bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Patient Perceptions of Students in a Longitudinal Clerkship in Taiwan: A Qualitative Study
Authors: Chang Yaw-Wen , Hirsh David A. , Fang Wen-Hui , Li Honghe , Tzeng Wen-Chii , Kao Senyeong
Published: May 2020

Background:Patient-centered care is a core component of medical professionalism. East Asian cultures hold different conceptualizations of medical professionalism than Western cultures. To support patient-centered care, education leaders in Taiwan restructured clinical education and implemented the first longitudinal integrated clerkship (LIC) in East Asia. We aimed to investigate patients’ perceptions of longitudinal relationships with the LIC students within Taiwan’s Confucian cultural and social context.Methods:We invited patients or their family members who were cared for longitudinally by a LIC student to participate in the study. Participating patients or their family members undertook semi-structured interviews. We analyzed data qualitatively using a general inductive approach to identify themes in the patients’ descriptions of their experiences interacting with the LIC students.Results:Twenty-five patients and family members participated in interviews: 16 patients and 9 family members. Qualitative analysis of interview transcripts identified three themes from patients’ experience receiving care from their LIC students: care facilitation, companionship, and empathy. To provide care facilitation, LIC students served as a bridge between the physicians and patients. Students served patients by reminding, consulting, tracking disease progression, and researching solutions for problems. To provide companionship, students accompanied patients interpersonally like a friend or confidant who listens and provides a presence for patients. To provide empathy, patients reported that students showed sincere concern for patients’ experience, feelings, and mood.Conclusion: In our study, Taiwanese patients’ perspectives of LIC students suggested the value of care facilitation, companionship, and empathy. We discuss these themes within the context of Confucian culture and the Taiwanese context of care.
Clinical and echocardiographic management of patients with Chronic Heart Failure and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: the SCODIAC Follow up Study
Authors: Luca Mariarosaria De , Bosso Giorgio , Valvano Antonio , Guardasole Vincenzo , Botta Amodio , Carbone Vincenzo , Carella Giovanni , Buono Andrea Del , Giovanni Giuseppe Di , Fimiani Biagio , Guarnaccia Franco , Lapice Emanuela , Martedì Emilia , Memoli Giuseppe , Oliva Domenica , Romano Geremia , Cittadini Antonio , Zito Giovanni Battista , Oliviero Ugo
Published: May 2020

Background

SCODIAC study revealed an increasing use of SGLT2 inhibitors in 123 patients affected with Heart Failure (HF) and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM), referred to Cardiologists and Diabetologists of the pertaining healthcare districts. SCODIAC Follow Up, the second phase of the program, has been carried out to determine diagnostic and therapeutic pathways in a larger group of HF diabetic patients and to verify whether the use of innovative antidiabetic therapies could modify echocardiographic parameters and influence cardiological therapy.
Methods

406 patients affected with HF and T2DM, referred to Cardiologists and Diabetologists of pertaining healthcare districts in Campania, and followed for at least one year between 2018 and 2019, were enrolled in this retrospective study and divided in Group A, composed of 136 HF diabetic patients with preserved Ejection Fraction (HF-pEF) (> 45%) and Group B, formed of 270 HF diabetic patients with reduced EF (HF-rEF) (≤ 45%). All patients had performed periodic clinical evaluations and an echocardiographic exam every 12 months. Anthropometric parameters, HF etiology, co-morbidities, complications and ongoing therapies were collected.
Results

The clinical and laboratory parameters and the treatments adopted were assessed at beginning and after 12 months of treatment. The antidiabetic therapies resulted modified after one year with a greater use of GLP1 AR, gliptins and SGLT2i. Cardiological therapy resulted also modified with a greater use of ARNI and a reduction of ACE inhibitors and ARBs in HF-rEF patients. At the end of the study echocardiography E velocity, A velocity and E/E’ ratio resulted markedly reduced in 25 HF-pEF patients and in 60 HF-rEF patients treated with SGLT2i, in respect to both the whole sample of subjects at beginning and the other diabetic patients, while LAVi resulted reduced only in HF-pEF patients and EF increased only in HF-rEF patients.
Conclusions

The approach to the patients with HF and T2DM must necessarily take place in the healthcare districts and be multidisciplinary and integrated in order to tailor therapy to the characteristics of the patient. SGLT2i could improve left ventricular function in HF-rEF patients and modify cardiological therapeutic approach, almost in this setting of patients.
Trial registration:

The protocol was approved by the University of Naples Federico II Ethics Committee and registered at ClinicalTrial.gov (CT04375943). The principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki were followed.
T-CNV: a robust tool for detecting and visualizing copy number variants in targeted sequencing data.
Authors: ye liu , yangming wu , zexin zheng , tianliangwen zhou
Published: May 2020

