bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effect of Surfactant in Molasses Based Soil Solidification Material to Tensile Strength in Seven Day Material Age
Authors: Tsutsumi T , Uchida S
Published: February 2022

The method of ground improvement using lime or cement is popular because of the speed, adaptability, and profitability of this method. However, pollution due to alkaline water from lime or hexavalent chromium from cement may occur as a result. To avoid this issue, molasses has been used for the improvement of clay in several studies. However, a satisfactory value indicating ground improvement has not been achieved yet. In this study, surfactant has been added to molasses based soil solidification material previously studied by the authors. The Brazilian test was used to obtain tensile strength value for evaluation of the mechanical properties of the specimens. The tensile strength at seven days of this material obtained through this procedure is compared with that of specimens using distilled water, 10% molasses solution or the specimens used in the authors’ former study. Four types of curing condition combined with air drying and moist curing were adopted. The highest average value of the tensile strength appeared during 7-day air curing and was 1.3 times that in the authors’ former study.
Robust minimality of strong foliations for DA diffeomorphisms: 𝑐𝑢-volume expansion and new examples
Authors: Rodriguez Hertz Jana , Ures Raúl , Yang Jiagang
Published: February 2022

Let

f
f

be a

C
2

C^2

partially hyperbolic diffeomorphisms of

T

3

\mathbb {T}^3

(not necessarily volume preserving or transitive) isotopic to a linear Anosov diffeomorphism

A
A

with eigenvalues

λ

s

>
1
>

λ

c

>

λ

u

.

\begin{equation*} \lambda _{s}>1>\lambda _{c}>\lambda _{u}. \end{equation*}

Under the assumption that the set

{
x
:

∣
log
⁡
det
(
T
f

∣

E

c
u

(
x
)

)
∣≤
log
⁡

λ

u

}

\begin{equation*} \{x: \,\mid \log \det (Tf\mid _{E^{cu}(x)})\mid \leq \log \lambda _{u} \} \end{equation*}

has zero volume inside any unstable leaf of

f
f

where

E

c
u

=

E
c

⊕

E
u

E^{cu} = E^c\oplus E^u

is the center unstable bundle, we prove that the stable foliation of

f
f

is

C
1

C^1

robustly minimal, i.e., the stable foliation of any diffeomorphism

C
1

C^1

sufficiently close to

f
f

is minimal. In particular,

f
f

is robustly transitive.

We build, with this criterion, a new example of a

C
1

C^1

open set of partially hyperbolic diffeomorphisms, for which the strong stable foliation and the strong unstable foliation are both minimal.
Blood and Bone, Tears and Oil
Authors: Degroot Dagomar
Published: February 2022

In the seventeenth century, the climate of the Arctic cooled, warmed briefly, and cooled again, just as European merchants established new industries to extract the region’s resources. Few were larger or more violent than the whaling industry that exploited bowhead whales between Jan Mayen and Svalbard. This article argues that linked changes in climate and animal behavior influenced violence among whalers in different ways during three stages of the seventeenth-century industry. In the first, cooling discouraged violence by increasing the regional extent of sea ice, which led both whales and whalers to congregate in tight quarters, raising the cost of hostilities among whalers. In the second, violence provoked attempts to colonize fortified whaling stations year-round, leading to a shift in polar bear behavior and exposing overwintering whalers to some of the coldest weather of the Little Ice Age in the Arctic. In the third, sweeping changes in climate and whale culture helped doom whaling companies and their fortified whaling stations, while encouraging open-sea whaling that transformed where and how whalers could fight one another. This article reveals, above all, the potential of combining climate history with animal-human history to provide fresh perspectives on the past, present, and future.
Ride-Hailing and Road Traffic Crashes: A Critical Review
Authors: Morrison Christopher N , Kirk David S , Brazil Noli B , Humphreys David K
Published: February 2022

Ride-hailing businesses, including Uber and Lyft, have reshaped road traffic since they first began operating in the United States approximately a decade ago. It follows that ride-hailing may also alter the incidence and distribution of road traffic crash injuries and deaths. The available evidence relating ride-hailing to crashes is critically reviewed in this article. We present a theoretical model that synthesizes the hypothesized mechanisms, and we identify common methodological challenges and suggest priorities for future research. Mixed results have been reported for the overall incidence of road traffic crash injuries and deaths, likely due to heterogeneous impacts on vehicular traffic flow (e.g., increasing the volume of vehicles); on vehicle-, person-, and event-level characteristics (e.g., reducing alcohol-impaired driver crashes); on road-user types (e.g., increasing pedestrian crashes); and on environmental conditions (e.g., reducing crashes most substantially where public transit access is poorest). The lack of a well-developed theory of human mobility and methodological challenges that are common to many ecological studies impede exploration of these sources of moderation. Innovative solutions are required to explicate ride-hailing’s heterogeneous impacts, to guide policy that can take advantage of the public health benefits of ride-hailing, and to ensure that research keeps pace with technological advances that continue to reshape road traffic use.
Review on predicting pairwise relationships between human microbes, drugs and diseases: from biological data to computational models
Authors: Wang Lei , Tan Yaqin , Yang Xiaoyu , Kuang Linai , Ping Pengyao
Published: February 2022

