bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Direct Consequences of Cranioplasty to the Brain: Intracranial Pressure Study
Authors: Tsianaka Eleni , Singh Ajit , Drosos Evangelos , Fountas Kostas
Published: July 2021

Intracranial pressure (ICP) is a crucial factor that we need to take into account in all major pathophysiological changes of the brain after decompressive craniectomy (DC) and cranioplasty (CP). The purpose of our study was to check ICP values before and after cranioplasty and its relation to various parameters (imaging, demographics, time of cranioplasty, and type of graft) as well as its possible relation to postsurgical complications. The authors performed a prospective study in which they selected as participants adults who had undergone unilateral frontotemporoparietal DC and were planned to have cranioplasty. Intracranial pressure was measured with optical fiber sensor in the epidural space and did not affect cranioplasty in any way.

Twenty-five patients met the criteria. The mean vcICP (value change of ICP) was 1.2 mm Hg, the mean ΔICP (absolute value change of the ICP) was 2.24 mm Hg and in the majority of cases there was an increase in ICP. The authors found 3 statistically significant correlations: between gender and ΔICP, Δtime (time between DC and CP) and vcICP, and pre-ICP and ±ICP (quantitative change of the ICP).

Μale patients tend to develop larger changes of ICP values during CP. As the time between the 2 procedures (DC and CP) gets longer, the vcICP is decreased. However, after certain time it shows a tendency to remain around zero. Lower pre-ICP values (close to or below zero) are more possible to increase after bone flap placement. It seems that the brain tends to restore its pre-DC conditions after CP by taking near-to-normal ICP values.
Epineurectomy of Facial Nerve Trunk for Refractory Oral-Ocular and Oculo-Oral Synkinesis Following Bell Palsy
Authors: Wei Xiangyu , Chang Bowen , Li Shiting
Published: July 2021

Background:

Synkinesis is a common sequelae after incomplete recovery from Bell palsy. Current first-line treatments include botulinum toxin injection and physical therapy. However, patients unresponsive to these treatments may require further surgery. Various surgical treatments have been reported, but no consensus has been reached for the optimal surgery. In a guinea pig model of synkinesis, the facial nerve trunk (FNT) was observed using a scanning electron microscope. Based on the results of scanning electron microscope and clinical ultrasonography, the authors chose FNT as the therapeutic target.

Methods:

The authors performed epineurectomy of FNT for 11 patients with refractory oral-ocular and oculo-oral synkinesis under abnormal muscle response and facial electromyography monitoring. The postoperative assessments at 1 year were conducted using Sunnybrook Facial Grading System and Facial Disability Index scale. Furthermore, the epineurium excised during the operation was collected as the specimen and submitted for histopathological examination; the cadaveric FNT served as the control group.

Results:

The follow-up results showed significant relief from synkinesis (4.91 ± 0.37 versus 10.18 ± 0.64, P < 0.01), improvement of physical (84.55 ± 1.96 versus 73.18 ± 3.65, P < 0.01) and social functions (77.09 ± 3.24 versus 61.82 ± 6.28, P < 0.01), with no worsening of facial paralysis in the patients. The histopathological examination revealed many nerve fibers in the epineurium, suggesting that FNT was the area of aberrant axon regeneration.

Conclusions:

Epineurectomy of FNT is a safe and effective surgical remedy. It can be considered as a surgical option for patients with refractory oral-ocular and oculo-oral synkinesis following Bell palsy.
Trismus Due to Hyperplastic Coronoid Process: Series of Five Cases and Review of Literature
Authors: Warwas Felix Benjamin , Wiedemeyer Valentin , Kramer Franz-Josef , Heim Nils
Published: July 2021

Hyperplasia of the coronoid process is a rare condition, potentially leading to a mechanical mouth opening restriction. Diagnostic workup and treatment will be discussed based on 5 cases. This article presents 5 cases of true coronoid process hyperplasia. In addition, we reviewed accessible literature on the topic with special attention to pathophysiologic theories, surgical approach, and postoperative physiotherapy. The improvement in the maximal intercuspidal opening ranged from 4 and 31 mm. Greater maximal intercuspidal opening improvement was connected to compliant patients, while poor outcome occurred in the case of a patient that neither followed the recommendations for physical therapy nor showed up for his follow up appointments. The success of the therapy is defined by a long-lasting and stable improvement of the mouth opening compared to the preoperative situation. In the presented cases, the outcome was strongly dependent on the patients’ postoperative compliance. Based on the cases described, we conclude that a good outcome is accomplishable for patients using the methods presented, as long as patients cooperate well after surgery.

Diagnostic workup in patients with trismus should be thorough to correctly diagnose rare entities such as coronoid hyperplasia. If treated correctly this condition has a good outcome, as long as the compliance of the patient is adequate.
Initial Histological Evaluation of a Novel Dura Mater Graft Based on Capsule Granulation Harvested From Subcutaneous Tissue: Experimental Model
Authors: Rendón-Medina Marco Aurelio , Galeana-Pavón Alberto , Vázquez-Medina Martín Uriel , Hernández-Ordoñez Rubén , Pacheco-López Ricardo César , Ocharan-Hernández María Esther
Published: July 2021

Introduction:

Autografts are useful but unfortunately are limited in big dural defects, in such cases, synthetic implants have been recommended. Extensive evidence in the literature suggests that sometimes synthetic implants had high rates of complications like infections. This paper aims to present a novel dura matter graft based on capsule granulation tissue harvested from subcutaneous space as a dura substitute and its histological findings.

