bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Characteristics of Recurrent Cases after Conservative Therapy in Adolescent Lumbar Spondylolysis
Authors: Tatsumura Masaki , Gamada Hisanori , Okuwaki Shun , Eto Fumihiko , Nagashima Katsuya , Mammoto Takeo , Hirano Atsushi , Funayama Toru , Yamazaki Masashi
Published: October 2021

Purpose: Occasionally lumbar spondylolysis in adolescents will recur after conservative treatment. The goal of this study was to retrospectively review the conditions in which recurrence transpired in a subset of adolescent patients diagnosed with acute lumbar spondylolysis. Subjects: A retrospective survey was conducted in 152 patients who had been treated for spondylolysis and had obtained bone union. Twenty subjects were selected who had recurrent lumbar spondylolysis after returning to sports activity following the first spondylolysis treatment. There were 18 males and two females with an average age at the time of initial consultation of 13.3 years and 14.1 years at the time of recurrence.Results: The average period of initial treatment was 101 days, and the average time to recurrence after healing was 149 days. There were three cases at L3, two cases at L4 and 15 cases at L5. At recurrence, 18 patients had unilateral involvement and two patients presented with bilateral occurrence. Four cases did not achieve bony union.Discussion: In this study, the recurrence rate was 13.2%. Eighty percent of cases had recurrence within six months after healing. After recurrence, 20% of the cases reached pseudoarthrosis. It is useful to take regular MRI images to detect recurrence within six months after returning to sports.
Three-dimensional CT Angiography Facilitates Uniportal Thoracoscopic Anatomic Lung Resection for Pulmonary Sequestration
Authors: Zheng Wenlong , Zhang Miao , Wu Wenbin , Zhang Hui , Xinhui Zhang
Published: October 2021

BackgroundPulmonary sequestration (PS) is a rare lesion with independent blood supply from an anomalous systemic artery. A timely resection is considered the best treatment for PS, but the optimal approach is controversial. Three-dimensional computed tomography angiography (3D-CTA) has been widely utilized for precise thoracic surgery. This study aimed to investigate the safety of uniportal video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for PS assisted with preoperative 3D-CTA. MethodsThe data of patents with PS who underwent VATS anatomic lung resection between April 2011 and May 2021 in a single centre were retrospectively reviewed. They were divided into uniportal and tow-port groups according to the initial surgical plan. The perioperative parameters including the incidence of conversion to open thoracotomy, operation time, blood loss, complications and chest tube duration were analyzed. ResultsTwenty consecutive patients (9 in uniportal group and 11 in two-port group) underwent VATS for PS, including 12 female and 8 male patients, with a mean age of 45 years old (range, 24-60 years). Nine cases demonstrated recurrent febrile, cough, or hemoptysis; whereas the other 11 patients were asymptomatic. The 3D-CTA was utilized for all patients in the uniportal group and 1 patient in the two-port group. Eighteen (90.0%) intralobar and 2 extralobar PS were confirmed; and 18 (90.0%) lesions were located in the left thorax. The feeding vessels originated from the thoracic aorta in 16 patients (80.0%), the abdominal aorta in 3 (15.0%) and the inferior phrenic artery in 1 patient (5.0%). Thirteen lobectomies, 5 segmentectomies and 2 mass excisions were performed. There was no major bleeding or 30-day mortality. No conversion was needed in the uniportal group; whereas 6 (54.5%) conversions (4 to multiple-port and 2 to thoracotomy) occurred in the two-port group, indicating a significant difference (P=0.008). In addition, the operation time in the uniportal VATS group was significantly shorter than those in the two-port VATS group ([110.6 ± 25.5] min vs. [148.6 ± 42.1] min, P = 0.029). The other perioperative variables were similar between the two groups. During the follow-up of 5-75 months, no recurrence of hemoptysis was recorded. ConclusionPreoperative 3D-CTA facilitates the safe performance of uniportal VATS anatomic lung resection for PS, which might be associated with shorter operation time and lower conversion to thoracotomy.
Parasitological and Microbiological Investigation of Meat and Offal Consumed in Istanbul
Authors: Dümen Emek , Bilgin Zahide , Tarakçı Nadide Gizem , Ekici Gözde , Sezgin Funda Hatice
Published: October 2021

In this study, it was aimed to explore the presence of some important foodborne parasitological and microbiological parameters that may seriously risk the consumers’ health (total coliform, Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli, Escherichia coli EHEC O157:H7, Salmonella spp., Salmonella enteritidis, Salmonella typhimurium and Toxoplasma gondii) in meat and offals that are sold in various sales points in different districts of Istanbul. For this purpose, 400 samples (100 mutton, 100 beef, 100 minced meat and 100 sheep brain) were collected and analyzed by using PCR procedures for aforementioned parameters. The data obtained, were interpreted by statistical methods and binary correlations among the parameters will be exposed. Besides, a risk alligment was formed among the sales points and the products. According to the results, Escherichia coli EHEC O157:H7 and Toxoplasma gondii were determined in any samples. However except the aforementioned parameters all the analyzed microbiological variables were exposed in different samples with different concentrations. The results were verified by real-time PCR procedures. Binary correlation analysis were applied to the positive determined microbiological parameters. The results showed that all the positive determined microbiological parameters were positively correlated with each other. The result of the study showed that applynig good hygien procedures is very important to supply qualified and safe food to the costumers is very improtant in very step of food production chain but especially in the sales points that sell ready to eat foods. Besides, it was concluded that the implementation of effective control / inspections and continious education programs which would be held by related government agencies would be very effective for decreasing the incidence of the foodborne pathogens.
PICO Entity Extraction For Preclinical Animal Literature
Authors: Wang Qianying , Liao Jing , Lapata Mirella , Macleod Malcolm
Published: October 2021

