bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
HYALURONIDASE: AN EXPERIMENTAL CONFIRMATION OF THE PROPERTIES OF THE ENDOLYMPHATIC CONDUCTOR
Authors: Kukushkin German V. , Zhuravleva M. V , Sviridkina L. P , Yurov D. E
Published: March 2020

One of the major achievements of contemporaneous pharmacology is the clinical implementation of the agents (the so called “endolymphatic conductors”) that allow for targeted delivering of antibiotic into the lymphatic system. Their use provides the basis for the lymphotropic treatment method that has been implemented into various areas of medical practice. Hyaluronidase is the most known agent used for this purpose. It has been shown that its preliminary administration before the injection of an antibiotic can improve clinical efficacy of the treatment; however, there is a need in the experimental validation of this approach to antibacterial therapy. The study was aimed at evaluation of hyaluronidase effects on the rate of lymphatic drainage of tissues and cefotaxime pharmacokinetics. We measured the time of elimination of lymphotropic Evans blue dye from the mouse mesentery when administered against the background of hyaluronidase, changes in cefotaxime levels over 24 hours in rabbit plasma and in mice plasma, gut tissues and liver at 1,5 and 24 hours after combined administration of hyaluronidase and the antibiotic. In addition, we calculated the liver to plasma ratio for the antibiotic concentrations. The data obtained shows that hyaluronidase can stimulate tissue lymphatic drainage. Its preliminary administration results in higher cefotaxime levels in rabbit and mice plasma at all time points of the study, compared to cefotaxime monotherapy, with prolongation of its systemic circulation of up to 24 hours. The use of cefotaxime after hyaluronidase leads to an increase of its levels in the mice gut tissues both at 1,5 and 24 hours, but has no effect on the antibiotic accumulation in the liver of the animals. However, the calculated liver to plasma blood ratio of cefotaxime after the administration of hyaluronidase is significantly lower than in the animals with the antibiotic monotherapy. This may indirectly indicate to a decrease in the hepatic extraction of the antibiotic when administered with hyaluronidase. The study results confirm that hyaluronidase has the properties of a lymphatic stimulator and an endolymphatic conductor for the water-soluble antibiotic cefotaxime.
POSSIBLE MECHANISMS OF THYMUS PEPTIDES ANALGESIC ENDPOINT
Authors: Novoseletskaya A. V , Kiseleva Nina M.
Published: March 2020

Thymus polypeptides participate in stress-limiting system work. Considering that electropain stimulation is the main stress factor in many behavioral models, it is logical to assume that thymus polypeptides have analgesic activity. The objective of this research is study of opioid and serotoninergic systems role of thymus polypeptides analgesic endpoints implementation. The rats presented with tactivin and thymulin thymus peptides analgesic activity during tail withdrawal test, which is totally blocked by naloxone, and thus is based on opioid system activation. This effect is associated with appeared serotoninergic component of stress-induced analgesia. The possible mechanism of analgesic action and the role of serotoninergic system of thymus peptides were offered based on the results of the research conducted.
ORGANIZATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF MEASURES TO PREVENT PERINATAL VIRAL HEPATITIS C IN THE OUTPATIENT DEPARTMENT
Authors: Galova Elena A. , Karyakin N. N , Filippov Yu. N
Published: March 2020

Introduction. The incidence of chronic viral hepatitis C in women is determine the relevance of the infection vertical transmission to children with the outcome to chronic viral hepatitis C. It is necessary to assess the effectiveness of current measures to prevent perinatal viral hepatitis C and to develop strategy for prevention viral hepatitis C in children for future. Aim: to evaluate the organization and putting into effect the prevent of perinatal viral hepatitis C in an outpatient setting. Material and methods: authors presents the results of questionnaire survey of а-HCV-positive children’s mothers with chronic perinatal viral hepatitis C. The analysis of the results was carried out using Cohen Kappa method, Cohen Kappa consent coefficient (κ) was calculated. Results: The study established inadequate organization and implementation of measures to provide medical care for the prevention of perinatal viral hepatitis C int all stages of ambulatore care. Conclusion: it is necessary to create a multi-level system of prevention of viral hepatitis C in children.
THE DYNAMICS OF MARKERS OF FIBROSIS WITH THE FEATURES OF METABOLIC PHENOTYPES IN PATIENTS WITH MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION
Authors: Osokina Anastasiya V. , Karetnikova V. N , Polikutina O. M , Gruzdeva O. V , Solodilova T. P , Kosareva S. N , Barbarash O. L
Published: March 2020

The features of the dynamics of serum markers of fibrosis, myocardial remodeling and progression of chronic insufficiency: C-terminal propeptide procollagen type I (PICP) and N-terminal propeptide procollagen type III (PIIINP) in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction were evaluated taking into account the peculiarities of the metabolic phenotype of patients. The study included 83 patients with left ventricular ejection fraction ≥50% of 120 patients admitted to the hospital with a diagnosis of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Depending on the metabolic phenotype, the patients were divided into two groups: a group of 23 patients with normal body weight and a group of 60 patients with overweight and obesity of varying severity. The results indicate the relationship of serum markers of fibrosis of the myocardium with echocardiogram indicators, and myocardial remodeling in patients with myocardial infarction with ST-segment elevation. Isolation of patients with normal weight showed a general tendency to reduce the concentration of fibrosis markers regardless of the duration of the disease. The reverse trend allowed us to observe the selection of a group of patients with overweight or obesity. The obtained significant correlation between markers of myocardial fibrosis, data, echocardiogram, and anamnesis.
THE EVALUATION OF FOLATE STATUS USING TOTAL HOMOCYSTEINE IN HYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS
Authors: Zhloba Aleksandr A. , Subbotina T. F
Published: March 2020

