surgical treatment versus observation in moderate intermittent exotropia) study has been designed to determine the long-term effectiveness of surgery for the treatment and the natural history of IXT among patients aged 5 to 18 years old.

Methods/design

A total of 280 patients between 5 and 18 years of age with moderate IXT will be enrolled at Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China. After initial clinical assessment, all participants will be randomized to receive surgical treatment or observation, and then be followed up for 5 years. The primary objective is to compare the cure rate of IXT between the surgical treatment and observation group. The secondary objectives are to identify the predictive factors affecting long-term outcomes in each group and to observe the natural course of IXT.

Discussion

The SOMIX trial will provide important guidance regarding the moderate IXT and its managements and modify the treatment strategies of IXT.

Trial registration

ClinicalTrials.gov:NCT 02736526. Registered April 13, 2016
Molecular characterisation of 36 multilocus imprinting disturbance (MLID) patients: a comprehensive approach
Authors: Bilo Larissa , Ochoa Eguzkine , Lee Sunwoo , Dey Daniela , Kurth Ingo , Kraft Florian , Rodger Fay , Docquier France , Toribio Ana , Bottolo Leonardo , Binder Gerhard , Fekete György , Elbracht Miriam , Maher Eamonn R. , Begemann Matthias , Eggermann Thomas
Published: March 2023

Background

Imprinting disorders (ImpDis) comprise diseases which are caused by aberrant regulation of monoallelically and parent-of-origin-dependent expressed genes. A characteristic molecular change in ImpDis patients is aberrant methylation signatures at disease-specific loci, without an obvious DNA change at the specific differentially methylated region (DMR). However, there is a growing number of reports on multilocus imprinting disturbances (MLIDs), i.e. aberrant methylation at different DMRs in the same patient. These MLIDs account for a significant number of patients with specific ImpDis, and several reports indicate a central role of pathogenic maternal effect variants in their aetiology by affecting the maturation of the oocyte and the early embryo. Though several studies on the prevalence and the molecular causes of MLID have been conducted, homogeneous datasets comprising both genomic and methylation data are still lacking.

Results

Based on a cohort of 36 MLID patients, we here present both methylation data obtained from next-generation sequencing (NGS, ImprintSeq) approaches and whole-exome sequencing (WES). The compilation of methylation data did not reveal a disease-specific MLID episignature, and a predisposition for the phenotypic modification was not obvious as well. In fact, this lack of epigenotype–phenotype correlation might be related to the mosaic distribution of imprinting defects and their functional relevance in specific tissues.

Conclusions

Due to the higher sensitivity of NGS-based approaches, we suggest that ImprintSeq might be offered at reference centres in case of ImpDis patients with unusual phenotypes but MLID negative by conventional tests. By WES, additional MLID causes than the already known maternal effect variants could not be identified, neither in the patients nor in the maternal exomes. In cases with negative WES results, it is currently unclear to what extent either environmental factors or undetected genetic variants contribute to MLID.
Modeling nervous system tumors with human stem cells and organoids
Authors: Duan Jie , Wang Yuan
Published: March 2023

Nervous system cancers are the 10th leading cause of death worldwide, many of which are difficult to diagnose and exhibit varying degrees of treatment resistance. The limitations of existing cancer models, such as patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models and genetically engineered mouse (GEM) models, call for the development of novel preclinical cancer models to more faithfully mimic the patient’s cancer and offer additional insights. Recent advances in human stem cell biology, organoid, and genome-editing techniques allow us to model nervous system tumors in three types of next-generation tumor models: cell-of-origin models, tumor organoids, and 3D multicellular coculture models. In this review, we introduced and compared different human stem cell/organoid-derived models, and comprehensively summarized and discussed the recently developed models for various primary tumors in the central and peripheral nervous systems, including glioblastoma (GBM), H3K27M-mutant Diffuse Midline Glioma (DMG) and H3G34R-mutant High-grade Glioma (HGG), Low-grade Glioma (LGG), Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1), Neurofibromatosis Type 2 (NF2), Medulloblastoma (MB), Atypical Teratoid/rhabdoid Tumor (AT/RT), and meningioma. We further compared these models with PDX and GEM models, and discussed the opportunities and challenges of precision nervous cancer modeling with human stem cells and organoids.
A single mild juvenile TBI in male mice leads to regional brain tissue abnormalities at 12 months of age that correlate with cognitive impairment at the middle age
Authors: Obenaus Andre , Rodriguez-Grande Beatriz , Lee Jeong Bin , Dubois Christophe J. , Fournier Marie-Line , Cador Martine , Caille Stéphanie , Badaut Jerome
Published: March 2023