Background: Natural language processing could assist multiple tasks in systematic reviews to reduce workflow, including the extraction of PICO elements such as study populations, interventions and outcomes. The PICO framework provides a basis for the retrieval and selection for inclusion of published evidence relevant to a specific systematic review question, and automatic approaches of PICO extraction have been developed particularly for reviews of clinical trial findings. Considering the difference between preclinical animal studies and clinical trials, developing separate approaches are necessary. Facilitating preclinical systematic reviews will inform the translation from preclinical to clinical research. Methods: We randomly selected 400 abstracts from the PubMed Central Open Access database which described in vivo animal research and manually annotated these with PICO phrases for Species, Strain, model Induction, Intervention, Comparator and Outcome. We developed a two-stage workflow for preclinical PICO extraction. Firstly we fine-tuned BERT with different pre-trained modules for PICO sentence classification. Then, after removing text irrelevant to PICO features, we explored LSTM, CRF and BERT-based models for PICO entity recognition. We also explored a self-training approach because of the small training corpus.Results: For PICO sentence classification, BERT models using all pre-trained modules achieved an F1 score over 80%, and models pre-trained on PubMed abstracts achieved the highest F1 of 85%. For PICO entity recognition, fine-tuning BERT pre-trained on PubMed abstracts achieved an overall F1 of 71%, and satisfactory F1 for Species (98%), Strain (70%), Intervention (70%) and Outcome (67%). The score of Induction and Comparator is less satisfactory, but F1 of Comparator can be improved to 50% by applying self-training. Conclusions: Our study indicates that of the approaches tested, BERT pre-trained on PubMed abstracts is the best for both PICO sentence classification and PICO entity recognition in the preclinical abstracts. Self-training yields better performance for identifying comparators and strains.
Renewable Energy for Long-Term Growth and Development: Bangladesh Perspective
Authors: Jamal Taskin , Fogwill Prof Christopher J. , Bhuiyan Ashraf Hossain
Published: October 2021

Beneficiaries prefer renewable energy-based systems over grid-connected electricity. The cost of energy is viewed as the most influential factor while choosing renewable energy systems. Beneficiaries chose to stay linked with renewa­ble energy systems even when they received grid-connected electricity at a lower tariff.Net-metering and feed-in tariff mechanisms, as well as tax cuts and subsidies for renewable energy projects, could be the catalyst for fostering greater uptake of renewables in the electricity generation mix.
Association of Low-Dose Glucocorticoid Use And Infection Occurrence in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Patients: A Prospective Cohort Study
Authors: Abe Kazuya , Ishikawa Yuichi , Kita Yasuhiko , Yajima Nobuyuki , Inoue Eisuke , Sada Ken-ei , Miyawaki Yoshia , Yoshimi Ryusuke , Shimojima Yasuhiro , Ohno Shigeru , Kajiyama Hiroshi , Ichinose Kunihiro , Sato Shuzo , Fujiwara Michio
Published: October 2021

Background: Infection is a major cause of mortality in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Therefore, minimizing the risk of infection is an important clinical goal to improve the long-term prognosis of SLE patients. Treatment with ≥7.5 mg prednisolone (PSL) or equivalent has been reported to increase the risk of infections. However, it remains unclear whether <7.5 mg PSL or equivalent dose affects the risk of infection in SLE patients. This study evaluated the association between the occurrence of infection in patients with SLE and low-dose glucocorticoids (GC) usage, especially <7.5 mg PSL or equivalent, to explore the GC dose that could reduce infection occurrence.Methods: This prospective cohort study included patients from the Japanese multicenter registry of patients with SLE (defined as ≥4 American College of Rheumatology 1997 revised criteria) over 20 years of age. The PSL dose was categorized as PSL 0‒2.5, 2.6‒5.0, 5.1‒7.5, and 7.6‒15.0 mg. The primary outcome was infection requiring hospitalization. We conducted a multivariable analysis using time-dependent Cox regression analysis to assess the hazard ratio of infection occurrence compared with a dose of 0‒2.5 mg PSL or equivalent in the other three PSL dose groups. Based on previous reports and clinical importance, the covariates selected were age, sex, and concurrent use of immunosuppressants with GC. In addition, two sensitivity analyses were conducted. 　Results: The mean age of the 509 SLE patients was 46.7 years; 89.0% were female, and 77.2% used multiple immunosuppressants concomitantly. During the 1-year observation period, infection requiring hospitalization occurred in 52 patients. The incidence of infection with a PSL dose of 5.0‒7.5 mg was significantly higher than that in the PSL 0–2.5 mg group (adjusted hazard ratio: 6.80, 95% confidence interval: 2.17‒21.27). The results of the two sensitivity analyses were similar.Conclusions: Our results suggested that the use of 5.0‒7.5 mg PSL or equivalent could pose an infection risk in SLE patients. This finding indicated that PSL dose should be reduced to as low as possible in SLE patients to avoid infection.
The atlas of human cardiac promoters and enhancers reveals an important role for regulatory elements in heart failure
Authors: Deviatiiarov Ruslan , Gams Anna , Syunyaev Roman , Tatarinova Tatiana , Singh Ramesh , Shah Palak , Gusev Oleg , Efimov Igor
Published: October 2021

