bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Delayed rebleeding of an Acom aneurysm treated with a web device: Endovascular management
Authors: Mine Benjamin , Bonnet Thomas , Guenego Adrien , Elens Stéphanie , Suarez Juan V , Lubicz Boris
Published: April 2021

We report a case of cerebral aneurysm rerupture 24 months after initial bleeding and complete occlusion using a WEB device. A middle-aged patient was transferred at our institution because of a recurrent aneurysmal bleeding. The patient was graded WFNS2 and unenhanced CT showed a modified Fisher grade 3 SAH. DSA showed an increased compaction and an evolutive “proximal recess” of the WEB device associated with a small unprotected part of the aneurysm wall and a bleb pointing towards the haemorrhage. Balloon- and stent-assisted coiling was performed, allowing to completely occlude the recurrence. The patient suffered no neurological deficit neither delayed complication and was discharged at day 16.
Mapping the intellectual lineage of educational management, administration and leadership, 1972–2020
Authors: Hallinger Philip , Kovačević Jasna
Published: April 2021

This review has two purposes. First, we document the body of knowledge that has accumulated in Educational Management, Administration & Leadership over its five decades of publication. Second, we seek to identify the distinctive contributions of Educational Management, Administration & Leadership as a research journal in educational leadership and management. The review employed the bibliometric method in order to analyze the forms of corpus of 1438 articles published in Educational Management, Administration & Leadership between 1972 and the end of 2020. Bibliometric analyses used to document and assess the Educational Management, Administration & Leadership corpus included descriptive statistics, document citation and co-citation analysis, author co-citation analysis and keyword analysis. The review found that articles authored outside the UK have continued to grow as a proportion of the journal’s annual volume, thereby strengthening Educational Management, Administration & Leadership’s status as an ‘international educational leadership journal’. Document and keyword analyses found that ‘leadership’ has supplanted ‘administration’ and ‘management’ as the dominant driver in Educational Management, Administration & Leadership content since 2012. These analyses further affirmed the continuing strength of the journal’s conceptual contributions to the literature as well as its publication of a significant set of papers on shared forms of leadership. The review highlighted two areas for Educational Management, Administration & Leadership’s future development: further enhancing its citation impact and managing the growth of its international contributions.
Investigating a multiple mediated-effects model of instructional leadership and teacher professional learning in the Malaysian School Context: A partial least squares analysis
Authors: Thien Lei Mee , Liu Shengnan , Yee Liu Qing , Adams Donnie
Published: April 2021

The poor student performance in the Programme for International Student Assessment has urged the Malaysian authorities to upskill teachers’ professional learning. However, little is known about how instructional leadership contributes to teacher professional learning, especially in the Malaysian context. This study seeks to investigate the direct relationship between principal instructional leadership and teacher professional learning through the mediating effects of teachers’ trust in the principal and self-efficacy in a multiple mediated-effects model. Data were collected from 335 primary and secondary school teachers in Penang, Malaysia. A partial least squares structural equation modelling approach was used for data analysis. The results found that the relationship between principal instructional leadership and teacher professional learning is mediated by teachers’ trust in the principal and self-efficacy. Implications for theory and knowledge are presented.
Competing discourses and cultural intelligibility: Familicide, gender and the mental illness/distress frame in news
Authors: Buiten Denise , Coe Georgia
Published: April 2021

Familicide – the killing of a partner and child(ren) – is a rare and complex crime that, when it occurs, receives intense media coverage. However, despite growing scholarly attention to filicide in the news, little research to date has looked at how familicide is represented. Situated at the intersection of filicide, intimate partner homicide and very often suicide, how the knotty and confronting issue of familicide is reported on is telling of the discourses available to understand complex forms of family violence. In this article, we argue that reporting on familicide mirrors broader feminist concerns about the tendency to frame fatal family violence at the hands of men in individualised terms – often as driven by mental illness – at the expense of an accounting of gender and power. Here, we seek to elaborate on and contextualise what we call the mental illness/distress frame as part of the broader tendency towards psychocentrism. This is amplified in cases of familicide where cultural signifiers for the increasingly publicly conceived of issue of ‘domestic violence’ are often not apparent, leading to popularised psychological explanations to be assumed. The mental health/distress frame operates not only to obscure the role of gender and power in domestic and family violence; it obscures the connection between gender, mental distress and violence, naturalising (and gender-neutralising) mental distress and violence as a response to it. We argue that intersecting discourses – of gender, age, disability and the heterosexual nuclear family, for instance – operate in important ways to suggest, support and rationalise this frame. We illustrate these ideas through a detailed case study analysis of news reporting on a case of familicide in Sydney, Australia.
‘Unpacking our thinking in front of each other’: A case study in knowledge flow within an early childhood teaching team
Authors: Gibbons Andrew , Stover Sue , Gould Kiri , Farquhar Sandy , Tesar Marek , Arndt Sonja
Published: April 2021