Background Copy number variants (CNVs) are widespread among human genes, causing Mendelian or sporadic traits, or associating with complex diseases. Several tools have been developed for CNV assessment based on next generation sequencing (NGS) data using Read-depth (RD) strategy. However, maintaining high level of sensitivity and specificity is always challenging. Here, we present a novel, powerful, user-friendly and open accessed tool, T-CNV for CNV detection and visualization in targeted NGS panel.Results T-CNV consists of primary CNV detection and CNV candidates confirmation steps. After computing log2 values of normalized read depth ratio of tumor and normal/control sample, T-CNV confirms each possible CNV candidates by bins method, Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) clustering approach and window-sliding method. We benchmarked its capacity with MLPA-validated dataset. Compared to three other advanced tools, T-CNV presents excellent performance with 95.42% sensitivity, 99.93% specificity and 93.63% positive predict value in MLPA-validated dataset, while achieving satisfactory performance in simulation study (sensitivity 65.95%, positive predict value 88.71% at coverage 100X).Conclusions T-CNV is a novel and robust tool for CNV detection and visualization in targeted NGS panel consisting of determination of possible CNV candidates and further confirmation by three different methods. It’s publicly available at https://github.com/Top-Gene/T-CNV.
Skin Transcriptome Analysis Identifies the Key Genes Underlying Fur Development in Chinese Tan Sheep in the Birth and Er-mao Periods
Authors: Li ya chao , Hui Ma Yue , Ma Qin , Ding Wei , Chen Yong Hong , Zhang Meng , Luo Fang , Chen Li Yao , He Dong Qian , Wang Jun Kui , Jiang Lin , Li Ying Kang , Tao Jin Zhong
Published: May 2020

BackgroundHairfollicle development in Tan sheepdiffers significantly between the birth and Er-mao periods, but the underlying molecular mechanism is still unclear.MethodsWe profiled the skin transcriptomes of Tan sheepinthe birth and Er-mao periods via RNA-seq technology. TheTan sheep examined consisted ofthree sheep inthe birth period and threesheep inthe Er-mao period. ResultsA total of 364 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the skin of Tan sheepbetweenthe birth period and the Er-mao period were identified, among which 168 were upregulated and 196 were downregulated. Interestingly, the FOS proto-oncogene(FOS)(fold change=22.67, P value=2.15*10^-44)was the most significantly differentially expressed gene. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis found that the FOS gene was significantly enriched in the signaling pathway related to hair follicle development. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that the FOS gene was expressed in the skin of Chinese Tan sheep at the birth and Er-mao periods,with abnormally high expression in the Er-mao period. Conclusions Our findings suggest that the FOS gene promotes hair follicle development in Tan sheep.
Effects of carcass weight, sex and genotype on meat cuts and carcass trait in pigs
Authors: Xie Lei , Qin Jiangtao , Cui Dengshuai , Tang Xi , Xiao Shijun , Zhang Zhiyan , Huang Lusheng
Published: May 2020

Background

Pork cutting is a very important processing in promoting economic appreciation in the pig industry chain. The purpose of this study was to investigate the proportion and weight of carcass cuts, and to analyze the effects of breeds or hybrids, sex and carcass weight on meat cuts. Simultaneously, explore the correlation between meat segmentation and carcass traits.
Methods

The sampled pigs were raised in Muyuan Food Co., Ltd. (Henan, China) under constant and consistent feeding environment and uniformly slaughtered at 180 days following standard pig slaughter processing. A total of 2,000 pigs from four genotypes of Landrace (LD), Yorkshire (YK), Landrace × Yorkshire (LY) and Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire (DLY) were sampled and measured for 19 classes carcass cuts traits including its weights and proportions and 10 carcass traits relating to carcass length and back fat products. Effects of carcass weight, sex and genotype on meat cuts and carcass traits were investigated by linear model using home-made R scripts.
Results

The proportion of the middle cut increasing and proportion of the shoulder and leg cut decreasing as carcass weights increasing. More specifically, proportion of backfat increased the highest and the thickness of four-point backfat was significantly increasing with carcass weights increasing, which hint that fat deposition is the major step in the late growth stage. Besides, the proportion of shoulder cut and backfat in barrows are significantly higher than that in sows, while the leg cut is the opposite. The proportion of the middle cut and shoulder cut are the highest in LD and DLY respectively. We also found that the effects of carcass weight, sex and breed for carcass traits are consistent with cutting meats. Furthermore, the correlation between the proportions of most cutting meats and carcass traits was low.
Conclusions

The effects of carcass weight, sex and genotype on the weight and proportion of most cutting meats and carcass traits reflect the characteristic of breeds and its differential character of growth to fatten developments between sex. The above results laid an important foundation for the breeding of pig carcass composition.
MicroRNA bta-miR-365-3p inhibits proliferation but promotes differentiation of primary bovine myoblasts by targeting the activin A receptor type I
Authors: Hao Dan , Wang Xiaogang , Wang Xiao , Thomsen Bo , Lan Xianyong , Huang Yongzhen , Chen Hong
Published: May 2020