A continuous increase in the prevalence of heart failure and the lack of adequate therapy highlight poor understanding of the underlying genetic regulatory mechanisms involved in heart failure pathogenesis. Growing evidence has demonstrated a significant contribution of non-coding genome regulatory elements towards transcriptomic changes in heart disease. Thus, there is a pressing need for a comprehensive resource of the human cardiac regulatory network in healthy and failing states. We applied cap analysis of gene expression sequencing to directly measure the expression of RNA associated with enhancers and promoters. Based on this data, we constructed the atlas of transcribed cardiac regulatory elements from 21 healthy and 10 failing (ischemic and non-ischemic cardiomyopathy) human hearts. In total, we have sequenced 109 samples from the left and right atria and ventricles, identifying 17,668 promoters and 14,920 enhancers associated with 14,519 genes. Leveraging this atlas, we provide insights into functional and structural regulatory changes between healthy and failing hearts. Healthy atria and ventricles had distinct pathway enrichment and transcription factor binding patterns, significantly remodeled by heart failure. Using the advantages of deep sequencing that allow effective analysis of cis-regulatory elements-derived RNA, we found that heart failure is associated with the expression of transcripts derived from alternative promoters and a specific set of transcribed enhancers. Furthermore, we identified a high prevalence of single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with cardiovascular diseases within the regulatory regions highlighting their importance in disease pathogenesis. This open-source atlas will serve the cardiovascular community to improve understanding cardiac regulatory network and facilitate the development of novel therapeutics.
The Burden of Childhood Asthma by Age Group, 1990-2019: A Systematic Analysis for Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 Data
Authors: DAOQI ZHANG , Zheng Jinxin
Published: October 2021

Background: Asthma is a common respiratory disease in children. We aimed to update information about incidence of and mortality and disability adjusted life years (DALYs) due to childhood asthma and provide evidence-based recommendations for childhood asthma prevention.Methods Data were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study, which was conducted from 1990 to 2019 in 204 countries. First, we estimated the incidence, mortality and DALY rates of childhood asthma with a Bayesian meta-regression model. Second, we analyzed the relationship between the sociodemographic index (SDI) and DALYs in different age groups. Third, we studied changes in the trends of the age-standardized DALY rate between 1990 and 2019 by age group, SDI, and risk factors.Results Globally, the numbers of deaths due to and the incidence and DALY rates of childhood asthma were 12.9 thousand (95% UI 10.6 to 15.7), 22 million (95% UI 15 to 31), and 5.1 million (95% UI 3.4 to 7.5) in 2019, representing 65.1% (95% UI 47.6 to 72.4), 5.3% (95% UI 2.6 to 8.8) and 30% (95% UI 18 to 41) decreases from those in 1990, respectively. With the exception of high-SDI regions, the age-standardized DALY rate in all age groups in all SDI regions decreased. In 2019, the age-standardized DALY rate in 1- to 4-year-olds was highest in low-SDI regions, and that of 5- to 19-year-olds was highest in high-SDI regions. In contrast to those in low-SDI regions, children, except those aged 1 to 4 years, in high-SDI regions had a higher risk of DALYs due to asthma. A high body mass index was a stronger risk factor than occupational asthmagens for childhood asthma.Conclusion Our findings provide insights into asthma prevention and treatment through the identification of key factors related to childhood asthma. Children, especially those aged 5 to 14 years, in high-SDI regions should change their eating and lifestyle habits and exercise regularly. Data on additional chronic diseases in children need to be collected to develop better health prevention recommendations.
The Predictive Value of Serum Alkaline Phosphatase Level on the Degree of Neurological Impairment in Patients With Acute Cerebral Infarction
Authors: Zou Ji-ming , Li Xiao-yu , Han Chao
Published: October 2021

ObjectiveTo analyze the correlation between the changes of ALP level and the degree of neurological impairment in patients with acute cerebral infarction. MethodsA total of 267 patients with acute cerebral infarction were selected as the cerebral infarction group, 181 elderly patients who were matched age and gender in the same period with the cerebral infarction group were selected as the control group by the physical examination. All the selected patients were tested for serum ALP, ALT, AST, Cr, BUN,TG, TC, LDL - C and HDL - C after eight hours on an empty stomach. In the 72nd hour of the patient's course of cerebral infarction, the degree of neurological impairment was assessed using NIHSS score. The relationship between serum ALP level and NIHSS score was analyzed. ResultsAccording to NIHSS score, the patients with score of 5~15 were Group A , patients with score of 15~20 were Group B and score of 21~42 were Group C. Pearson correlation analysis showed that the serum ALP level of the three groups was positively correlated with NIHSS score. Multivariate regression analysis results showed that the high serum ALP level of the risk of cerebral infarction is a low serum ALP level 1.58 times. Conclusions﻿Serum ALP level was increased in patients with acute cerebral infarction and was closely related to the degree of neurological impairment. Perhaps the serum ALP level may be used as a serum marker to predict the degree of neurological impairment in patients.
Rapid Electrification in Kenya: Progress, challenges, and practical geospatial solutions
Authors: Leonard Alycia , Wheeler Scot , McCulloch Malcolm
Published: October 2021

