bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Facilitators and barriers for the adoption, implementation and monitoring of child safety interventions: a multinational qualitative analysis
Authors: Scholtes Beatrice , Schröder-Bäck Peter , MacKay J Morag , Vincenten Joanne , Förster Katharina , Brand Helmut
Published: December 2016

The efficiency and effectiveness of child safety interventions are determined by the quality of the implementation process. This multinational European study aimed to identify facilitators and barriers for the three phases of implementation: adoption, implementation and monitoring (AIM process). Twenty-seven participants from across the WHO European Region were invited to provide case studies of child safety interventions from their country. Cases were selected by the authors to ensure broad coverage of injury issues, age groups and governance level of implementation (eg, national, regional or local). Each participant presented their case and provided a written account according to a standardised template. Presentations and question and answer sessions were recorded. The presentation slides, written accounts and the notes taken during the workshops were analysed using thematic content analysis to elicit facilitators and barriers. Twenty-six cases (from 26 different countries) were presented and analysed. Facilitators and barriers were identified within eight general themes, applicable across the AIM process: management and collaboration; resources; leadership; nature of the intervention; political, social and cultural environment; visibility; nature of the injury problem and analysis and interpretation. The importance of the quality of the implementation process for intervention effectiveness, coupled with limited resources for child safety makes it more difficult to achieve successful actions. The findings of this study, divided by phase of the AIM process, provide practitioners with practical suggestions, where proactive planning might help increase the likelihood of effective implementation.
Relationship between employment histories and frailty trajectories in later life: evidence from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing
Authors: Lu Wentian , Benson Rebecca , Glaser Karen , Platts Loretta G , Corna Laurie M , Worts Diana , McDonough Peggy , Di Gessa Giorgio , Price Debora , Sacker Amanda
Published: December 2016

Background

Given the acceleration of population ageing and policy changes to extend working lives, evidence is needed on the ability of older adults to work for longer. To understand more about the health impacts of work, this study examined the relationship between employment histories before retirement and trajectories of frailty thereafter.

Methods

The sample comprised 2765 women and 1621 men from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. We used gendered typologies of life-time employment and a frailty index (FI). Multilevel growth curve models were used to predict frailty trajectories by employment histories.

Results

Women who had a short break for family care, then did part-time work till 59 years had a lower FI after 60 years than those who undertook full-time work until 59 years. Women who were largely family carers or non-employed throughout adulthood, had higher levels of frailty at 60 years but experienced a slower decline with age. Men who worked full-time but early exited at either 49 or 60 years had a higher FI at 65 years than those who worked full-time up to 65 years. Interaction between employment histories and age indicated that men in full-time work who experienced an early exit at 49 tended to report slower declines.

Conclusions

For women, experiencing distinct periods throughout the lifecourse of either work or family care may be advantageous for lessening frailty risk in later life. For men, leaving paid employment before 65 years seems to be beneficial for decelerating increases in frailty thereafter. Continuous full-time work until retirement age conferred no long-term health benefits.
Socioeconomic differences in health check-ups and medically certified sickness absence: a 10-year follow-up among middle-aged municipal employees in Finland
Authors: Piha Kustaa , Sumanen Hilla , Lahelma Eero , Rahkonen Ossi
Published: December 2016

Background

There is contradictory evidence on the association between health check-ups and future morbidity. Among the general population, those with high socioeconomic position participate more often in health check-ups. The main aims of this study were to analyse if attendance to health check-ups are socioeconomically patterned and affect sickness absence over a 10-year follow-up.

Methods

This register-based follow-up study included municipal employees of the City of Helsinki. 13 037 employees were invited to age-based health check-up during 2000–2002, with a 62% attendance rate. Education, occupational class and individual income were used to measure socioeconomic position. Medically certified sickness absence of 4 days or more was measured and controlled for at the baseline and used as an outcome over follow-up. The mean follow-up time was 7.5 years. Poisson regression was used.

Results

Men and employees with lower socioeconomic position participated more actively in health check-ups. Among women, non-attendance to health check-up predicted higher sickness absence during follow-up (relative risk =1.26, 95% CI 1.17 to 1.37) in the fully adjusted model. Health check-ups were not effective in reducing socioeconomic differences in sickness absence.

Conclusions

Age-based health check-ups reduced subsequent sickness absence and should be promoted. Attendance to health check-ups should be as high as possible. Contextual factors need to be taken into account when applying the results in interventions in other settings.
Intended and unintended consequences of abortion law reform: perspectives of abortion experts in Victoria, Australia
Authors: Keogh L A , Newton D , Bayly C , McNamee K , Hardiman A , Webster A , Bismark M
Published: December 2016

Introduction

In Victoria, Australia, abortion was decriminalised in October 2008, bringing the law in line with clinical practice and community attitudes. We describe how experts in abortion service provision perceived the intent and subsequent impact of the 2008 Victorian abortion law reform.

Methods

Experts in abortion provision in Victoria were recruited for a qualitative semi-structured interview about the 2008 law reform and its perceived impact, until saturation was reached. Nineteen experts from a range of health care settings and geographic locations were interviewed in 2014/2015. Thematic analysis was conducted to summarise participants' views.