A large number of studies have established a link between the progression of arterial hypertension (AH) and folic acid (FA) deficiency. Due to the deficiency of FA, an increase in the level of total homocysteine (tHcy) is observed. The cut-off point for total homocysteine (tHcy), which is not associated with the toxic effect of Hcy itself, indicating the increase in FA deficient state, has not been clearly defined to date. The purpose of this work was to assess the cutoff value of tHcy applied to assesment of functional FA deficiency in hypertensive patients, including group with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Material and methods. The study included blood samples from 60 hypertensive patients aged 61 (45-70) without (N=31) and with (N=29) diagnosed kidney disease and also samples from 30 healthy donors. Clinical and biochemical data, including tHcy, FA and vitamin B12 of blood plasma were assessed. Results and conclusion. Hyperhomocysteinemia in patients with CKD was significantly higher than in patients without CKD. The level of tHcy in all patients was inversely correlated with the level of FA in the blood plasma. Some patients without a deficiency of FA and B12 had an increased level of tHcy, which indicated a functional deficiency of FA. Another situation in few patients without functional deficiency of FA was observed, in which the decreased FA level without increasing level of tHcy established. Frequently used cutoff point for hyperhomocysteinemia above 15 μM indicates the starting point of tHcy concentrations associated with the toxic effects of Hcy by itself. To determine the functional deficiency of FA in the absence of its deficiency in the plasma, the cutoff level of tHcy from 10.9 µM should be used.
EVALUATION OF BONE TISSUE REGENERATION USING A COMBINATION OF AUTOLOGOUS FIBRIN MATRIX WITH PRE-DIFFERENTIATED MESENCHYMAL STEM CELLS IN AN EXPERIMENTAL MODEL
Authors: Kopetsky Igor S. , Loginov V. V. , Ryzhova S. D. , Virgilyev P. S. , Lokhonina A. V. , Kostyrev S. V.
Published: March 2020

Introduction. According to domestic and foreign authors, the frequency of damage to the mandible bone is 36-84% of all damage to the bones of the facial skeleton. Since A.Y. Friedenstein made a key contribution to the study of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC), their analysis, types, methods of isolation and use in various combinations with materials, allowed to expand the boundaries of regenerative medicine. Aim of the study. The purpose of the study is to evaluate the regenerative potential of cortical bone tissue in the region of the mandible angle, with the introduction of exogenous pre-differentiated MSC (MSCs) on the autologous fibrin matrix in the experiment. Material and methods. We carried out an experimental study on 27 rabbits of the Soviet Chinchilla breed. Animals were divided into 3 groups: A, B and control. The bone defect diameter of 6mm was formed in the angle of the mandible of all animals with a trepan. Groups A and B mandible defects were injected with autologous fibrin clot with pre-differentiated MSCs in the amount of 300 thousand and 1 million cells, respectively. Defect size was assessed after 8, 10 and 12 weeks. Results. At week 12 after surgery, in the experimental group B the size of the bone tissue defect was significantly reduced and amounted to 0.006022 ± 0.00135 mm3, while in the control group the defect volume was 0.05597 ± 0.00505 mm3, and in group A was 0.02235 ± 0.0056 mm3. In an experimental study, an improvement was obtained in the pathophysiological processes of bone tissue regeneration under conditions of a bicortical defect with minimal presence of spongy substance in the damage zone.
MODELING DEPRESSION
Authors: Borozdenko Denis A. , Khovanova S. S , Kiseleva N. M , Negrebetsky Vad. V
Published: March 2020

The article provides an overview of common methods for modeling the depressive behavior of laboratory rats and mice. Information is presented from databases NCBI (National Center for Biotechnology Information), eLibrary, CyberLeninka. The classification of models is presented, the methods are compared by criteria of validity. The positive and negative sides of each of the methods of modeling depression are considered.
Entre demonios y elucubraciones: análisis del argumento de Peirce contra el nominalismo
Authors: Hernández Rodríguez Juan Camilo
Published: March 2020

En este texto elaboraré un análisis del argumento que Peirce elabora contra el nominalismo en sus New Elements of Mathematics. Para cumplir tal cometido realizaré un breve recorrido histórico del problema para situar la propuesta de Peirce y, de esta manera, evaluar si hay novedad en su propuesta respecto a las anteriores. Luego, expondré su argumento en el marco de su teoría de la primeridad, segundidad y terceridad a nivel metafísico, semántico y lógico. Finalmente, a partir de elementos de la metaontología analítica, evaluaré si el argumento que él ofrece es suficiente para solventar el problema ya mencionado o si, más bien, el debate entre nominalistas y realistas sobre la existencia de los universales es «puramente verbal» y, por lo tanto, la discusión en la que se enmarca Peirce es infértil. Se concluirá que Peirce sí logra superar la discusión, solo que para es necesaria una precisión sobre los significados de los conceptos ‘existencia’ y ‘realidad’.
Prevention of Human Papillomavirus Infection. Beyond Cervical Cancer: A Brief Review
Authors: Medeiros Rita , Vaz Susan , Rebelo Teresa , Figueiredo-Dias Margarida
Published: March 2020