Materials and Methods:

Wistar rats between 240 and 430 grams of both genders were included. First stage procedure introducing silicon spheres in the subcutaneous tissue. Second stage procedure 4 weeks later harvested de capsule granulation tissue that contain them. Then a craniectomy was performed to create a dura mater defect. This defect was reconstructed with the granulation tissue was placed onlay the defect. After another 4 weeks the subjects were euthanized and sent to an external pathology unit for analysis with validated integration scales.

Results:

A total of 5 subjects were included (3 males and 2 females) with weight between 240 and 430 grams. Only 2 outcome out of 6 scales had significance difference between the samples: adhesions P = 0.011 and integration P = 0.006.

Conclusions:

The histological findings shown that capsule granulation graft is a compatible, autologous compatible substitute for dura mater. It has a great potential of full integration and an acceptable grade of adhesions.
De-escalation of Endocrine Therapy in Early Hormone Receptor-positive Breast Cancer
Authors: Weiser Roi , Polychronopoulou Efstathia , Kuo Yong-fang , Haque Waqar , Hatch Sandra S. , Tyler Douglas S. , Gradishar William J. , Klimberg V. Suzanne
Published: July 2021

Objective:

To identify subgroups of hormone receptor-positive (HR+) breast cancer patients that might not benefit from adding endocrine therapy (ET) to their local treatment.

Background:

De-escalation in breast cancer treatment has included surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy and has often focused on older patient populations. Systemic ET has yet to be de-escalated, though it carries serious side-effects, decreasing quality of life over 5 to 10 years. We hypothesize the 21-gene recurrence score (RS) could identify subgroups of younger patients whose long-term survival is unaffected by adjuvant ET.

Methods:

The National Cancer Database was used to identify women aged ≥50, with HR+, HER2-negative tumors, ≤3 cm in size, N0 status, and a RS≤25, who underwent breast-conserving surgery in 2010 to 2016. Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards models were used to identify association between treatment and overall survival (OS).

Results:

Of the 45,217 patients identified, 80.6% were 50 to 69 years old. 42,632 (94.3%) patients received ET and 2585 (5.7%) did not. The 5-year OS was 96.4% for patients receiving ET and 93.1% for those who did not (P < 0.001). After adjusting for all covariates, patients aged 50 to 69 with RS < 11 showed no statistically significant improvement in OS when adding ET to surgery, with or without radiation (P = 0.40). With RS 11 to 25, there was a significant improvement of OS with ET plus radiation (P < 0.001).

Conclusions:

Local treatment only, with de-escalation of long-term ET, for patients aged 50 to 69 with RS < 11, seems not to impact OS and should have an anticipated quality of life improvement. Prospective studies investigating this approach are warranted.
The Correlation Between Case Total Work Relative Value Unit, Operative Stress, and Patient Frailty
Authors: Reitz Katherine M. , Varley Patrick R. , Liang Nathan L. , Youk Ada , George Elizabeth L. , Shinall Myrick C. , Shireman Paula K. , Arya Shipra , Tzeng Edith , Hall Daniel E.
Published: July 2021

Objective:

Assess the relationships between case total work relative value units (wRVU), patient frailty, and the physiologic stress of surgical interventions.

Summary of Background Data:

Surgeon reimbursement is frequently apportioned by wRVU. These subjective, procedure-specific valuations generated by physician survey estimate the intensity and time for typical patient care services. We hypothesized wRVU would not adequately account for patient-specific factors, such as frailty, that modify the required physician work, regardless of procedural complexity.

Methods:

Using National and Veterans Affairs Surgical Quality Improvement Programs (2015–2018), we evaluated the correlation between case total wRVU, patient frailty (risk analysis index) and physiologic surgical stress (operative stress score).

Results:

Of 4,111,371 (86%) cases, the correlation between total wRVU and operative stress was moderate [ρ

s
= 0.587 (95% confidence interval, 0.586–0.587)], but negligible with frailty ρ = 0.177 (95% confidence interval, 0.176–0.178)]. Very high operative stress procedures [n = 34,047 (1%)] generated a mean total wRVU of 55.1 (standard deviation, 12.9), comprising 7%, 2%, and 1% of thoracic, vascular, and general surgical cases, respectively. Very frail patients [n = 152,535 (4%)] accounted for 9% of thoracic, 9% of vascular, 4% of general, 5% of urologic, and 4% of neurologic surgical cases, generating 21.0 (standard deviation, 12.4) mean total wRVU. Some nonfrail patients undergoing low operative stress procedures [n = 60,128 (2%)] nonetheless generated the highest quintile wRVU; these comprised >15% of plastic, gynecologic, and urologic surgical cases.