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has the highest incidence amongst the pediatric population and its mild severity represents the most frequent cases. Moderate and severe injuries as well as repetitive mild TBI result in lasting morbidity. However, whether a single mild TBI sustained during childhood can produce long-lasting modifications within the brain is still debated. We aimed to assess the consequences of a single juvenile mild TBI (jmTBI) at 12 months post-injury in a mouse model. Non-invasive diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) revealed significant microstructural alterations in the hippocampus and the in the substantia innominata/nucleus basalis (SI/NB), structures known to be involved in spatial learning and memory. DTI changes paralled neuronal loss, increased astrocytic AQP4 and microglial activation in the hippocampus. In contrast, decreased astrocytic AQP4 expression and microglia activation were observed in SI/NB. Spatial learning and memory were impaired and correlated with alterations in DTI-derived derived fractional ansiotropy (FA) and axial diffusivity (AD). This study found that a single juvenile mild TBI leads to significant region-specific DTI microstructural alterations, distant from the site of impact, that correlated with cognitive discriminative novel object testing and spatial memory impairments at 12 months after a single concussive injury. Our findings suggest that exposure to jmTBI leads to a chronic abnormality, which confirms the need for continued monitoring of symptoms and the development of long-term treatment strategies to intervene in children with concussions.
Interactions at the point of firearm purchase and subsequent use of locking devices
Authors: Bandel Shelby L. , Bond Allison E. , Anestis Michael D.
Published: March 2023

Background

Firearms account for over 40,000 deaths in the USA each year in addition to thousands of nonfatal injuries. One notable prevention strategy for firearm-related fatalities and nonfatal injuries is safe storage. Safe storage of firearms emphasizes using storage mechanisms that limit ready access of firearms to unauthorized users. Cable locks are one safe storage option that is easy to access and typically free, as they are included in many firearms sales. The present study examined the extent to which firearms retailers notifying purchasers at the point of sale about the included cable locks was associated with subsequent locking device use in two large samples and three subsamples. Exploratory analyses then examined demographic factors associated with frequency of seller notification of locks.

Methods

Sample 1 included 1203 firearm owners and sample 2 included 1556 firearm owners. Subsamples were drawn from sample 2 to examine if there were differences by state. The three subsamples included firearm owners from Minnesota (n = 515), Mississippi (535), and New Jersey (506). Logistic regressions were used to examine the association between frequency of sellers notifying buyers of locks and subsequent locking device use. Linear regressions were used to examine what demographic factors were associated with greater frequency of seller notification of locking devices.

Results

Results indicated a general trend such that more frequent notification of cable locks at the point of purchase was associated with greater likelihood of using locking devices to secure firearms. At the subsample level, these findings were most consistent for Mississippi relative to Minnesota and New Jersey. Exploratory analyses generally indicated those who were younger and those living in more densely populated areas were more likely to be notified about cable locks at the point of purchase.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that interactions about cable locks at the point of firearm purchase has an impact on firearm storage behaviors. Such results indicate that encouraging firearm retailers to have these discussions with those purchasing firearms might be an important strategy for preventing firearm-related fatalities and nonfatal injuries.
Influence of discontinuation of prophylactic antimicrobial agent for trabeculectomy
Authors: Ushio Yuuka , Yoshikawa Hiroshi , Murase Tetsuya , Kataoka Tatsuo , Miyamoto Shohei , Maruko Kazunari , Okamoto Shoko , Shibata Yuuka , Toda Ryotaro , Kiuchi Yoshiaki , Matsuo Hiroaki
Published: March 2023

Background

There is no unified view of the necessity of prophylactic antimicrobial agents in trabeculectomy. Preoperative prophylactic antimicrobial agent injection and cefazolin sodium (CEZ) for trabeculectomy were discontinued at the Hiroshima University Hospital. In this study, we evaluated whether discontinuation of preoperative administration of CEZ in ophthalmology affects the incidence of postoperative infections.

