bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The relationship between China's income inequality and transport infrastructure, economic growth, and carbon emissions
Authors: Zhang Jiekuan , Zhang Yan
Published: January 2021

Since the beginning of the 21st century, accompanied by the tremendous achievements of China's economic growth is an increasingly severe income gap between the rich and the poor. Based on panel data from 2000 to 2018, this study systematically examined the relationship among transport infrastructure, economic growth, carbon emissions, and income inequality in China, using the panel vector autoregressive model estimated by the generalized method of moments. We further divided China into three regions to investigate the regional heterogeneity of these relationships. The results show a long‐run equilibrium relationship between transport infrastructure, economic growth, carbon emissions, and income inequality. Income inequality in the previous year significantly affects that in the current year positively. Whether at the national or regional level, economic growth affects income inequality negatively. For the national sample, the highway reduces income inequality, while the railway increases income inequality. For both the subsamples and the national sample, carbon emissions significantly increase income inequality and are the Granger test cause for income inequality. Furthermore, we discuss some of the possible mechanisms of these results. Our findings generate policy implications for reducing income inequality in regard to economic growth, transport infrastructure, and carbon emissions.
Homogeneity of melt‐rocked Ge–Se glasses and the effect of impurities
Authors: Lucas Pierre , Cui Shuo , Bayko Dmitriy P. , Gulbiten Ozgur , Coleman Garrett J. , Troles Johann
Published: January 2021

The impact of glass synthesis methods on the properties of Ge–Se glasses is investigated. The homogeneity of a GeSe4 glass produced by mechanical convection in a rocking oven for 12 h at 950°C is characterized by Raman spectroscopy and Electron Microprobe analysis. It is found that the melt‐rocked glass is chemically and structurally homogeneous at all length scales investigated. In order to compare the effect of synthesis methods, another glass is produced following a static synthesis for 192 h. Their physical, structural, and dynamic properties are then characterized for comparative analysis. The molar volume and structure of both glasses are found to be identical when subjected to the same thermal history. The structural dynamics of GeSe4 investigated by heat capacity spectroscopy is identical for the static and rocked glass and also compared with that of GeSe9 and GeSe3. Overall, the two synthesis methods do not lead to any difference in measured properties. Finally, the effect of impurities is investigated in three glasses. The presence of water and oxygen impurities up to 30 ppm levels is shown to have no significant effect on physical and structural properties. Hence, the presence of water impurities cannot be attributed to mismatch in physical properties.
Biofilm formation of Pectobacteriumcarotovorum subsp. carotovorum on polypropylene surface during multiple cycles of vacuum cooling
Authors: Pu Hongbin , Xu Yiwen , Lin Lian , Sun Da‐Wen
Published: January 2021

During vacuum cooling, polypropylene turnover boxes are repeatedly used for containing vegetables for cooling, while Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovora (Pcc) can form a biofilm on polypropylene adhesion surface. This study evaluated the effects of multiple cycles of vacuum cooling on the morphology and composition of Pcc biofilm formed on polypropylene turnover boxes. Results showed that Pcc biofilm in different growth stages including adhesion, development and mature phases displayed different responses to vacuum cooling. Pcc biofilm in adhesion stage decreased from 106 to 105 CFU cm−2, indicating the positive interference of vacuum cooling on biofilm formation in the initial developmental stage. However, with the increasing of the number of vacuum cooling cycles from 0 to 3, the biomass of Pcc biofilm in the development stage increased from 107 to 108 CFU cm−2 and the polysaccharide secretion increased from 7.96 to 16.7 mg cm−2, showing the promotion of biofilm formation and the secretion of extracellular polymeric substances. Therefore, regular cleansing and sterilisation of turnover boxes are necessary to prevent cross‐contamination during vacuum cooling.
Major triterpenes, cycloeucalenone and 31‐norcyclolaudenone as inhibitors against both α‐glucosidase and α‐amylase in banana peel
Authors: Shang Chaojie , Gu Yipeng , Koyama Tomoyuki
Published: January 2021

The inhibitory activities of banana peel extract against carbohydrate digestive enzymes were investigated. Cycloeucalenone and 31‐norcyclolaudenone were obtained by bioassay‐guided fractionation as effective inhibitors of α‐glucosidase and α‐amylase. The structure–activity relationships of four triterpenes isolated from banana peel, cycloeucalenone, 31‐norcyclolaudenone and cycloeucalenol and its isomer were investigated. The IC50 values of cycloeucalenone and 31‐norcyclolaudenone against α‐glucosidase were 31.83 ± 2.46 μm and 38.85 ± 1.54 μm, respectively, and their IC50 values against α‐amylase were 20.33 ± 0.59 μm and 27.63 ± 0.83 μm, respectively. In contrast, cycloeucalenol and its isomer had insufficient inhibitory activity against either enzyme. The primary active sites of cycloeucalenone and 31‐norcyclolaudenone are the carbonyl group at C‐3 and the double bond in the side chain. Cycloeucalenone induced a parabolic mixed‐type inhibition with a Ki value of 73.86 μm in the α‐glucosidase inhibitory assay. This study provides new evidence for the potential use of banana peel triterpenes as antidiabetic agents.
Oyster hydrolysate ameliorates ethanol diet‐induced alcoholic fatty liver by regulating lipid metabolism in rats
Authors: Byun Jae‐Hyuk , Shin Ji Eun , Choi Yeung‐Joon , Choung Se‐Young
Published: January 2021