Background
MicroRNAs act as post-transcriptional regulators that repress translation or degrades mRNA transcripts. Each microRNA has many mRNA targets and each mRNA may be targeted by several microRNAs. Skeletal muscles express a plethora of microRNA genes that regulate muscle development and function by controlling the expression of protein-coding target genes. To expand our understanding of the role of microRNA, specifically bta-miR-365-3p, in muscle biology, and we studied its function to primary bovine myoblast proliferation and differentiation.
Results
We first show that bta-miR-365-3p is predominantly expressed in skeletal muscle and heart tissue in Chinese Qinchuan beef cattle. Quantitative PCR and western blotting showed that overexpression of bta-miR-365-3p significantly reduced the levels of cyclinD1 (CCND1), cyclin dependent kinase 2 (CDK2) and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) but stimulated the expression of muscle differentiation markers MYOD1, MYOG. Moreover, downregulation of bta-miR-365-3p increased expression of CCND1, CDK2 and PCNA but decreased expression of MYOD1 and MYOG at both mRNA and protein levels. Furthermore, flow cytometry, EdU proliferation assays and immunostaining showed that increased levels of bta-miR-365-3p suppressed cell proliferation but promoted myotube formation, whereas a decreased level of bta-miR-365-3p had opposite consequences. Finally, we determined that ACVR1 is a direct target of bta-miR-365-3p. Thus, dual luciferase gene reporter assays demonstrated that bta-miR-365-3p can bind to the 3'UTR of ACVR1 to regulate its expression. Consistently, knock-down of ACVR1 was associated with reduced CDK2, CCND1 and PCNA expression but increased MYOD1 expression.
Conclusion
Collectively these data suggest that bta-miR-365-3p represses proliferation but promotes differentiation of bovine myoblasts through a mechanism involving downregulation of ACVR1.
Serious Non-Fatal Unintentional Injuries Among in-school Adolescents in Sri Lanka: Results from the 2016 Sri Lankan Global School-Based Health Survey
Authors: Wickramasinghe Sashimali , Gunawardena Nalika , Punyadasa Dhanusha , Gunawardena Shanthi , Wickramasinghe Champika , Lokubalasooriya Ayesha , Peiris Renuka , Senanayake Sameera
Published: May 2020

Background
Unintentional injuries among adolescents, is a major public health problem world over. A great majority of the annual deaths among adolescents are due to unintentional injuries, with this being the leading cause of death among them, throughout the world. The aim of this study was to estimate the incidence of injuries and their associated factors among school going adolescents of ages 13–17 using the data of the most recent Global School-Based Health Survey (GSHS) conducted in Sri Lanka.
Methods
A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 3,262 adolescents attending government schools, using a self-administered questionnaire. The sample was selected through a two-staged cluster sampling technique. In the first stage, 40 schools were selected from among all schools that have grades 8–12 in the country, using probability proportional to school enrollment size. Then, from the selected schools, classes were selected using systematic equal probability sampling with a random start. Weighted prevalence was calculated, and logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine the correlates.
Results
During the 12 months before the survey, 35.8% (95% CI-30.7–41.1) of the students reported being seriously injured one or more times. The injuries were more common among males but was equally common among different age groups (13–15 age group vs 16–17 age group). The most common type of injury was cut or stab wound (5.5%), followed by broken bone/dislocated joint (5.3%). Multivariable analysis revealed that only few factors were associated with injury such as male sex, being bullied and being physically attacked or being in a physical fight
Conclusion
This study demonstrated that the prevalence of serious unintentional injuries among school going adolescents is a major public health problem in Sri Lanka. School-based interventions to address these issues should be designed with the goal of increasing adolescents’ awareness of possible preventive measures of unintentional injuries.
The Relationship between Core Competence, Job Stressor and Depression in Chinese Specialist Nurses
Authors: Su Dan
Published: May 2020

Background

To this day, the professional training for Specialist Nurse have covered 9 directions in Anhui, China. This paper aims to determine the association of socio-demographic variables, core competence,job stressor and depression in Chinese specialist nurses.
Methods

302 specialist nurses in Anhui province participated in this descriptive correlation study, all data were collected through questionnaire survey including Socio-demographic and Professional Information surveys, Competency Inventory for Registered Nurse, Chinese Nursing Stressor Scale and Self-Rating Depression Scale.
Results

The total score range of core competence was 57–210(2.53 ± 0.50).The total score of job stressors was 43–123(88.05 ± 12.69). Specialist nurses had more job stressors than general clinical nurses in dimensions of professional and career issues, workload and time pressure, interpersonal relationships and management issues (P < 0.05), but they had less job stressors than norm in dimension of resource and environmental problems(P < 0.05). The range of total scores in SDS for specialist nurses was 26–95 (47.80 ± 10.59).
Conclusion

There were significant relationships between core competence, job stressor and depression. This finding highlights potential foci in their joint consideration to improve competitiveness of specialist nurses.
Implications for Practice:

The status of the core competence, job stressors and depression of Chinese specialist nurses is presented to the global clinical community. This paper provides intervention direction to increase the core competence of specialist.
Influence of malnutrition stage according to GLIM 2019 criteria and SGA method on the quality of life of patients with advanced cancer – a prospective study
Authors: Kaźmierczak-Siedlecka Karolina , Skonieczna-Żydecka Karolina , Folwarski Marcin , Ruszkowski Jakub , Świerblewski Maciej , Makarewicz Wojciech
Published: May 2020