Methods

We retrospectively investigated patient background, concomitant medications, subconjunctival dexamethasone sodium phosphate (DEX) injection at the end of the surgery, and the incidence of infective endophthalmitis within 6 weeks after surgery in the CEZ and non-CEZ groups. We also performed propensity score matching for background matching. Statistical analysis was performed using the Mann-Whitney U-test and Fisher’s exact test.

Results

The incidence of postoperative endophthalmitis was not significantly different between 629 and 751 patients in the CEZ and no-CEZ groups, respectively (0 in the CEZ group and 2 in the no-CEZ group, P = 0.504). More patients in the CEZ group were taking diabetes drugs preoperatively (P = 0.028) and fewer patients were receiving subconjunctival DEX at the end of surgery (P < 0.001) than those in the non-CEZ group. Propensity scores were calculated using the risk factors for postoperative infection as covariates, and matching (580 patients in the CEZ group and 580 patients in the non-CEZ group) showed no significant difference in the incidence of postoperative endophthalmitis (P = 0.500).

Conclusions

There was no significant difference in the incidence of endophthalmitis after trabeculectomy between the CEZ and non-CEZ groups, suggesting a decreased need for CEZ injections before trabeculectomy.
Effects of teacher, automated, and combined feedback on syntactic complexity in EFL students’ writing
Authors: Thi Nang Kham , Nikolov Marianne
Published: March 2023

Although studies on written feedback have confirmed the effectiveness of multiple sources of feedback in promoting learners’ accuracy, much remains to be discovered about its impact on other aspects of language development. Concerns were raised with regard to the possible unfavourable impact of feedback on the complexity of students’ writing which resulted from their attention to producing accurate texts. In response to this need for research, the study investigated the effects of teacher, automated, and combined feedback on students’ syntactic complexity over a 13-week semester. Our data collection included 270 students’ texts including their drafts and revised texts and pre-and post-test writing. Essays were analysed using the web-based interface of the L2 Syntactic Complexity Analyzer. Regardless of feedback from multiple sources, paired sample t-test results indicate no significant differences between initial and revised texts, resulting in minimal variance between comparison pairs. Moreover, no significant differences were found between the pre-and post-writing assessment in all complexity measures. These findings suggest that providing feedback on students’ writing does not lead them to write less structurally complex texts. The syntactic complexity of their revised essays varied among high-, mid-, and low-achieving students. These variations could be attributed to proficiency levels, writing prompts, genre differences, and feedback sources. A discussion of pedagogical implications is provided.
Numerical simulation and optimization on opening angles of aerodynamic braking plates sets for a maglev train
Authors: Wang Xiaofei , Hu Xiao , Wang Penghui , Zheng Jun , Li Haitao , Deng Zigang , Zhang Weihua
Published: March 2023