We evaluated the effect of oyster hydrolysate, which was prepared using transglutaminase, protamex and neutrase (TGPN), on alcoholic fatty liver. Sprague–Dawley rats were fed a diet containing 5% (v/v) ethanol or an isocaloric amount of dextrin–maltose for 6 weeks and orally administered TGPN or silymarin for another 4 weeks. TGPN significantly decreased the liver index (liver weight/body weight), serum and hepatic lipid levels and increased the serum adiponectin level. Based on histological analysis, TGPN reduced the number of lipid droplets and lipid accumulation in liver tissue. TGPN enhanced the expression of AMP‐activated protein kinase and activated its downstream pathway which controls lipid metabolism. Additionally, TGPN decreased the levels of liver function markers (aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase) and tumour necrosis factor alpha. Consequently, TGPN ameliorated alcoholic fatty liver by inhibiting fatty acid and cholesterol synthesis, promoting fatty acid oxidation and decreasing liver cell damage.
Fisher's g Revisited
Authors: Quinn Barry G.
Published: January 2021

In 1929, Fisher proposed a test for periodicity based on the largest periodogram ordinate. If the true frequency lies between two consecutive Fourier frequencies and the signal to noise ratio is low, the test may conclude that there is no periodicity. This loss of power was noted by Whittle in 1952, as well as the necessary assumption that the noise be white. Whittle and subsequent authors suggested remedies for the white noise assumption. This paper proposes simple tests, based on the Fourier coefficients, that is, the Fourier transforms at the Fourier frequencies, that have good power properties at all frequencies.
Correlation between small and dense low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol and cardiovascular events in Beijing community population
Authors: Wang Xiaona , Wang Liang , Cao Ruihua , Yang Xu , Xiao Wenkai , Zhang Yun , Ye Ping
Published: January 2021

The relationship between small dense low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (sdLDL‐C) and different cardiovascular events has been observed in several large community studies, and the results have been controversial. However, there is currently no cross‐sectional or longitudinal follow‐up study on sdLDL‐C in the Chinese hypertension population. We analyzed the association of plasma sdLDL‐C levels with major adverse cardiovascular events in 1325 subjects from a longitudinal follow‐up community‐based population in Beijing, China. During the follow‐up period, a total of 191 subjects had MACEs. Cox regression analysis showed that sdLDL‐C is a major risk factor for MACEs independent of sex, age, BMI, hypertension, diabetes, smoking, SBP, DBP, FBG, eGFR in the general community population (1.013 (1.001 −1.025, P < .05)), but the correlation disappeared after adjusting for TC and HDL‐C in Model 3. Cox analysis showed that hypertension combined with high level of sdLDL‐C was still the risk factor for MACEs ((2.079 (1.039‐4.148)). Our findings in the Chinese cohort support that sdLDL‐C is a risk factor for major adverse cardiovascular events in hypertension subjects.
Comparison of the effects of weekly and biweekly intravenous CERA administration on erythropoiesis: A randomized controlled trial
Authors: Kawai Yuki , Toya Yoshiyuki , Wakui Hiromichi , Fujikawa Tetsuya , Ueda Eiko , Azushima Kengo , Mitsuhashi Hiroshi , Kawano Tomoyuki , Kuji Tadashi , Yamaguchi Satoshi , Ohnishi Toshimasa , Tamura Kouichi
Published: January 2021

Although continuous erythropoietin receptor activators (CERAs) are widely used erythropoiesis‐stimulating agents for correcting renal anemia in patients undergoing hemodialysis (HD), few reports have examined weekly CERA administration. In this randomized controlled trial, we compared the efficacy and changes in the parameters of iron metabolism and erythropoiesis between weekly and biweekly CERA administration. In total, 120 patients undergoing maintenance HD were randomized to the weekly or biweekly group. The primary end point was the total CERA dose needed to maintain the target hemoglobin (Hb) levels during a 12‐week evaluation period. There was no significant difference in the total dose between the weekly and biweekly groups (median 175.0 [interquartile range (IQR) 93.8–337.5] µg/12 weeks vs. 300.0 [IQR 125.0–375.0] µg/12 weeks, P = .18). The mean Hb levels during the evaluation period were 10.9 ± 0.8 g/dL in the weekly group and 10.7 ± 0.8 g/dL in the biweekly group (P = .25). Weekly CERA administration was well tolerated. Weekly CERA administration similarly managed anemia as biweekly administration in patients undergoing HD.
Digital therapeutics for essential hypertension using a smartphone application: A randomized, open‐label, multicenter pilot study
Authors: Kario Kazuomi , Nomura Akihiro , Kato Ayaka , Harada Noriko , Tanigawa Tomoyuki , So Ryuhei , Suzuki Shin , Hida Eisuke , Satake Kohta
Published: January 2021