In recent years, with the rapid development of techniques in bioinformatics and life science, a considerable quantity of biomedical data has been accumulated, based on which researchers have developed various computational approaches to discover potential associations between human microbes, drugs and diseases. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of recent advances in prediction of potential correlations between microbes, drugs and diseases from biological data to computational models. Firstly, we introduced the widely used datasets relevant to the identification of potential relationships between microbes, drugs and diseases in detail. And then, we divided a series of a lot of representative computing models into five major categories including network, matrix factorization, matrix completion, regularization and artificial neural network for in-depth discussion and comparison. Finally, we analysed possible challenges and opportunities in this research area, and at the same time we outlined some suggestions for further improvement of predictive performances as well.
Validated High-Performance Thin-Layer Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry Method and Stability Study of Linalool in the Volatile Oil of the Rhizomes ofHomalomena aromaticaSchott
Authors: Goswami Ashis Kumar , Gogoi Neelutpal , Sharma Hemanta Kumar
Published: February 2022

Homalomena aromatica is a herb of tremendous ethnomedicinal importance to various communities residing in northeast India. In this study, a high-performance thin-layer chromatography–based densitometric method was developed for identification, quantification and stability study of linalool. Mass spectrometry was hyphenated to HPTLC for streamlining the method. The stability of linalool was studied by analyzing the effect of acid, base, UV, sunlight, thermal stress and H2O2 on linalool. The chromatographic plates were developed to a height of 70 mm in toluene:ethyl acetate solvent system at a ratio of 9.5:0.5 and visualized with p-anisaldehyde reagent. The developed method was found to be precise, accurate and reproducible according to International Conference on Harmonization guidelines, and compact bands of linalool were observed at Rf of 0.351 ± 0.001. The content of linalool in the volatile oil of H. aromatica was found to be 58% v/v. By application of the hyphenated MS technique, linalool was identified at m/z 137, (M + H)+. It was observed that acidic pH has the highest effect on linalool with a percentage degradation of 65. The developed method can be used in the analysis and quality control of herbal materials and volatile oils containing linalool and quality control of rhizomes of H. aromatica.
Kidney function and the risk of sudden cardiac death in the general population
Authors: van der Burgh Anna C , Stricker Bruno H , Rizopoulos Dimitris , Ikram M Arfan , Hoorn Ewout J , Chaker Layal
Published: February 2022

Background

Chronic kidney disease increases sudden cardiac death (SCD) risk, but the association between kidney function and SCD in a general population is largely unknown. Therefore, we investigated the association between kidney function and SCD in a general middle-aged and elderly population.

Methods

We included individuals aged ≥45 years from a prospective population-based cohort study. The association between kidney function assessments [estimated glomerular filtration rate based on serum creatinine (eGFRcreat), cystatin C (eGFRcys) or both (eGFRcreat-cys)] and SCD was investigated using Cox proportional-hazards and joint models. Absolute 10-year risks were computed using competing risk analyses. Mediation analyses were performed using a four-way decomposition method.

Results

We included 9687 participants (median follow-up 8.9 years; mean age 65.3 years; 56.7% women; 243 SCD cases). Lower eGFRcys and eGFRcreat-cys were associated with increased SCD risk [hazard ratio (HR) 1.23, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.12–1.34 and HR 1.17, 95% CI 1.06–1.29, per 10 mL/min/1.73 m2 eGFR decrease]. A significant trend (P = 0.001) across eGFRcys categories was found, with an HR of 2.11 (95% CI 1.19–3.74) for eGFRcys <60 compared with eGFRcys >90 mL/min/1.73 m2. Comparing eGFRcys of 90 to 60 mL/min/1.73 m2, absolute 10-year risk increased from 1.0% to 2.5%. Identified subgroups at increased risk included older participants and participants with atrial fibrillation. The associations were not mediated by coronary heart disease, hypertension or diabetes.

Conclusions

Reduced kidney function is associated with increased SCD risk in the general population, especially with eGFRcys. eGFRcys could be added to prediction models and screening programmes for SCD prevention.
Whole-genome sequencing identifies I-SceI-mediated transgene integration sites in Xenopus tropicalis snai2:eGFP line
Authors: Wang Jian , Lu Congyu , Wei Shuo
Published: February 2022

Transgenesis with the meganuclease I-SceI is a safe and efficient method, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear due to the lack of information on transgene localization. Using I-SceI, we previously developed a transgenic Xenopus tropicalis line expressing enhanced green fluorescent protein driven by the neural crest-specific snai2 promoter/enhancer, which is a powerful tool for studying neural crest development and craniofacial morphogenesis. Here, we carried out whole-genome shotgun sequencing for the snai2:eGFP embryos to identify the transgene integration sites. With a 19x sequencing coverage, we estimated that 6 copies of the transgene were inserted into the Xenopus tropicalis genome in the hemizygous transgenic embryos. Two transgene integration loci adjacent to each other were identified in a noncoding region on chromosome 1, possibly as a result of duplication after a single transgene insertion. Interestingly, genomic DNA at the boundaries of the transgene integration loci contains short sequences homologous to the I-SceI recognition site, suggesting that the integration was not random but probably mediated by sequence homology. To our knowledge, our work represents the first genome-wide sequencing study on a transgenic organism generated with I-SceI, which is useful for evaluating the potential genetic effects of I-SceI-mediated transgenesis and further understanding the mechanisms underlying this transgenic method.
O03 The impact of COVID-19 infection prevention and control measures on transmission of hospital-acquired infections and antimicrobial resistance in Africa
Authors: Elton Linzy , Abdel Hamid Muzamil M. , Tembo John , Elbadawi Hana , Maluzi Kwitaka , Abdelraheem Mohamed H. , McHugh Timothy D. , Honeyborne Isobella , Roulston Kerry , Thomason Margaret J. , Zumla Alimuddin
Published: February 2022

Background

Patients who develop serious illness due to COVID-19 are more likely to have bacterial coinfections, for which WHO recommends treatment with antibiotics. As a result, many countries are observing a change in antimicrobial stewardship (AMS), in addition to changes in infection prevention and control (IPC) practices such as the use of personal protective equipment, on COVID-19 wards. Few data on COVID-19 and its impact on nosocomial infections and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are available from low and middle-income countries (LMICs). As these countries often have high rates of AMR, it is vital to report the effects of COVID-19 on AMS so as to inform clinical practice and IPC guidelines. This study aims to compare prevalence of AMR in COVID-19 wards with general non-COVID-19 hospital wards.