Objectives The primary aims of this study were the assessment of nutritional status based on Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) criteria 2019 and Subjective Global Assessment (SGA) as well as quality of life (QOL) with World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF) of advanced cancer patients. The secondary aim was to investigate the impact of severity of malnutrition on QOL of these patients. Results This study included 33 advanced cancer patients from Nutritional Counselling Centre Copernicus in Gdansk and Department of Surgical Oncology, Medical University in Gdansk, Poland. The majority of patients suffered from head/neck (n=12, 33.33%) and espohageal cancer (n=11, 33.33%). According to the SGA method, most of the patients were malnourished (n=14, 42.42%) and severely malnourished (n=14, 42.42%). Based on the GLIM criteria, 69.7% of patients (n=23) were severely malnourished. Among all participants, the highest impairment of QOL in self-assessment of satisfaction of health, environmental, and psychological domain was observed. The severe malnutrition significantly impairs QOL in psychological (GLIM stage 2, p=0.0033; SGA C, p=0.0310) and somatic domain (GLIM stage 2, p=0.0423). This is the first study assessing the impact of severity of malnutrition based on new GLIM criteria on QOL of advanced cancer patients.
A retrospective study: meteorological factors and COVID-19
Authors: Chen Cai , Li Xiyuan , Meng Xiangwei , Ma Zhixiang , Li Wei , Dong Leilei
Published: May 2020

Background: With the outbreak of novel coronavirus, the global epidemic prevention form is severe. Purpose: This paper aimed to investigate the association between meteorological factors (temperature, precipitation and relative humidity) and the daily new cases in Wuhan. Methods: generalized linear model was built to evaluate the link between daily average temperature and the new cases COVID-19. Spearman rank correlation coefficient was used to investigate the association between temperature, relative humidity, precipitation and the daily new cases COVID-19. Result: The correlation coefficient for daily average temperature, relative humidity, precipitation and NCP were 0.11, -0.083 and 0.17, respectively. The maximal effect of temperature on the new cases NCP appeared on Lag0. Conclusion: The variation of temperature had an effect on the daily new cases.
Clinical characteristics and prognostic factors of 148 COVID-19 cases in a secondary epidemic area
Authors: Shi Hongying , He Lingyun , Sun Weijian , Xu Jingxuan , Wang Molin , Chen Xiaodong , Zeng Hongmei , Zhang Weiteng , Sun Xiangwei , Hu Yuanbo , Ji Weiping , Xue Xiangyang , Shen Xian
Published: May 2020

Background: COVID-19 has rapidly spread worldwide; however, the prognostic factors of COVID-19 have not been well described. Based on the prospective medical records in a secondary epidemic area, we examined the epidemiological, clinical characteristics, and explored the prognostic factors of COVID-19 patients. Methods: This retrospective, multi-center cohort study included consecutive cases with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 from January 22 to February 22, 2020 in Wenzhou, China. All cases were followed up to discharge, death, or up to March 16, 2020. Demographic, clinical, laboratory, treatment, and prognosis data were extracted with standardized form, and compared between severe and non-severe cases. Logistic regression and Cox regression were used to explore the factors associated with ICU admission and hospital stay, respectively. Results: The epidemic curve showed that the duration of the whole epidemic in this secondary epidemic area was relatively short. Of the 148 included cases, 29 were severe cases. The median age was 52 years (range, 10–93 years), 62.2% were male, and 60.8% were overweight or obese. Fever (81.8%) and cough (61.5%) were the most common symptoms. Importantly, 25.0% had no clear contact history. The median length of hospital stay was 20 days (95%CI: 19–21), and 5.4% of patients were admitted to ICU, and one patient died. Compared with the non-severe cases, the severe patients were older, had a longer hospital stay, and had higher proportions of smoking, laboratory abnormalities, and ICU risk. Elevated alanine aminotransferase was independently associated with ICU admission; however, type of antiviral drugs had no significant association with duration of hospital stay. Older age, faster respiratory rate, smoking, and comorbidity tended to have higher risk of ICU admission and longer duration of hospital stay. Conclusions: The second-generation cases had atypical symptoms, and one quarter of cases had no clear contact history with cases, indicating the importance of strict preventive and control measures. Abnormal liver function, faster respiratory rate and smoking may be associated with worse prognosis of COVID-19; however, there was no convincing evidence for an association between antiviral therapy and length of hospital stay.
Comparison of Demographic Features of Identified PLWHAs Transmitted through Commercial and Non-marital Non-Commercial Heterosexual Contact in China from 2015–2018: A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Dong Zhilong , Ma Liying , Cai Chang , Gao George Fu , Lv Fan
Published: May 2020