The complex and fluid nature of knowledge is a key dimension of the early childhood curriculum and of early childhood teaching and learning. Such complexity adds to the already complex and dynamic work of an early childhood teacher. With a dynamic view of knowledge in mind, this article reports on research with a team of early childhood teachers to explore the ways in which knowledge is experienced for the teaching team. We explore formulations and debates on knowledge that engage with the complexity of knowledge relationships in an early childhood teaching team. The data provides an insight into the importance of leadership and interpersonal relationships in determining how knowledge moves within the ecology of a teaching team. The benefits of critical dialogue are explored in terms of supporting the work, and well-being, of early childhood teachers and teaching teams.
An unusual case of LUTS in an adolescent man: a case report and literature review
Authors: Wilson Jacob , Nettleton Jeremy , Patel Biral
Published: April 2021

Congenital prostatic cysts are rare and it is unusual for these patients to present with symptoms. We report the case of a 17-year-old man who presented with obstructive lower urinary tract symptoms and was found to have a prostatic cyst and other abnormalities of the genitourinary system. The patient subsequently underwent transurethral aspiration of the cyst with good effect. A brief review of the embryology behind these lesions along with a review of the literature is provided.

Level of evidence: Not applicable for this multicentre audit.
Reimagining character formation in the Christian university in challenging times
Authors: Verhoef Monique , Badley Ken
Published: April 2021

Changes in the demographic profile of students attending Christian universities combine with shifts in the culture at large to present new challenges to Christian higher educators who have the character formation of students as an aim. The pandemic will bring other challenges. In uncertain times, Christian universities aiming at character formation must, first, clarify and focus on their mission and must, second, work intentionally to create a campus climate supportive of character development. A Christian university wanting a climate that fosters character makes these seven efforts (among others): to build relationships and community, to build trust, to welcome dialogue on difficult issues, to consider the built environment, to go slow, to recognize the diversity of learners, to attend to its language. Uncertain times and their concomitant challenges present new opportunities for Christian universities to reimagine character formation.
A Methodologically Improved Study on Raters’ Personality and Rating Severity in Writing Assessment
Authors: Zhu Yu , Fung Andy Shui-Lung , Yang Liuyan
Published: April 2021

Personality is an inherent rater’s characteristic influencing rating severity, but very few studies examined their relationship and the findings were inconclusive. This study aimed to re-investigate the relationship between raters’ personality and rating severity with more control on relevant variables and more reliable analysis of rating severity. Female novice raters ( n = 28) from a demographically homogeneous background were recruited to rate on two occasions essays written by 111 students in an intermediate-level Chinese as a foreign language program. Raters’ personality traits were measured using the complete version of NEO-PI-R. Many-faceted Rasch measurement model and repeated measurement were applied to yield more robust estimates of rating severity. In addition, rating order effect was carefully controlled. Extroversion was found to be positively correlated with severity, r(26) = .495, p = .010. Furthermore, Extroversion was found to be a valid predictor of severity, t(24) = 2.792, p = .010, R2 = .21, Cohen’s d = .77, Hattie’s r = .37. Practical implications for developing more individualized online rater calibration for large-scale writing assessments were discussed, followed by limitations of the present study.
Analyzing the Presence of Homosexually- Themed Language Among Association Football Fans in the United Kingdom
Authors: Cleland Jamie , Cashmore Ellis , Dixon Kevin , MacDonald Connor
Published: April 2021