Hypertension is the most considerable but treatable risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Although physicians prescribe multiple antihypertensive drugs and promote lifestyle modifications, the real‐world blood pressure (BP) control rate remains poor. To improve BP target achievement, we developed a novel digital therapeutic—the HERB software system —to manage hypertension. Here, we performed a randomized pilot study to assess the safety and efficacy of the HERB system for hypertension. We recruited 146 patients with essential hypertension from March 2018 to March 2019. We allocated eligible patients to the intervention group (HERB system + standard lifestyle modification) or control group (standard lifestyle modification alone). The primary outcome was the mean change from baseline to 24 weeks in 24‐hour systolic BP (SBP) measured by ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM). The baseline characteristics in each group were well balanced; the mean age was approx. 57 years, and 67% were male. In the primary end point at 24 weeks, HERB intervention did not lower the mean change of 24‐hour SBP by ABPM compared with the controls (adjusted difference: −0.66 mmHg; p = .78). In an exploratory analysis focusing on antihypertensive drug‐naïve patients aged <65, the effects of the HERB intervention were significantly greater than the control for reducing 24‐hour SBP by ABPM at 16 weeks (adjusted difference: −7.6 mmHg; p = .013; and morning home SBP at 24 weeks (adjusted difference − 6.0 mmHg; p = .012). Thus, the HERB intervention did not achieve a primary efficacy end point. However, we observed that antihypertensive drug‐naïve adult hypertensive patients aged <65 years could be a potential HERB system‐effective target for further investigations of the efficacy of the system.
Assessing DNA for fish identifications from reference collections: the good, bad and ugly shed light on formalin fixation and sequencing approaches
Authors: Appleyard Sharon A. , Maher Safia , Pogonoski John J. , Bent Stephen J. , Chua Xin‐Yi , McGrath Annette
Published: January 2021

Natural history collections are repositories of biodiversity and are potentially used by molecular ecologists for comparative taxonomic, phylogenetic, biogeographic and forensic purposes. Specimens in fish collections are preserved using a combination of methods with many fixed in formalin and then preserved in ethanol for long‐term storage. Formalin fixation damages DNA, thereby limiting genetic analyses. In this study, the authors compared the DNA barcoding and identification success for frozen and formalin‐fixed tissues obtained from specimens in the CSIRO Australian National Fish Collection. They studied 230 samples from fishes (consisting of >160 fish species). An optimized formalin‐fixed, paraffin‐embedded DNA extraction method resulted in usable DNA from degraded tissues. Four mini barcoding assays of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) were characterized with Sanger and Illumina amplicon sequencing. In the good quality DNA (without exposure to formalin), up to 88% of the specimens were correctly matched at the species level using the cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI) mini barcodes, whereas up to 58% of the specimens exposed to formalin for less than 8 weeks were correctly identified to species. In contrast, 16S primers provided higher amplification success with formalin‐exposed tissues, although the COI gene was more successful for identification. Importantly, the authors found that DNA of a certain size and quality can be amplified and sequenced despite exposure to formalin, and Illumina sequencing provided them with greater power of resolution for taxa identification even when there was little DNA present. Overall, within parameter constraints, this study highlights the possibilities of recovering DNA barcodes for identification from formalin‐fixed fish specimens, and the authors provide guidelines for when successful identification could be expected.
Mothers' Employment Participation: The Role of Partner Involvement and Selection Processes
Authors: Ingenfeld Julia
Published: January 2021

Objective

This paper examines how a couple's division of housework and child care affects mothers' postnatal work hours, taking into account selection processes.

Background

Past research on mothers' employment suggests that male partners' involvement in domestic work is positively associated with mothers' employment participation. However, it is unknown to what extent this association is driven by selection processes, rather than partner behavior. This paper examines whether selection processes may jointly determine a couple's division of domestic work and a mother's postnatal work hours, and therefore account for the relationship between partner involvement in domestic work and a mother's work hours.

Method

Using data from the 1991 to 2008 waves of the British Household Panel, this study employs structural equation modeling and fixed effects regression. The analyses account for multiple characteristics that may determine women's selection into egalitarian work–family arrangements.

Results

The findings show that selection effects do indeed play a role: The male partner's involvement in housework and child care does not significantly affect most mothers' postnatal work hours when selection effects are taken into account. Only mothers who are highly disadvantaged on the labor market—those with low income and educational attainment—benefit from the partner's involvement in child care, but not housework, in terms of their postnatal employment.

Conclusion

Mothers who are strongly disadvantaged on the labor market benefit most from family policies that encourage their partner's involvement in child care.
Effects of dietary energy levels on Pectoralis major mixed muscle protein turnover and body composition in two broiler lines housed in different grow‐out environments
Authors: Maharjan Pramir , Mullenix Garret , Hilton Katie , Weil Jordan , Beitia Antonio , Caldas Justina , Haro Victor Daniel Naranjo , Coon Craig
Published: January 2021