Results

Abortion law reform, while a positive event, was perceived to have changed little about the provision of abortion. The views of participants can be categorised into: (1) goals that law reform was intended to address and that have been achieved; (2) intent or hopes of law reform that have not been achieved; (3) unintended consequences; (4) coincidences; and (5) unfinished business. All agreed that law reform had repositioned abortion as a health rather than legal issue, had shifted the power in decision making from doctors to women, and had increased clarity and safety for doctors. However, all described outstanding concerns; limited public provision of surgical abortion; reduced access to abortion after 20 weeks; ongoing stigma; lack of a state-wide strategy for equitable abortion provision; and an unsustainable workforce.

Conclusion

Law reform, while positive, has failed to address a number of significant issues in abortion service provision, and may have even resulted in a ‘lull’ in action.
Do cigarette graphic warnings encourage smokers to attend a smoking cessation programme: a quasi-experimental study
Authors: Guydish Joseph , Tajima Barbara , Le Thao , Henderson Catherine , Yip Deborah , Gruber Valerie , Garcia Wayne , Delucchi Kevin L
Published: December 2016

Objective

This study assessed whether exposure to cigarette graphic warning labels (GWLs) increased attendance to a smoking cessation programme.

Method

From 2014 to 2016, alternating cohorts of smokers in 3 residential drug treatment programmes received either GWLs (experimental) or transparent (control) labels placed on their cigarette packs for 30 days. The primary outcome was the proportion of participants who chose to attend a smoking cessation group after the labelling period.

Results

The sample (N=601) was 72.6% male, with a mean age of 41.9 (SD=11.16) and included African-American (37%), White (29.4%) and Hispanic (19.6%) participants. While similar on most measures, controls were more likely to be married, had been in the treatment programme longer and registered higher on expired carbon monoxide (CO). After labelling, the proportion attending at least one cessation group was 26% in the experimental condition and 18.8% among controls. In an intent-to-treat analysis adjusting for group differences at baseline, and for 2 levels of nesting, those who received GWLs were more likely than controls to attend the smoking cessation group (OR=1.58, 95% CI 1.02 to 2.44).

Conclusions

Smokers who received GWLs on their cigarette packs were more likely to attend a cessation programme. Thus, this study is one of the first to document a change in a directly observed behavioural outcome as a function of month-long exposure to cigarette pack GWLs.
First scientific record of two cases of partial twinning in the chick embryo, Gallus gallus domesticus
Authors: Farzaneh Maryam , Khoshnam Seyed Esmaeil , Nokhbatolfoghahai Mohsen
Published: December 2016

Bicephalia is one of the scarcest malformations reported in birds and needs to be fully investigated in chick embryos. Among 1500 fertilised eggs used to examine the primordial germ cells in 2‐day and 5.5‐day chick embryos Gallus gallus domesticus, bicephalia was found and the condition of the heads, the heart and other parts of the body was fully described. Each twin had its own head; hearts were not completely separated from each other and the rest of the bodies were externally unique. This investigation urges others including poultry farms to share their data on a bigger scale. It may also encourage the monitoring of abnormalities randomly seen during early chick embryogenesis and consideration of environmental factors when poultry farms are faced with high percentages of unsuccessful hatching. The report can shed some light on developmental processes and may also help to clarify why bicephalia is not more common.
Before volcanoes became ordinary
Authors: Taylor Kenneth L.
Published: December 2016

Volcanic phenomena, frequently treated as ‘accidental’ in eighteenth-century science, acquired ‘ordinary’ status with the formulation during the earlier part of the nineteenth century of comprehensive systems of heat-driven global dynamics (such as those of Élie de Beaumont and Lyell). This essay identifies some reasons lying behind the predilection within early modern science toward the classification of volcanoes as accidents. Generic terms for volcanoes were absent in ancient Greek and Roman literature; ancient authors tended to address volcanic eruptions individually in terms of locality or place. Habitual focus on geographical specificity persisted even after the introduction during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries of terminology recognizing volcanoes as distinct entities. An ‘uncommon’ status of volcanoes was supported not only by geographical circumstance (especially for Northern Europeans situated far from sites of volcanic action), but also by truisms widely accepted in chemical and mineralogical thought linking fire with destruction and confusion, in contrast to water's association with organization and order. In early efforts to generalize the Earth's constitution and development, explanatory theories based on constant and sustained action tended to be preferred. In these circumstances aqueous agency appeared generally efficacious, in contrast to volcanic fires, assumed to be local, shallow and ephemeral.
Methodological uniformitarianism of Hugo Kołłątaj: an unknown Polish precursor of the Lyellian geological paradigm
Authors: Racki Grzegorz
Published: December 2016