This article is based on the views of 2,663 association football fans, collected via an online survey from March 2020 to April 2020, regarding the presence of homosexually-themed language at men’s professional football matches across the United Kingdom. The results indicate that whilst 95% would support a gay player at their club, 41% have heard language they interpret as malicious or toxic, while 37% believe it is not intentionally hostile and ascribe it as playful and humorous banter. The article subsequently addresses what appears to be a paradox: football fans challenge popular accusations that they are homophobic but also recognize the presence of homosexually-themed language that emphasizes heteronormativity, irrespective of how it is interpreted by other fans.
Learning Beyond the Brick and Mortar: Prospects, Challenges, and Bibliometric Review of E-learning Innovation
Authors: Ceesay Lamin B.
Published: April 2021

The increasing proliferation of IT services in all sectors has reinforced the adoption and diffusion across all levels of education and training institutions. However, lack of awareness, knowledge about the key challenges, and opportunities of e-learning seem to allude policymakers, resulting in low adoption or increased failure rate of many e-learning projects. Our study tries to address this problem through a review of relevant literature in e-learning. Our goal was to draw from the existing literature, insights into the opportunities and challenges of e-learning diffusion, and the current state-of-research in the field. To do this, we employed a systematic review of literature on some of the salient opportunities and challenges of e-learning innovation for educational institutions. These results aimed to inform policymakers and suggest some interesting issues to advance the research and adoption and diffusion of e-learning. Moreover, the bibliometric analysis shows that the field is experiencing high research attraction among scholars. However, several research areas in the field witnessed relatively low research paucity. Based on these findings, we discussed topics for possible future research.
Evaluation of Changes in Depression Levels of Bruxism Patients Treated With Botulinum Toxin-A
Authors: Erdil Deniz , Bagis Nilsun , Eren Hakan , Camgoz Melike , Orhan Kaan
Published: April 2021

Aim:

Bruxism is defined as the involuntary recurrent masticatory muscle activity characterized by gnashing, grinding, clenching of teeth, and/or pushing the mandible. Factors creating its etiology are peripheral (morphological) or central (physiopathological and physiological), and exogenous. Recently, among physiological factors, depression and bruxism were considered to be related. A definitive treatment method does not exist for bruxism; however, botulinum toxin-A (BT-A) application is an up-to-date and effective way of treatment. The present study is aimed to evaluate the levels of depression in bruxism patients treated with BT-A application.

Materials and Methods:

A total of 25 individuals (23 females and 2 males) who were diagnosed as bruxism patients were included in the study. 25 U of BT-A for each masseter muscle was injected into the patients. Patients were prospectively observed for a possible change in depression levels by using Beck’s Depression Inventory. The inventory was implemented before and six months after the BT-A application. Depression levels before and six months after the injection were compared. A paired t-test was used to compare “before” and “after” treatment values. One-way analysis of variance and post-hoc Tukey tests were used to evaluate the change in Beck’s Depression Inventory scores according to age groups.

Results:

The mean total score was 7.80 ± 8.10 before the treatment and 7.16 ± 6.52 six months after the treatment. The decrease in the mean score was not statistically significant ( P > .05).

Conclusion:

In conclusion, despite the decrease in the mean Beck’s Depression Inventory scores, a statistically significant decrease in the depression levels of patients was not observed.
Revisiting Dead Poets Society as a Tool for Studying Applications of Power
Authors: Holbrook Robert L. , Stoner Jason
Published: April 2021

In organizational behavior, management, and leadership courses, the topic of power is often a focal point. However, as with many theories and concepts, students sometimes struggle to see the management and leadership applications until examples are used to highlight the theories and concepts in practice. In this article, we outline how a classic 1980s American film can be used as a teaching tool for both physical (in-person) and online courses to help students see the application of power concepts. A variety of resources are provided to help instructors incorporate the film into their classes.
The Role of Local Governing Bodies in the Management of Heritage Agricultural Landscapes: Italian Perspective
Authors: Salpina Dana
Published: April 2021

The increasing interest in the protection of the agricultural landscape as a category of heritage can be observed both in the growing number of globally recognized agricultural landscapes and in the development of new legal and institutional tools for their protection. The multifunctionality of agriculture, involving the multiplicity of interests and actors, engenders the questions of how and who manages the heritage agricultural landscapes at the local level?