The aerodynamic braking has become an attractive option with the continuous improvement of train speeds. The study aims to obtain the optimal opening angles of multiple sets of braking plates for the maglev train. Therefore, a multi-objective optimization method is adopted to decrease the series interference effect between multiple sets of plates. And the computational fluid dynamics method, based on the 3-D, RANS method and SST k-ω turbulence model, is employed to get the initial and iterative data. Firstly, the aerodynamic drag and lift are analysed, as well as the pressure and velocity distribution of the flow field with the braking plates open at 75°. Then, the aerodynamic forces of each braking plate pre and post optimization are compared. Finally, the correlation between each set of braking plates and the optimized objective is analysed. It is found from the results that the aerodynamic drag and lift of the train have significant differences with or without multiple sets of braking plates. Additionally, the design variable corresponding to the number of iterations of 89 is taken as the relative optimal solution, and its opening angles of braking plates (B2-B5) are 87.41°, 87.85°, 87.41°, and 89.88°, respectively. The results are expected to provide a reference for the opening angles design scheme for the future engineering application of high-speed maglev train braking technology.
Electroencephalographic changes in neurologically free patients with tetralogy of Fallot after surgical repair: a cross section study in Egyptian children
Authors: Ibrahim Lamiaa Abdelrahman , Gomaa Fatma Alzahraa Mostafa , Ismail Reem Ibrahim , Elfayoumy Neveen Mohamed , Ahmed Bahga Hosam Eldin , Fathi Iman
Published: March 2023

Background

Surgical correction of tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) is still one of the most frequently performed intervention in pediatric cardiac surgery. The occurrence of seizures after repair or palliation of congenital heart disease (CHD) is a marker for a central nervous system (CNS) injury and has been associated with adverse neurodevelopmental sequelae. The prognostic value of electroencephalogram (EEG) for outcome prediction is glowing in children with CHD undergoing open-heart surgery who are at risk for subsequent neurodevelopmental deficits. To our knowledge, this is the first study to detect the EEG changes in neurologically free TOF patients after surgical repair

Results

Our study included 68 TOF cases and 32 sex- and age-matched control group; they were 66.0% males and 34.0% females. The mean age of the studied children was 11.41 ± 4.23 years. There was statistically significant difference between TOF patients and control group as regards alpha power and Delta% in left occipital region and Alpha% in right occipital region, with dominant alpha waves in patients’ right occipital region. None of our patients had epileptic waves. The duration after operation showed negative correlation with Delta% at left occipital region and positive correlation with Alpha% in right occipital region (p = 0.002, p = 0.044 respectively).

Conclusion

TOF cases showed changes in EEG parameters chiefly dominant alpha power and Delta% in left occipital region and dominant Alpha% in right occipital region. Duration after surgery correlated negatively with Delta% at left occipital region, and positively with Alpha% in the right occipital region. Subsequent assessment is recommended to study long-term hazards of these varied dominance of EEG waves in our patients, e.g., evaluation of the cognitive functions.
Analytic transparency is key for reproducibility of agricultural research
Authors: Sileshi Gudeta W.
Published: March 2023

There are growing concerns over the failure of attempts to confirm findings from past studies in various disciplines, and this problem is now known as the “reproducibility crisis” or “replication crisis”. In the agricultural sciences, this problem has remained unappreciated, underreported and there are deficiencies in efforts to tackle it. According to a recent analysis, it is difficult to reproduce on-farm experiments due to the lack of research transparency. Non-reproducible research does not only waste resources, but it can also slow down scientific progress and undermine public trust. In this commentary, my aim is to draw attention to the evolving concepts and terminology used in characterizing reproducibility and the common reasons for non-reproducibility of past research. I argue that analytic transparency is not only key for reproducibility of research but it can facilitate systematic reviews, meta-analyses and evidence mapping to guide formulation of evidence-based policies and practices.
Challenges and best practices in interpreting crosswell strain signals to monitor multicrew zipper-fracturing operations
Authors: Ning Yanrui , Jin Ge
Published: March 2023