The overlooked geological ideas of Hugo Kołłątaj (1750–1812), who was well known as a progressive Polish Enlightenment statesman and Catholic writer, are presented. Following the Kościuszko insurrection, he was imprisoned in Olomouc from 1795 to 1802. While there he wrote a great treatise (probably finished in 1807) on the natural setting of the prehistory of the people in Polish territories. More than half of his voluminous manuscript dealt with the history of the Earth. Unfortunately, this monumental work in three volumes was only published in Polish in 1842. This comprehensively heuristic discourse presents a truly intellectual apogee of ‘the Heroic Age of Geology’. Kołłątaj advocated a continuous, step-by-step investigation of natural processes in terms of their contemporary actions, and considered them extensively in reference to permanent physical laws in geological history, although essentially in connection to Noah's Deluge. Kołłątaj clearly proposed the in-depth inductive actualistic analysis of geological processes, but combined it with some elements of the non-gradualistic model (spasmodic sedimentation), as key to the proper understanding of the Earth and the history of the biosphere and mankind. Consequently, he distinctly pioneered the commonly celebrated methodological uniformitarian approach, as proposed by Charles Lyell in the 1830s.
History of the oil industry in Poland until 1939
Authors: Wołkowicz Stanisław , Graniczny Marek , Wołkowicz Krystyna , Urban Halina
Published: December 2016

Natural crude oil seeps are fairly common in SE Poland, especially in areas of exposure of the Carpathians Flysch series. The first records of such seeps may be traced back to the first half of the sixteenth century. Some remarks on the occurrences and usability of so-called rock oil may be found in the works of Kluk, Staszic and Zejszner, and descriptions of simple hand-dug pits for collecting this oil – already operating at the end of the eighteenth century – in a book by Hacquet. Rapid development of the oil industry in Poland was triggered by the discovery of a method of distillation of kerosene from seep-oil and by the invention of an effective modern kerosene lamp by Ignacy Łukasiewicz in 1853. When the first oil well was drilled at Titusville (Pennsylvania) in 1859, several dozen wells were already producing oil in the Carpathians. Oil prospecting and production were initially concentrated in the region of Gorlice, Jasło and Krosno, but shifted eastwards after the discovery of large oil fields in Schodnica and Borysław. Drilling operations in the latter area were conducted by Długosz. Polish oil geologists at the turn of the nineteenth century included Zuber, Szajnocha, Grzybowski and Tołwiński, who were the leading world authorities in this field.
Harsh oil: finding petroleum in early twentieth century Western Australia
Authors: Gerali Francesco , Gregory Jenny
Published: December 2016

Before becoming a science, an art or a form of investment, oil prospecting needed the mental vision of the discoverers of new oil fields in unexplored areas. According to Pratt, the minds of such men made the discovery of new wells possible, mostly in terrains that were not considered favourable such as in Australia. This paper is the initial outcome of an investigation into the first oil explorations in the SW of Australia in the early twentieth century. Following a review of the relevant literature, the paper provides an overview of the early global development of the oil industry, exploring expectations of oil resources in Australia in the context of international oil developments. This provides the background to an analysis of early oil exploration in Western Australia (WA), based on analysis of contemporary geological literature, unpublished government documents and newspaper reports. The result is not the tale of an epic quest for oil in Australia, but rather a story of sceptical scientists, visionary investors and a government that saw oil as an asset that would speed up Australia's transition from a British colony into an independent political and economic power.
Gushers, science and luck: Everette Lee DeGolyer and the Mexican oil upsurge, 1909–19
Authors: Gerali Francesco , Riguzzi Paolo
Published: December 2016

Despite the political controversies surrounding it, in Mexico as in other countries, oil exploration and production between 1900 and 1920 was primarily an economic activity developed by scientists, technologists, skilled workers and entrepreneurs. The Mexican oil fields were both drilling sites and ‘smithies of ideas’ where new cadres of oil professionals were producing fresh knowledge on the oil-bearing formations. Along with Mexican and British professionals, young US geologists with more books in their hands than oil on their shoes emerged and managed, in spite of having little experience, to push Mexico in less than one decade to the top-three list of petroleum-exporting countries. This article aims to present the business and scientific activities of one of the most relevant individuals among them, Everette Lee DeGolyer, assessing his contribution to petroleum exploitation and oil geology in Mexico.
Radon-222 and radium-226 occurrence in water: a review
Authors: Girault Frédéric , Perrier Frédéric , Przylibski Tadeusz A.
Published: December 2016

A total of 2143 dissolved radon-222 and radium-226 activity concentrations measured together in water samples was compiled from the literature. To date, the use of such a large database is the first attempt to establish a relationship for the
226
Ra–
222
Rn couple. Over the whole dataset, radon and radium concentrations range over more than nine and six orders of magnitude, respectively. Geometric means yield 9.82±0.73 Bq l
−1
for radon and 54.6±2.7 mBq l
−1
for radium. Only a few waters are in
226
Ra–
222
Rn radioactive equilibrium, with most of them being far from equilibrium; the geometric mean of the radium concentration in water/radon concentration in water (
C
Ra
/
C
Rn
) ratio is estimated to be 0.0056±0.0004. Significant differences in radon and radium concentrations are observed between groundwaters and surface waters, on the one hand, and between hot springs and cold springs, on the other. Within water types, typical ranges of radon and radium concentrations can be associated with subgroups of waters. While the radium concentration characterizes the geochemistry of the groundwater–rock interaction, the radon concentration, in most cases, is a signal of non-mobile radium embedded in the encasing rocks. Thus, the
226
Ra–
222
Rn couple can be a useful tool for the characterization of water and for the identification of water source rocks, shedding light on the various water–rock interaction processes taking place in the environment.
Radon and carbon dioxide around remote Himalayan thermal springs
Authors: Girault Frédéric , Koirala Bharat Prasad , Bhattarai Mukunda , Perrier Frédéric
Published: December 2016