The research aims to provide an empirical model for the identification and evaluation of the local governance models used in the management of multifunctional agricultural landscapes. It focuses on two heritage agricultural landscapes in Italy and bases on field observations, semi-structured in-depth interviews with the local stakeholders and comparative analysis of the case studies. The research draws the map of interaction between the local stakeholders. It outlines the crucial role played by the local governing bodies in the management of heritage agricultural landscapes, involving several administrative and sociocultural units.
Nail Changes in Psoriasis: Correlation Between Onychoscopy and NAPSI Scoring
Authors: Bindagi Anisha P. , Doshi Bhavana , Pandit Ashok , Manjunathswamy Basavapudda
Published: April 2021

Background:

Nail changes in psoriasis can present as a diagnostic challenge especially in the absence of cutaneous features. They occur in approximately 40% of psoriatics and in 5% as the sole presentation. Onychoscopy as a diagnostic tool aids in better visualization of nail matrix and bed abnormalities in psoriasis patients with nail involvement.

Aim:

To study onychoscopic features of nails in psoriasis and correlate it clinically using nail psoriasis severity index (NAPSI).

Materials and Methods:

A total of 60 patients of psoriasis with nail changes were recruited in this hospital based cross-sectional study over a period of one year. Cutaneous severity was assessed using psoriasis area severity index (PASI). NAPSI was used to determine the severity of nail involvement. Nails of the patients with psoriasis were examined clinically and onychoscopically. Statistical analysis was done using the software R i386.3.6.3.

Results:

Pitting was the most common nail change observed on clinical and onychoscopic examination, seen in 90% and 95% patients respectively. Leuconychia, red spots in lunula, onycholysis, and splinter hemorrhages were better visualized on onychoscopy. A statistically significant higher NAPSI (P < 0.05) was obtained on onychoscopy. There was a positive co- relation between the cutaneous severity of psoriasis and the extent of nail involvement.

Conclusion:

Onychoscopic examination coupled with NAPSI in nail psoriasis serves as a useful guide to assess the nail involvement and provides a better insight into the subtle nail changes in psoriatics which could have been missed clinically.

Limitations:

Small study population, lack of age and sex matched control group.
Transplant-associated thrombotic microangiopathy in pediatric patients: pre-HSCT risk stratification and prophylaxis
Authors: Higham Christine S. , Collins Griffin , Shimano Kristin A. , Melton Alexis , Kharbanda Sandhya , Winestone Lena E. , Huang James N. , Dara Jasmeen , Long-Boyle Janel R. , Dvorak Christopher C.
Published: April 2021

Transplant-associated thrombotic microangiopathy (TA-TMA) is an endothelial injury syndrome that complicates hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). Morbidity and mortality from TA-TMA remain high, making prevention critical. We describe our retrospective single-center experience of TA-TMA after pediatric allogeneic HSCT and present a novel pre-HSCT risk-stratification system and prophylaxis regimen. From January 2012 through October 2019, 257 patients underwent 292 allogeneic HSCTs. Prospective risk stratification was introduced in December 2016. High-risk (HR) patients were treated with combination prophylaxis with eicosapentaenoic acid and N-acetylcysteine. The 1-year cumulative incidence of TA-TMA was 6.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 3.2-9.4). Age ≥10 years, myeloablative conditioning with total body irradiation, HLA mismatch, diagnosis of severe aplastic anemia or malignancy, prior calcineurin inhibitor exposure, and recipient cytomegalovirus seropositivity were found to be pre-HSCT risk factors for development of TA-TMA. Before routine prophylaxis, TA-TMA rates were significantly different between the HR and standard-risk groups, at 28.2% (95% CI, 0-12.7) vs 3.2% (0.1-6.3), respectively (P < .001). After introduction of prophylaxis, the 1-year cumulative incidence of TA-TMA in the HR group decreased to 4.5% (95% CI, 0-13.1; P = .062, compared with the incidence before prophylaxis). Multicenter pediatric studies are needed to validate these risk criteria and to confirm the efficacy of the prophylactic regimen.
Characteristics, complications, and sites of bleeding among infants and toddlers less than 2 years of age with VWD
Authors: Dupervil Brandi , Abe Karon , O’Brien Sarah H. , Oakley Meredith , Kulkarni Roshni , Thornburg Courtney D. , Byams Vanessa R. , Soucie J. Michael
Published: April 2021