Conclusions:

Surgeon reimbursement correlates with operative stress but not patient frailty. The total wRVU does not adequately reflect patient-specific factors that increase the physician workload required to render optimal care to complex patients.
Outcomes After Minimally Invasive Versus Open Total Pancreatectomy
Authors: Scholten Lianne , Klompmaker Sjors , Van Hilst Jony , Annecchiarico Mario M. , Balzano Gianpaolo , Casadei Riccardo , Fabre Jean-Michel , Falconi Massimo , Ferrari Giovanni , Kerem Mustafa , Khatkov Igor E. , Lombardo Carlo , Manzoni Alberto , Mazzola Michele , Napoli Niccolò , Rosso Edoardo E. , Tyutyunnik Pavel , Wellner Ulrich F. , Fuks David , Burdio Fernando , Keck Tobias , Hilal Mohammed Abu , Besselink Marc G. , Boggi Ugo ,   for the European consortium on Minimally Invasive Pancreatic Surgery and the Scientific and Research Committee of the European-African Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association
Published: July 2021

Objective:

To assess postoperative 90-day outcomes after minimally invasive (laparoscopic/robot-assisted) total pancreatectomy (MITP) in selected patients versus open total pancreatectomy (OTP) among European centers.

Background:

Minimally invasive pancreatic surgery is becoming increasingly popular but data on MITP are scarce and multicenter studies comparing outcomes versus OTP are lacking. It therefore remains unclear if MITP is a valid alternative.

Methods:

Multicenter retrospective propensity-score matched study including consecutive adult patients undergoing MITP or OTP for all indications at 16 European centers in 7 countries (2008–2017). Patients after MITP were matched (1:1, caliper 0.02) to OTP controls. Missing data were imputed. The primary outcome was 90-day major morbidity (Clavien-Dindo ≥3a). Secondary outcomes included 90-day mortality, length of hospital stay, and survival.

Results:

Of 361 patients (99MITP/262 OTP), 70 MITP procedures (50 laparoscopic, 15 robotic, 5 hybrid) could be matched to 70 OTP controls. After matching, MITP was associated with a lower rate of major morbidity (17% MITP vs. 31% OTP, P = 0.022). The 90-day mortality (1.4% MITP vs. 7.1% OTP, P = 0.209) and median hospital stay (17 [IQR 11–24] MITP vs. 12 [10-23] days OTP, P = 0.876) did not differ significantly. Among 81 patients with PDAC, overall survival was 3.7 (IQR 1.7-N/A) versus 0.9 (IQR 0.5-N/ A) years, for MITP versus OTP, which was nonsignificant after stratification by T-stage.

Conclusion:

This international propensity score matched study showed that MITP may be a valuable alternative to OTP in selected patients, given the associated lower rate of major morbidity.
Electrical Brain Stimulation for Epilepsy and Emerging Applications
Authors: Worrell Gregory A.
Published: July 2021

Electrical brain stimulation is an established therapy for movement disorders, epilepsy, obsessive compulsive disorder, and a potential therapy for many other neurologic and psychiatric disorders. Despite significant progress and FDA approvals, there remain significant clinical gaps that can be addressed with next generation systems. Integrating wearable sensors and implantable brain devices with off-the-body computing resources (smart phones and cloud resources) opens a new vista for dense behavioral and physiological signal tracking coupled with adaptive stimulation therapy that should have applications for a range of brain and mind disorders. Here, we briefly review some history and current electrical brain stimulation applications for epilepsy, deep brain stimulation and responsive neurostimulation, and emerging applications for next generation devices and systems.
Reclassification of [Haemophilus] haemoglobinophilus as Canicola haemoglobinophilus gen. nov., comb. nov. including Bisgaard taxon 35
Authors: Christensen Henrik , Kuhnert Peter , Foster Geoffrey , Bisgaard Magne
Published: July 2021

[

Haemophilus

] haemoglobinophilus and the unpublished Bisgaard taxon 35 are associated with respiratory and urogenital tract infections in dogs. A total of 21 strains including the type strain of [

Haemophilus

] haemoglobinophilus were included in the investigation. Strains of [

Haemophilus

] haemoglobinophilus and taxon 35 formed a monophyletic group demonstrating at least 97.8 and 96.5% similarities within the group based upon 16S rRNA and rpoB gene sequence comparisons, respectively.

Glaesserella australis

was the most closely related species to [

Haemophilus

] haemoglobinophilus and taxon 35 with 96.1 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity which is slightly higher than the 95 % separating most genera of the family

Pasteurellaceae

. However, the conserved protein sequence phylogeny documented a unique position of [

Haemophilus

] haemoglobinophilus with only 81 % identity to the most closely related species, genomospecies 1 of the genus

Rodentibacter

which is lower than the 85 % separating most genera of the family

Pasteurellaceae

. The conserved protein sequence identity to

Haemophilus influenzae

, the type species of the genus, was 77%, demonstrating that [

Haemophilus

] haemoglobinophilus is not properly classified as a member of the genus

Haemophilus

. On the basis of the phylogenetic comparisons, the taxa [

Haemophilus

] haemoglobinophilus and taxon 35 are proposed to be included with a novel genus Canicola with one species, Canicola haemoglobinophilus which is reclassified from [

Haemophilus

] haemoglobinophilus. Phenotypic characters obtained with isolates genetically approved to represent Canicola haemoglobinophilus were in accordance with those of the members of the family Pasteurellaceae, and the novel genus can be separated from most of the existing genera by a positive catalase reaction, lack of V-factor requirement for growth, lack of haemolysis of blood agar and negative Voges–Proskauer and urease tests. The novel genus cannot be separated by biochemical and physiological characteristics alone from the genera