Radon-222 and carbon dioxide (CO
2
) emissions were studied around four remote Nepalese thermal springs near the Main Central Thrust: Timure and Chilime in the upper Trisuli Valley, central Nepal; and Sulighad and Tarakot in Lower Dolpo, western Nepal. A total of 279 radon fluxes and 670 CO
2
fluxes were measured on the ground, complemented by radon concentration measurements in soil and water, and assisted by thermal infrared imaging. In Lower Dolpo, mean radon fluxes ranging from 270×10
−3
to 450×10
−3
Bq m
−2
s
−1
, radon concentration in water greater than 100 Bq l
−1
, low mean CO
2
fluxes (18–32 g m
−2
day
−1
), and integrated radon and CO
2
discharges of 70–180 Bq s
−1
and (2.3–3.8)×10
−3
mol s
−1
, respectively, suggest shallow-water-dominated transport with simultaneous radon and CO
2
degassing from the hydrothermal water. In the upper Trisuli Valley, mean radon fluxes ranging from 140×10
−3
to 570×10
−3
Bq m
−2
s
−1
, larger mean CO
2
fluxes that range from 430 to 2930 g m
−2
day
−1
, radon concentration in water of less than 6 Bq l
−1
, and integrated radon and CO
2
discharges of 290–840 Bq s
−1
and (390–830)×10
−3
mol s
−1
, respectively, indicate fast gas-dominated transport of deep metamorphic-origin CO
2
charged in radon along a fault network. Radon can thus give precious information on the gas transport properties of the shallow continental crust.
Radon: a radioactive therapeutic element
Authors: Przylibski Tadeusz Andrzej
Published: December 2016

This paper presents selected issues related to the use of
222
Rn in therapeutic treatments. Radon is a radioactive element whose usage in medicine for more than 100 years is based on the radiation hormesis theory. However, owing to the radioactive character of this element and the fact that its alpha-radioactive decay is the source of other radionuclides, its therapeutic application has been raising serious doubts. The author points to potential sources and carriers of radon in the environment that could supply radon for use in a variety of therapies. Except for centuries-long tradition of using radon groundwaters, and later also the air in caves and underground workings, the author would also like to focus on soil air, which is still underestimated as a source of radon. The text presents different methods of obtaining this radioactive gas from groundwaters, the air in caves, mining galleries and soil air, and it presents new possibilities in this field. The author also discusses problems related to the transportation and storage of radon obtained from the environment.

Within radon-prone areas, it is often necessary to de-radon groundwaters that are intended for human consumption and household usage. Also, dry radon wells are used to prevent radon migration from the ground into residential buildings. The author proposes using radon released from radon groundwaters and amassed in dry radon wells for radonotherapy treatments. Thanks to this, it is possible to reduce the cost of radiological protection of people within radon-prone areas while still exploiting the
222
Rn obtained for a variety of therapies.

With regard to the ongoing and still unsettled dispute concerning the beneficial or detrimental impact of radon on the human organism, the author puts special emphasis on the necessity of strictly monitoring both the activity concentration of
222
Rn in media used for therapeutic treatments and of its radioactive decay products. Monitoring should be also extended to the environments in which such treatments are delivered (inhalatoriums, baths, saunas, showers, pools and other facilities), as well as to the patients – during and after the radonotherapy treatments. It is also essential to monitor the dose of radon and its daughters that is received by persons undergoing radon therapy. This should facilitate the assessment of the effectiveness of these treatments, which may contribute to a fuller understanding of the mechanisms of radon impact, and ionizing radiation in general, on the human organism. This will make it easier to ultimately confirm or reject the radiation hormesis theory. It is also essential to monitor the effective dose that is received by medical and technical staff employed to deliver the radonotherapy treatments.
Deciphering the Origin of Dogs: From Fossils to Genomes
Authors: Freedman Adam H. , Wayne Robert K.
Published: December 2016

Understanding the timing and geographic context of dog origins is a crucial component for understanding human history, as well as the evolutionary context in which the morphological and behavioral divergence of dogs from wolves occurred. A substantial challenge to understanding domestication is that dogs have experienced a complicated demographic history. An initial severe bottleneck was associated with domestication followed by postdivergence gene flow between dogs and wolves, as well as population expansions, contractions, and replacements. In addition, because the domestication of dogs occurred in the relatively recent past, much of the observed polymorphism may be shared between dogs and wolves, limiting the power to distinguish between alternative models of dog history. Greater insight into the domestication process will require explicit tests of alternative models of domestication through the joint analysis of whole genomes from modern lineages and ancient wolves and dogs from across Eurasia.
Vomeronasal Receptors in Vertebrates and the Evolution of Pheromone Detection
Authors: Silva Liliana , Antunes Agostinho
Published: December 2016