Methods

This pilot hospital-based study is being conducted in two sites in both Sudan and Zambia. IPC and AMS guidelines for COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 wards were identified for each institution. This study is comparing bacterial isolates and AMR patterns of nosocomial associated infections acquired on COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 wards were compared, using microbiological and sequencing methods. A total of 200 patients have been recruited: 100 per country, 50 COVID-19 patients and 50 non-COVID-19 patients. AMR transmission patterns are being identified using Oxford Nanopore Technologies sequencing for phylogenetic analysis.

Results

The study began recruiting in May 2021 and completed recruitment of patients in October 2021. The majority of microbiological laboratory work will be completed within Q3 2021, with analysis of the results and sequencing completed in Q4 2021. A half-way point summary analysis of the data suggests differences in patient profiles, both between COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 wards at both sites, as well as differences between the two countries. Preliminary analysis also suggests a significant difference between the prevalence of MDR infections in Gram-negatives seen between COVID-19 (53% in Sudan and 83% in Zambia) and non-COVID-19 (14% Sudan, 33% Zambia) (t-test, P=0.0032 Sudan, P=0.0455 Zambia) ward patients in both countries (see Figure 1).

Conclusions

The study is providing evidence to inform policy on IPC and AMS measures to be implemented on COVID-19 wards. In addition, the outcomes of the study will be used to create a pragmatic sequencing pipeline for potential AMR outbreaks suitable for use in LMICs clinical settings.
P05 In vivo efficacy of VRP-034 in lung and thigh infection models
Authors: Vishwakarma Kamlesh Kumar , Payasi Anurag , Kumar Shailesh , Sharma Arun , Chaudhary Saransh , Aggarwal Anmol
Published: February 2022

Background

Polymyxin B-induced kidney injury is an important clinical concern that undermines patient care. This injury occurs in 30%–60% of patients receiving systemic polymyxin B (PMB). VRP-034, a novel PMB formulation, has previously shown a promising safety profile as compared with marketed PMB in animal models (Roy et al.1). The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of VRP-034 versus marketed PMB in murine lung and thigh infection models.

Materials and methods

26 neutropenic BALB/c mice (n = 12 for lung; n = 14 for thigh) were infected by inoculating Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853, pathogenic, PMB MIC 0.5 μg/mL) either into the lungs (5 × 106 cfu) via intratracheal administration (lung model) or in both thighs (106 cfu/thigh) via intramuscular administration (thigh model). Treatment mice received VRP-034 or marketed PMB subcutaneously at 8 mg/kg every 8 h (HED: 2 mg/kg/day). Mice were humanely euthanized at 0 h (control) and at different timepoints post-treatment (24 h—lung model; 6 h and 12 h—thigh model). Lung or thigh tissues were collected, homogenized, serially diluted, plated on permissive media with cfu counted after 24 h of incubation. Changes in log10 cfu/mL at each timepoint were compared with 0 h control to assess efficacy.

Results

In the lung infection model, the mean (±SEM) log10 cfu/mL increased from 8.01 ± 0.43 (at 0 h) to 12.02 ± 0.85 (at 24 h) in the vehicle control group. Treatment with marketed PMB and VRP-034 resulted in 1.96 ± 0.87 and 2.07 ± 0.42 log-reduction respectively in bacterial burden when compared with 0 h control. In the thigh infection model, the log10 cfu/mL increased from 6.40 ± 0.11 (at 0 h) to 9.85 ± 0.08 (at 6 h) and 11.23 ± 0.07 (at 12 h) in the vehicle control group. Treatment with marketed PMB reduced the bacterial burden by 0.65 ± 0.08 and 2.79 ± 0.14 log at 6 h and 12 h, respectively and treatment with VRP-034 reduced the bacterial burden by 0.85 ± 0.17 and 2.68 ± 0.01 log at 6 h and 12 h, respectively.

Conclusions

The results from the murine lung and thigh infection models suggest that there is no marked difference between the efficacy of VRP-034 and marketed PMB. Further work should explore the clinical utility of these findings in the light of the promising safety profile of VRP-034.
P06 Pharmacokinetics and renal accumulation of VRP-034
Authors: Vishwakarma Kamlesh Kumar , Chilbule Rahul , Chaudhary Manu , Sharma Arun , Chaudhary Saransh , Aggarwal Anmol
Published: February 2022

Background

Nephrotoxicity is a dose-limiting factor for polymyxin B (PMB), a last-line therapy for MDR Gram-negative bacterial infections. The majority of the filtered PMB undergoes extensive tubular reabsorption leading to significant accumulation of the drug in tubular cells, causing renal tubular damage. We have previously reported that VRP-034, a novel PMB formulation, attenuates this damage (Roy et al.1). The objective of this study was to characterize the pharmacokinetics (PK) and renal accumulation of VRP-034 versus marketed PMB.