Aggregatibacter

,

Avibacterium

,

Frederiksenia

and

Spirabiliibacterium

. However, MALDI-TOF mass spectroscopy and also RpoB amino acid signatures allowed a clear separation from these taxa, supporting the existence of a novel genus. The DNA G+C content is 37.0–37.8 mol% for the genus, based on the whole genomic sequences. The type strain of Canicola haemoglobinophilus is CCUG 3714T (=ATCC 19416T=NCTC 1659T) isolated in 1901 from the prepuce of a dog in Germany.
Transcription and replication organize cohesin-dependent chromosome loops
Authors: Jeppsson Kristian , Sakata Toyonori , Nakato Ryuichiro , Milanova Stefina , Shirahige Katsuhiko , Björkegren Camilla
Published: July 2021

Genome function and stability is strictly dependent on regulated folding of chromosomes in space and time. Chromosome loop formation by the protein complex cohesin is a central feature of this multilayer organization1. Accumulating evidence indicates that cohesin creates loops by extruding chromosomal DNA through its ring-like structure in a process that is controlled by the cohesin loading factor Scc2 and the unloader Wpl11–4. Cohesin’s chromosomal positioning is affected by transcription in both yeast and human cells5,6, and the complex localizes in the vicinity of replication forks7. However, if transcription directly influences chromosome looping remains an unresolved question, and the threedimensional organization of replicating chromosomes is unknown. Here we show that transcription and replication machineries create chromosome loop boundaries. We find that drug-induced depletion of chromosome-bound RNA polymerases triggers a rapid expansion of cohesin-dependent chromosome loops in the budding yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiae.New loop boundaries also form at a few highly expressed genes induced by the cellular stress response caused by the drug. The results also reveal that S-phase chromosomes are shaped by cohesin-dependent loops organized by transcription, with additional loop anchors at replication forks. Together, our results show that replication and transcription control the three-dimensional organization of the genome by blocking the progression of loop-forming cohesin. They also open for the possibility that the resulting positioning of loop-forming cohesin in the vicinity of transcription and replication machineries is part of cohesin’s functions in transcription control, sister chromatid cohesion and maintenance of fork stability.
Designing Interpretable Convolution-Based Hybrid Networks for Genomics
Authors: Ghotra Rohan , Lee Nicholas Keone , Tripathy Rohit , Koo Peter K.
Published: July 2021

Hybrid networks that build upon convolutional layers with attention mechanisms have demon-strated improved performance relative to pure convolutional networks across many regulatory genome analysis tasks. Their inductive bias to learn long-range interactions provides an avenue to identify learned motif-motif interactions. For attention maps to be interpretable, the convolutional layer(s) must learn identifiable motifs. Here we systematically investigate the extent that architectural choices in convolution-based hybrid networks influence learned motif representations in first layer filters, as well as the reliability of their attribution maps generated by saliency analysis. We find that design principles previously identified in standard convolutional networks also generalize to hybrid networks. This work provides an avenue to narrow the spectrum of architectural choices when designing hybrid networks such that they are amenable to commonly used interpretability methods in genomics.
Aspiration-assisted freeform bioprinting of mesenchymal stem cell spheroids within alginate microgels
Authors: Kim Myoung Hwan , Banerjee Dishary , Celik Nazmiye , Ozbolat Ibrahim T
Published: July 2021

Aspiration-assisted freeform bioprinting (AAfB) has emerged as a promising technique for precise placement of tissue spheroids in three-dimensional (3D) space for fabrication of tissues. For successful embedded bioprinting using AAfB, an ideal support bath should possess shear-thinning behavior and yield-stress to obtain tightly fused assembly of bioprinted spheroids. Several studies have demonstrated support baths for embedded bioprinting, but these materials pose major challenges due to their low biocompatibility, opaqueness, complex and prolonged preparation procedures, and limited spheroid fusion efficacy. In this study, to circumvent the aforementioned limitations, we present the feasibility of AAfB of human mesenchymal stem cell (hMSC) spheroids in alginate microgels as a support bath. First, alginate microgels were prepared with different particle sizes modulated by blending time and concentration, followed by determination of the optimal bioprinting conditions by the assessment of rheological properties, bioprintability, and spheroid fusion efficiency. The bioprinted and consequently self-assembled tissue structures made of hMSC spheroids were osteogenically induced for bone tissue formation. Alongside, we investigated the effects of peripheral blood monocyte-derived osteoclast incorporation into the hMSC spheroids in heterotypic bone tissue formation. We demonstrated that alginate microgels enabled unprecedented positional accuracy (~5%), transparency for visualization, and improved fusion efficiency (~97%) of bioprinted hMSC spheroids for bone fabrication. This study demonstrates the feasibility of using alginate microgels as a support bath for many different applications including but not limited to freeform bioprinting of spheroids, cell-laden hydrogels, and fugitive inks to form viable tissue constructs.
Trips and Neurotransmitters: Discovering Principled Patterns across 6,850 Hallucinogenic Experiences
Authors: Ballentine Galen , Friedman Samuel Freesun , Bzdok Danilo
Published: July 2021