Crosswell strain measurements using low-frequency distributed acoustic sensing (LF-DAS) are an emerging technique to monitor hydraulic-fracture propagation. Qualitative interpretations of the strain rate data have been used to evaluate fracturing stimulation efficiency, hydraulic-fracture geometry, and crosswell communication. Limited studies have investigated the crosswell strain signals recorded by offset fibers during a zipper-fracturing treatment, though zipper fracturing becomes a routine method of stimulating horizontal wells in unconventional reservoirs. This gap will be filled in this research by presenting the methods we developed to investigate complicated LF-DAS signals. These approaches were further demonstrated using the field data sets recorded by two temporary sensing fiber cables during the zipper-fracturing operation of seven offset wells with two fracking crews operating simultaneously. By exploring, comparing, and presenting the LF-DAS data recorded in wireline and disposable fiber cables, this research shares the best practices for visualizing and interpreting crosswell strain signals. The LF-DAS data set shown in this study, is, to the best of our knowledge, one of the most complicated LF-DAS data sets ever presented. The approaches proposed here can be extended and applied to visualize and interpret different kinds of complicated LF-DAS signals recorded using permanent, wireline, and disposable fiber cables.
Gas-hydrate interpretation from 3D seismic attributes: An example from the Gulf of Mexico
Authors: Nenov Nikolay , Machado Vladimir Alberto Gouveia , Sukmono Sigit , Teixeira Eriwaldo
Published: March 2023

Gas hydrates are a recognized drilling geohazard. If not mitigated, they may result in plugged blowout preventors, gas kicks, blowouts, borehole instability, gas leaks outside casings, and inadequate cementing operations. Gas hydrates located within the gas-hydrate stability zone (GHSZ) are difficult to interpret solely from seismic amplitudes. In this paper, we apply a multifaceted approach using the velocity pullup method in combination with 3D visualization of seismic attributes for the interpretation of gas hydrates within the GHSZ. The approach is applied to an area in the eastern part of the Gulf of Mexico in water depths greater than 2400 m. The practical outcome of this study is the choice of safe drilling locations outside of areas where gas hydrates have been interpreted to be present.
Efficacy of psychological interventions for post-traumatic stress disorder in children and adolescents exposed to single versus multiple traumas: meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials
Authors: Hoppen Thole H. , Meiser-Stedman Richard , Jensen Tine K. , Birkeland Marianne Skogbrott , Morina Nexhmedin
Published: March 2023

Background

Previous meta-analyses of psychotherapies for children and adolescents with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) did not investigate whether treatment efficacy is diminished when patients report multiple (versus single) traumas.

Aims

To examine whether efficacy of psychological interventions for paediatric PTSD is diminished when patients report multiple (versus single) traumas.

Method

We systematically searched PsycInfo, MEDLINE, Web of Science and PTSDpubs on 21 April 2022 and included randomised controlled trials (RCTs) meeting the following criteria: (a) random allocation; (b) all participants presented with partial or full PTSD; (c) PTSD is the primary treatment focus; (d) sample mean age <19 years; (e) sample size n ≥ 20. Trauma frequency was analysed as a dichotomous (single versus ≥2 traumas) and continuous (mean number of exposures) potential moderator of efficacy.

Results

Of the 57 eligible RCTs (n = 4295), 51 RCTs were included in quantitative analyses. Relative to passive control conditions, interventions were found effective for single-trauma-related PTSD (Hedges’ g = 1.09; 95% CI 0.70–1.48; k = 8 trials) and multiple-trauma-related PTSD (g = 1.11; 95% CI 0.74–1.47; k = 12). Psychotherapies were also more effective than active control conditions in reducing multiple-trauma-related PTSD. Comparison with active control conditions regarding single-event PTSD was not possible owing to scarcity (k = 1) of available trials. Efficacy did not differ with trauma exposure frequency irrespective of its operationalisation and subgroup analyses (e.g. trauma-focused cognitive–behavioural therapy only).

Conclusions

The current evidence base suggests that psychological interventions for paediatric PTSD can effectively treat PTSD in populations reporting single and multiple traumas. Future trials for PTSD following single-event trauma need to involve active control conditions.
Multi-solitons in the spin-orbit-coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensates
Authors: Qi Juan-Juan , Li Zai-Dong , Zhao Dun
Published: March 2023