Materials and methods

A total of 19 Sprague-Dawley rats were used in the study. For PK evaluation, 10 rats were administered a single subcutaneous dose (6 mg/kg) of either VRP-034 or marketed PMB. Serial plasma samples were collected up to 24 h and assayed for major PMB components (PMB B1, B1-I, B2) using a validated LC-tandem MS method. PK parameters were calculated using noncompartmental analysis. For evaluating renal deposition, nine rats (n = 3 each group) were administered VRP-034 or marketed PMB at a dose of 6 mg/kg/8 h for 48 h or normal saline (control). After 48 h, rats were euthanized and kidneys were excised by making a midline incision, washed with saline, homogenized in 1:9 w/v 0.1 M phosphate buffer (pH 7.4) and the homogenate was used for determining PMB concentration. All values are expressed as mean ± SEM.

Results

The plasma pharmacokinetic parameters for both VRP-034 and marketed PMB were found similar [AUC0–24: 54.3 ± 4.7 μg/mL·h versus 51.5 ± 1.6 μg/mL·h; Cmax: 4.73 ± 0.6 μg/mL versus 5.02 ± 0.5 μg/mL; T½: 5.95 ± 0.5 h versus 5.6 ± 0.3 h]. In the renal deposition study, a 40% reduction (P<0.05) in renal deposition of PMB was found in VRP-034 treated rat kidneys compared with marketed PMB group after 48 h of treatment.

Conclusions

The results highlight that while the plasma PK parameters remained unchanged, a marked reduction in PMB renal deposition was observed in VRP-034 group and likely explains the previous reports of attenuated PMB-induced kidney injury with VRP-034.
P07 Toxicokinetic profile of VRP-034
Authors: Murkunde Yogeshkumar Vishnupant , Chaudhary Saransh , Vishwakarma Kamlesh Kumar , Aggarwal Anmol , Chilbule Rahul
Published: February 2022

Background

Polymyxin B (PMB) can be an effective option for treating resistant Gram-negative pathogens, however, its use is severely compromised by its’ dose-limiting toxicity. VRP-034, a novel formulation of PMB, has previously reported a favourable safety profile compared with marketed PMB (Roy et al.1). This study was conducted to understand the toxicokinetic profile of VRP-034 vis-à-vis marketed PMB.

Materials and methods

30 healthy Sprague-Dawley rats (divided into six groups of n = 5) received one of three doses (3, 9 and 18 mg/kg/day) of either marketed PMB or VRP-034, administered subcutaneously q8 h over 2 days. Blood samples were collected prior to initiation of experiment and at 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12 and 24 h after the last dose. Plasma concentrations of PMB were quantified by LC-MS. Additionally, renal toxicity was assessed via clinical pathology, kidney injury biomarkers, oxidative stress markers (3-nitrotyrosine and renal tissue lactate), gross and histopathologic observations of kidney. Urine and blood samples were collected at baseline and Day 2 for the assessment of kidney injury (KIM-1, cystatin-C, BUN and serum creatinine) using respective biochemical or ELISA kits. All values are expressed as mean ± SEM.

Results

The plasma levels of PMB were found to increase in dose-dependent manner in both the groups. At 3 and 9 mg/kg/day, the plasma PMB exposure were similar for both VRP-034 and marketed PMB groups (AUC0–24: 6.47 ± 0.41 μg/mL·h versus 5.66 ± 0.24 μg/mL·h, P>0.05 and 22.90 ± 1.96 μg/mL·h versus 26.84 ± 1.43 μg/mL·h, P>0.05). At the highest dose of 18 mg/kg/day, the AUC0–24 was higher in the VRP-034 group (AUC0–24: 97.83 ± 12.95 μg/mL·h versus 70.48 ± 4.22 μg/mL·h), however this increase was not statistically significant (P>0.05). The levels of early kidney injury urinary biomarkers increased with dose in both the groups (Table 1). On Day 2, Kim-1 levels in the marketed PMB group increased from baseline by 3.96-fold (versus 2.31-fold in VRP-034 group), 8.21-fold (versus 5.41-fold) and 23.41-fold (versus 9.51-fold) at 3, 9, 18 mg/kg/day dose levels respectively. Likewise, cystatin-C levels increased by 6.22-fold (versus 3.26-fold in VRP-034 group), 6.25-fold (versus 3.67-fold) and 13.57-fold (versus 4.33-fold), respectively, at the three dose levels tested. Oxidative stress markers, tissue lactate and 3-nitrotyrosine, were significantly lower (P<0.05) for VRP-034 group compared with marketed PMB group at the highest dose. Histopathology revealed EGTI grade 3 kidney damage in the marketed PMB group compared with grade 1 damage in the VRP-034 group.

Conclusions

VRP-034 exhibited a more promising toxicokinetic profile as compared with marketed PMB at all dose levels. Our future work will explore the clinical translation of these findings in humans.
P32 Occurrence of bla
KPC, bla
NDM and bla
OXA-48 genes among carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) in National Cancer Institute, Sri Lanka
Authors: Suranadee Y. W. S. , Jyalathacrachchi H. R. , Gamage S. , Gunasekara S. P.
Published: February 2022

Background

Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) are a global problem and prevalence of CR genes differs across geographical regions. The current Sri Lankan situation is unknown; hence, this study aimed to identify three commonly occurring CR genes in the region.