Psychedelics are thought to alter states of consciousness by disrupting how the higher association cortex governs bottom-up sensory signals. Individual hallucinogenic drugs are usually studied in participants in controlled laboratory settings. Here, we have explored word usage in 6,850 free-form testimonials with 27 drugs through the prism of 40 neurotransmitter receptor subtypes, which were then mapped to 3D coordinates in the brain via their gene transcription levels from invasive tissue probes. Despite the variable subjective nature of hallucinogenic experiences, our pattern-learning approach delineated how drug-induced changes of conscious awareness (e.g., dissolving self-world boundaries or fractal distortion of visual perception) are linked to cortex-wide anatomical distributions of receptor density proxies. The dominant explanatory factor related ego-dissolution-like phenomena to a constellation of 5-HT2A, D2, KOR, and NMDA receptors, anchored especially in the brain’s deep hierarchy (epitomized by the associative higher-order cortex) and shallow hierarchy (epitomized by the visual cortex). Additional factors captured psychological phenomena in which emotions (5-HT2A and Imidazoline1) were in tension with auditory (SERT, 5-HT1A) or visual (5-HT2A) sensations. Each discovered receptor-experience factor spanned between a higher-level association pole and a sensory input pole, which may relate to the previously reported collapse of hierarchical order among large-scale networks. Simultaneously considering many psychoactive molecules and thousands of natural language descriptions of drug experiences our framework finds the underlying semantic structure and maps it directly to the brain. These advances could assist in unlocking their wide-ranging potential for medical treatment.
Achieving dendritic cell subset-specific targeting in vivo by site-directed conjugation of targeting antibodies to nanocarriers
Authors: Simon Johanna , Fichter Michael , Kuhn Gabor , Brückner Maximilian , Kappel Cinja , Schunke Jenny , Grabbe Stephan , Landfester Katharina , Mailänder Volker
Published: July 2021

The major challenge of nanocarrier-based anti-cancer vaccination approaches is the targeted delivery of antigens and immunostimulatory agents to cells of interest, such as specific subtypes of dendritic cells (DCs), in order to induce robust antigen-specific anti-tumor responses. An undirected cell and body distribution of nanocarriers can lead to unwanted delivery to other immune cell types like macrophages reducing the vaccine efficacy. An often-used approach to overcome this issue is the surface functionalization of nanocarriers with targeting moieties, such as antibodies, mediating cell type-specific interaction. Numerous studies could successfully prove the targeting efficiency of antibody-conjugated carrier systems in vitro, however, most of them failed when targeting DCs in vivo that is partly due to cells of the reticuloendothelial system unspecifically clearing nanocarriers from the blood stream via Fc receptor ligation.

Therefore, this study shows a surface functionalization strategy to site-specifically attach antibodies in an orientated direction onto the nanocarrier surface. Different DC-targeting antibodies, such as anti-CD11c, anti-CLEC9A, anti-DEC205 and anti-XCR1, were conjugated to the nanocarrier surface at their Fc domains. Anti-mouse CD11c antibody-conjugated nanocarriers specifically accumulated in the targeted organ (spleen) over time. Additionally, antibodies against CD11c and CLEC9A proved to specifically direct nanocarriers to the targeted DC subtype, conventional DCs type 1.

In conclusion, site-directed antibody conjugation to nanocarriers is essential in order to avoid unspecific uptake by non-target cells while achieving antibody-specific targeting of DC subsets. This novel conjugation technique paves the way for the development of antibody-functionalized nanocarriers for DC-based vaccination approaches in the field of cancer immunotherapy.
Hypoxia induces early neurogenesis in human fetal neural stem cells by activating the WNT pathway
Authors: Dey D , Joshi D , Shrivastava V , Singal CMS , Tyagi S , Bhat MA , Jaiswal P , Sharma JB , Palanichamy JK , Sinha S , Seth P , Sen S
Published: July 2021

Fetal neural stem cells (FNSCs) are present in the brain of human fetuses that differentiate into cells of neuronal and glial lineages. Difference in oxygen concentration between maternal and fetal circulation indicates that the developing fetus may be exposed to lower oxygen concentrations compared to adults. This physiological hypoxia may influence the growth and differentiation of the FNSCs. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of hypoxia on the differentiation potential of human FNSCs isolated from the sub-ventricular zone of aborted fetal brains (n=5). FNSCs were isolated, expanded, and characterized by Nestin and Sox2 expression, using immunocytochemistry and flowcytometry respectively. These FNSCs were exposed to 20% oxygen (normoxia) and 0.2% oxygen (hypoxia) concentrations for 48 hours, and hypoxia exposure (n=5) was evaluated by a panel of markers (CA9, PGK1 and VEGF). Whole human genome transcriptomic analyses (Genespring GX13) of FNSCs exposed to hypoxia (Agilent 4×44K human array slides), highlighted that genes associated with neurogenesis were getting enriched. The pathway analysis of these enriched genes (using Metacore) showed that WNT signaling played a role in determining the cell fate of FNSCs exposed to hypoxic environment. Microarray analyses was validated using neuronal and glial lineage commitment markers such as Ngn1, Ngn2, ASCL1, DCX, GFAP, Olig2 and Nkx2.2 using qPCR (n=9). This demonstrated upregulation of the neuronal commitment markers on hypoxia exposure, while no change was observed in astrocytic and oligodendrocyte lineage commitment markers. Increased expression of downstream targets of the WNT signaling pathway, TCF4 and ID2, by qPCR (n=9), indicated its involvement in mediating neuronal differentiation on exposure to hypoxia.
Repurposing screen highlights broad-spectrum coronavirus antivirals and their host targets
Authors: Haid Sibylle , Matthaei Alina , Winkler Melina , Sake Svenja M. , Gunesch Antonia P. , Rückert Jessica , Vieyres Gabrielle , Kühl David , Nguyen Tu-Trinh , Lasswitz Lisa , Zapatero Francisco , Brogden Graham , Gerold Gisa , Wiegmann Bettina , Bilitewski Ursula , Brönstrup Mark , Schulz Thomas F. , Pietschmann Thomas
Published: July 2021