This study determined the Pectoralis (P) major mixed muscle protein turnover (PT) in two meat broiler lines, Line A and Line B, during the finishing grow‐out feeding period (21–42 days) as affected by the dietary metabolizable energy (ME) levels and ambient temperatures. Experimental finishing diets consisted of 80, 90, 100, 110 and 120% ME of recommended nutrient guidelines for energy level. Fractional synthesis rates (FSR) or fractional degradation rates (FDR) were measured in P. major at day 36 and 42. Protein and fat mass gain were measured, and respective energy retention efficiencies as protein and fat (EREp and EREf) were determined. Metabolic heat production (HP) was also reported. Experimental feeding studies were conducted in cool season (24 hr mean: 69.91˚F and 63.98% RH) and in hot season (24 hr mean: 77.55˚F and 86.04% RH). Results showed that FSR or FDR values were not affected by dietary ME levels at day 36, whereas reduced FSR (p < .05) were observed at day 42 fed diets with reduced ME levels (≤100% ME) which could have resulted from greater maintenance energy requirement of maturing broilers at that age. Broilers fed reduced ME diets (≤100% ME) maintained protein mass (equivalent to broilers fed ≥100%–120% ME) by reduced FDR and increased feed intake. Grow‐out ambient temperature did not affect FSR or FDR values across ME levels. Line B retained higher protein mass, lower fat mass and greater HP compared to Line A. This was followed by higher feed intake in Line B. Further, Line B exhibited higher EREp and lower EREf across dietary ME levels. In summary, PT homeostasis and body composition changes in broiler lines studied seemed to be regulated by the birds’ intent to normalize energy intake as per physiological need by controlling feed intake.
Dynamic evaluation of hepatocellular carcinoma prediction models in patients with chronic hepatitis B receiving nucleotide/nucleoside analogue treatment
Authors: Kirino Sakura , Tamaki Nobuharu , Kurosaki Masayuki , Inada Kento , Yamashita Koji , Sekiguchi Shuhei , Hayakawa Yuka , Osawa Leona , Higuchi Mayu , Takaura Kenta , Maeyashiki Chiaki , Kaneko Shun , Yasui Yutaka , Tsuchiya Kaoru , Nakanishi Hiroyuki , Itakura Jun , Takahashi Yuka , Izumi Namiki
Published: January 2021

Carcinogenesis risk scores for chronic hepatitis B have been proposed, but it remains unclear whether these scores during nucleoside/nucleotide analogue (NA) therapy are useful for risk assessment. In this study, we examined changes of these scores and the predictability during NA treatment. 432 patients with no history of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) treated with NA were enrolled. PAGE‐B, modified PAGE‐B (mPAGE‐B), and REACH‐B scores were calculated at NA administration, 1 and 2 years after administration. The median follow‐up duration was 5.1 years, during which 37 patients (8.6%) developed HCC. Cumulative incidence HCC development in patients with high risk of PAGE at NA administration, and 1 and 2 years after NA administration was significantly higher than those with intermediate and low‐risk groups (p < .05 for all time points), whereas HCC incidence in patients with high risk of mPAGE‐B and REACH‐B at 2 years after NA administration were equivalent to those with intermediate and low‐risk groups (p = .2 for mPAGE‐B, and p = .1 for REACH‐B). The area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) for HCC development of PAGE‐B at NA administration, and 1 and 2 years after administration were 0.773, 0.803 and 0.737, respectively. The AUROCs of PAGE‐B at each point were continuously higher than those of REACH‐B (0.646, 0.725, and 0.653, respectively) and mPAGE‐B (0.754, 0.734, and 0.678, respectively).PAGE‐B score has a high diagnostic accuracy for HCC development at any time point during NA treatment, indicating its potential use as a real‐time monitor of HCC development.
Exploring continuity of supervision in the context of coaching
Authors: Armson Heather
Published: January 2021

Highlighting learning's not‐so‐secret recipe, Armson explores coaching to emphasize the value of considering cultural issues, committing to faculty development, and focusing education on learners.
Adiponectin affects estimated glomerular filtration rate: A two‐sample bidirectional Mendelian randomization study
Authors: Bai Yulan , Chen Zefeng , Wen Zheng , Long Xinyang , Mo Zengnan , Xu Jianfeng
Published: January 2021

Background

The causal relationship between adiponectin (ADPN) and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) is unclear. This study adopts a two‐sample bidirectional Mendelian randomization (MR) study to explore the causal relationship between ADPN and eGFR.

Methods

Using eight single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) of ADPN and 26 SNP of eGFR as instrumental variables, the study performs a two‐sample bidirectional MR study using MR inverse‐variance weighted (IVW), MR‐Egger and weighted median approach to evaluate the causal relationship between ADPN and eGFR. Using the genetic risk score (GRS) of ADPN and eGFR as instrumental variables, the study performs a second MR analysis to assess the association between ADPN and eGFR.

Results

In ADPN to eGFR MR analysis, the IVW, weighted median and GRS analysis all showed that ADPN had a causal effect on eGFR after removing potential confounders of the ADPN‐eGFR relation (IVW: β = .016, P = .002; weighted median: β = .012, P = .022; GRS: β = .016, P = 1.48E‐05). As both ADPN and eGFR were natural log‐transformed in the corresponding GWAS, eGFR increased by 0.15% for any 10% increase in ADPN. In eGFR to ADPN MR analysis, eGFR had no causal effect on ADPN after removing potential confounders of the eGFR‐ADPN relation (All P values > 0.05). The heterogeneity test and sensitivity analysis indicated some heterogeneity, but no directional pleiotropy.

Conclusion

Adiponectin has a causal effect on eGFR, while eGFR has no causal effect on ADPN. ADPN may be a clinical target for improving eGFR and treating chronic kidney disease caused by decreased eGFR.
A psychosocial intervention for individuals with advanced chronic kidney disease: A feasibility randomized controlled trial
Authors: Jenkins Zoe M. , Tan Eric J. , O'Flaherty Emmet , Knowles Simon , Thompson David R. , Ski Chantal F. , Rossell Susan L. , Coco Carolee , Ierino Francesco L. , Gock Hilton , Castle David J.
Published: January 2021

Aim

The current study evaluated the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a psychosocial intervention, the Kidney Optimal Health Program, in reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety in individuals with advanced chronic kidney disease.