This policy briefing argues that rural electrification can be improved through geospatial policy interventions, using Kenya as a salient case study. Through semi-structured interviews complemented by literature review and analyses using Geographic Information Systems and the Multi-Tier Framework for Measuring Energy Access, we find that existing geospatial data can be used to better estimate electricity demand, target best-fit electrification technologies, and implement incentives to encourage universal access. Furthermore, service for existing customers can be improved by geotagging customer records, fault reports, maintenance work, and other operational data.
Situational Analysis of Forensic Mental Health in Bangladesh
Authors: Ashraf Sayedul , A Yahia Md , Sajib Md Shafikuzzaman , Azdi Zunayed Al
Published: October 2021

Forensic Mental Health in Bangladesh is an unattended domain of mental health services. With about 17% of the population suffering from mental disorders per year and more than 80 thousand prisoners in the country, there have not been any studies to look into forensic mental health situations. This research has given an overview of the health and legal systems through qualitative research focusing on a desk review and key informant interviews. Findings show that though there are guidelines in the law and regulatory codes in the judicial systems, implementing those guidelines is not seen in many cases. There are several areas in the health system in terms of capacity, service and resources which needs to be addressed by the government for supporting the healthcare providers, lawyers, judges and mentally ill or disabled people. Our study also portrayed the current referral mechanisms connecting both legal and health systems while addressing different cases of forensic mental health. Finally, discussing the implications of the findings, we presented recommendations from our study and other literature.
Spatio-Temporal Analysis of Hydropower Projects with Terrestrial Environmentally Sensitive Areas of Nepal
Authors: Ghimire Hemant R
Published: October 2021

The hydropower project’s construction is increasing that can affect the terrestrial environment. Hydropower projects located in environmentally sensitive areas have higher environmental impacts, so I analyzed the spatio-temporal interaction between hydropower projects’ locations and terrestrial environmentally sensitive areas of Nepal to visualize the probable environmental impacts. I found that most of the existing projects lie on the hill, however, future projects are moving northward. Among the 12 eco-regions of Nepal, hydropower projects are located in 10 eco-regions. Hydropower projects were found to interact with more than half of biodiverse areas of the country (28 out of 45), and more than five thousand megawatts of hydropower projects are located completely inside these biodiverse areas. The study suggests that the interaction between hydropower projects and environmentally sensitive areas might increase in the future. Hydropower projects should avoid environmentally sensitive areas such as biodiverse areas and protected areas as far as possible to minimize the impacts. Rapid hydropower development is a necessity in countries like Nepal, so further studies on the impacts of hydropower projects on environmentally sensitive areas as well as improvement of the quality of the environmental assessment of the projects are necessary for environment-friendly development.
“I Felt Very Small and Embarrassed by the Health Care Provider When I Requested to be Tested for Syphilis”: Barriers and Facilitators of Regular Syphilis and HIV Testing Among Female Sex Workers in Uganda
Authors: Muhindo Richard , Mujugira Andrew , Castelnuovo Barbara , Sewankambo Nelson K. , Parkes-Ratanshi Rosalind , Tumwesigye Nazarius Mbona , Nakku-Joloba Edith , Kiguli Juliet
Published: October 2021

Background: Periodic testing of female sex workers (FSW) for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is a core component of global and national responses to achieve population-level STI elimination. We conducted a qualitative study to explore barriers and facilitators of regular syphilis and HIV testing among FSW in Uganda. Methods: Within a quasi-experimental study among 436 FSW to assess the effect of peer education and text message reminders on uptake of regular STI and HIV testing among FSW, we conducted 48 qualitative interviews in four cities in Uganda from August-December 2018. We purposively selected FSW who tested for syphilis and HIV every 3-6 months; 12 FSW were interviewed in each city. Sex worker interviews explored: 1) reasons for periodic syphilis and HIV testing; 2) barriers and facilitators of testing; 3) experiences of testing; and 4) challenges faced while seeking testing services. Data were analyzed using thematic content analysis. Results: Thematic analysis revealed individual- and health system-level barriers and facilitators of testing. For syphilis, barriers were: a) interpersonal stigma, low perceived severity of syphilis and testing misconceptions (individual); and b) judgmental provider attitudes, paucity of facilities offering syphilis testing, stock outs of test kits and high cost (health system). Facilitators were: c) desire to remain healthy, get married and have children, knowing the benefits of early treatment, influence of male partners/clients and normative testing behaviors (individual); and d) sex worker clinics offering dual syphilis/HIV testing (health system). For HIV, barriers included: a) internalized stigma (individual); and b) unfavorable clinic hours, stigma, discrimination, and unfriendly provider (health system). Facilitators were: a) motivations to stay healthy and attract clients, habitual testing, self-efficacy, doubts about accuracy of negative test results, and use of post-exposure prophylaxis (individual);: and d) availability of testing facilities (health system). Syphilis and HIV had some similar Ttesting barriers and facilitators. overlapped substantially for both infections.Conclusions: HIV programs are likely to be important entry points for syphilis testing among FSW. Multi-level interventions to address testing barriers should consider focusing on these service delivery points. Extending the dual syphilis and HIV testing approach to FSW may improve the testing uptake for both infections at public health facilities and decrease population-level incidence.
Ensemble of Hybrid Neural Networks to Compensate for Epistemic Uncertainties: A Case Study in System Prognosis
Authors: Dourado Arinan De Piemonte , Viana Felipe
Published: October 2021