Introduction: Human papillomavirus is responsible for almost all cases of cervical cancer, an important portion of anogenital and oropharyngeal invasive and preinvasive lesions, as well as genital warts (condyloma acuminatum) and recurrent respiratory papillomatosis. Currently, three prophylactic vaccines against high-risk Human papillomavirus are commercialized in many countries worldwide. Methods: To this non-systematic review the authors searched in MEDLINE/PubMed for systematic reviews, meta-analysis and randomized controlled trials, published in the last six years, using the terms “HPV”, “non-cervical cancer” and “vaccine”. Non-cervical cancers caused by human papillomavirus are less common lesions. However, its incidence has been increasing, while cervical cancer has declined, due mainly to highly effective screening programs. There are no formal screening programs for non-cervical cancers, so universal vaccination could have an important impact. The preventive effect of the vaccine is mainly studied and established in relation to cervical cancer, although it has also been demonstrated in the development of vulvar and vaginal lesions. To date, the efficacy in preventing anal and oropharyngeal diseases related with human papillomavirus is uncertain due to scarce supporting data and low vaccination coverage in men. The prevalence of injuries and subsequent absolute benefit of vaccination is lower in men, but it provides an additional benefit to the herd immunity achieved with the vaccination of women.Conclusion: The total fraction of malignant and pre-malignant lesions attributed to Human papillomavirus genotypes contained in the nonavalent vaccine is significant in both women and men, which turns this vaccine into a great asset in terms of Public Health.
Undiagnosed Risk of Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Obese Individuals in a Primary Health Care Context
Authors: Ribeiro Jaime Pimenta , Araújo Adão , Vieira Cláudia , Vasconcelos Filipe , Pinto Pedro Marques , Seixas Benedita , Cêrca Bruno , Borges Isabel
Published: March 2020

Introduction: Obstructive sleep apnea is a clinical entity that is associated with an increase in morbidity and mortality and it is estimated that it is significantly undiagnosed. The objective of this study was to assess the risk of undiagnosed obstructive sleep apneain obese individuals.Material and Methods: A descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study; the risk of obstructive sleep apnea’s was assessed over a period of 11 months by applying the STOP-Bang questionnaire to all individuals who attended a family health unit who were aged ≥ 18 years and had body mass index of ≥ 30 kg/m2 and who had not yet been diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea and agreed to participate; the risk of an undiagnosed moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea was considered for any STOP-Bang score of ≥ 3. Results: The risk of undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea was assessed in 888 individuals (59.3% females) with an average age of 59.6 ± 14.68 years and a mean body mass index 33.6 ± 3.43 kg/m2; the mean STOP-Bang score was 3.5 ± 1.74, 70.9% scored ≥ 3; the frequency of all STOP-Bang questionnaire parameters was higher (p < 0.004) within the group with score ≥ 3.Discussion: The studied population is one of the main strengths, since it is in obese people that the incidence of this disease is higher. There are some limitations related to this sample coming from a single family health unit, as well as the patients’ follow-up being carried out throughout routine appointments for diseases that are closely related with obstructive sleep apnea.Conclusion: The level of underdiagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea’s in obese individuals can be significantly high and a large proportion of them may have the disease at a moderate to severe stage; Family Physicians can have a very important role in screening and diagnosis.
Struggling With Aging and Illness: Life Experiences of Elderly Schizophrenia Patients in the Community of Taiwan
Authors: Liao Wen-Kuei , Rong Jiin-Ru
Published: March 2020

Aims: The number of elderly patients with schizophrenia in Taiwan has increased significantly. Most Taiwanese patients with schizophrenia are community-dwelling and, if elderly, are at increased risk of mental illness and mental health problems. The life experiences of community-dwelling elderly patients dealing with schizophrenia in Taiwan have not been well studied. This study aimed to explore the lived experiences of such patients through in-depth interviews.Methods: This qualitative study was carried out in psychiatric hospital day-care centers in Taiwan. We interviewed 16 patients (9 men and 7 women, mean age=60.43 years, SD=5.53 years). Data were analyzed using Colaizzi’s method of analysis.Results: The five major themes pertaining to the life experiences of community-dwelling elderly schizophrenia patients were identified as: 1) living alone, feeling lonely, and caring for myself; 2) anxiety and pessimism about the future; 3) internal conflict and aging; 4) seeking help; 5) delaying needs and engaging in healthy activities.Conclusions: The community-dwelling elderly schizophrenia patients were worried about the deterioration of their health, loss of self-care ability with aging, and decreasing access to community support and resources while striving to maintain their lives in the community. Mental health care professionals should understand the needs and abilities of patients, and help them to continue to live in the community. In addition to accepting continuous treatment, the patients should be encouraged to maintain healthy behaviors as well as enhance functioning and quality of life.
The Wuhan Pneumonia Outbreak: High Isoleucine and High Valine Plus Glycine Contents Are Features of the Proteins of 2019-nCoV Virus
Authors: Yan Sirui , Wan Yulin , Zhang Ying , An Shanshan , Yang Kaiqiao , Xu Huan , Gan Tao , Cao Weiguo , Liu Qiuyun
Published: March 2020