Pheromones were identified as chemical signals used for intraspecific communication in insects (e.g., sexual attraction) in the 1950s. However, only almost 40 years later the vomeronasal receptors type-1 (V1R) and type-2 (V2R) were identified, usually associated with the presence of a vomeronasal organ (VNO). VRs are widespread in amphibians, reptiles, and mammals, but birds lost the VNO. Similarly, fishes lack VRs and a VNO but can still detect pheromones, instead using the olfactory receptors related to class A and class C G protein–coupled receptors. Here, we review recent evidence on VR repertoire contraction/expansion in vertebrates. We assess the association between VNO development and VR repertoire size. Phylogenetic relationships and selective pressures illuminate the dynamic evolutionary history of the VRs in vertebrates.
Environmental Sustainability Analysis and Nutritional Strategies of Animal Production in China
Authors: Tan Bie , Yin Yulong
Published: December 2016

Animal production in China has achieved considerable progress and contributes to 46% of the total agriculture output value of the country. However, this fast expansion of animal production has led to environmental pollution. In this article, we review the status of soil, water, and air pollution associated with animal production in China and analyze the main sources of the pollutants. The government has promulgated regulations and standards, and effective models and technologies have been developed to control pollution during the last 10 years. Because nutrition and feed strategies represent the most effective method of controlling environmental pollution at the source, this review focuses on nutritional technologies, including accurate feed formulation, rational use of additives, and proper processing of feeds. The advances of modern biotechnology and big data systems also provide more modern approaches to decreasing wastage release. These nutritional strategies are expected to promote sustainable development of animal production.
Th2 Cells in Health and Disease
Authors: Nakayama Toshinori , Hirahara Kiyoshi , Onodera Atsushi , Endo Yusuke , Hosokawa Hiroyuki , Shinoda Kenta , Tumes Damon J. , Okamoto Yoshitaka
Published: December 2016

Helper T (Th) cell subsets direct immune responses by producing signature cytokines. Th2 cells produce IL-4, IL-5, and IL-13, which are important in humoral immunity and protection from helminth infection and are central to the pathogenesis of many allergic inflammatory diseases. Molecular analysis of Th2 cell differentiation and maintenance of function has led to recent discoveries that have refined our understanding of Th2 cell biology. Epigenetic regulation of Gata3 expression by chromatin remodeling complexes such as Polycomb and Trithorax is crucial for maintaining Th2 cell identity. In the context of allergic diseases, memory-type pathogenic Th2 cells have been identified in both mice and humans. To better understand these disease-driving cell populations, we have developed a model called the pathogenic Th population disease induction model. The concept of defined subsets of pathogenic Th cells may spur new, effective strategies for treating intractable chronic inflammatory disorders.
Genetics of Infectious and Inflammatory Diseases: Overlapping Discoveries from Association and Exome-Sequencing Studies
Authors: Langlais David , Fodil Nassima , Gros Philippe
Published: December 2016

Genome technologies have defined a complex genetic architecture in major infectious, inflammatory, and autoimmune disorders. High density marker arrays and Immunochips have powered genome-wide association studies (GWAS) that have mapped nearly 450 genetic risk loci in 22 major inflammatory diseases, including a core of common genes that play a central role in pathological inflammation. Whole-exome and whole-genome sequencing have identified more than 265 genes in which mutations cause primary immunodeficiencies and rare forms of severe inflammatory bowel disease. Combined analysis of inflammatory disease GWAS and primary immunodeficiencies point to shared proteins and pathways that are required for immune cell development and protection against infections and are also associated with pathological inflammation. Finally, sequencing of chromatin immunoprecipitates containing specific transcription factors, with parallel RNA sequencing, has charted epigenetic regulation of gene expression by proinflammatory transcription factors in immune cells, providing complementary information to characterize morbid genes at infectious and inflammatory disease loci.
The Physiology and Molecular Underpinnings of the Effects of Bariatric Surgery on Obesity and Diabetes
Authors: Evers Simon S. , Sandoval Darleen A. , Seeley Randy J.
Published: December 2016

Bariatric surgeries, such as Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and vertical sleeve gastrectomy, produce significant and durable weight loss in both humans and rodents. Recently, these surgical interventions have also been termed metabolic surgery because they result in profound metabolic improvements that often surpass the expected improvement due to body weight loss alone. In this review we focus on the weight-loss independent effects of bariatric surgery, which encompass energy expenditure and macronutrient preference, the luminal composition of the gut (i.e., the microbiota and bile acids), the transformation of the gastrointestinal lining, increases in postprandial gut hormone secretions, glycemic control, pancreas morphology, and micronutrient and mineral absorption. Taken together, these data point to several important physiological changes that contribute to the profound benefits of these surgical procedures. Identifying the underlying molecular mechanisms for these physiological effects will allow better utilization of these existing procedures to help patients and develop new treatments that harness these surgical effects with less invasive interventions.
Some Recent Developments in Statistics for Spatial Point Patterns
Authors: Møller Jesper , Waagepetersen Rasmus
Published: December 2016