In this contribution, a case study considering an unexpected corrosion-fatigue crack propagation issue in an aircraft fleet is used to discuss how to compensate for incomplete knowledge in time dependent responses integration and extrapolation.
For the considered application, degradation resulting from mechanical fatigue is well understood and accounted in the damage models.
However, the unexpected corrosion effects are not accounted in damage integration, yielding a large discrepancy between predicted and observed crack lengths.
To address this epistemic uncertainty in the fleet damage accumulation model, hybrid neural networks cells are formulated; where physics-informed layers address well-understood aspects of the degradation, and data-driven layers are trained to act as correction terms.
The considered case study encompasses highly imbalanced data sets with uncertainties acting asynchronously.
To improve overall accuracy, ensemble learning techniques are adapted to merge the resulting hybrid neural network cells predictions.
Lastly, a heuristic based on optimal ensemble weights is presented to help in the decision-making task of defining safe operation of the fleet.
Results show that our proposed approach was capable of compensating for the epistemic uncertainties, and that the proposed heuristic can be used to rank aircraft damage severity, allowing to prioritize aircraft for inspection and/or route reassignment.
Climate Change Impact On Lake Tana Water Storage, Upper Blue Nile Basin, Ethiopia
Authors: Wubneh Melsew A. , Worku Tadege A. , Fekadie Fitamlak T. , Aman Tadele F. , Kifelew Mekash Shiferaw
Published: October 2021

Temperature and precipitation trend fluctuations influence the components of the hydrological cycle and the availability of water supplies and their resulting shifts in the balance of lake water (lake level). Quantile mapping was applied to correct temperature biases, and power transformation was applied for rainfall correction. The performance of the HBV model was evaluated through calibration and validation using objective functions (RVE, NSE) and provide RVE of 3.7%, -1.27%,1.05%, -0.72%,8.9% and -0.68 during calibration and RVE of -1.5%, 6.93%, -3.04%,8.796%, -5.89% and 8.5 % during validation for Gumara, Kiltie, Koga, Gilgel Abay, Megech and Rib respectively, While the model provided NS of 0.79,0.63,0.72,0.803,0.68 and 0.797 during calibration and NSE of 0.8,0.64,0.7,0.82,0.801 and 0.82 during validation for Gumara, Kiltie, Koga, Gilgel Abay, Megech, and Rib respectively. The simulated Lake level showed adequate agreement to the observed with NS and RVE of 0.7 and 6.44 % respectively. The result confirmed that over lake evaporation and rainfall increase for all future scenarios. The ungauged surface inflow is also increased shortly scenarios while gauged surface inflow increased for RCP4.5 (the 2070s) and RCP8.5 (2040s) and decreased for RCP4.5 (2040s) and RCP8.5 (2070s). The decreased in gauged surface water inflow is due to a decrease in inflow for Gilgel Abay, Koga and Gumara gauged catchments. Lake storage results showed a decrease in all future scenarios of all-time horizons.
Pre-Processing Unsellable Tomatoes into Separated Streams with the Intention of Recovering Protein
Authors: Baker Paul , Preskett Dave , Krienke Dominik , Runager Kasper S. , Hastrup Anne C.S. , Charlton Adam
Published: October 2021

PurposeA large proportion of the European Union’s tomato crop is discarded during harvesting and there is a valorisation potential to recover proteins from this waste. MethodsCherry tomatoes were segregated into three separate components: juice, pomace (peels and skins), and seeds. The peels and skins, and seeds were separately hydrolyzed with carbohydrases to determine whether protein recovery could be increased. In addition, a strategy to fractionate the seeds using sequential washing of milled tomato seeds followed by low-speed centrifugation to remove the denser seed hulls and to collect the protein rich kernels remaining in suspension. ResultsThe protein content of the seeds was highest with 27.4% while the peels and skins contained 7.6%. Carbohydrase mediated hydrolysis revealed a minor increase in protein recovery from seeds by 10% using Filta 02L (cellulase, xylananse and β-glucanase), and the quantity of protein recovered from peels and skins increased by 210% using Tail 157 (pectinase, hemicellulase). The strategy to separate the seeds into two fractions, revealed that a higher proportion of the fibre (65%) was associated with the hull fraction compared with the original seeds (47%). A significant proportion of the fibre in this fraction was composed lignin although the protein contents between both fractions was similar ranging from 27.4% to 29.9%. ConclusionsThese results reveal that carbohydrases were quite effective in protein extraction from peels and skins, but not from seeds. An alternative strategy was developed to remove the seed hulls from the milled seeds and to collect a crude protein fraction where the protein content could be further improved.
Positional transcriptomics shed light on site-specific pathologies of the aorta
Authors: Romay Milagros , Ma Feiyang , Hernandez Gloria , Vandestienne Marie , Kimball Todd , Silvestro Michele , Hadi Tarik , Reyes Andrew , Ramirez Margaret , Bardin Nathalie , Blot-Chabaud Marcel , Pellegrini Matteo , Leroyer Aurelie , Ait-Oufella Hafid , Ramkhelawon Bhama , Iruela-Arispe M. Luisa
Published: October 2021