The current pneumonia epidemic in China could evolve into a pandemic on a global scale if not effectively contained. The 2019-nCoV possesses a 61-amino acid open reading frame resembling SARS-CoV virulence factor - ORF6 peptide. The isoleucine content is 15.9% in ORF6 of SARS-CoV versus 16.4% of that in 2019-nCoV. Given the proton affinity in the carbonyl oxygen in isoleucine, augmented proton traffic can enhance proton-ion antiport and prompt cell swelling. As the content of essential amino acids in the open reading frame of 2019-nCoV reaches 57.4%, a starch/vitamin diet served for short period of time does not give rise to essential amino acids and halts virion production, which could be adopted as prophylactic approach of many viral infections. Plant-based diet or fasting/boiled rice water can also minimize the intake of essential amino acids or all amino acids respectively. Calorie restriction has been confirmed in animal studies to extend lifespan, and its underlying mechanism is not fully known. Furthermore, several proteins of 2019-nCoV possess high valine plus glycine content, which is implicated in heart disease.
Insertion of Basic Amino Acids in the Hemagglutinin Cleavage Site of H4N2 Avian Influenza Virus (AIV) Reduced Virus Fitness in Chickens which is Restored by Reassortment with Highly Pathogenic H5N1 AIV
Authors: Gischke Marcel , Ulrich Reiner , I. Fatola Olanrewaju , Scheibner David , Salaheldin Ahmed H. , Crossley Beate , Böttcher-Friebertshäuser Eva , Veits Jutta , Mettenleiter Thomas , Abdelwhab El-Sayed
Published: March 2020

Highly pathogenic (HP) avian influenza viruses (AIVs) are naturally restricted to H5 and H7 subtypes with a polybasic cleavage site (CS) in the hemagglutinin (HA) and any AIV with an intravenous pathogenicity index (IVPI) ≥1.2. Only few non-H5/H7 viruses fulfill the criteria of HPAIVs; nevertheless, it remains unknown why these viruses did not spread in domestic birds. In 2012, a unique H4N2 virus with a polybasic CS 322PEKRRTR/G329 was isolated from quails in California which, however, was avirulent in chickens. This is the only known non-H5/H7 virus with four basic amino acids in the HACS. Here, we investigated the virulence of this virus in chickens after expansion of the polybasic CS by substitution of T327R (322PEKRRRR/G329) or T327K (322PEKRRKR/G329) with or without reassortment with HPAIVs H5N1 and H7N7. The impact of single mutations or reassortment on virus fitness in vitro and in vivo was studied. Efficient cell culture replication of T327R/K carrying H4N2 viruses increased by trypsin, particularly in MDCK cells, and reassortment with HPAIV H5N1. Likewise, replication, virus excretion and bird-to-bird transmission of H4N2 was remarkably compromised by the CS mutations, but restored after reassortment with HPAIV H5N1, although not with HPAIV H7N7. Viruses carrying the H4-HA with or without R327 or K327 mutations and the other gene segments from HPAIV H5N1 exhibited high virulence and efficient transmission in chickens. Together, increasing the number of basic amino acids in the H4N2 HACS was detrimental for viral fitness particularly in vivo but compensated by reassortment with HPAIV H5N1. This may explain the absence of non-H5/H7 HPAIVs in poultry.
Open-Circuit Fault Diagnosis of Wind Power Converter Using Variational Mode Decomposition, Trend Feature Analysis and Deep Belief Network
Authors: Zhang Jingxuan , Sun Hexu , Sun Zexian , Dong Yan , Dong Weichao
Published: March 2020

The power converter is the significant device in a wind power system. Wind turbine will be shut down and off grid immediately with the occurrence of the IGBT module open-circuit fault of power converter, which will seriously impact the stability of grid and even threaten personal safety. However, in the existing diagnosis strategies of power converter, there are few single and double IGBT modules open-circuit fault diagnosis methods producing negative results including erroneous judgment, omissive judgment and low accuracy. In this paper, a novel method to diagnose the single and double IGBT modules open-circuit faults of the permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMSG) wind turbine grid-side converter (GSC) is proposed. Above all, collecting the three-phase current varying with wind speed of 22 failure states including a normal state of PMSG wind turbine GSC as the original signal data. Afterward, the original signal data are decomposed by using variational mode decomposition (VMD) to obtain the mode coefficient series, which are analyzed by the proposed method base on fault trend feature for extracting the trend feature vectors. Finally, the trend feature vectors are used as the input of deep belief network (DBN) for decision-making and obtaining the classification results. The simulation and experimental results show that the proposed method can diagnose the single and double IGBT modules open-circuit faults of GSC, and the accuracy is higher than the benchmark models.
Preliminary Case Report on the SARS-CoV-2 Cluster in the UK, France, and Spain
Authors: Hodcroft Emma B.
Published: March 2020

Almost half of the confirmed COVID-19 cases detected so far in the United Kingdom are part of a large cluster of 13 British nationals who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 in the UK, Spain, and France. Transmissions among this cluster occurred at a ski resort in France, and originated from a single infected traveller returning from a conference in Singapore where he acquired the virus. At least 21 individuals were exposed to the virus, tested, and quarantined, with 13 of those testing positive between the period of 6th Feb and 15th Feb. Here, all publicly available information about the primarily UK/France cluster is consolidated, providing a complete and accessible summary of the cases and their connections. Notable in this cluster are the number of individuals infected, the apparent absence of any severe illness among those infected, and a case of a `delayed positive' test during isolation after initially testing negative, at least 7 days after last possible contact.
How Could Sustainable Agriculture Increase Climate Resilience? A Systematic Review
Authors: El Chami Daniel , Daccache André , El Moujabber Maroun
Published: March 2020