This article reviews developments in statistics for spatial point processes obtained within roughly the past decade. These developments include new classes of spatial point process models such as determinantal point processes, models incorporating both regularity and aggregation, and models where points are randomly distributed around latent geometric structures. Regarding parametric inference, the main focus is on various types of estimating functions derived from so-called innovation measures. Optimality of such estimating functions is discussed, as well as computational issues. Maximum likelihood inference for determinantal point processes and Bayesian inference are also briefly considered. Concerning nonparametric inference, we consider extensions of functional summary statistics to the case of inhomogeneous point processes as well as new approaches to simulation-based inference.
Online Analysis of Medical Time Series
Authors: Fried Roland , Abbas Sermad , Borowski Matthias , Imhoff Michael
Published: December 2016

Complex, often high-dimensional time series are observed in medical applications such as intensive care. We review statistical tools for intelligent alarm systems, which are helpful for guiding medical decision-making in time-critical situations. The procedures described can also be applied for decision support or in closed-loop controllers. Robust time series filters allow one to extract a signal in the form of a time-varying trend with little or no delay. Additional rules—based, for instance, on suitably designed statistical tests—can be incorporated to preserve or detect interesting patterns such as level shifts or trend changes. Statistical pattern detection is a useful preprocessing step for decision-support systems. Dimension reduction techniques allow the compression of the often high-dimensional time series into a few variables containing most of the information inherent in the observed data. Combining such techniques with tools for analyzing the relationships among the variables in the form of large partial correlations or similar trend behavior improves the interpretability of the extracted variables and provides information that is thus meaningful to physicians.
Bayesian Modeling and Analysis of Geostatistical Data
Authors: Gelfand Alan E. , Banerjee Sudipto
Published: December 2016

The most prevalent spatial data setting is, arguably, that of so-called geostatistical data, data that arise as random variables observed at fixed spatial locations. Collection of such data in space and in time has grown enormously in the past two decades. With it has grown a substantial array of methods to analyze such data. Here, we attempt a review of a fully model-based perspective for such data analysis, the approach of hierarchical modeling fitted within a Bayesian framework. The benefit, as with hierarchical Bayesian modeling in general, is full and exact inference, with proper assessment of uncertainty. Geostatistical modeling includes univariate and multivariate data collection at sites, continuous and categorical data at sites, static and dynamic data at sites, and datasets over very large numbers of sites and long periods of time. Within the hierarchical modeling framework, we offer a review of the current state of the art in these settings.
Factor XI deficiency enhances the pulmonary allergic response to house dust mite in mice independent of factor XII
Authors: Stroo Ingrid , Yang Jack , de Boer J. Daan , Roelofs Joris J. T. H. , van ’t Veer Cornelis , Castellino Francis J. , Zeerleder Sacha , van der Poll Tom
Published: December 2016

Asthma is associated with activation of coagulation in the airways. The coagulation system can be initiated via the extrinsic tissue factor-dependent pathway or via the intrinsic pathway, in which the central player factor XI (FXI) can be either activated via active factor XII (FXIIa) or via thrombin. We aimed to determine the role of the intrinsic coagulation system and its possible route of activation in allergic lung inflammation induced by the clinically relevant human allergen house dust mite (HDM). Wild-type (WT), FXI knockout (KO), and FXII KO mice were subjected to repeated exposure to HDM via the airways, and inflammatory responses were compared. FXI KO mice showed increased influx of eosinophils into lung tissue, accompanied by elevated local levels of the main eosinophil chemoattractant eotaxin. Although gross lung pathology and airway mucus production did not differ between groups, FXI KO mice displayed an impaired endothelial/epithelial barrier function, as reflected by elevated levels of total protein and IgM in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. FXI KO mice had a stronger systemic IgE response with an almost completely absent HDM-specific IgG1response. The phenotype of FXII KO mice was, except for a higher HDM-specific IgG1response, similar to that of WT mice. In conclusion, FXI attenuates part of the allergic response to repeated administration of HDM in the airways by a mechanism that is independent of activation via FXII.
CD36 mediates H2O2-induced calcium influx in lung microvascular endothelial cells
Authors: Suresh Karthik , Servinsky Laura , Reyes Jose , Undem Clark , Zaldumbide Joel , Rentsendorj Otgonchimeg , Modekurty Sruti , Dodd-o Jeffrey M. , Scott Alan , Pearse David B. , Shimoda Larissa A.
Published: December 2016