Methods

Enterobacteriaceae isolates resistant to carbapenems were collected from clinical samples submitted for routine testing to the microbiology laboratory of National Cancer Institute. Species identification was done using conventional biochemicals and CLSI disc diffusion method was used for ABST of CRE isolates. Identification of CR genes was done by in-house conventional multiplex PCR, using previously described primers (Table 1). Ten microlitres of total DNA from each sample, extracted by heat shock method, was subjected to multiplex PCR in a 50 μL of PCR mixture which contained 5× PCR buffer (10 mmol/L Tris–HCl, 50 mmol/L KCl), 2.5 mmol/L of MgCl2, 10 mmol/L of deoxynucleotide triphosphate, 5 U/mL of Taq Polymerase and 20 μmol/L of each primer. The PCR program was run at 94°C for 3 min, followed by 30 cycles of 95°C for 1 min, 55°C for 30 s and 73°C for 1 min, with a final extension at 72°C for 5 min. Products were visualized by electrophoresis in 2% agarose gel (Figure 1).

Results

A total of 123 isolates were tested. Klebsiella pneumoniae was the predominant carbapenemase producer (58.5%). Sixty-six (53.6%) isolates harboured blaOXA-48 and 47 (38.2%) had blaNDM. Only one isolate was positive for blaKPC. Thirteen (10.5%) had both blaOXA-48 and blaNDM and 9 (7%) tested negative for all three genes.

Conclusions

bla OXA-48 and blaNDM being common and blaKPC being very rare is expected with the geographical location of the country. Noted high prevalence and co-occurrence of CR genes among CRE isolates is alarming and pose a threat to patient management and infection control of the institution.
P49 Determinants of trends in reported antibiotic use for sick children from LMICs (2005–17): analysis of 132 national surveys from 73 countries
Authors: Allwell-Brown Gbemisola , Hussain-Alkhateeb Laith , Sewe Maquins Odhiambo , Kitutu Freddy , Strömdahl Susanne , Mårtensson Andreas , Johansson Emily White
Published: February 2022

Objectives

To analyse trends in reported antibiotic use for children aged <5 years with fever, diarrhoea or cough with fast or difficult breathing (outcome) from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) during 2005–17, disaggregated by the following user characteristics: rural/urban residence, maternal education, household wealth and healthcare source visited.

Methods

Based on 132 Demographic and Health Surveys and Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys from 73 LMICs, the outcome, disaggregated by user characteristics for all country-years was estimated using a hierarchical Bayesian linear regression model.

Results

Across LMICs during 2005–17, the greatest relative increases in the outcome occurred in rural areas, poorest quintiles and least educated populations, particularly in low-income countries and South-East Asia. In low-income countries, rural areas had a 72% relative increase from 17.8% [uncertainty interval (UI): 5.2%–44.9%] in 2005 to 30.6% (11.7%–62.1%) in 2017, compared with a 29% relative increase in urban areas from 27.1% (8.7%–58.2%) in 2005 to 34.9% (13.3%–67.3%) in 2017. Despite these increases, the outcome was consistently highest in urban areas, wealthiest quintiles, and populations with the highest maternal education.

Conclusions

These estimates suggest that the increasing reported antibiotic use for sick children aged <5 years in LMICs during 2005–17 was driven by gains among groups often underserved by formal health services.
Potential abuses of dominance by big tech through their use of Big Data and AI
Authors: Hutchinson Christophe Samuel
Published: February 2022

While companies are targeting online shoppers with increased precision thanks to their combined use of Big Data and Artificial Intelligence, concerns have been expressed among competition law scholars that giant tech companies may use their enhanced market power resulting from their access and control of Big Data and AI to foreclose the market from potential competitors and subsequently charge higher prices to consumers. If proven, such practices amount to abuses of dominance in the meaning of Article 102 of the Treaty of the Functioning of the European Union. The recent adoption by the European Commission of its proposal for a Regulation on the Digital Markets Act aiming at setting up rules to ensure that markets characterized by large platforms acting as gatekeepers, remain fair and contestable and the launch of a new string of investigations by the European Commission into possible anti-competitive conducts of Google Amazon, Apple, and Facebook have shown that these concerns are not purely hypothetical.
Pharmacokinetic Profile of ∆9-Tetrahydrocannabinol, Cannabidiol and Metabolites in Blood following Vaporization and Oral Ingestion of Cannabidiol Products
Authors: Bergeria Cecilia L , Spindle Tory R , Cone Edward J , Sholler Dennis , Goffi Elia , Mitchell John M , Winecker Ruth E , Bigelow George E , Flegel Ronald , Vandrey Ryan
Published: February 2022