Libraries composed of licensed drugs represent a vast repertoire of molecules modulating physiologic processes in humans, thus providing unique opportunities for discovery of host targeting antivirals. We interrogated the ReFRAME repurposing library with 12,993 molecules for broad-spectrum coronavirus antivirals and discovered 134 compounds inhibiting an alphacoronavirus, mapping to 59 molecular target categories. Dominant targets included the 5-hydroxytryptamine receptor and dopamine receptor and cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors. Counter-screening with SARS-CoV-2 and validation in primary cells identified Phortress, an aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) ligand, Bardoxolone and Omaveloxolone, two nuclear factor, erythroid 2 like 2 (NFE2L2) activators as inhibitors of both alpha- and betacoronaviruses. The landscape of coronavirus targeting molecules provides important information for the development of broad-spectrum antivirals reinforcing pandemic preparedness.
Effect of Geobacter metallireducens nanowire on electron transfer efficiency in microbial fuel cell
Authors: Liu Shunliang , Feng Yali , Li Haoran
Published: July 2021

The inhibitory effect of electron mediator 2,6-anthraquinone disulphonate (AQDS) on Geobacter metallireducens nanowire in the microbial fuel cell (MFC) was studied. In the culture process of G.metallireducens with Fe(OH)3 as an electron acceptor, the concentration of reduction product Fe (II) in solution without AQDS was higher than that with AQDS after 10 days, due to the formation of microbial nanowires. The effects of nanowire on electron transfer efficiency and electrical current characteristic were studied using a double chamber MFC reactor. The transfer efficiency between biofilm and electrodes was increased by nanowire, which increased the maximum output voltage of MFC was 442 mV. The nanowire biofilm electrode had a bigger cyclic voltammetry curve peak, smaller activation resistance, and a stronger current response signal through electrochemical measurement, which indicates that the nanowire enhanced the electrochemical activity of the electrode.
Clonal selection of stable aneuploidies in progenitor cells drives high-prevalence tumorigenesis
Authors: Trakala Marianna , Aggarwal Muskaan , Sniffen Courtney , Zasadil Lauren , Carroll Allison , Ma Duanduan , Su Xiaofeng A. , Wangsa Darawalee , Meyer Ashleigh , Sieben Cynthia J. , Zhong Jian , Hsu Pei-hsin , Paradis Glenn , Ried Thomas , Holland Andrew , Van Deursen Jan , Amon Angelika
Published: July 2021

Chromosome gains and losses are a frequent feature of human cancers. However, how these aberrations can outweigh the detrimental effects of aneuploidy remains unclear. An initial comparison of existing chromosomal instability (CIN) mouse models suggests that aneuploidy accumulates to low levels in these animals. We therefore developed a novel mouse model that enables unprecedented levels of chromosome missegregation in the adult animal. At the earliest stages of T-cell development, cells with random chromosome gains and/or losses are selected against, but CIN eventually results in the expansion of progenitors with clonal chromosomal imbalances. Clonal selection leads to the development of T-cell lymphomas with stereotypic karyotypes in which chromosome 15, containing the Myc oncogene, is gained with high prevalence. Expressing human MYC from chromosome 6 (MYCChr6) is sufficient to change the karyotype of these lymphomas to include universal chromosome 6 gains. Interestingly, while chromosome 15 is still gained in MYCChr6 tumors after genetic ablation of the endogenous Myc locus, this chromosome is not efficiently gained after deletion of one copy of Rad21, suggesting a synergistic effect of both MYC and RAD21 in driving chromosome 15 gains. Our results show that the initial detrimental effects of random missegregation are outbalanced by clonal selection, which is dictated by the chromosomal location and nature of certain genes and is sufficient to drive cancer with high prevalence.
Assessing conservation of alternative splicing with evolutionary splicing graphs
Authors: Zea Diego Javier , Laskina Sofya , Baudin Alexis , Richard Hugues , Laine Elodie
Published: July 2021

Understanding how protein function has evolved and diversified is of great importance for human genetics and medicine. Here, we tackle the problem of describing the whole transcript variability observed in several species by generalizing the definition of splicing graph. We provide a practical solution to construct parsimonious evolutionary splicing graphs where each node is a minimal transcript building block defined across species. We show a clear link between the functional relevance, tissue regulation, and conservation of alternative transcripts on a set of 50 genes. By scaling up to the whole human protein-coding genome, we identify a few thousand genes where alternative splicing modulates the number and composition of pseudorepeats. We have implemented our approach in ThorAxe, an efficient, versatile, robust, and freely available computational tool.
Recommended X-ray single-crystal structure refinement and Rietveld refinement procedure for tremolite
Authors: Ballirano Paolo , Celata Beatrice , Pacella Alessandro , Bosi Ferdinando
Published: July 2021