Pathologies of large vessels, such as atherosclerosis and aneurysms tend to emerge at specific sites. The consistency in their distribution suggests that a combination of unique local stressors, including both physical forces and specific gene expression profiles are confounding factors in disease etiology. Here we used single-cell RNA sequencing to identify signatures in smooth muscle cells with site-restricted predominance to uncover potentially relevant gene products. We showed that a small cohort of transcripts (5.5%) display preferential expression at specific sites of the vascular tree and in accordance with their embryological origin. Importantly, in silico studies revealed that several of these genes mapped to linkage studies for which no specific disease-causing candidates had been previously found. One of these candidates was Mcam/CD146 that mapped to the familial aortic aneurysm 1 (FAA1) locus identified by linkage analysis two decades ago. We showed that Mcam was significantly reduced in the AngII / hypercholesterolemic model of aortic aneurysm and further demonstrated that absence of the gene in mice resulted in larger lesions and accelerated death due to dissection. Our study highlighted site-specific alterations in gene expression profiles of smooth muscle cells that yield important insight in understanding site-specific vascular pathologies.
Quality Enhancement of Gamma Camera SPECT Images Via the Taguchi-Based Optimization of Their Minimum Detectable Difference And a V-Shaped Slit Gauge
Authors: Ke Ching-Hsiu , Liu Wan-Ju , Peng Bing-Ru , Pan Lung-Fa , Pan Lung-Kwang
Published: October 2021

Background: This study optimized the minimum detectable difference (MDD) of gamma camera SPECT images via the Taguchi analysis and an indigenous V-shaped slit gauge. The latter was customized to satisfy the Taguchi analysis’ quantitative requirements. Methods: The slit gauge MDD quantification of derived SPECT images was based on a pair of overlapped-peak proﬁles obtained from a tangent slice of the V-shaped slit with two adjacent peaks. Using the revised Student’s t-test with a multiplied constant, 1.96, the MDD was defined as the minimum distance between two peak centers, which deviation was large enough to ensure a 95% conﬁdence level of their separation. In total, eighteen combinations of six gamma camera scanned factors (A-F), namely (A) collimator, (B) detector to target distance, (C) total counts, (D) acquired energy width, (E) Matrix size, and (F) zoom of collected ROI with each of two or three levels were organized into 18 groups to collect the slit gauge images according to Taguchi L18 orthogonal array. Next, three well-trained radiologists ranked the scanned gauge images to derive the fish-bone-plot of signal-to-noise ratio (S/N, dB) and correlated ANOVA. Results: The quantified MDD was proposed to verify the optimal suggestion of gamma camera scanned protocol, and obtained the MDD as 8.44, 7.88, and 7.40 mm for the 2nd group of the original L18, conventional, and optimal presets, respectively. Conclusions: The optimal preset of gamma camera was achieved according to Taguchi analysis. The MDD-based approach was found more beneficial in evaluating the spatial resolution than the line pair/cm approach in routine quality control in this study.
Comparison of Performance of Recursive Partitioning Models and Parametric Imputation Models Based On Predictive Mean Matching In Multiple Imputation By Chained Equations, in Order to Impute The Missing Values of The Binary Outcome, in The Presence of An Interaction Effect
Authors: Javadi Sara , Bahrampour Abbas , Saber Mohammad Mehdi , Baneshi Mohammad Reza
Published: October 2021

Background: Among the new multiple imputation methods, Multiple Imputation by Chained ‎Equations (MICE) is a ‎popular ‎approach for implementing multiple imputations because of its ‎flexibility. Our main focus in this study ‎is to ‎compare the performance of parametric ‎imputation models based on predictive mean matching and ‎recursive partitioning methods ‎in multiple imputation by chained equations in the ‎presence of interaction in the ‎data.Methods: We compared the performance of parametric and tree-based imputation methods via simulation using two data generation models. For each combination of data generation model and imputation method, the following steps were performed: data generation, removal of observations, imputation, logistic regression analysis, and calculation of bias, Coverage Probability (CP), and Confidence Interval (CI) width for each coefficient Furthermore, model-based and empirical SE, and estimated proportion of the variance attributable to the missing data (λ) were calculated.Results: ‎We have shown by simulation that to impute a binary response in ‎observations involving an ‎interaction, manually interring the interaction term into the imputation model in the ‎predictive mean matching ‎model improves the performance of the PMM method compared to the recursive partitioning models in ‎ ‎multiple imputation by chained equations.‎ The parametric method in which we entered the interaction model into the imputation model (MICE-‎‎‎Interaction) led to smaller bias, slightly higher coverage probability for the interaction effect, but it ‎had ‎slightly ‎wider confidence intervals than tree-based imputation (especially classification and ‎regression ‎trees). Conclusions: The application of MICE-Interaction led to better performance than ‎recursive ‎partitioning methods in MICE, although ‎the user is interested in estimating the interaction and does not ‎know ‎enough about the structure of the observations, recursive partitioning methods can be ‎suggested to impute ‎the ‎missing values.
Construction of DCTPP1 Regulated ceRNA Network and it can be Used as a Potential Prognostic Marker for B7-H3 Antibody Therapy in Breast Cancer
Authors: Zhang Jiayin , Qu Yuan , Hou Tingting , Ge Wanbao , Zhang Shanyong
Published: October 2021