Background ： To understand the characteristics of people living with HIV/AIDS(PLWHAs) infected through commercial heterosexual contact (CHC) and non-marital non-commercial heterosexual contact (NMNCHC) is important for the AIDS prevention work in China. Methods: All cases reported through the Chinese HIV/AIDS Case Reporting System (CRS) from 2015 to 2018 were included in this study. A descriptive analysis of the socio-demographic characteristics of interest was made. Chi-square or Fisher’s exact tests, Cochran–Armitage test, and Student t-test were applied in data analysis. Results ： Totally 523, 121 identified PLWHAs were included in this study. From 2015 to 2018. In heterosexual transmission, the composition of commercial heterosexual contact (CHC) decreased from 40.18% to 37.99%, while that of non-marital non-commercial heterosexual contact (NMNCHC) increased from 46.33% to 49.02%. In the non-marital non-commercial heterosexual contact (NMNCHC) group, the rates of male versus female were 1.50:1, 1.51:1, 1.54:1, 1.52:1, while in the commercial heterosexual contact (CHC) group, this rate were 11.45:1, 12.08:1,12.53:1, 13.28:1. Those who infected through non-marital non-commercial heterosexual contact(NMNCHC) were significantly younger compared with the people infected through commercial heterosexual contact (CHC) (P<0.01 ), with an average age gap ranged from 5.63 to 7.46. This age difference was greater in males (age gap: 5.46~7.82) than in females (age gap: 0.27~1.62). Conclusions ： Non-marital non-commercial heterosexual contact (NMNCHC) plays an increasingly crucial role in heterosexual transmission. Cases infected through commercial heterosexual contact (CHC) and non-marital non-commercial heterosexual contact (NMNCHC) varied significantly in gender, age and other social demographic characteristics.
Study protocol: systematic review and meta-analysis on the effectiveness of pharmacist intervention on health related quality of life and clinical outcomes among patients with heart failure
Authors: Tirfe Mulubirhan , Beyene Alemseged , Berhane Haileselassie , Engidawork Ephrem , Teklu Tewolde
Published: May 2020

Background: Heart failure (HF) is associated with severe complications, hospitalization, and poor quality of life. Patients with heart failure had poor physical and emotional symptoms, functional status and worse health outcomes.Objective: The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis will be to investigate whether pharmacist intervention is effective in improving health related quality of life (HRQoL) and clinical outcomes among patients with heart failure.Method: Systematic review and meta-analysis will be conducted. Published journals in English and indexed in Medline (PubMed), Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Scopus, and Google scholar will be searched from 1990 to December 2019. Data will be extracted by one author and will be approved by other two authors independently. Data will be analyzed in accordance with the Cochrane handbook. Standardized mean differences will be used as an estimate of the effect size. Quality of included studies will be assessed using the modified Downs and Black checklist. Analysis for the dichotomous outcome studies will be converted into standardized mean difference and present with 95% confidence intervals. The review is approved in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) with registration ID CRD42020158236.Discussion: Currently there are important gaps on the effectiveness of pharmacist intervention in improving health-related quality of life and clinical outcomes. We believe this review will provide comprehensive evidence on the effectiveness of pharmacist intervention among patients with HF.
Indirect costs in patients with breast cancer: protocol for a systematic review
Authors: Aboutorabi Ali , Jahangiri Reza , Soleimanpour Samira , Bagherzadeh Rafat , Gorman Julia F , Nemati ali , mohammadpour saeed
Published: May 2020

Background:The rising incidence of breast cancer places a financial burden on national health services and economies. The cost of breast cancer studies is constantly increasing; however, this cost is calculated based on the currency of the country in which the study takes place, therefore limiting national and international comparisons. On the other hand, there is no common method used to conduct such studies. The objective of this review is to contribute to this knowledge pool by examining the indirect costs of breast cancer in order to provide comparable estimates.Methods and analysis:This review will consider all relevant cost of illness studies dated from the year 2000 until the year 2018. Relevant papers will be identified through a systematic search in all major medical research databases. Two independent researchers will screen selected articles. Methodological quality of the studies will be assessed using a checklist designed by Stunhldreher et al. Discussion:The results will be presented in line with the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic review and Meta-Analysis) checklist. While the costs of breast cancer studies are helpful in planning health interventions in terms of the severity of the problem and budget priorities, the results could also be of great help to policymakers and decision makers in health systems.Study registration number: PROSPERO CRD42018108392
Therapeutic Effects and Molecular Network Mechanism of Chinese herbs for Coronavirus Disease-19
Authors: Da Jingjing , Zhang Xiangyan , Sun Fa , Zhang Kui , Zeng Xianchun , Wang Rongpin , Zhou Hourong , Wu Weidong , Zha Yan
Published: May 2020

Background: The coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) outbreak on December 2019.The present study was aimed to explore the therapeutic effects and the network pharmacology mechanism of Chinese herbs in COVID-19 patients.Methods: In this retrospective study, demographic, clinical signs, radiography, and laboratory of 78 patients were analysis from patients' medical records. Network pharmacology was applied to characterize the action mechanism of herbs decoction. Results: Of all patients were imported cases with familial aggregation. Survival analysis showed that the proportion of cough (χ2 =3.864, P=0.049) and fever (χ2 =5.549, P=0.018) in TCM group declined faster than control group. There was a significant radiographic lesions remission difference between groups (χ2 =7.666, P=0.006). After adjusted by baseline data, the changes of Lymphocytes, ALT and LDH were greater in TCM group (P=0.023, 0.005, 0.015, respectively). A total of 1852 ingredients in 13 herbs were obtained, among which, the ingredients-target network included 168 compounds and 189 targets, 38 GO terms and 63 pathways were found in enrichment analysis. Conclusion: The therapeutic effect of Chinese herbs was amelioration of cough and fever, facilitated the absorption of inflammatory infiltrates seen in the lungs, and increased the number of lymphocytes, protection of liver function via the mechanism of inhibition of coronavirus attack organs and immune cells directly. Molecular mechanisms need to be further validate in vitro and vivo.
Research Training Program in a Turkish Medical School: Challenges, Barriers and Opportunities from the Perspectives of the Students and Faculty Members
Authors: Öcek Zeliha Asli , Bati Hilal , Sezer Ebru Demirel , Köroğlu Özge Altun , Yilmaz Özlem , Yiımaz Nilüfer Demiral , Mandıracıoğlu Aliye
Published: May 2020