We find a restrictive integrable reduction for the one-dimensional spin-orbit-coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensate system, which allows us to reduce the three-component Gross-Pitaevskii system into the two-component Manakov system or the single cubic Schrödinger equation. Based on the reduction, we obtain the multi-breathers, higher-order rouge waves and multi-dark soliton solutions for ferromagnetic and anti-ferromagnetic system, respectively. Furthermore, the impacts of the spin-orbit coupling to the multi-soliton dynamics, and the stability of these soliton solutions have also been discussed.
Circulating AFABP, FGF21, and PEDF Levels as Prognostic Biomarkers of Sight-threatening Diabetic Retinopathy
Authors: Lee Chi-Ho , Lui David Tak-Wai , Cheung Chloe Yu-Yan , Fong Carol Ho-Yi , Yuen Michele Mae-Ann , Woo Yu-Cho , Chow Wing-Sun , Wong Ian Yat-Hin , Xu Aimin , Lam Karen Siu-Ling
Published: March 2023

Context

Adipocyte fatty acid-binding protein (AFABP), fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), and pigment epithelium–derived factor (PEDF) are 3 diabetes-related biomarkers whose circulating levels had been shown to associate with nephropathy progression in Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes.

Objective

Here, we evaluated and compared their prospective associations with the development of sight-threatening DR (STDR), another important diabetic microvascular complication.

Methods

Baseline serum AFABP, PEDF, and FGF21 levels were measured in 4760 Chinese individuals with type 2 diabetes and without STDR at baseline. The associations of these biomarkers with incident STDR were analyzed using Cox regression analysis.

Results

Among these 4760 participants (mean diabetes duration of 11 years and ≥ 50% with nonproliferative DR at baseline), 172 participants developed STDR over a median follow-up of 8.8 years. Participants with incident STDR had comparable baseline serum FGF21 levels but significantly higher baseline serum AFABP and PEDF levels (both P < .001) than those without. However, in multivariable Cox regression analysis, only serum AFABP remained independently associated with incident STDR (hazard ratio 1.28; 95% CI, 1.05-1.55; P = .013). The addition of serum AFABP to a clinical model of conventional STDR risk factors including diabetes duration, glycemic control, albuminuria, and baseline DR status significantly improved the c statistics (P < .001), net reclassification index (P = .0027), and integrated discrimination index (P = .033) in predicting incident STDR among participants without DR or with mild DR at baseline.

Conclusion

Among the 3 diabetes-related biomarkers, serum AFABP level appeared to be a more clinically useful biomarker for predicting incident STDR in type 2 diabetes.
Racial/Ethnic Variability in Use of General Anesthesia for Pediatric Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Authors: Gan Ziyu , Rosenbloom Julia M. , De Souza Elizabeth , Anderson T. Anthony
Published: March 2023

BACKGROUND:

Children increasingly undergo diagnostic imaging procedures, sometimes with general anesthesia (GA). It is unknown whether the use of GA differs by race/ethnicity among children undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans.

METHODS:

This is a retrospective cohort study of GA use for pediatric patients from 0 to 21 years of age who underwent MRIs from January 1, 2004 to May 31, 2019. The study sample was stratified into 5 age groups: 0 to 1, 2 to 5, 6 to 11, 12 to 18, and 19 to 21. Analysis was performed separately for each age group.

RESULTS:

Among 457,314 MRI patients, 29,108 (6.4%) had GA. In the adjusted regression models, Asian patients aged 0 to 1 (adjusted relative risk [aRR] [95% confidence interval {CI}] of 1.11 [1.05–1.17], P < .001) and aged 2 to 5 (aRR [95% CI], 1.04 [1.00–1.09], P = .03), Black patients aged 2 to 5 (aRR [95% CI], 1.04 [1.01–1.08], P = .02) and aged 6 to 11 (aRR [95% CI], 1.13 [1.06–1.20], P < .001), and Hispanic patients aged 0 to 1 (aRR [95% CI], 1.07 [1.03–1.12], P < .001) were more likely to receive GA for MRIs than White patients.