In the last few decades, a lot has been written on the use of sustainable agriculture to improve ecosystem services for resilience to climate change. However, no tangible and systematic evidence exists on how this would participate in alleviating impacts on vulnerable rural communities. This paper provides a narrative systematic review (SR) integrated with a bibliometric analysis and a concept network analysis to understand how, in a changing climate, sustainable agriculture builds the resilience of agro-systems. The search was set from the date of the first relevant article until the end of 2018. Results generated have demonstrated that: a. Only single practices and methods have been studied to assess impacts on single ecosystem services. b. Soil quality and health are considered a key indicator of sustainable agriculture. c. Albeit the assessed practices and methods have shown to improve the biodiversity of agro-systems, which makes them more resilient to extreme climate events, we are still far from reaching interdisciplinary and multi-dimensional agriculture which integrates all management aspects and generates a full range of ecosystem services. In conclusion, the study addressed the following recommendations for the scientific community and for decision-makers to orient future research strategies and efforts: a. Integration of all agro-systems services into sustainable management using an ecosystem-based approach on a life-cycle basis using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method; b. Improving the scientific understanding of traditional knowledge for higher synergies and for further integration; c. Unification of assessment methods and indicators for the quantification of impacts; d. Creation of a platform to share, monitor, screen, and approve assessments and evaluations of sustainable agriculture by region.
Virtual High Throughput Screening Based Prediction of Potential Drugs for COVID-19
Authors: Talluri Sekhar
Published: March 2020

SARS-CoV-2 is a betacoronavirus that was first identified during the Wuhan COVID-19 epidemic in 2019. It was listed as a potential global health threat by WHO due to high mortality, high basic reproduction number and lack of clinically approved drugs and vaccines for COVID-19. The genomic sequence of the virus responsible for COVID-19, as well as the experimentally determined three dimensional structure of the Main protease (Mpro) are available. The reported structure of the target Mpro was utilized in this study to identify potential drugs for COVID-19 using virtual high throughput screening. The results of this study confirm earlier preliminary reports based on studies of homologs that some of the drugs approved for treatment of other viral infections also have the potential for treatment of COVID-19. Approved anti-viral drugs that target proteases were ranked for potential effectiveness against COVID-19 and novel candidates for drug repurposing were identified.
Label-free, High-throughput Assay of Human Dendritic Cells from Whole-blood Samples with Microfluidic Inertial Separation Suitable for Resource-limited Manufacturing
Authors: Yousuff Caffiyar Mohd , Lim Kue Peng , Basha Ismail Hussain Kamal , Hamid Nor Hisham , Cheong Sok Ching , Ho Eric Tatt Wei
Published: March 2020

Microfluidics technology has not impacted the delivery and accessibility of point of care health services like diagnosis of infectious disease diagnosis, monitoring health or delivering interventions. Most microfluidics prototypes from academic research are not easy to manufacture with industrial scale fabrication techniques and cannot be operated without complex manipulations of supporting equipment and additives such as labels or reagents. We propose a label- and reagent-free inertial spiral microfluidic device to separate red blood, white blood and dendritic cells from blood fluid for applications in health monitoring and immunotherapy. We demonstrate that using larger channel widths in the range of 200 to 600 µm allows separation of cells into multiple streams according to different size ranges and we utilize a novel technique to collect the closely separated focused cell streams without constricting the channel. When tested on actual human blood cells, 77% of dendritic cells were separated and 80% of cells remained viable after our assay. Our contribution is a method to adapt spiral inertial microfluidic designs to separate more than two cell types in the same device which is robust against clogging, simple to operate and suitable for fabrication and deployment in resource-limited populations.
Metabolic Heterogeneity of Cancer Cells: An Interplay between Reprogrammed and Oxidative Metabolism and Roles of HIF-1, GLUTs and AMPK
Authors: Moldogazieva Nurbubu T. , Mokhosoev Innokenty M. , Terentiev Alexander A.
Published: March 2020

It has been long recognized that under hypoxia conditions cancer cells reprogram their metabolism through shift from oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) to glycolysis to meet elevated requirements in energy and nutrients for proliferation, migration and survival. However, data accumulated over the last years increasingly evidence that cancer cells can revert from glycolysis to OXPHOS and maintain both reprogrammed and oxidative metabolism even in the same tumor. The phenomenon denoted as cancer cell metabolic plasticity or hybrid metabolism depends on a tumor micro-environment, which is highly heterogeneous and influenced by intensity of vasculature and blood flow, oxygen concentration, nutrient and energy supply, and requires regulatory interplay between multiple oncogenes, transcription factors, growth factors, reactive oxygen species (ROS), etc. Hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) and AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) represent key modulators of switch between reprogrammed and oxidative metabolism. The present review focuses on cross-talks between HIF-1, GLUTs, and AMPK and other regulatory proteins including oncogenes such as c-Myc, p53 and KRAS, growth factor-initiated PKB/Akt, PI3K and mTOR signaling pathways and tumor suppressors such as LKB1 and TSC1 in controlling cancer cell metabolism. The multiple switches between metabolic pathways can underlie chemo-resistance to conventional anti-cancer therapy and should be taken into account in choosing molecular targets to discovery novel anti-cancer drugs.
Oxidation and Characterization of Low Concentration Gas in High-Temperature Reactor
Authors: Chen Jinhua , Wen Guangcai , Yan Song , Lan Xiangyun , Xiao Lu
Published: March 2020