Background: Providing medical students with opportunities for research experience is challenging for medical schools in developing countries. The Research Training Program (RTP), which is carried out in Ege University Faculty of Medicine (EUFM) parallel to the core curriculum, aims to improve the scientific competencies of the highly motivated students and to provide them with the opportunity to conduct a research. The purpose of this project is to evaluate RTP through the perspectives of students and faculty members. Methods: This phenomenological study included two groups; students of RTP and faculty members who contributed to the program. In-depth interviews were conducted with the research group whose selection was determined by maximum variation technique. Interviews with new individuals continued until data saturation was reached. The data was analysed independently by two researchers using the code list created, and then the themes and theme categories that combined the codes were determined. Results: Twenty-one RTP students and 14 faculty members were interviewed. The main motivation for students to participate was the desire to learn how to do research. The introduction course providing the students with the basic competencies needs to be improved in terms of practical activities. It was reported that during the project process students needed intensive guidance especially in finding a research topic and a mentor. The students' lack of time, deficit of enough mentoring and the fact that conducting a research does not provide a competitive advantage for residency are important obstacles to the completion of the program. The most frequently mentioned achievement of the students is to learn all the stages of the research as well as getting acquainted with critical thinking. Conclusions: This research showed that it was realistic to implement research programs for highly motivated students in medical schools with conditions like those in EUFM. The solution of mentor shortage emerged in this study is dependent on the adoption of student research as a national policy. Getting acquainted with the interrogative thinking style, conducting research and making lifelong learning a core value are more important outcomes of research programs than the number of completed projects.
Aging-Relevant Human Basal Forebrain Cholinergic Neurons as a Cell Model for Alzheimer’s Disease
Authors: Ma Shuaipeng , Zang Tong , Liu Meng-Lu , Zhang Chun-Li
Published: May 2020

Background : Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is an adult-onset mental disorder with aging as a major risk factor. Early and progressive degeneration of basal forebrain cholinergic neurons (BFCNs) contributes substantially to cognitive impairments of AD. An aging-relevant cell model of BFCNs will critically help understand AD and identify potential therapeutics. Recent studies demonstrate that induced neurons directly reprogrammed from adult skin fibroblasts retain aging-associated features. However, human induced BFCNs (hiBFCNs) have yet to be achieved. Methods : We examined a reprogramming procedure for the generation of aging-relevant hiBFCNs through virus-mediated expression of fate-determining transcription factors. Skin fibroblasts were obtained from healthy human adults and sporadic AD patients. Properties of the induced neurons were examined by immunocytochemistry and electrophysiology. Results : We established a protocol for a highly efficient generation of hiBFCNs from adult human skin fibroblasts. They show electrophysiological properties of mature neurons and express BFCN-specific markers, such as CHAT, p75NTR, ISL1, and VACHT. As a proof-of-concept, our preliminary results further reveal that hiBFCNs from sporadic AD patients’ fibroblasts exhibit time-dependent TAU hyperphosphorylation in the soma and dysfunctional nucleocytoplasmic transport activities. Conclusions : Aging-relevant BFCNs can be directly reprogrammed from human skin fibroblasts of healthy adults and sporadic AD patients. They show promises as an aging-relevant cell model for understanding AD pathology and may be employed for therapeutics identification for AD.
Establishment of Predictive Model for Related Factors of Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS) After Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy (PCNL)
Authors: Ju Min , Zheng Jin , Pan li Ying , Gao lin Lin
Published: May 2020

Background:The percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) is a primary method of stone treatment, but the infection is a very common postoperative complication. The systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) is a stage of the infection process and a very important early clinical manifestation of sepsis, so identifying the risk factors associated with SIRS after PCNL plays an important role in ensuring patients’ safety and preventing sepsis. Methods:Between September 2016 and September 2017,there were total 352 patients who were diagnosed as renal stone and were treated with PCNL, andincluded in this study at last.Patients were divided into two groups according to whether SIRS occurred or not.The univariate analysis was performed on the related risk factors such as patients' age, gender, number of stone, diabetes et al. Then logistic regression was used for multivariate analysis and established a prediction model.Results:There are 352renal stone patients were treated with PCNL, and 106 patients (30.1%) suffered SIRS after operation.It was found that the operative time, preoperative fever and diabetes could be deemed as risk factors, and the Then logistic regression results indicated that diabetes (OR=2.049, 95%CI 1.008～4.166) and operative time (OR=1.011, 95%CI 1.003～1.019) entered the regression equation.Conclusion: Diabetes and operative time are independent risk factors for SIRS after PCNL, so the probability of SIRS after PCNL can be determined in accordance with these two indicators.
The Professional Contribution of Chiropractors to Danish elite football clubs: A qualitative exploration of role and perceived value in an interprofessional service provision context.
Authors: Hostrup Joachim , Koza Anders , Myburgh Corrie
Published: May 2020