Data on infants and toddlers (ITs) with von Willebrand disease (VWD) are lacking. We used data collected in the US Hemophilia Treatment Center Network (USHTCN) to describe birth characteristics, bleeding episodes, and complications experienced by 105 patients with VWD who were <2 years of age. In 68% of the patients, the reason for diagnostic testing was a family history of a bleeding disorder. The mean age at diagnosis was 7 months, with little variation by sex. Patients with type 2 VWD were diagnosed earlier than those with types 1 or 3 (P = .04), and those with a family history were diagnosed ∼4 months earlier than those with none (P < .001). Among the patients who experienced a bleeding event (70%), oral mucosa was the most common site of the initial bleeding episode (32%), followed by circumcision-related (12%) and intracranial/extracranial bleeding (10%). Forty-one percent of the initial bleeding events occurred before 6 months of age, and 68% of them occurred before the age of 1 year. Approximately 5% of the cohort experienced an intracranial hemorrhage; however, none was associated with delivery at birth. Bleeding patterns and rates were similar by sex (P = .40) and VWD type (P = .10). Forty-seven percent were treated with plasma-derived von Willebrand factor VIII concentrates. The results of this study indicate that a high percentage of ITs diagnosed with VWD and receiving care within the multidisciplinary structure of the USHTCN have a family history of VWD. In addition, bleeding events such as circumcision-related, oropharyngeal, and intracranial or extracranial episodes are common and are leading indicators for treatment.
Disability, quality of life, productivity impairment and employer costs of migraine in the workplace
Authors: Shimizu Toshihiko , Sakai Fumihiko , Miyake Hitoshi , Sone Tomofumi , Sato Mitsuhiro , Tanabe Satoshi , Azuma Yasuhiro , Dodick David W.
Published: April 2021

Background

Migraine is the leading cause of days lost due to disability in the world among people less than 50 years of age. There is a paucity of evidence on the impact of migraine and other headache disorders and the cost and productivity losses in the workplace.

Methods

Employee population survey assessed prevalence, characteristics, and disability of headache disorders at a Japanese information technology company. This study was supported by the World Health Organization Western Pacific Region Office and International Headache Society.

Results

2458 (1963men, 495 women) out of 2494 responded to the survey that utilized ICHD-3 beta criteria. Among these, 13% (205 male/123 female) had migraine (M), 53% (1093 male/207 female) had tension-type headache (TTH) and 4% (61 male/27 female) had migraine and TTH (M/TTH). The number of days when productivity at work was reduced by half or more because of headache was significantly higher in migraine compared to TTH. The norm-based scoring of SF-12v2 was significantly lower in M/TTH and M than TTH. The economic loss due to absenteeism for migraine was calculated to be $ 238.3US$/year/person for day-off and 90.2US$/year/person for half-day off using migraine disability assessment score (MIDAS). The economic loss due to presenteeism for migraine was calculated to be $ 375.4US$/year/person using MIDAS and 2217US$/year/person using work productivity and activity impairment questionnaire (WPAI). Furthermore, estimated cost of productivity loss associated with presenteeism using WPAI was calculated at 21.3 billion US$/year in Japan as a whole.

Conclusions

This study revealed a high prevalence and disease burden among employees with migraine that is associated with substantial losses in productivity and employer cost. These results support the development and implementation of workplace programs to improve migraine management in the workplace and reduce the burden and costs associated with lost workplace productivity.
OsPG1 Encodes a Polygalacturonase that Determines Cell Wall Architecture and Affects Resistance to Bacterial Blight Pathogen in Rice
Authors: Cao Yongrun , Zhang Yue , Chen Yuyu , Yu Ning , Liaqat Shah , Wu Weixun , Chen Daibo , Cheng Shihua , Wei Xinghua , Cao Liyong , Zhang Yingxin , Liu Qunen
Published: April 2021

Background

Plant cell walls are the main physical barrier encountered by pathogens colonizing plant tissues. Alteration of cell wall integrity (CWI) can activate specific defenses by impairing proteins involved in cell wall biosynthesis, degradation and remodeling, or cell wall damage due to biotic or abiotic stress. Polygalacturonase (PG) depolymerize pectin by hydrolysis, thereby altering pectin composition and structures and activating cell wall defense. Although many studies of CWI have been reported, the mechanism of how PGs regulate cell wall immune response is not well understood.