To achieve efficient utilization of low-concentration mine gas, reduce resource waste, and alleviate environmental pollution, high-temperature oxidation of low-concentration gas at a concentration range of 1.00% to 1.50% that is directly discharged into the atmosphere during coal mine production was oxidized to recover heat for reuse. The gas oxidation equipment was improved for the heating process, and the safety of low-concentration gas oxidation under high-temperature environment was evaluated. Experimental results showed that the reactor could provide a 1000 ℃ high-temperature oxidation environment for gas oxidation after installing high-temperature resistant ceramics. The pressure variation curves of the reactor with air and different concentrations of gas were similar. Due to the thermal expansion, the air pressure slightly increased and then returned to normal pressure. In contrast, the low-concentration gas exhibited a stable pressure response in the high-temperature environment of 1000 ℃. The outlet pressure was significantly greater than the inlet pressure, and the pressure difference between the inlet and outlet exhibited a trend to increase with the gas concentration. The explosion limit varied with the temperature and the blend with oxidation products. The ratio of measured gas pressure to air pressure after oxidation was below the explosion criterion, indicating that the measured concentration gas is still safe after the shift of explosion limit, which provides a safe concentration range for efficient use of low-concentration gas in the future.
A Note on the Representation of Clifford Algebra
Authors: Gu Ying-Qiu
Published: March 2020

In this note we construct explicit complex and real matrix representations for the generators of real Clifford algebra $C\ell_{p,q}$. The representation is based on Pauli matrices and has an elegant structure similar to the fractal geometry. We find two classes of representation, the normal representation and exceptional one. The normal representation is a large class of representation which can only be expanded into $4m+1$ dimension, but the exceptional representation can be expanded as generators of the next period. In the cases $p+q=4m$, the representation is unique in equivalent sense. These results are helpful for both theoretical analysis and practical calculation. The generators of Clifford algebra are the faithful basis of $p+q$ dimensional Minkowski space-time or Riemann space, and Clifford algebra converts the complicated relations in geometry into simple and concise algebraic operations, so the Riemann geometry expressed in Clifford algebra will be much simple and clear.
Influence of Selective Laser Melting Technological Parameters on the Mechanical Properties of Additively Manufactured Elements Using 316L Austenitic Steel
Authors: Kluczyński Janusz , Śnieżek Lucjan , Grzelak Krzysztof , Janiszewski Jacek , Płatek Paweł , Torzewski Janusz , Szachogłuchowicz Ireneusz , Gocman Krzysztof
Published: March 2020

The main aim of this study is to investigate the optimization of the technological process for selective laser melting (SLM) additive manufacturing. The group of process parameters considered was selected from the first-stage parameters identified in preliminary research. Samples manufactured using three different sets of parameter values were subjected to static tensile and compression tests. The samples were also subjected to dynamic Split–Hopkinson tests. To verify the microstructural changes after the dynamic tests, microstructural analyses were conducted. Additionally, the element deformation during the tensile tests was analyzed using digital image correlation (DIC). To analyze the influence of the selected parameters and verify the layered structure of the manufactured elements, sclerometer scratch hardness tests were carried out on each sample. Basing on the research results it was possible to observe the porosity growth mechanism and its influence on the material strength (including static and dynamic tests). Parameters modifications that caused 20% lower energy density, elongation of the elements during tensile testing decreased twice, which was strictly connected with porosity growth. An increase of energy density by almost three times caused a significant reduction of force fluctuations differences between both tested surfaces (parallel and perpendicular to the building platform) during sclerometer hardness testing. That kind of phenomenon had been taken into account in the microstructure investigations before and after dynamic testing where it had been spotted a positive impact on material deformations based on fused material grains formation after SLM processing.
Employee Psychological Empowerment Models and Teaching ways of the Method
Authors: Shahbazian Ahad , Beheshtifar Malikeh
Published: March 2020

Although individuals have the potential of showing more creativity, innovation, and performance, these capabilities are not exploited optimally in the organizational environment. Psychological empowerment of human resources has been known as an effective strategy in functioning and enhancement of human resources in transition management so educating the method is of great importance. Accordingly, the present study was conducted to analyze employee psychological-empowerment models and the ways of educating that. The paper was theoretical. The concept of empowerment and empowerment models were dealt with based on approaches using library method to realize the purpose of the paper. Then the empowerment models by (Bowen & Lawler, 1992), (Kanger & Kanengo, 1988), (Avolio, 2004), (Nokelainen & Ruhotie, 2003), (Dennis, 1984), (Robbins et al, 2018), (Villegas, 2019), (Vogt & Murrel, 1990), (Noller, 1997), (Thomas & Volhaus, 2017), (Spritzer, 1995), Iran Human Resources Empowerment Model, and so on were analyzed. After the analysis of the models, the effective model of employee psychological empowerment was extracted, involving the components of organizational culture, organizational structure, organizational monitoring system, organizational reward system, and the organizational management systems. Some aspects were considered for each component according to the conducted analyses and studying and comparing the models developed in this regard.
Association Between Myocardial Injury and Cardiovascular Outcomes of Orthopaedic Surgery
Authors: Thomas Sabu , Borges Flavia , Bhandari Mohit , De Beer Justin , Urrútia Cuchí Gerard , Adili Anthony , Winemaker Mitchell , Avram Victoria , Chan Matthew T.V. , Lamas Claudia , Cruz Patricia , Aguilera Xavier , Garutti Ignacio , Alonso-Coello Pablo , Villar Juan Carlos , Jacka Michael , Wang C.Y. , Berwanger Otavio , Chow Clara , Srinathan Sadeesh , Pettit Shirley , Heels-Ansdell Dianne , Rubery Paul , Devereaux P.J. ,   on behalf of the VISION Investigators
Published: March 2020

Background:

Myocardial injury after noncardiac surgery (MINS) is common and of prognostic importance. Little is known about MINS in orthopaedic surgery. The diagnostic criterion for MINS was a level of ≥0.03 ng/mL on a non-high-sensitivity troponin T (TnT) assay due to myocardial ischemia.