There is limited data on the comparative pharmacokinetics of cannabidiol (CBD) across oral and vaporized formulations. This within-subject, double-blind, double-dummy, placebo-controlled laboratory study analyzed the pharmacokinetic profile of CBD, ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol (∆9-THC) and related metabolites in blood and oral fluid (OF) after participants (n = 18) administered 100 mg of CBD in each of the following formulations: (1) oral CBD, (2) vaporized CBD and (3) vaporized CBD-dominant cannabis containing 10.5% CBD and 0.39% ∆9-THC (3.7 mg); all participants also completed a placebo condition. Oral CBD was administered in three formulations: (1) encapsulated CBD, (2) CBD suspended in pharmacy-grade syrup and (3) Epidiolex, allowing for pharmacokinetic comparisons across oral formulations (n = 6 per condition). An optional fifth experimental condition was completed for six participants in which they fasted from all food for 12 h prior to oral ingestion of 100 mg of CBD. Blood and OF samples were collected immediately before and for 57–58 h after each drug administration. Immunoassay screening and LC–MS-MS confirmatory tests were performed, the limit of quantitation was 0.5 ng/mL for ∆9-THC and 1 ng/mL for CBD. The mean Cmax and range of CBD blood concentrations for each product were as follows: vaporized CBD-dominant cannabis, 171.1 ng/mL, 40.0–665.0 ng/mL, vaporized CBD 104.6 ng/mL, 19.0–312.0 ng/mL and oral CBD, 13.7 ng/mL, 0.0–50.0 ng/mL. Of the three oral formulations, Epidiolex produced the greatest peak concentration of CBD (20.5 ng/mL, 8.0–37.0 ng/mL) relative to the capsule (17.8 ng/mL, 2.0–50.0 ng/mL) and syrup (2.8 ng/mL, 0–7.0 ng/mL). ∆9-THC was detected in the blood of 12/18 participants after vaporized CBD-dominant cannabis use, but neither ∆9-THC nor its metabolite THC-COOH were detected in the blood of any participants after vaporized or oral CBD-only administration. These data demonstrate that different oral and vaporized formulations produce substantial variability in the pharmacokinetics of CBD and that CBD alone is unlikely to convert to ∆9-THC or produce positive drug tests for ∆9-THC or its metabolite.
The Gender Divide in Wikipedia: Quantifying and Assessing the Impact of Two Feminist Interventions
Authors: Langrock Isabelle , González-Bailón Sandra
Published: February 2022

Wikipedia has a well-known gender divide affecting its biographical content. This bias not only shapes social perceptions of knowledge, but it can also propagate beyond the platform as its contents are leveraged to correct misinformation, train machine-learning tools, and enhance search engine results. What happens when feminist movements intervene to try to close existing gaps? Through a quantitative analysis of over 11,000 Wikipedia articles, we provide an evaluation of two popular feminist interventions designed to counteract gender inequality within digital information projects. We find that the interventions are successful at adding content about women that would otherwise be missing, but they are less successful at addressing structural biases that limit the visibility of that content. This leads us to argue for a more granular and cumulative analysis of gender gaps in collaborative environments. We also discuss the implications for future scholarship on digital inequalities.
Laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal repair for inguinal hernia in a patient with an adult Still’s disease receiving anti-interleukin-6 receptor monoclonal antibody therapy
Authors: Mimatsu Kenji , Kamitaki Yusuke , Fukino Nobutada
Published: February 2022

Tocilizumab, a monoclonal antibody drug against interleukin-6 receptor, has been reported to cause wound infection and delayed wound healing. Therefore, surgeries using artificial materials in patients receiving tocilizumab require careful observation. A 75-year-old man who had been receiving tocilizumab and steroids for the treatment of adult Still’s disease was diagnosed with an inguinal hernia and underwent laparoscopic transabdominal preperitoneal repair. Tocilizumab administration was discontinued for 3 weeks before surgery and was restarted 2 weeks after the surgery. Postoperatively, there was no fever, and the C-reactive protein level was marginally elevated. The patient was discharged from the hospital on the fourth day without any postoperative complications, and no delayed infection or delayed wound healing 1 year after the surgery. A few weeks withdrawal of tocilizumab administration before and after surgery permitted safe laparoscopic hernia surgery using a surgical mesh without infection or delayed wound healing.
Hybrid cooling of the Cassiopeia A neutron star
Authors: Leinson Lev B
Published: February 2022

The observed rapid cooling of the neutron star Cassiopeia A is usually interpreted as being caused by transitions of neutrons and protons in the star’s core from the normal state to the superfluid and superconducting state. However, this so-called ‘minimal’ cooling paradigm faces the problem of numerically simulating the observed anomalously fast drop in the neutron star surface temperature using theoretical neutrino energy losses from superfluid neutrons. As a solution to this problem, I propose a somewhat more complex cooling model, in which, in addition to superfluid neutrons, direct Urca processes from a very small central part of the neutron star core are also involved. Numerical simulations of the cooling trajectory in this scenario show excellent agreement with observations of the Cassiopeia A neutron star. The proposed cooling scenario unambiguously relates the used equation of state and the mass of the neutron star. For a neutron star constructed according to BSk25 equation of state, the most appropriate are the mass $M=1.62\, {\rm M}_{\odot }$ and the radius R = 12.36 km. If BSk24 equation of state is used, then the most suitable solution is $M=1.60\, {\rm M}_{\odot }$ and R = 12.55 km.
Highly specialized recreationists contribute the most to the citizen science project eBird
Authors: Rosenblatt Connor J , Dayer Ashley A , Duberstein Jennifer N , Phillips Tina B , Harshaw Howard W , Fulton David C , Cole Nicholas W , Raedeke Andrew H , Rutter Jonathan D , Wood Christopher L
Published: February 2022