A detailed description of the structure of the amphibole-supergroup minerals is very challenging owing to their complex chemical composition that renders the process of cation partition extremely difficult, particularly because of the occurrence of multivalent elements. Since amphiboles naturally occur under a fibrous morphology and have largely been used to produce asbestos, there is a growing demand for detailed and accurate structural data in order to study the relationships between structure, composition and toxicity. The present study proposes a recommended refinement procedure for both X-ray single-crystal structure refinement (SREF) and Rietveld analysis for tremolite, selected as a test case. The corresponding structural results are compared to estimate the `degree of confidence' of the Rietveld refinement with regard to SREF. In particular, it is shown that the interpretation of the electron density of the tremolite structure by SREF is model dependent. By assuming that the site-scattering values from SREF should be as close as possible to those from electron microprobe analysis, as a crucial constraint for the correct description of the final crystal-chemical model, it is found that it is best satisfied by using partially ionized scattering curves (SCs) for O and Si, and neutral SCs (neutral oxygen curves or NOCs) for other atoms. This combination leads to the best fit to the diffraction data. Moreover, it is found that Rietveld refinement using NOCs produces the best structural results, in excellent agreement with SREF. It is worth noting that, due to the complexity of the diffraction pattern and the fairly large number of freely refinable parameters, refinements with different combinations of SCs produce results almost indistinguishable from a statistical point of view, albeit showing significant differences from a structural point of view.
Designing and producing a bird-inspired unmanned sailplane
Authors: Keskin Göksel , Durmus Seyhun , Karakaya Muharrem , Kushan Melih Cemal
Published: July 2021

Purpose

Increasing endurance was a very appropriate subject for the biomimetic approach. The study aims to design and manufacture a long-lasting mini unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) using active gliding and soaring.

Design/methodology/approach

The endurance of mini UAVs is limited by battery or fuel capacity, and it is not always possible to increase these energy sources due to the fuselage size. Long endurance aircraft are required in various areas such as silent environment and traffic monitoring or search and rescue. Literature research on bird flight performance conducted to determine design parameters. These parameters are used in the theoretical design of the UAV for optimization. Computational fluid dynamics simulation and flight tests of the UAV performed to figure out the success of the design.

Findings

For a mini UAV to be produced in this class, it has been observed that it is more accurate to examine birds instead of gliders due to the size similarity. The UAV design reaches a 27.5 L/D (Glide ratio) ratio in the theoretical approach. However, flight results approved max L/D ratio is around 25 at the sea level. This flight performance is enough to outperform in glide ratio of Wandering albatrosses.

Practical implications

Sailplanes are known as sport aircraft. However, recent projects focus on glider designs due to fuel efficiency and silent tracking. Stemme S-14 that carries a high-resolution camera is one of the examples of these projects. The unmanned glider design can lead to these implications in the UAVs at least during the stand-by period in the air. Thanks to low weight, UAVs do not require strong thermals, which allows flying almost all over the world.

Originality/value

Researchers generally focus on increasing the battery capacity or the performance of the UAV. However, this study’s concentration is to increase the flight duration of the UAV by using geographical currents. For this purpose, taking advantage of bird morphology is quite a new topic. Also, glider type designs are rarely found in the field.
Hardware-free collision detection and braking for securing drone propellers
Authors: Araar Oualid , Benjdia Kheireddine , Vitanov Ivan
Published: July 2021

Purpose

The widespread use of drones among the general public has led to an alarming increase in accidents, some with lethal consequences. As drone blades are made from rigid materials and rotate at very high speeds, their impact with a human body can result in fatal injuries. Reliable collision detection combined with near-instantaneous braking of the drone’s rotor(s) can substantially lessen the severity of injuries sustained. The purpose of this paper is to achieve a safety solution which can be easily integrated into new products, or retrofitted into existing systems.

Design/methodology/approach

Through a proof of concept, this paper demonstrates the possibility of detecting a collision with a drone propeller absent any hardware modifications to the drone’s instrumentation. The solution relies on current-sensor readings, ordinarily used for monitoring the battery status of electrically actuated drones. The braking is achieved purely by reconfiguring the motor’s control strategy, without the need for additional hardware, as has been the case in previous works.

Findings

This paper demonstrates the possibility of detecting a collision with a drone propeller absent any hardware modifications to the drone’s instrumentation.

Originality/value

Compared to previous works which require installing additional hardware, the solution is purely software. This makes it very easy to integrate into existing systems or new products, at no additional cost. In experiments conducted on a prototype system, the solution was shown capable of detecting a collision and braking the motor in fewer than 20 ms. This allowed attenuating centimetre-deep cuts made to a piece of meat by an unprotected rotor to mere superficial scratches.
Asymmetric effects of exchange rate on money demand in Nigeria: evidence from the new broad money aggregate (M3)
Authors: Afangideh Udoma Johnson , Garbobiya Tuwe Soro , Umar Farida Bello , Usman Nuruddeen , Ocheni Victor Unekwu , Yakubu Sanusi Muhammad
Published: July 2021

Purpose

This paper is focused on determining the asymmetric effects of exchange rate on money demand function in Nigeria.