CONCLUSIONS:

Asian, Black, and Hispanic children of some ages were more likely to receive GA during MRI scans than White children in the same age group. Future research is warranted to delineate whether this phenomenon signifies disparate care for children based on their race/ethnicity.
“Abolish the Monopolizing of the Earth”
Authors: Quinn Adam
Published: March 2023

At the turn of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, an industrial capitalist order stretched its grasp across the globe, placing control of farms, mines, and forests in the hands of wealthy industrialists. Living through this period of rapid and unequal economic and environmental change, anarchists denounced what they called the monopolizing of the earth and its products. Anarchists were deeply critical of the privatization of the environment and saw restricting access to nature as a core component of inequality and poverty. This article considers the environmental politics of transnational anarchism in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. With anarchism’s geographically and ideologically diverse participants in mind, it incorporates the natural science-informed utopian visions of Peter Kropotkin and Elisée Reclus, the revolutionary and anti-colonial food and land politics of Ricardo Flores Magón, and the nature-informed radical sex politics of Emma Goldman and Alexander Berkman. It finds that “anarchism” did not just mean the destruction of the state and capitalism to its advocates, but the construction of a new political-economic-natural system that saw the liberation of people and the defense of nature as inextricably connected. The article concludes with a call to both include anarchism as a part of the genealogy of environmentalism and consider anarchism’s environmental politics in ongoing conversations about the relationships between environmental crises and human inequalities.
“The Very Valley of the Shadow of Death”
Authors: Høgsbjerg Christian
Published: March 2023

This essay explores the Black Trinidadian revolutionary historian C. L. R. James’s little-theorized engagement with questions of the environment and natural world from the 1930s to the 1980s, situating this within his wider oeuvre as a Marxist who not only experienced colonial domination in the Caribbean but also witnessed other catastrophes endemic to twentieth-century capitalism, from the Great War to the Great Depression, the rise of fascism and the Holocaust, the Second World War, and then the use of atomic weapons at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The essay first examines how James might be seen to have helped inspire contemporary theorizing around the “plantationocene” in his classic history of the Haitian Revolution, The Black Jacobins (1938). As early as 1951, James (and his fellow thinkers) noted: “It is not the world of nature that confronts man as an alien power to be overcome. It is the alien power that he has himself created.” The choice ahead, for James, was one of socialism or barbarism, rebellion or extinction. In 1958, evoking biblical language and imagery, he noted that we are already entering “the very valley of the shadow of death.”
“In Difesa della Natura”
Authors: Martone Francesco , Jijón Rosa
Published: March 2023

This contribution, inspired by critical debates on the Anthropocene and by the ideas of key Latin American thinkers and academics such as Maristella Svampa, aims at offering an overview of selected works of artists who operate in Latin America. Their work highlights some of the key contradictions and emerging arguments in the debate around the Anthropocene, notably its colonial and patriarchal character. Some of them represent the current systemic crisis induced by extractive capitalism, and underline the relevance of Indigenous peoples’ worldview and traditional knowledge or the connection between the exploitation of feminine bodies and extractivism. Their direct engagement and collaboration with Indigenous communities that resist extractivism visibilizes their agency and active contribution to radical transformation and ecological change, while contributing to challenge the power structures in which these operate.
Trafficking in Antiblackness
Authors: Beutin Lyndsey P.
Published: March 2023

In Trafficking in Antiblackness Lyndsey P. Beutin analyzes how campaigns to end human trafficking—often described as “modern-day slavery”—invoke the memory of transatlantic slavery to support positions ultimately grounded in antiblackness. Drawing on contemporary antitrafficking visual culture and media discourse, she shows how a constellation of media, philanthropic, NGO, and government actors invested in ending human trafficking repurpose the history of transatlantic slavery and abolition in ways that undermine contemporary struggles for racial justice and slavery reparations. The recurring narratives, images, and figures such as “slavery in Africa,” “Arab slave traders,” and “Black incapacity for self-governance” discursively turn Black people across the diaspora into the enslavers of the past and present in place of white Americans and Europeans. Doing so, Beutin contends, creates a rhetorical defense against being held liable for slavery’s dispossessions and violence. Despite these implications, Beutin demonstrates that antitrafficking discourse remains popular and politically useful for former slaving nations and their racial beneficiaries because it refashions historic justifications for white supremacy into today’s abolition of slavery.
Numerical methods for evolutionary differential equations that maintain the positivity of the solution
Authors: Περβολιανάκης Χρήστος
Published: March 2023