Background：Breast cancer is the most common female cancer in the world. Many scholars have devoted themselves to elucidating the pathogenesis of Breast cancer. In the past, dCTP pyrophosphatase 1 (DCTPP1) was thought to be overexpressed in several cancers. However, The mechanism by which DCTPP1 is regulated by non-coding RNA in Breast cancer and its relationship with immune infiltration have not been elucidated.Results：In this study, reliable databases from the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Integration (GEO) showed that the expression of DCTPP1 in Breast cancer tissues was higher than in normal tissues. Bioinformatics analysis showed that DCTPP1 was negatively correlated with the expression of hsa-miR-125b-5p in BRCA,The expression of LncRNA LGALS8-AS1 is positively correlated with the expression of DCTPP1, and negatively correlated with the expression of hsa-miR-125b-5p. Therefore, we speculate that lncRNA LGALS8-AS1 promotes tumor progression through sponge hsa-miR-125b-5p and maintains the overexpression of DCTPP1 in Breast cancer. The survival analysis of 3 genes showed that the overexpression of DCTPP1 and LGALS8-AS1 is related to the poor prognosis of patients. By analyzing the relationship between DCTPP1 and immune infiltration, we found that the high copy of DCTPP1 is related to the infiltration of CD8+ T cells, and the high expression of DCTPP1 is related to the infiltration of CD4+ T cells in basal-like Breast cancer. DCTPP1 is positively correlated with the expression of immune checkpoint B7-H3.Conclusion: LNC LGALS8-AS1 can upregulate DCTPP1 by sponging with hsa-miR-125b-5p. DCTPP1 can be used as a new prognostic marker for B7-H3 antibody treatment of breast cancer.
Can prolong life with nine turn method (Yan Nian Jiu Zhuan) Qigong alleviates Fatigue, Sleep quality, Depression and anxiety on Patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: a Randomized, Controlled, Clinical Study ?
Authors: Xie Fangfang , Xu Jiatuo , Guan Chong , Cheng Ziji , Gu Yuanjia , Chen Ziying , Xie Chaoqun , Wang Jue , Shi Yuling , Ma XuXiang , Jiang Tao , Yao Fei , You Yanli
Published: October 2021

Background

Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a complex disease with unknown etiology and mechanism. Prolong life with nine turn method (PLWNT) Qigong is a system of mind-body exercise with restorative benefits that have shown a wide range of benefits in the treatment of CFS. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of PLWNT Qigong exercise on CFS with a focus on fatigue, sleep quality, depression and anxiety.
Methods

A total of 135 participants were randomly divided into treatment groups and control group in the same proportion. The treatment groups received PLWNT Qigong exercise (PLWNT Group) or cognitive behavioral therapy treatment (CBT Group). The healthy control group (HC Group) does not receive any treatment and maintains daily life. Participants from treatment groups were taught by related highly qualified professor at the Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine once a week and were supervised online during the remaining 6 days at home, over 12 consecutive weeks. The primary outcome was fatigue (MFI-20) and secondary outcomes were sleep quality (PSQI), anxiety and depression (HADS). All groups were measured at baseline (T0) and post-intervention (T1).
Results

134 patient completed the study (45 in the PLWNT Group, 44 in the CBT Group and 45 in HC Group). The within group comparison of PLWNT and CBT groups were all showed significant improvement in MFI-20, PSQI and HADS after the intervention (p༜0.05). No significant difference was found between the PLWNT group and CBT group(p༞0.05),but the total effective rate of the PLWNT group was 62.22%, which was higher than the CBT group was 50.00%. The changes in the PLWNT group and CBT group were all higher than those in the HC group except for habitual sleep efficiency and sleep medicine using(p༜0.05). In additional, fatigue degree changes in the PLWBT group were positively correlated with sleep degree (r=0.315) and anxiety degree(r=0.333), but only anxiety degree(r=0.332) was found to be positively correlated with fatigue in the CBT group.
Conclusion

PLWNT Qigong exercise has the potential as a rehabilitation method on CFS with a focus on fatigue, sleep quality, anxiety and depression. Yet, the results need to be interpreted carefully and needs to be repeated in a larger sample. Future studies will expand the sample size for further in-depth research to determine the frequency and intensity of PLWNT Qigong intervention that is particularly beneficial to CFS. The study registered in the American Clinical Trial Registry on 4 November 2018, the registration number is NCT03496961.
Ophiorrhiza Pumila Extract Exhibits Tumor-suppressive Activity in a Mouse Lymphoma Model
Authors: Fan Lixia , Liao Wanqin , Chen Zezhen , Li Shaojing , Yang Anping , Chen Min-Min , Liu Hui , Liu Fang
Published: October 2021

BackgroundRelapse and drug resistance of lymphomas are common, howerver the treatment efficacy of current therapeutic strategies remains unsatisfied. Our current study revealed that the extract of Ophiorrhiza pumila (OPE) has a potential anti-liver cancer activity. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of OPE on preventing lymphomas and explored the underlying mechanisms.MethodsCCK-8 assay was applied to detect the effect of OPE on cell proliferation. Flow cytometry was used to analyzed the effect of OPE on cell cycle distribution, and apoptosis. Xenograft mouse model was conducted to determine the anti-tumor activity of OPE. TNUEL assay was performed to detect the apoptosis in tumor tissues. Western blot and immunohistochemistry were used to determined protein expression.ResultsOPE decreased A20 cell proliferation in a dose- and time-dependent manner. OPE treatment induced cell cycle arrest at S phase and elevated apoptosis in A20 cells. Moreover, OPE displayed a significant inhibition in tumor growth in a mouse model. OPE increased apoptosis in tumor tissues revealed by TUNEL assay, which was companied with enhanced cleaved caspase 3 expression and Bax/Bcl2 ratio. In addition, our data showed that OPE suppressed A20 cell viability partially by reducing EGFR phosphorylation.ConclusionsOur data showed that OPE has an inhibitory effect on A20 cell proliferation and tumor growth, which is mediated by inactivation of EGFR and enhanced apoptosis.
The Effect of Self-Care Education With The Telenursing Approach On Health-Promoting Behaviors In Multiple Sclerosis Patients During The COVID-19 Pandemic: A Clinical Trial Study
Authors: Pourfarid Yasaman , Dehghani Ali , Hojat Mohsen
Published: October 2021