Methods:

We undertook an international, prospective study of 15,103 patients ≥45 years of age who had inpatient noncardiac surgery; 3,092 underwent orthopaedic surgery. Non-high-sensitivity TnT assays were performed on postoperative days 0, 1, 2, and 3. Among orthopaedic patients, we determined (1) the prognostic relevance of the MINS diagnostic criteria, (2) the 30-day mortality rate for those with and without MINS, and (3) the probable proportion of MINS cases that would go undetected without troponin monitoring because of a lack of an ischemic symptom.

Results:

Three hundred and sixty-seven orthopaedic patients (11.9%) had MINS. MINS was associated independently with 30-day mortality including among those who had had orthopaedic surgery. Orthopaedic patients without and with MINS had a 30-day mortality rate of 1.0% and 9.8%, respectively (odds ratio [OR], 11.28; 95% confidence interval [CI], 6.72 to 18.92). The 30-day mortality rate was increased for patients with MINS who had an ischemic feature (i.e., symptoms, or evidence of ischemia on electrocardiography or imaging) (OR, 18.25; 95% CI, 10.06 to 33.10) and for those who did not have an ischemic feature (OR, 7.35; 95% CI, 3.37 to 16.01). The proportion of orthopaedic patients with MINS who were asymptomatic and in whom the myocardial injury would have probably gone undetected without TnT monitoring was 81.3% (95% CI, 76.3% to 85.4%).

Conclusions:

One in 8 orthopaedic patients in our study had MINS, and MINS was associated with a higher mortality rate regardless of symptoms. Troponin levels should be measured after surgery in at-risk patients because most MINS cases (>80%) are asymptomatic and would go undetected without routine measurements.

Level of Evidence:

Prognostic Level II. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.
Mini-Open Femoroacetabular Osteoplasty
Authors: Ceylan Hasan Huseyin , Vahedi Hamed , Azboy Ibrahim , Aali Rezaie Arash , Parvizi Javad
Published: March 2020

Background:

Surgical treatment of femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) has been increasing over the past decade with reports of favorable results in alleviating patient symptoms. However, progression of osteoarthritis in these patients may necessitate total hip arthroplasty (THA) for the treatment of unresolved or recurrent hip pain and accompanying disability. Identifying the risk factors for disease progression and treatment failure can help orthopaedic surgeons to select the appropriate patients for joint-preservation procedures and allow more informative discussions.

Methods:

With use of the prospective database of hip-preservation surgery at our institution, 652 patients (324 men and 328 women) with FAI who had undergone femoroacetabular osteoplasty (FAO) between December 2004 and April 2016 were identified. Treatment failure was defined as the need for THA. At the latest follow-up, 68 (9.08%)of 749 hips had undergone THA because of the recurrence of symptoms and the development of osteoarthritis. The groups of patients who had or had not undergone conversion to THA were compared with respect to age, sex, body mass index (BMI), surgeon experience, duration of preoperative symptoms, preoperative and postoperative alpha angles, radiographic parameters of hip dysplasia, a perioperative chondral lesion, labral abnormalities and interventions, acetabular retroversion, and severity of osteoarthritis (Tönnis grade).

Results:

The mean age (and standard deviation) at the time of the index FAO was 41.9 ± 10.5 years for patients who had had a failure of FAO, compared with 33.4 ± 11.1 years for those who had not. Risk factors for treatment failure included a longer mean symptomatic period before the FAO procedure, older age, higher mean BMI, the presence of hip dysplasia, acetabular retroversion, higher preoperative alpha angle, a full-thickness acetabular chondral lesion, Tönnis grade-1 and 2 osteoarthritis, labral hypertrophy, and total labral resection during FAO. The rate of failure was related to the experience of the surgeon, with fewer failures occurring in the later years of surgery as compared with the earlier years.

Conclusions:

The present study identified a number of variables that influence the outcome of FAO. Surgeons performing hip-preservation procedures should be aware of these risk factors for failure, and a more cautious approach is recommended for patients with these risk factors.

Level of Evidence:

Prognostic Level IV. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.
Acute Presentation of a Pseudoaneurysm After a Proximal Humerus Shaft Fracture
Authors: Manzano Givenchy , Brown Corina , Harth Karem , Ochenjele George
Published: March 2020

Case:

A 69-year-old woman presented with a brachial artery pseudoaneurysm causing median, ulnar, and radial nerve compressive neuropathies 8 weeks after a proximal humerus shaft fracture treated with intramedullary nailing. She underwent a brachial artery bypass with a reverse cephalic vein interposition graft and neurolysis after decompression of a large pseudoaneurysm. Postoperatively, the patient had a normal vascular examination with recovering neurological function.