Elevated levels of reactive oxygen species and intracellular Ca2+play a key role in endothelial barrier dysfunction in acute lung injury. We previously showed that H2O2-induced increases in intracellular calcium concentrations ([Ca2+]i) in lung microvascular endothelial cells (LMVECs) involve the membrane Ca2+channel, transient receptor potential vanilloid-4 (TRPV4) and that inhibiting this channel attenuated H2O2-induced barrier disruption in vitro. We also showed that phosphorylation of TRPV4 by the Src family kinase, Fyn, contributes to H2O2-induced Ca2+influx in LMVEC. In endothelial cells, Fyn is tethered to the cell membrane by CD36, a fatty acid transporter. In this study, we assessed the effect of genetic loss or pharmacological inhibition of CD36 on Ca2+responses to H2O2. H2O2-induced Ca2+influx was attenuated in LMVEC isolated from mice lacking CD36 ( CD36−/−). TRPV4 expression and function was unchanged in LMVEC isolated from wild-type (WT) and CD36−/−mice, as well as mice with deficiency for Fyn ( Fyn−/−). TRPV4 immunoprecipitated with Fyn, but this interaction was decreased in CD36−/−LMVEC. The amount of phosphorylated TRPV4 was decreased in LMVEC from CD36−/−mice compared with WT controls. Loss of CD36 altered subcellular localization of Fyn, while inhibition of CD36 fatty acid transport with succinimidyl oleate did not attenuate H2O2-induced Ca2+influx. Lastly, we found that CD36−/−mice were protected from ischemia-reperfusion injury in vivo. In conclusion, our data suggest that CD36 plays an important role in H2O2-mediated lung injury and that the mechanism may involve CD36-dependent scaffolding of Fyn to the cell membrane to facilitate TRPV4 phosphorylation.
Depletion of circulating monocytes suppresses IL-17 and HMGB1 expression in mice with LPS-induced acute lung injury
Authors: Jiang Zhilong , Zhou Qianlin , Gu Chenlin , Li Dandan , Zhu Lei
Published: December 2016

Acute lung injury/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ALI/ARDS) is an important cause of mortality in critically ill patients. Macrophages play an important role in the pathogenesis of ALI/ARDS. To investigate the role and underlying mechanisms of circulating monocytes and resident alveolar macrophages (AMs) in ALI/ARDS, we depleted circulating monocytes and AMs by clodronate-loaded liposome (CL) in a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI/ARDS mouse model. Our results indicated that depletion of circulating monocytes by intravenous injection of CL 2 days before intratracheal LPS treatment significantly suppressed the acute lung injury in mice with ALI/ARDS, accompanied with significant reduction in neutrophil influx, interleukin-17, monocyte chemoattractant protein 1, high-mobility group box 1 protein, suppressor of cytokine signaling 3, and surfactant protein D (SP-D) in the lungs of 2 days intratracheal LPS-treated mice. In contrast, depletion of AMs by intratracheal delivery of CL enhanced the acute lung injury in association with upregulation of these mediators. Blocking monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 signaling by intraperitoneal instillation of anti-mouse CCL2 neutralizing antibody significantly reduced acute lung injury and neutrophil influx. In addition, SP-D was upregulated by mediators released from AMs because primary murine type II alveolar epithelial cells expressed more SP-D after treatment with bronchoalveolar lavage from LPS-treated mice or the conditioned media from LPS-treated RAW 264.7 cells. The results indicated that circulating monocytes are proinflammatory, but AMs have anti-inflammatory functions in the early phase of ALI/ARDS. The study provided a molecular basis for the treatment of ALI/ARDS through modulation of circulating monocytes and AMs.
Intermittent hypoxia during recovery from neonatal hyperoxic lung injury causes long-term impairment of alveolar development: A new rat model of BPD
Authors: Mankouski Anastasiya , Kantores Crystal , Wong Mathew J. , Ivanovska Julijana , Jain Amish , Benner Eric J. , Mason Stanley N. , Tanswell A. Keith , Auten Richard L. , Jankov Robert P.
Published: December 2016

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a chronic lung injury characterized by impaired alveologenesis that may persist into adulthood. Rat models of BPD using varying degrees of hyperoxia to produce injury either cause early mortality or spontaneously recover following removal of the inciting stimulus, thus limiting clinical relevance. We sought to refine an established rat model induced by exposure to 60% O2from birth by following hyperoxia with intermittent hypoxia (IH). Rats exposed from birth to air or 60% O2until day 14 were recovered in air with or without IH (FIO2= 0.10 for 10 min every 6 h) until day 28. Animals exposed to 60% O2and recovered in air had no evidence of abnormal lung morphology on day 28 or at 10–12 wk. In contrast, 60% O2-exposed animals recovered in IH had persistently increased mean chord length, more dysmorphic septal crests, and fewer peripheral arteries. Recovery in IH also increased pulmonary vascular resistance, Fulton index, and arterial wall thickness. IH-mediated abnormalities in lung structure (but not pulmonary hypertension) persisted when reexamined at 10–12 wk, accompanied by increased pulmonary vascular reactivity and decreased exercise tolerance. Increased mean chord length secondary to IH was prevented by treatment with a peroxynitrite decomposition catalyst [5,10,15,20-Tetrakis(4-sulfonatophenyl)-21H,23H-porphyrin iron (III) chloride, 30 mg/kg/day, days 14– 28], an effect accompanied by fewer inflammatory cells. We conclude that IH during recovery from hyperoxia-induced injury prevents recovery of alveologenesis and leads to changes in lung and pulmonary vascular function lasting into adulthood, thus more closely mimicking contemporary BPD.
Mechanical Properties of High Volume Fly Ash Concrete Reinforced with Hybrid Fibers
Authors: Chakravarthy Rooban , Venkatesan Srikanth , Patnaikuni Indubhushan
Published: December 2016