Introduction: Chronic conditions of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients are associated with a decrease in health-promoting behaviors and require appropriate nursing interventions. Due to limitations of face-to-face education during the COVID-19 pandemic, telenursing can play an essential role in providing education to patients. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effect of self-care education with telenursing approach on health-promoting behaviors in MS patients.Materials and methods: In this clinical trial, 68 patients of the Jahrom MS Society randomly assigned to intervention (n = 34) and control (n = 34) groups. For patients in the intervention group, educational sessions were held three days a week for six weeks. Data were collected using demographic information and Walker's Health-Promoting Lifestyle questionnaires at two stages before and immediately after the intervention. Data were analyzed by Mann-Whitney and Wilcoxon tests using SPSS software (Ver. 21).Results: Based on the findings immediately after the intervention, the mean score of HPBs was significantly higher (p = 0.005) in the intervention group (145.38 ± 26.66) than in the control group (129.18 ± 22.35). Significant differences were observed regarding the mean dimensions of nutrition, exercise, health responsibility, and stress management between the intervention and control groups immediately after the intervention (p < 0.05).Conclusion: Based on the findings, self-care education with the telenursing approach was effective on HPBs in MS patients. Therefore, it is recommended to utilize self-care education with the telenursing approach to control effective behaviors in MS patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chinese Herbs Antagonize The Effects of Bisphenol A On Kiss1 Expression Through Epigenetic Regulation In The Promoter Region
Authors: Dong Wenke , He Jingwei , Wang Junqi , Sun Wen , Sun Yanyan , Yu Jian
Published: October 2021

Background: Bisphenol A (BPA), an environmental endocrine disruptor, is involved in precocious puberty. Chinese Herbs for Nourishing Yin and Purging Fire (NYPF) have been effective in delaying early onset of puberty. However, the underline mechanism is unknown. As epigenetics plays an important role in advanced puberty caused by extraneous factors. We intend to investigate the epigenetic impact of BPA and NYPF herbs on Kiss1 gene, a vital gene driving puberty onset, in hypothalamic neuron cells.Methods: GT1-7 cells derived from GnRH neurons were used in the study. A series of concentration of BPA and serum containing NYPF herbs were prepared in advance. GT1-7 cells were administrated with BPA or vehicle first, followed by NYPF herbs or normal saline (NS) for 24 hours. Afterward, quantification of Kiss1 expression was performed through Realtime-PCR and Weston-blot methods. In addition, epigenetic modifications at Kiss1 promoter were examined through Bisulphite Sequencing (BSP) and Chromatin immunoprecipitation combined real-time PCR（Chip-qPCR）assays.Results: Compared to control group, GT1-7 cells with BPA 10mg/l administration presented lower methylation status (61.25% Vs. 76.56%) concomitantly with enhanced abundance of mixed-lineage leukemia 1(MLL1) (1.05%±0.15 Vs. 0.27%±0.01) and Tri-Methyl-Histone 3 at lysine 4 (H3K4me3) (0.77%±0.51 Vs. 0.02%±0.04) at Kiss1 promoter, leading to elevated expression of Kiss1. On the contrary, TCM for NYPF promoted increased DNA methylation (83.75% Vs. 72.5%), accompanied with less deposition of MLL1/H3K4me3 (MLL1: 0.14%±0.02 Vs. 0.97%±0.09; H3K4me3: 0.01%±0.00 Vs. 0.57%±0.30) at Kiss1 promoter than BPA 10mg/l group, which resulted in markedly inhibition of Kiss1 expression. Conclusions: BPA may induce elevated expression of Kiss1 through influencing DNA methylation and histone modification at Kiss1 promoter. And NYPF herbs reverse the adverse effects of BPA on Kiss1 gene through epigenetic modification as well.
CellPhe: a toolkit for cell phenotyping using time-lapse imaging and pattern recognition
Authors: Wilson Julie C , Wiggins Laura , Lord Alice , O'Toole Peter , Brackenbury William
Published: October 2021

With phenotypic heterogeneity in whole cell populations widely recognised, the demand for quantitative and temporal analysis approaches to characterise single cell morphology and dynamics has increased. We present CellPhe, a pattern recognition toolkit for the characterisation of cellular phenotypes within time-lapse videos. To maximise data quality for downstream analysis, our toolkit includes automated recognition and removal of erroneous cell boundaries induced by inaccurate tracking and segmentation. We provide an extensive list of features extracted from individual cell time series, with custom feature selection to identify variables that provide greatest discrimination for the analysis in question. We demonstrate the use of ensemble classification for accurate prediction of cellular phenotype and clustering algorithms for the characterisation of heterogeneous subsets. We validate and prove adaptability using different cell types and experimental conditions. Our methods could be extended to other imaging modalities, such as fluorescence, and would be suitable for all time-lapse studies including clinical applications.