Conclusions:

A high index of suspicion for a brachial artery pseudoaneurysm should be maintained in patients with a displaced proximal humerus shaft fracture, particularly when an abnormal neurovascular examination is present.
Iatrogenic Tibia Fracture from an “Errant” Traction Pin Placement Resulting in a Cortical Defect
Authors: Berdis Galen , Singh Vishavpreet , Day James B.
Published: March 2020

Case:

A 78-year-old women presented with a closed left midshaft femur fracture after sustaining a fall from standing height and underwent proximal tibial traction pin placement. After subsequent intramedullary nailing of femur fracture, the patient returned 2 months later with a proximal tibia fracture through the unicortical defect left from the traction pin site and underwent successful intramedullary nailing of the tibia.

Conclusion:

Errant anteriorly placed proximal tibial traction pins pass tangentially across the vertex of the tibia and create residual unicortical defects that may increase the risk for late iatrogenic pin site fractures.
Necrotizing Fasciitis in a Patient on Long-Term Intramuscular Interferon-Beta for Multiple Sclerosis
Authors: McDaniel Claire , Trankiem Christine
Published: March 2020

Case:

Immunomodulatory injections are becoming common long-term treatments for neuromuscular diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS), although they carry a risk of local site infection. We describe a case of a 57-year-old man who developed necrotizing fasciitis of the anterior thigh secondary to intramuscular (IM) injections of interferon-beta-1A for MS, ultimately developing septic shock and requiring serial debridements for source control.

Conclusions:

This is the first reported case of necrotizing fasciitis from chronic IM injections for MS and deserves particular attention because of the immunosuppressive nature of the injections. In patients with underlying predisposing factors for infection, such as decubitus ulcers, it may be prudent to reconsider the administration route. Patients in hypermetabolic states should be closely monitored for impaired response to infections.
Resolution of Preoperative Peroneal Nerve Palsy After Total Knee Arthroplasty
Authors: Morrissey Patrick J. , Kavolous Joseph J. , Brick Gregory W.
Published: March 2020

Case:

We present the case of a 71-year-old man with right knee osteoarthritis (OA) and a varus deformity who developed a progressive common peroneal nerve palsy that resolved after total knee arthroplasty (TKA). After decades of knee pain, the patient gradually developed a foot drop as well as numbness and paresthesias over the foot dorsum during the course of 1 month. The patient underwent TKA and within 6 weeks postoperatively had complete resolution of the peroneal nerve symptoms.

Conclusion:

A progressive common peroneal palsy in advanced varus knee OA may resolve after a properly aligned TKA without nerve decompression.
Evaluation of Some Trace Elements Pollution in Sediments of the Tigris River in Wasit Governorate, Iraq
Authors: Et al. Issa
Published: March 2020

The main objectives of present study are to evaluate the trace elements pollution in the sediment of the Tigris River and drainage canals in Wasit Governorate, Iraq. Assessment of trace elements pollutants were conducted for 18 sediment samples collected in March 2017. Trace elements were analyzed in sediment Tigris River samples in Wasit Governorate. This metal pollution was evaluated using geo-accumulation (I-geo) index, Contamination Factor (CF) and Pollution Load Index (PLI). According to  these statistical indices, the sediments collected from Tigris River in the study area are highly polluted with Titanium (71.9 ppm), Nickel (226.6 ppm) Chromium (425.2 ppm), Cadmium (2ppm) and Molybdenum (15.8 ppm) while  the sediments  were moderately polluted with Cobalt (25.1 ppm), Strontium (839.3 ppm), Copper (56.2), Manganese (106.1ppm), Vanadium (135 ppm), Niobium (9.79 ppm). However, the sediments of the Tigris River is not polluted by Lead, Barium, Gallium, Rubidium and, Zinc.  Metals concentration levels in the sediments of the drainage canals that discharged into the Tigris River showed higher concentrations  than  the Tigris sediments in Ta, V, Ni, Cu, Ga, Br, Sr and Mo.
Dinámicas de cambio del suelo forestal onubense a partir de la cartografía forestal de Manuel Martín Bolaños (1941–1951)
Authors: Doctor Cabrera Alfonso Miguel
Published: March 2020

Se presenta la cartografía forestal de la Provincia de Huelva, realizada entre 1941–1951, en hojas municipales, por Manuel Martín Bolaños, y recientemente digitalizada por el Centro de Investigación del Eucalipto, de la Universidad de Huelva, una importante aportación documental para los trabajos geográficos sobre la provincia. Los valores de esta cartografía, hasta ahora inédita, son diversos. En primer lugar, sus elevados detalle y rigurosidad. En segundo, su fecha, anterior al vuelo americano de 1956, lo que permite retrotraer el análisis de la evolución del paisaje onubense. Finalmente, y en relación con lo anterior, los mapas son anteriores a la fuerte expansión de las repoblaciones, lo que permite aclarar, a partir de datos fehacientes, la tradicional polémica acerca de sobre qué formaciones vegetales se produjeron. Ese estudio se ha realizado mediante superposición de coberturas cartográficas. Su conclusión más relevante, en este sentido, es que, aunque hubo casos de sustitución de arbolado autóctono (Quercus) por las repoblaciones, éste ocupó en general terrenos forestales desarbolados. Mención aparte merece el caso de los Baldíos de Niebla, cuya labranza era un recurso para los jornaleros pobres en años de escasez, que fueron intensamente repoblados, con el conflicto que ello introdujo y que dio lugar a la producción de incendios intencionados.