Methods

Patients with stage 4 or 5 chronic kidney disease were randomized to either a nine‐session psychosocial intervention programme or usual care. Feasibility was assessed through recruitment and retention rates and programme acceptability. Participants completed assessments of depression, anxiety and psychosocial health at baseline and at 3‐, 6‐ and 12‐month follow‐up. A repeated‐measures analysis of variance was used to compare groups on outcomes over time.

Results

One hundred and twenty‐eight patients were screened for eligibility; 84 consented to participant and were randomized to receive the intervention (N = 42) or usual care (N = 42). 27 (32.1%) participants withdrew prior to baseline assessment. Of those who completed the baseline assessment (N = 57), trial retention was high (75.4% at 3‐month, 80.7% at 6‐month and 70.2% at 12‐month follow‐up). Participants reported high levels of programme acceptability. The patients who completed the intervention (N = 17) demonstrated significantly decreased depression at 12‐month follow‐up compared to the usual care group (N = 13).

Conclusion

The results support the feasibility of the Kidney Optimal Health Program intervention in recruitment, retention and programme acceptability with an improved screening protocol. Preliminary support is provided for improvement in depressive symptoms in patients with advanced chronic kidney disease. Further investigation through a fully powered randomized controlled trial is warranted.
Significant association of urinary alpha‐1‐microglobulin compared to urinary neutrophil gelatinase‐associated lipocalin with renal insufficiency in patients with type 2 diabetes
Authors: Chen Guangming , Shan Xiaoyun , Wang Huabin
Published: January 2021

Aim

Various studies have reported that urinary neutrophil gelatinase‐associated lipocalin (NGAL), an indicator of tubular damage, may be an effective biomarker of renal impairment in patients with diabetes. This study aimed to compare the ability of urinary alpha‐1‐microglobulin (a traditional tubular damage marker) with NGAL for evaluating renal insufficiency in patients with type‐2 diabetes.

Methods

Urinary albumin‐to‐creatinine ratio (ACR) and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were used to determine whether 513 participants with type‐2 diabetes had renal dysfunction. Urinary alpha‐1‐microglobulin‐to‐creatinine ratio (A1MCR) and NGAL‐to‐creatinine ratio (NCR) were calculated.

Results

Although both A1MCR and NCR were significantly higher among participants with renal insufficiency than among participants without renal damage, the difference in A1MCR values between participants with and without renal insufficiency was relatively greater than the difference in NCR values, especially among the male subjects. The correlation of ACR or eGFR with A1MCR was stronger than that of ACR or eGFR with NCR. A1MCR showed a good capability for detecting renal dysfunction (area under the curve = 0.80), its cut‐off value was 14.82 mg/g, corresponding to 71.4% sensitivity and 73.1% specificity. The diagnostic efficiency of A1MCR was significantly higher than that of NCR.

Conclusion

The results indicated that the traditional tubular damage marker A1MCR was more significantly associated with renal insufficiency defined by ACR and/or eGFR and may have a higher diagnostic efficiency compared with the efficiency of NCR in patients with type‐2 diabetes.
Electroacupuncture accelerates the delayed intestinal transit in POI by suppressing M1 like muscularis macrophages and IL6 secretion
Authors: Song Shuangning , An Jing , Liu Shi
Published: January 2021

Background

Electroacupuncture (EA) at ST‐36 could accelerate the delayed gastrointestinal (GI) motility in many GI motility dysfunction models, but the definite effect and mechanisms are unclear. In this study, we intended to investigate the effects of EA on intestinal manipulation (IM) mice model and involved mechanisms.

Methods

Male C57BL/6 mice were randomized into five groups: normal control, intestinal manipulation (IM), IM with sham EA (SEA), IM with high‐frequency EA (HEA), and IM with low‐frequency EA (LEA). The GI transit was evaluated. The infiltration of muscularis macrophages (MMφ) and its phenotype were analyzed with flow cytometry. Magnetic‐activated cell sorting was applied to isolate MMφ, and the relationship between the MMφ and interstitial cells of Cajal (ICCs) was further investigated.

Results

(1) Compared with the IM group, HEA and LEA attenuated the delayed intestinal transit. (2) Both the HEA and LEA obviously reduced the MMφ and suppressed the M1 activation of the MMφ in the ileum. (3) EA restored the disrupted ICC networks through inhibiting the release of IL6 by the MMφ.

Conclusion

(1) Electroacupuncture at acupoint ST‐36 could accelerate the delayed intestinal transit in the IM murine model by restoring the ICC networks. (2) EA protected the ICCs through reducing the MMφ, inhibiting its M1 polarization and its IL6 secretion.
An assessment of perioperative respiratory adverse events and difficult intubation in pediatric patients with Trisomy 21
Authors: Graber Taylor J. , Baskin Paola Lopomo , Soria Claire , Greenberg Mark , Gabriel Rodney A. , Brzenski Alyssa
Published: January 2021

Introduction

Several prior studies have demonstrated an association between trisomy 21 and airway‐related anesthetic complications. However, there is a paucity of large clinical studies characterizing the airway challenges associated with trisomy 21. In this analysis, we examine anesthetic‐related airway complications in children with trisomy 21 and compare our findings to well‐matched controls.

Methods

A chart review of all general anesthetics occurring between 2011 and 2017 at a single pediatric hospital was performed. Children with trisomy 21 were identified. Matched controls were created using a 1:1 propensity score and controlling for patient sex, patient age, surgical specialty, airway management, and anesthetic induction technique. The primary outcomes were the numbers of difficult intubations and perioperative respiratory adverse events. Secondary outcomes included the number of intubation attempts and the Cormack‐Lehane grade in each cohort.