Fly ash substitution to cement is a well-recognized approach to reduce CO2emissions. Although fly ash concrete is prone to brittle behavior, researchers have shown that addition of fibers could reduce brittle behavior. Previous research efforts seem to have utlised a single type of fiber or two types of fibers. In this research, three types of fibers, steel, polypropylene, and basalt as 0%, 0.50%, 0.75%, and 1% by volume of concrete, were mixed in varying proportions with concrete specimens substituted with 50% fly ash (class F). All specimens were tested for compressive strength, indirect tensile strength, and flexural strength over a period of 3 to 56 days of curing. Test results showed that significant improvement in mechanical properties could be obtained by a particular hybrid fiber reinforcement combination (1% steel fiber, 0.75% polypropylene fiber, and 0.75% basalt fiber). The strength values were observed to exceed previous research results. Workability of concrete was affected when the fiber combination exceeded 3%. Thus a limiting value for adding fibers and the combination to achieve maximum strengths have been identified in this research.
The Staff Nurse Clinical Leader at the Bedside: Swedish Registered Nurses’ Perceptions
Authors: Larsson Inga E. , Sahlsten Monika J. M.
Published: December 2016

Registered nurses at the bedside are accountable for and oversee completion of patient care as well as directly leading and managing the provision of safe patient care. These nurses have an informal leadership role that is not associated with any given position. Leadership is a complex and multifaceted concept and its meaning is unclear, especially in the staff nurse context. The aim was to describe registered nurses’ perceptions of what it entails to be the leader at the bedside in inpatient physical care. A phenomenographic approach was employed. Interviews were performed with Swedish registered nurses (n=15). Five descriptive categories were identified: demonstrating clinical knowledge, establishing a good atmosphere of collaboration, consciously structuring the work in order to ensure patients’ best possible nursing care, customized presence in the practical work with patients according to predetermined prerequisites, and monitoring coworkers’ professional practice. Registered nurses informal role as leader necessitates a social process of deliberate effort to attain and maintain leader status and authority. Participants used deliberate communicative approaches and interactive procedures. Leader principles grounded in the core values of the nursing profession that ensure nursing values and person-centered attributes were a key aspect.
Solar Cooker Study under Oman Conditions for Late Evening Cooking Using Stearic Acid and Acetanilide as PCM Materials
Authors: Nayak Nagaraj , Abu Jarir Hatim , Al Ghassani Haitham
Published: December 2016

Solar energy is an alternative source of nonrenewable energy in Oman. Sultanate of Oman government showed initiation into utilization of solar energy for domestic applications. Conversion of solar radiation into useful heat is the simplest application of solar energy, in which it can be used for late evening cooking. In this context, present work highlighted the design and development of solar cooker for Oman climatic conditions. The current work signifies usage of solar cooker for late evening cooking using stearic acid and acetanilide as phase change materials (PCM). Solar cooker parts are developed in-house and connected to water heating system compounded with evacuated tubes solar collector and storage tank. The circumference of cooker unit is incorporated with spiral stainless steel heat exchanger and annulus area of the pot is filled with PCM material. PCM releases heat at late evening and effective cooking up to 7:30 PM is noticed. The experimental results indicated the cooker efficiency of 30% and collector efficiency of 60–65% during the study. Overall, experiments showed satisfactory performance on the developed cooker.
The Degradation of Mechanical Properties in Halloysite Nanoclay-Polyester Nanocomposites Exposed in Seawater Environment
Authors: Saharudin Mohd Shahneel , Wei Jiacheng , Shyha Islam , Inam Fawad
Published: December 2016

Polyester based polymers are extensively used in aggressive marine environments; however, inadequate data is available on the effects of the seawater on the polyester based nanocomposites mechanical properties. This paper reports the effect of seawater absorption on the mechanical properties degradation of halloysite nanoclay-polyester nanocomposites. Results confirmed that the addition of halloysite nanoclay into polyester matrix was found to increase seawater uptake and reduce mechanical properties compared to monolithic polyester. The maximum decreases in microhardness, tensile and flexural properties, and impact toughness were observed in case of 1 wt% nanoclay. The microhardness decreased from 107 HV to 41.7 HV (61% decrease). Young’s modulus decreased from 0.6 GPa to 0.4 GPa (33% decrease). The flexural modulus decreased from 0.6 GPa to 0.34 GPa (43% decrease). The impact toughness dropped from 0.71 kJ/m2to 0.48 kJ/m2(32% decrease). Interestingly, the fracture toughnessKICincreased with the addition of halloysite nanoclay due to the plasticization effect of the resin matrix. SEM images revealed the significant reduction in mechanical properties in case of 1 wt% reinforcement which is attributed to the degradation of the nanoclay-matrix interface influenced by seawater absorption and agglomeration of halloysite nanoclay.