Contributory citizen science projects (hereafter “contributory projects”) are a powerful tool for avian conservation science. Large-scale projects such as eBird have produced data that have advanced science and contributed to many conservation applications. These projects also provide a means to engage the public in scientific data collection. A common challenge across contributory projects like eBird is to maintain participation, as some volunteers contribute just a few times before disengaging. To maximize contributions and manage an effective program that has broad appeal, it is useful to better understand factors that influence contribution rates. For projects capitalizing on recreation activities (e.g., birding), differences in contribution levels might be explained by the recreation specialization framework, which describes how recreationists vary in skill, behavior, and motives. We paired data from a survey of birders across the United States and Canada with data on their eBird contributions (n = 28,926) to test whether those who contributed most are more specialized birders. We assigned participants to 4 contribution groups based on eBird checklist submissions and compared groups’ specialization levels and motivations. More active contribution groups had higher specialization, yet some specialized birders were not active participants. The most distinguishing feature among groups was the behavioral dimension of specialization, with active eBird participants owning specialized equipment and taking frequent trips away from home to bird. Active participants had the strongest achievement motivations for birding (e.g., keeping a life list), whereas all groups had strong appreciation motivations (e.g., enjoying the sights and sounds of birding). Using recreation specialization to characterize eBird participants can help explain why some do not regularly contribute data. Project managers may be able to promote participation, particularly by those who are specialized but not contributing, by appealing to a broader suite of motivations that includes both appreciation and achievement motivations, and thereby increase data for conservation.
1905
Authors: Weinberg Robert
Published: February 2022

In October 1905 the port city of Odessa, located on the Black Sea and the Russian Empire’s fourth largest city, experienced a four-day pogrom against the city’s Jews, who comprised one-third of its population. The outbreak of wanton violence and bloodletting marked the culmination of social and political unrest that had enveloped Odessa since January and drew upon long-standing prejudices and attitudes toward Jews. But it was the erosion of autocratic authority and widespread labor and student unrest that transformed antisemitism into anti-Jewish violence, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds, injuries to thousands, and significant property damage. Government authorities did not organize the pogrom, which resulted from a spontaneous breakdown of law and order and reflected the heightened social, political, and economic tensions that pitted the forces of revolution against the forces of reaction, between those demanding the end of autocratic rule and those who mobilized in defense of the Romanov dynasty.
Anti-Jewish Violence in the Russian Civil War
Authors: Veidlinger Jeffrey
Published: February 2022

On Saturday, February 15, 1919, Ukrainian soldiers murdered over a thousand Jewish civilians in the town of Proskuriv (now Khmelnytsky) in what was at the time possibly the single deadliest episode of violence to befall the Jewish people in their long history of oppression. The massacre in Proskuriv, though, was not an isolated event. Between 1917 and 1921, during the civil war that followed the Russian revolutions, over 1000 separate incidents were documented in about 500 different locales throughout the regions that had been the southwestern provinces of the Russian Empire and the eastern half of the Austrian province of Galicia, predominantly in areas that are now parts of Ukraine. The largest of the anti-Jewish massacres resulted in the deaths of 1,500 to 3,000 people apiece, but the vast majority left at most a few dozen dead in their wake. These casualties were part of a larger civil war that resulted in the deaths of about one million people in Ukraine. It profoundly reshaped the demography of European Jewry and traumatized the affected communities for a generation.
The Female Dimension of Pogrom Violence, 1917–1921
Authors: Bemporad Elissa
Published: February 2022

Compared to previous pogroms, one of the discriminating features of the genocidal violence of the Russian Civil War was the pervasiveness of rape, which produced long-term consequences for the Jewish community as a whole. Anti-Bolshevik forces, in particular, employed rape as an instrument of war and ethnic cleansing, to punish an imagined Jewish enemy that threatened Ukrainian, Polish, or Russian national aspirations. Rape (and the fear thereof) had a devastating impact on Jewish demography. It promoted the rush for internal and external migration, as relocation from the place of trauma became a plausible way to prevent further sexual assault. The medical records that doctors compiled in the aftermath of the violence provide a comprehensive picture of the scale of sexual violence. The experience of Jewish women during the pogroms of the civil war was not limited to victimhood. Women took part in rescue efforts, as aid workers, nurses, and midwives; they collected data about the violence; and as fighters some even participated in fending off the assault on the Jewish population by joining self-defense units. Women also experienced the writers’ calling, recording their unique encounter with violence during the civil war.
First Steps, Harsh Truths
Authors: Ben-Ami Shlomo
Published: February 2022

Israel was incapable of digesting the political and emotional price of peace on two fronts, Syria and Palestine. Barak opted for a Syria-first approach. Talks with the Palestinians gathered steam along with the fading of the promise of a Syrian peace. Barak’s negotiating positions on Palestine, compounded by his refusal to even discuss Jerusalem, were utterly unrealistic. Inevitably, talks with the Palestinian negotiators Abu Ala and Abu Mazen revealed at once the magnitude of the gap. Though claiming to be steadfast in their defense of the unmovable principles of their cause, yet “flexible” in their implementation, the Palestinians were unequivocal in their drive for the borders of 1967, the division of Jerusalem into two capitals, the refugees’ right of return, and security arrangements that were respectful of Palestinian dignity. They also rejected any kind of interim agreement; it was all or nothing.
A Conceivable Endgame?
Authors: Ben-Ami Shlomo
Published: February 2022

Back in Israel, the American peace team heard from me what Dennis Ross defined as encouragingly novel ideas on Jerusalem. On June 25, we went for a crucial meeting with Arafat in Nablus to get his final consent to the summit. With Arafat typically flying on the wings of Islam’s history in Jerusalem, we went through all the issues with particular emphasis on those that mattered most to him, Jerusalem—“two capitals in Jerusalem,” I said—and refugees. The cheering that his showmanship denied us was reserved for his men. They all were upbeat with our presentation and, for the first time, saw the sense of the summit. Reasonable Egyptian ideas, Barak’s allusion to new ideas on Jerusalem and territory, and the effects of our pre-summit meeting allowed the president to connect the dots of a possible endgame.
Inauspicious Beginnings
Authors: Ben-Ami Shlomo
Published: February 2022