Results/Data analysis

A total of 2702 anesthetic records were reviewed. Propensity score matching resulted in adequately matched control groups as indicated by a standard mean difference below 0.2 in each case. Logistic regression analysis between trisomy 21 patients and matched controls demonstrated that the trisomy 21 cohort had a higher incidence of perioperative respiratory adverse events (OR 2.04, 95% CI 1.34–3.09, p = .0008) due largely to a higher incidence of airway obstruction (1.7% vs. 0.2%, p = .0005). The trisomy 21 group had a lower rate of difficult intubation (OR 0.26, 95% CI 0.07–0.91, p = .034). There was no association between trisomy 21 and the number of intubation attempts (RR 0.99, 95% CI 0.88–1.13, p = .92) or Cormack‐Lehane grade (RR 0.95, 95% CI 0.87–1.05, p = .35).

Discussion

The trisomy 21 cohort had an increased incidence of perioperative respiratory adverse events compared to matched controls, largely secondary to a higher rate of obstructed ventilation, but without statistically different rates of laryngospasm, bronchospasm, postextubation stridor, or other desaturation events. Our trisomy 21 cohort had a decreased incidence of difficult intubation. There was no association between trisomy 21 and number of attempts required to successfully place an endotracheal tube or a less favorable CL grade.

Conclusions

Compared to matched controls, children with trisomy 21 have a lower incidence of difficult intubation and a higher incidence of perioperative respiratory adverse events, largely due to increased rate of airway obstruction.
Nevus comedonicus syndrome: A systematic review of the literature
Authors: Torchia Daniele
Published: January 2021

Nevus comedonicus (NC) syndrome is a condition first identified in 1978. The cause of NC syndrome has been recently proven to be a gain‐of‐function, mosaic postzygotic mutation of the NEK9 gene. A systematic review of the literature retrieved 43 well‐established cases of NC syndrome reported so far. Three morphological variants of NC in NC syndrome emerged: (a) the more common, predominantly comedonal type; (b) “Selhorst type”; and (c) “atrophoderma vermiculatum” type. NC syndrome is mainly associated with ocular, skeletal, and neural abnormalities, most typically ipsilateral congenital cataract and malformations of fingers and toes.
Establishment of monoclonal antibodies to evaluate the cellular immunity in a hamster model of L infantum infection
Authors: Carvalho Lívia Mendes , de Brito Rory Cristiane Fortes , Gusmão Miriã Rodrigues , de Oliveira Aguiar‐Soares Rodrigo Dian , Reis Alexandre Barbosa , Roatt Bruno Mendes
Published: January 2021

Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) are largely used as a model for infectious diseases because it is very susceptible to several pathogens, including Leishmania spp. parasites. However, the research community faces limitations in its use due to the lack of immunological reagents and tools to study the immune system in this model. In this context, we proposed the validation of some important commercially anti‐mouse mAbs (CD4, TNF‐α, IFN‐γ and IL‐10) and how this could be useful to evaluate a specific cellular immune response in Leishmania‐infected hamster using flow cytometry experiments. Our data demonstrated a cross‐reactivity between these anti‐mouse mAbs and hamster molecules that were herein studied. Beyond that, it was able to characterize the development of a specific cellular immune response through cytokine production in L infantum‐infected hamsters when compared to uninfected ones. These data not only aid the usage of hamsters as experimental model to investigate various infectious diseases, but they contribute to the design of novel approaches to further investigate the immunological mechanisms associated to pathogen infections.
Progress in grafting watermelon to manage Verticillium wilt
Authors: Devi Pinki , Tymon Lydia , Keinath Anthony , Miles Carol
Published: January 2021

Vegetable grafting for disease management was first used successfully when watermelon grafted onto a Cucurbita moschata rootstock overcame Fusarium wilt. Interspecific grafting has since been used effectively to mitigate several soilborne pathogens in a variety of solanaceous and cucurbitaceous cropping systems. Verticillium wilt caused by Verticillium dahliae is a significant disease in watermelon crops and is difficult to manage. Current management practices, including crop rotation, soil fumigation, and host resistance, are insufficient due to the ability of microsclerotia to persist in absence of a host, lack of efficacy of soil fumigants, and limited availability of resistant cultivars. Watermelon grafted onto commercial cucurbit rootstocks have increased tolerance to Verticillium wilt, although no cucurbit rootstocks are known to be completely resistant. Verticillium wilt incidence decreased on grafted plants grown in artificially and naturally infested soils, while scion health and growth as well as rootstock root mass and vigour increased. Commonly used rootstocks are Lagenaria siceraria, C. moschata, and C. maxima × C. moschata; of these, only C. maxima × C. moschata ‘Tetsukabuto’ reduced severity of Verticillium wilt across several scion cultivars, locations, years, and soil densities of V. dahliae. Although studies on Verticillium wilt resistance of grafted watermelon are few, their combined results suggest the threshold of V. dahliae soil density for watermelon may be around 5–12 cfu/g. This review summarizes available information on Verticillium wilt of watermelon and effects of different rootstock × scion combinations, assisting growers and breeding programmes in decisions to adopt watermelon grafting for management of Verticillium wilt.
Dual function of VvWRKY18 transcription factor in the β‐aminobutyric acid‐activated priming defense in grapes
Authors: Wang Kaituo , Li Chunhong , Lei Changyi , Zou Yanyu , Li Yanjie , Zheng Yonghua , Fang Yong
Published: January 2021