Θεωρούμε το μοντέλο χημειοταξίας Keller-Segel σε ένα φραγμένο χωρίο $\Omega\subset\mathbb{R}^2.$ Υποθέτοντας κατάλληλες συνθήκες για να έχουμε φραγμένες λύσεις για όλους τους χρόνους, διακριτοποιούμε τη χωρική μεταβλητή με την γραμμική μέθοδο των πεπερασμένων στοιχείων ενώ η χρονική μεταβλητή διακριτοποιείται με την έμμεση μέθοδο του Euler και τον έμμεσο κανόνα του μέσου. Αποδεικνύουμε ότι το ημι-διακριτό και πλήρως διακριτό σχήμα με την έμμεση μέθοδο του Euler μπορεί να λάβει αρνητικές τιμές, επομένως στόχος μας είναι να αναζητήσουμε συνθήκες για τις υπάρχουσες μεθόδους ή κατάλληλες τροποποιήσεις μεθόδων διακριτοποίησης με βάση πεπερασμένα στοιχεία που διατηρούν τη θετικότητα της λύσης του συστήματος. Για αυτόν το λόγο, θεωρούμε τα ευσταθή αριθμητικά σχήματα που διατηρούν την θετικότητα αλλά και την μάζα τα οποία εισάγονται στο R. Strehl et all. (2010). Κάτω από κατάλληλες υποθέσεις ομαλότητας για την ακριβή λύση, αποδεικνύουμε την ύπαρξη και τη μοναδικότητα της λύσης αυτών των ευσταθών αριθμητικών σχημάτων σχημάτων. Επίσης, αποδεικνύουμε ότι η λύση αυτών των ευσταθών σχημάτων παραμένει θετική κάτω από μια κατάλληλη επιλογή του χωρικού και του χρονικού βήματος. Επιπλέον, αποδεικνύουμε αποτελέσματα σχετικά με τη διατήρηση της μάζας και αποδεικνύουμε εκτιμήσεις σφαλμάτων στην $L_2$ και $H^1-$νόρμα στον χώρο και $L_\infty$ στο χρόνο. Πραγματοποιήθηκαν αριθμητικά αποτελέσματα σε διάφορα προβλήματα δοκιμής προκειμένου να μελετηθεί η ασυμπτωτική συμπεριφορά του σφάλματος στην $L_2$ και $H^1-$νόρμα στον χώρο και $L_\infty$ στο χρόνο. Εκτός από την εκ των προτέρων ανάλυση των ευσταθών σχημάτων που εισάγονται στο R. Strehl et all. (2010), κατασκευάζουμε εκ των υστέρων εκτιμήσεις σφάλματος χρησιμοποιώντας εκτιμητές υπολοίπων για τα πλήρως διακριτά σχήματα με την έμμεση μέθοδο του Euler και του έμμεσου κανόνα του μέσου. Εφόσον έχουμε ένα παραβολικό σύστημα μερικών διαφορικών εξισώσεων, η ανάλυση περιλαμβάνει την κατάλληλη εισαγωγή ενός ελλειπτικού τελεστή ανακατασκευής, παρόμοιου με αυτόν των C. Makridakis και R. H. Nochetto (2003). Η διακριτοποίηση χώρου χρησιμοποιεί τους τυπικούς γραμμικούς χώρους πεπερασμένων στοιχείων και η χρονική διακριτοποίηση βασίζεται στον έμμεση Euler και τον έμμεσο κανόνα του μέσου. Επίσης, κατασκευάζουμε εκ των υστέρων εκτιμήσεις σφάλματος στην $L_{\infty}(L_2)$ και στην $L_2(H^1)-$νόρμα. Πραγματοποιήθηκαν αριθμητικά αποτελέσματα σε διάφορα προβλήματα δοκιμής προκειμένου να μελετηθεί η ασυμπτωτική συμπεριφορά των εκ των υστέρων εκτιμητών σφάλματος.