Design/methodology/approach

It employs the empirical model of Baumol–Tobin. Baumol (1952), which was founded on the opportunity and transaction cost of holding money. Monetary aggregates, M1, M2 and M3, are used for the real money balances based on the nonlinear Autoregressive Distributed Lag bound testing procedure.

Findings

The results indicate that the positive and negative partial sum of exchange rate changes differ in magnitude and size, supporting the hypothesis of asymmetric effects of exchange rate changes on the demand for money in Nigeria.

Originality/value

This is the first paper to consider the new broad money aggregate (M3).
Edge scattering limited crosstalk analysis in adjacent multilayer graphene interconnects and its impact on gate oxide reliability
Authors: Sidhu Ramneek , Rai Mayank Kumar
Published: July 2021

Purpose

This paper aims to present the edge scattering dominant circuit modeling. The effect of crosstalk on gate oxide reliability (GOR), along with the mitigation using shielding technique is further studied.

Design/methodology/approach

An equivalent distributed Resistance Inductance Capacitance circuit of capacitively coupled interconnects of multilayer graphene nanoribbon (MLGNR) has been considered for T Simulation Program with Integrated Circuit Emphasis (TSPICE) simulations under functional and dynamic switching conditions. Complementary metal oxide semiconductor driver transistors are modeled by high performance predictive technology model that drive the distributed segment with a capacitive load of 0.001 fF, VDD and clock frequency as 0.7 V and 0.2 GHz, respectively, at 14 nm technology node.

Findings

The results reveal that the crosstalk induced delay and noise area are dominated by the overall mean free path (MFP) (i.e. including the effect of edge roughness induced scattering), in contrary to, acoustic and optical scattering limited MFP with the temperature, width and length variations. Further, GOR, estimated in terms of average failure rate (AFR), shows that the shielding technique is an effective method to minimize the relative GOR failure rate by, 0.93e-7 and 0.7e-7, in comparison to the non-shielded case with variations in interconnect’s length and width, respectively.

Originality/value

Considering realistic circuit modeling for MLGNR interconnects by incorporating the edge roughness induced scattering mechanism, the outcomes exhibit more penalty in terms of crosstalk induced noise area and delay. The shielding technique is found to be an effective mitigating technique for minimizing AFR in coupled MLGNR interconnects.
Transfer learning for hostel image classification
Authors: Ammatmanee Chanattra , Gan Lu
Published: July 2021

Purpose

Because of the fast-growing digital image collections on online platforms and the transfer learning ability of deep learning technology, image classification could be improved and implemented for the hostel domain, which has complex clusters of image contents. This paper aims to test the potential of 11 pretrained convolutional neural network (CNN) with transfer learning for hostel image classification on the first hostel image database to advance the knowledge and fill the gap academically, as well as to suggest an alternative solution in optimal image classification with less labour cost and human errors to those who manage hostel image collections.

Design/methodology/approach

The hostel image database is first created with data pre-processing steps, data selection and data augmentation. Then, the systematic and comprehensive investigation is divided into seven experiments to test 11 pretrained CNNs which transfer learning was applied and parameters were fine-tuned to match this newly created hostel image dataset. All experiments were conducted in Google Colaboratory environment using PyTorch.

Findings

The 7,350 hostel image database is created and labelled into seven classes. Furthermore, its experiment results highlight that DenseNet 121 and DenseNet 201 have the greatest potential for hostel image classification as they outperform other CNNs in terms of accuracy and training time.

Originality/value

The fact that there is no existing academic work dedicating to test pretrained CNNs with transfer learning for hostel image classification and no existing hostel image-only database have made this paper a novel contribution.
State ownership, prior experience and performance: a comparative analysis of Chinese domestic and cross-border acquisitions
Authors: Du Min , Kwabi Frank , Yang Tianle
Published: July 2021

Purpose

Drawing on three theoretical frameworks, this paper aims to examine the effects of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and the interaction between SOEs and prior acquisition experience of Chinese domestic and cross-border acquirers.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a sample of 4,116 firms consisting of 3,939 domestic mergers and acquisitions (M&As) and 177 cross-border M&As over the period 2004–2017, this study adopts both accounting- and market-based performance measures, namely, return on assets, return on equity and buy-and-hold abnormal return to analyse the effects of SOEs and the interaction between SOEs and prior acquisition experience on acquirers’ performance.

Findings

First, this paper finds SOEs to exert a positive influence on acquirer performance, contrary to agency theory but in line with the resource-based view. However, the positive relationship between SOEs and performance appears more pronounced for domestic M&A compared to cross-border M&As. Second, this study also finds prior acquisition experience and the combined effect of SOE and prior acquisition experience to have a positive and significant bearing on performance.

Research limitations/implications

The limitation of this study is the lack of cross-border M&A data with all the relevant information compared to domestic M&A. Thus, the cross-border M&A sample appears lower compared to the domestic M&A sample.

Practical implications

The results imply that the moderating role of prior acquisition experience on the relationship between SOEs and performance appears to be crucial for cross-border M&A performance compared to domestic M&A.

Originality/value

The findings of this study show SOEs increase performance, contrary to the widely held view based on agency theory that SOEs are inefficient.