Induction of phytoalexin production after invading pathogens is recognized as an essential aspect of the plant‐induced resistance. The WRKY family includes plant‐specific transcriptional factors associated with plant defense responses, but the comprehensive mechanisms are poorly understood. Here, we attempted to elaborate the regulatory function of VvWRKY18 from the group IIa of WRKY transcription factor (TF) from Vitis vinifera, in the regulation of β‐aminobutyric acid (BABA)‐activated stilbene phytoalexins biosynthesis and PATHOGENESIS‐RELATED (PR) genes expressions in grapes. BABA at 10 mmol L−1 triggered a priming protection in grapes and conferred a potentiation of the expression levels of VvWRKY18, VvNPR1, and several salicylic acid (SA)‐responsive genes, which was accompanied by enhanced stilbene production upon Botrytis cinerea infection. In addition, a physical interaction between VvWRKY18 and the regulatory protein VvNPR1 was detected in vivo and in vitro by yeast‐2‐hybrid (Y2H), pull‐down and co‐immunoprecipitation assay (Co‐IP) assays. Furthermore, yeast‐1‐hybrid (Y1H) and dual‐luciferase reporter (DLR) assays indicated that VvWRKY18 activated the transcription of STILBENE SYNTHASE (STS) genes, including VvSTS1 and VvSTS2, by directly binding the W‐box elements within the specific promoters and resultantly enhancing stilbene phytoalexins biosynthesis. Further investigation demonstrated that heterologous expression of VvWRKY18 elevated the transcriptions of STS and PR genes, thus contributing to potentiating the defense of transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana plants and resultantly inhibiting B. cinerea invasion. Hence, VvWRKY18 serves as a singular effector involved in the synthesis of stilbene phytoalexins in grapes and its interaction with VvNPR1 provided DNA binding ability required for VvNPR1 to initiate systemic acquired resistance (SAR) defense.
Responding to Policy Signals? An Experimental Study on Information about Policy Adoption and Data Retention Policy Support in Germany
Authors: Trüdinger Eva‐Maria , Hildebrandt Achim , Jäckle Sebastian , Löser Jonas
Published: January 2021

Objective

We analyze whether and how individuals react to information about the adoption of a particular policy, with a focus on the role of conservatism.

Methods

We conducted an online survey experiment on support for data retention in Germany. A recent law on this issue allowed us to test the effects of two policy signals, information about the adoption of a new law (law signal) and information that this followed a Constitutional Court decision (law and court signal), on separate groups of respondents.

Results

Our results show a positive effect of each policy signal on support for data retention. The effect of the law signal was even slightly stronger for individuals with conservative beliefs.

Conclusion

Illustrating how lock‐in effects of policies can work, our study contributes to research on attitudinal policy feedback: creating new legislation also means legitimizing the policy position in question and stating that this norm should be accepted.
Situating Benamozegh in the Debate on Jewish Universalism
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

Chapter 6 situates Benamozegh in the debate about universalism in his time, and about the universalism of Judaism found in the works of Spinoza, Kant, and Mendelssohn. The claim of Jewish universalism, an index of Judaism’s adequation with the modern world, must be measured against the competing claims of philosophy, Christianity, and Reform Judaism. Benamozegh also sought to establish the universalism of Judaism based on its antecedence in religious history, thus grounding himself in a sort of modern historicism that he resisted when it came to biblical criticism. He also strove to establish Judaism as a delicate articulation between reason and feelings, which rested on the nascent fields of psychology or anthropology and thus on a more scientific universalism.
Universalism in Particularism
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

Chapter 9 demonstrates that the notion of Jewish universalism through particularism is one of Benamozegh’s notable contributions, which he predicated on Noahism but also on the role of the nations in Judaism. The French philosopher Levinas is often credited with this concept, which he furthered when he posited a “universalist particularism,” an inclusivism that has nevertheless lent itself to conflicting legacies. This chapter probes the tenets of Benamozegh’s system and the turn to an ethnocentric reading of Jewish particularism by thinkers such as Léon Askénazi, Rabbi Zvi Yehuda Kook, and the religious-Zionist movement in contemporary Israel.
Epilogue
Authors: Boulouque Clémence
Published: January 2021

THE FIRST REVIEW of Israel and Humanity appeared in 1914. It was penned by Maurice Vexler, a promising rabbi soon to perish at Verdun. Vexler’s perceptive review captured Benamozegh’s achievements and shortcomings—and his idiosyncrasy. He characterized Benamozegh’s mindset as a “very peculiar” one: “The modern and the ancient coexist in him, and the mix of the two is disconcerting.” Still, Vexler contended, “regardless of what one may think [of Benamozegh] as scholar, historian, exegete, or grammarian, his speculative boldness, the audacity and magnitude of his religious conceptions, and the freshness and spontaneity of his theological sensibilities make him one of the most notable Jewish theologians to emerge in the modern period.”...
“The Spirit of the Rebel Poet”
Authors: Jones Kevin M.
Published: January 2021