The gaps between the parties at Camp David were discernible from day one. Arafat expected a Camp David I-style agreement, one where the Arab side got all its land back. I defined this as “the Jerusalem summit,” but Barak still resisted addressing the problem, and Clinton admitted being at a loss with regard to Jerusalem and refugees. A monumental American failure became immediately apparent when, under the parties’ pressure, they panicked and withdrew their working paper, abandoned the steering wheel of the summit, and let it run without a compass. In the working groups, we got stuck in a “seminar of principles,” a Palestinian insistence that we accept the principles of the right of return and the 1967 borders as a precondition to negotiations. Arafat lashed out at Clinton for dragging him to Camp David in order to lay on him the blame for its failure.
Reaping the Fruits of Success
Authors: Ben-Ami Shlomo
Published: February 2022

After the summit, all the participants embarked on a campaign of international diplomacy. We found comfort in Europe—but no capacity for effective action—less in the Arab world. Nor were the Americans successful in rallying the Arab world behind their peace strategy. The Arab leaders, who viewed the revolutionary Palestinian movement as a threat to their domestic stability, feared a backlash from their own citizens should they be seen forcing Arafat to accept peace terms that did not meet the Palestinians’ “inalienable rights.” They walked, then, on thin ice in their attempt to please the Americans without alienating Arafat. Arafat was not their client; they were his hostages. The Saudis would have preferred that we prioritize a peace deal with Syria. Morocco’s king, Muhammad VI, the chair of the All-Muslim Jerusalem Committee, offered, though, some helpful insights.
Palestine: A Comparative Perspective
Authors: Ben-Ami Shlomo
Published: February 2022

Like other multidimensional conflicts around the world involving territory, religion, and ethnicity, Palestine transcends facile analogies and has been singularly resistant to a peaceful denouement. A comparative perspective that looks at other conflicts and the way they were or failed to be resolved illustrates why the promise of peace in Palestine has remained so tragically unfulfilled. The singularity of the Palestinian case is studied through questions such as: Is war always a prelude to peace? Is the colonial paradigm applicable to Palestine’s case? Why are multidimensional conflicts particularly intractable? And also through a comparative review of concepts such as end of conflict, peace, and justice, and issues such as refugees, and the role of trust, mediators, and leadership in the resolution of conflicts. Among the cases addressed here are Algeria’s war of liberation, the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Colombia and its guerrillas, India-Pakistan, and Morocco-Sahara.
Another Kind of Slavery
Authors: Larson Kate Clifford
Published: February 2022

This chapter looks at Fannie Lou Hamer's childhood in the Mississippi Delta. It was her mother, Ella, who instilled the sense of Black pride that would carry Fannie Lou into adulthood. The inequities of life in Mississippi-the insurmountable, virulent racism, abuse, and rural poverty-forged a fire in Hamer that would later compel her to challenge the status quo. Her earliest memories included the coercive, manipulative system that tied Black people from childhood to the cotton empire controlled by whites. Instead of wage-based work, landowners rented small plots of land in return for a portion of the crops at harvest time. They controlled the land, the water, the roads, the banks, the government, and just about everything. They also regulated access to education through inequitable funding for segregated Black schools. Lacking literacy and sufficient economic, legal, and political power, many Black sharecroppers unwittingly signed deceptive and inequitable rental contracts, forcing them into cycles of perpetual debt and economic bondage when the value of their crops barely covered high rents and costs of supplies.
Reborn
Authors: Larson Kate Clifford
Published: February 2022

This chapter explores how Fannie Lou Hamer emerged from the attack in Winona a changed woman. She recommitted herself to the civil rights movement, but it would be more on her terms. Her voice would be louder, more demanding. For the rest of the summer, the healing of her wounds took a back seat to her voter-registration efforts. Hamer filled her days organizing volunteers and encouraging local church groups, social clubs, businesses, and charitable associations to help canvas and urge people to attend meetings, Citizenship education classes, and register to vote. The goals were simple: engage eligible voters and let them experience "the art of voting," by instilling the "feeling of pride" and show Mississippi and the rest of the country that Blacks wanted to vote. The campaign quickly earned the nickname "Freedom Vote." Meanwhile, the rest of the nation took little notice of the ongoing struggles in Mississippi. The Kennedy Administration struggled with appreciating the need for comprehensive civil rights legislation and shoring up weakening southern Democratic party support.
“This Little Light of Mine”
Authors: Larson Kate Clifford
Published: February 2022

This chapter describes how Fannie Lou Hamer, Victoria Jackson Gray, and Annie Devine became the first Black women in American history to be seated on the floor of the United States House of Representatives. Some Freedom Party members, including Hamer, were now seriously considering making the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP) a separate political party rather than continuing to work with the national Democratic Party. However, this drew widespread criticism from Black and white progressives across the country, and strong pushback from mainstream Democratic politicians as well as more moderate and conservative Freedom Party members. The chapter then considers how the Voting Rights Act gave the federal government, and activists, the legal tools to dismantle those old Jim Crow laws. The expansion of the Freedom Party then created more work for Hamer and she developed key relationships with white and Black leaders in the growing Feminist Movement. By the mid-1970s, often sick and unable to work, Hamer faded from public view. She later died on March 14, 1977, at the age of fifty-nine.