Background: Interprofessional team-based care has been widely adopted in elite level athletic health and performance practice. And although chiropractors can claim some penetration as health care service providers in high level sport, their position as valued members of interprofessional health care teams, especially those built around traditional medical organisational structures, is unclear. In Denmark, the mainstream provider status of chiropractors is more favourable than in most parts of the world. Moreover, chiropractors have been identified as service providers in the Danish premiere football league (Super Liga). However, little is currently known about the professional contribution made by chiropractors in this powerful sporting context.As a first step to map the professional practice landscape of Danish sports chiropractors, this investigation sought to explore the perceived role and perceived value of chiropractors as service providers in elite Danish football clubs. Methods: A comparative qualitative case study using semi-structured individual interviews was conducted. Six Danish Superliga clubs were purposively sampled to compare and contrast instances where chiropractors were absent from the health care team, contracted as in-house health care team members or engaged as external service providers. Triangulated responses were solicited from healthcare co-ordinators, chiropractors and athletes within each club’s organisation through short semi-structured individual interviews. The audio-recorded responses were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed using a framework approach.Results: Inductive and deductive coding revealed 14 unique codes, which were further organised into 4 code families relating to the role of chiropractors, benefits of utilizing chiropractic care and facilitators and barriers to interprofessional practice. From this framework 3 themes were abstracted, these being: “Broadening horizons”, “In-house preferred to take-away” and “Already covered, or even necessary?”. Conclusion: In this practice context, chiropractors fill the role of musculoskeletal health care service providers. Their perceived value stems from additional expert disciplinary knowledge, improved diagnostic triage and increased treatment flexibility. However, where not utilized, the role of the spinal health expert is questioned and when acknowledged, limited to that of a technician/therapist. It is unclear whether chiropractors can claim core team member status. Further exploration of this interesting context of IPP practice is warranted.
Lncrna-Associated Cerna Networks in Spleen of Nocth1-Correlated T-all Leukemia Mice
Authors: Shi Min , Wang Shaohua , Li Xiaofei , Li Yongjun
Published: May 2020

BackgroundAcute T-lymphocytic leukemia (T-ALL) is a highly aggressive malignant tumor in leukemia.Nocth1 is considered as an major oncogene in the development of T-ALL. Increasing evidences have revealed that the occurrence and progression of T-ALL referred to abnormal gene expression, pathway activation and the regulation between these genes. However, the potential lncRNA-associated competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network involved in spleen of Nocth1-correlated T-ALL leukemia mice remains unclear.ResultsThe deep RNA-sequencing analysis shown that 1833 lncRNAs and 4626 mRNAs were deregulated according to the P-value (p<0.05) and fold change (>2-fold) in spleen of T-ALL leukemia mice compared with that of C57BL/6 mice. Gene Ontology(GO) and KEGG pathway analysis were performed to reveal the potential roles of differentiated expressed lncRNAs. Co-expression Network was performed to reveal the regulation relationship between the differentiated expressed lncRNAs and mRNAs. CeRNA prediction constructed the lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA model to find the core ceRNA based on regression model analysis and seed sequence matching methods.ConclusionThis study provided a systematic overview of the altered lncRNAs and mRNA expression, pathway and ceRNA regulation network in the pathogenesis of Nocth1-correlated T-ALL.
Angiogenic properties of human endothelial colony-forming cells in Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis
Authors: Rio Ana Paula Toledo Del , Prieto Stephanie Ospina , Frade Jessica Oliveira , Duarte Bruno Lino Kosa , Bertolo Manoel Barros , Ozelo Margareth Castro , Sachetto Zoraida
Published: May 2020

BACKGROUND

Endothelial progenitor cells are essential for vascular homeostasis. Considering the recurrent nature of granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) the aim of the study was to evaluate the angiogenic capacity of endothelial colony-forming cells (ECFC), which have the capacity for neovasculogenesis in vitro, of the patients with GPA, before and after plasma stimulation.
METHODS

Thirteen GPA PR3-positive patients and 15 healthy controls were included. ECFC were isolated from periferic blood and characterized by flow cytometry (FACS). Capillary tube formation (Matrigel assay) and scratching assay were measured during 24 hours. The migration assay was also performed after overnight incubation with healthy control plasma and active GPA patient plasma. Three patients with active disease where submitted to recollection of ECFC after treatment for longitudinal evaluation.
RESULTS

The culture was successful in 62% of GPA patients and 57% of controls. In the matrigel assay the ECFC from patients and controls showed similar capillary structures formation, however ECFC from inactive GPA alone showed early loss of angiogenic capacity between 15 and 24 hours. In scratching assay, there was an impairment in the proliferative capacity of the ECFC between GPA patients and controls without significant difference (12th hour, p = 0.05). When incubated with control plasma, ECFC of remission GPA patients showed a significant lower migration capacity after the 4th hour (p = 0.0001). In longitudinal analysis, ECFC isolated after treatment showed significantly lower migration rates.
CONCLUSIONS