The introduction outlines the concept of rebel poetry and the relationship between poetry and the political struggles against colonialism and dictatorship in modern Iraq. It traces the broad contours of Iraqi political history and explains how poets shaped the cultural politics of important national debates and discourses. It challenges the traditional distinctions between high culture and mass culture that have traditionally consigned poetry to intellectual and literary history and shows how the unique cultural landscape of modern Iraq allowed poetry to maintain a liminal position between these distinct cultural strata. The introduction argues that the public role of poetry in modern Iraq made poems social acts as well as literary texts and that the very popularity of poetry made it a dangerous cultural endeavor.
Rebel Poetry
Authors: Jones Kevin M.
Published: January 2021

This chapter uses the concept of rebel poetry to illustrate the utility of anticolonial poetry as a method of public protest and public communication in the aftermath of World War I and the British occupation of Iraq. The chapter shows how Iraqi poets navigated divided political loyalties to rally popular support for the Ottoman Empire or the nascent Arab nationalist movement during the war and how poets accepted or rejected colonial patronage to support the British occupation. Most important, the chapter shows how prominent rebel poets challenged colonial rule and how the colonial state responded by regulating both public space and culture discourse. It also examines how Iraqi poets employed the new secular vocabulary of nationalism to challenge sectarianism and articulate their own vision of anticolonial modernity.
Patriots and Traitors
Authors: Jones Kevin M.
Published: January 2021

This chapter argues that the rhetoric of “patriotism” and “treason” that dominated nationalist politics evolved in the public poetry surrounding two seminal events in modern Iraqi political history, the Bakr Sidqi coup d’état of October 1936 and the Rashid ʿAli movement of April 1941. The chapter documents the popularity of each movement and shows how partisan support for military intervention was shaped by the shared logic of anticolonial nationalism. It documents the social and political consequences that socialist and nationalist poets faced and examines how political persecution inspired the new socialist-nationalist alliance of the “national front” politics that would dominate opposition politics in the 1950s. The chapter also shows how the relaxation of state censorship of the Left during the World War II allowed leftist poets to articulate a new political vision that fused anticolonial nationalism and socialist internationalism.
Poetry of Public Spaces
Authors: Jones Kevin M.
Published: January 2021

This chapter describes the era of the poetry of public spaces, when dissident leftist poets participated in massive popular protests and galvanized their audiences with defiant acts of public dissidence. The chapter also documents the rise of free verse poetry and analyzes the relationship between modernist aesthetics and the politics of commitment in Iraq. It shows how a young generation of modernist poets joined the Iraqi Communist Party and embraced the socialist internationalism promoted by communist poets in Europe, Asia, and Latin America. The chapter also addresses how a new generation of nationalist poets increasingly gravitated toward socialist ideals, embracing the Sartrean ethos of commitment and joining their communist comrades and rivals in articulating the new cultural politics of the national front.
“We Are What Flows through Every Soul and Spirit”
Authors: Jones Kevin M.
Published: January 2021

The conclusion documents the tragic fate of many poets who participated in the anticolonial struggle for national liberation during preceding decades. It documents the experience of torture, imprisonment, and exile suffered by communist poets after the Baʿthist coup d’état of February 1963 and shows how the legacy of communist poetry was systemically erased from the historical and literary record in subsequent decades. The conclusion also discusses why the singular historical phenomenon of rebel poetry was ever possible in Iraqi and why it was no longer possible after 1963. It concludes with a discussion of poetry and dissent in contemporary Iraqi society.
Diverse cataclysmic floods from Pleistocene glacial Lake Missoula
Authors: Denlinger Roger P. , George David L. , Cannon Charles M. , O’Connor Jim E. , Waitt Richard B.
Published: January 2021

In late Wisconsin time, the Purcell Trench lobe of the Cordilleran ice sheet dammed the Clark Fork of the Columbia River in western Montana, creating glacial Lake Missoula. During part of this epoch, the Okanogan lobe also dammed the Columbia River downstream, creating glacial Lake Columbia in northeast Washington. Repeated failure of the Purcell Trench ice dam released glacial Lake Missoula, causing dozens of catastrophic floods in eastern Washington that can be distinguished by the geologic record they left behind. These floods removed tens of meters of pale loess from dark basalt substrate, forming scars along flowpaths visible from space.

Different positions of the Okanogan lobe are required for modeled Missoula floods to inundate the diverse channels that show field evidence for flooding, as shown by accurate dam-break flood modeling using a roughly 185 m digital terrain model of existing topography (with control points dynamically varied using automatic mesh refinement). The maximum extent of the Okanogan lobe, which blocked inundation of the upper Grand Coulee and the Columbia River valley, is required to flood all channels in the Telford scablands and to produce highest flood stages in Pasco Basin. Alternatively, the Columbia River valley must have been open and the upper Grand Coulee blocked to nearly match evidence for high water on Pangborn bar near Wenatchee, Washington, and to flood Quincy Basin from the west. Finally, if the Columbia River valley and upper Grand Coulee were both open, Quincy Basin would have flooded from the northeast.

In all these scenarios, the discrepancy between modeled flood stages and field evidence for maximum flood stages increases in all channels downstream, from Spokane to Umatilla Basin. The pattern of discrepancies indicates that bulking of floods by loess increased flow volume across the scablands, but this alone does not explain low ­modeled flow stages along the Columbia River valley near Wenatchee. This latter discrepancy between modeled flood stages and field data requires either additional bulking of flow by sediment along the Columbia reach downstream of glacial Lake Columbia, or coincident dam failures of glacial Lake Columbia and glacial Lake Missoula.