PR3-positive remission GPA ECFC demonstrated early loss of tube formation and less proliferative capacity compared to those of healthy controls, suggesting impairment of endothelial function.
Reliability and validity of Simplified Chinese version of the Italian Spine Youth Quality of Life questionnaire in adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis
Authors: Liu Shanshan , Liang Junyang , Xu Nanfang , Mai Shuo , Wang Qi , Zeng Lin , Du Chaojun , Du Yaoxu , Zeng Yan , Yu Miao , Liu Zhongjun
Published: May 2020

Background: The Italian Spine Youth Quality of Life (ISYQOL) questionnaire is a tool used to evaluate health-related quality of life in adolescents with Idiopathic Scoliosis. The study aimed to undertake the process of cultural adaptation of the ISYQOL questionnaire into Simplified Chinese. Methods: The translation from Italian into Simplified Chinese was performed. It involved 138 adolescents whose Cobb angle ranged between 20-40 degrees, 50 wearing the brace and 88 not wearing the brace. Statistical analysis calculated the reliability, floor and ceiling effects of the ISYQOL. After that, construct validity was measured by analyzing the ISYQOL relationship Scoliosis Research Society-22 patient Questionnaire (SRS-22). Results: There were no floor or ceiling effects in ISYQOL questionnaire. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient evaluated for Internal consistency was 0.75 without the brace and 0.88 with the brace. Intraclass correlation coefficients assessed with the use of the test-retest method was 0.72 without the brace and 0.80 with the brace. A strong relationship exists between the ISYQOL measure and SRS-22 scores (rho=0.63; p< 0.01), reflecting the high validity of the questionnaires. Both ISYQOL and SRS-22 scores showed no statistical difference between groups with and without the brace (p>0.05). Conclusions: Trans-cultural validation in Chinses language showed the reliability and validity of the ISYQOL
Multisystem inflammatory syndrome with features of Atypical Kawasaki disease during COVID-19 pandemic: Report of a case from India
Authors: Rauf Abdul , Vijayan Ajay , John Shaji Thomas , Krishnan Raghuram A , Latheef Abdul
Published: May 2020

There is a global concern of increasing number of children presenting with inflammatory syndrome with clinical features simulating Kawasaki disease, during ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. We report a very similar case of 5-year-old boy from a COVID-19 hotspot area in Kerala state of India who presented in late April 2020 with acute febrile illness with abdominal pain and loose stools followed by shock. On examination, child had bulbar conjunctivitis and extremity edema. Initial investigations showed high inflammatory parameters, elevated serum creatinine and liver enzymes. Echocardiography showed moderate LV dysfunction and normal coronaries. Cardiac enzymes were also elevated, suggesting myocarditis. He was treated with inotropic support, respiratory support with High Flow Nasal Cannula, IV Immunoglobulins, aspirin, steroids and diuretics. RT PCR for SARS-CoV-2 was negative twice. His clinical condition improved rapidly, was afebrile from day 2, inflammatory parameters decreased, left ventricular function improved and was discharged after 6 days of hospital stay.
Evaluation of antidepressant activity of Acorus calamus L. rizhome extract in mice
Authors: Yousuf Shaista , Rasool Akhtar , Haq Shiekh Marifat Ul , Zulfajri Muhammad , Hanafiah Marlia M. , Huang Genin Gary , Mahboob Mohammed
Published: May 2020

Background

Acorus calamus (AC) L. (Araceae) is an annual semi-aquatic and aromatic plant found in Europe, North America and Asia. Its rhizomes are often used by Native Americans, Americans, and Chinese as well as by other cultures. Ethnobotanical studies and documents have shown their use in various disease treatments, such as insomnia, mental disorders, diabetes mellitus, epilepsy, inflammation, asthma, neuropathic pain, and diarrhea. In this study, the antidepressant activity of methanolic and hydroalcoholic extracts of the AC rhizome part in mice was investigated.
Materials and methods

Three doses of methanolic extract of AC rhizome (MEACR) (25, 50 and 100 mg/kg b.wt), three doses of hydroalcoholic extract of AC rhizome (HAACR) (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg b.wt), and standards (imipramine, 15 mg/kg b.wt and fluoxetine, 20 mg/kg b.wt) was daily oral administration to the mice for consecutive 14 days. The extract effect on the immobility time was monitored by a tail suspension test (TST) and a forced swimming test (FST). Monoamine oxidase (MAO) levels were also analyzed using standard methods.
Results

The optimum antidepressant activity was viewed at 100 mg/kg b.wt of MEACR extract and 400 mg/kg b.wt of HAACR extract with 23.82% and 20.59% immobility period reduction, respectively. Besides, the extracts weakened the FST-induced elevation of MAO activity significantly and returned to near-normal levels of neurotransmitters in the brain. 100 mg/kg b.wt or above of MEACR extract significantly prevented the MAO-A and MAO-B activities in mice brain at a dose-dependent fashion. But, just 400 mg/kg b.wt of HAACR extract prevented the activity of MAO-A and MAO-B. Fluoxetine and imipramine showed a tendency to prevent the activity of MAO-A and MAO-B.
Conclusion

This study suggests that AC rhizome extract mediated antidepressant activity by modulating the central neurochemical and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in response to FST and TST-induced stress. Therefore, AC rhizome extract can be used as a valuable plant supplement to treat depressive disorders.