Results

Necrosis appeared in leaf tips at the tillering stage, finally resulting in 3–5 cm of dark brown necrotic tissue. ltn-212 showed obvious cell death and accumulation of H2O2 in leaf tips. The defense responses were activated in ltn-212 to resist bacterial blight pathogen of rice. Map based cloning revealed that a single base substitution (G-A) in the first intron caused incorrect splicing of OsPG1, resulting in a necrotic phenotype. OsPG1 is constitutively expressed in all organs, and the wild-type phenotype was restored in complementation individuals and knockout of wild-type lines resulted in necrosis as in ltn-212. Transmission electron microscopy showed that thicknesses of cell walls were significantly reduced and cell size and shape were significantly diminished in ltn-212.

Conclusion

These results demonstrate that OsPG1 encodes a PG in response to the leaf tip necrosis phenotype of ltn-212. Loss-of-function mutation of ltn-212 destroyed CWI, resulting in spontaneous cell death and an auto-activated defense response including reactive oxygen species (ROS) burst and pathogenesis-related (PR) gene expression, as well as enhanced resistance to Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo). These findings promote our understanding of the CWI mediated defense response.
Determinant Factors and Regulatory Systems for Anthocyanin Biosynthesis in Rice Apiculi and Stigmas
Authors: Meng Lingzhi , Qi Changyan , Wang Cuihong , Wang Shuai , Zhou Chunlei , Ren Yulong , Cheng Zhijun , Zhang Xin , Guo Xiuping , Zhao Zhichao , Wang Jie , Lin Qibing , Zhu Shanshan , Wang Haiyang , Wang Zhonghua , Lei Cailin , Wan Jianmin
Published: April 2021

Anthocyanins cause purple, brown or red colors in various tissues of rice plants, but the specific determinant factors and regulatory systems for anthocyanin biosynthesis in almost all tissues remain largely unknown. In the present study, we mapped and isolated two complementary genes, OsC1 encoding a R2R3-MYB transcriptional factor and OsDFR encoding a dihydroflavonol 4-reductase, which are responsible for the purple coloration of apiculi and stigmas in indica cultivar Xieqingzao by the map-based cloning strategy. We also identified two tissue-specific pigmentation genes, OsPa for apiculi and OsPs for stigmas, by phylogenetic analysis of all anthocyanin biosynthesis-associated bHLH transcriptional factors in maize and rice, CRISPR/Cas9 knockout and transcriptional expression analysis. The OsC1, OsPa and OsPs proteins are all localized in the nucleus while the OsDFR protein is localized in the nucleus and cytoplasm, and the OsC1 and OsDFR genes are preferentially strongly expressed in both purple-colored tissues while the OsPa and OsPs genes are preferentially strongly expressed in apiculi and stigmas, respectively. OsC1 specifically interacts with OsPa or OsPs to activate OsDFR and other anthocyanin biosynthesis genes, resulting in purple-colored apiculi or stigmas. OsC1 itself does not produce color but can produce brown apiculi when functioning together with OsPa. Loss of function of OsDFR alone leads to brown apiculi and straw-white stigmas. Genotyping and phenotyping of a panel of 176 rice accessions revealed diverse genotypic combinations of OsC1, OsDFR, OsPa and OsPs that enable accurate prediction of their apiculus and stigma pigmentation phenotypes, thus validating the general applicability of the OsC1-OsDFR-OsPa and OsC1-OsDFR-OsPs models to natural populations. Our findings disclosed the biological functions of OsC1, OsPa and OsPs, and shed light on the specific regulatory systems of anthocyanin biosynthesis in apiculi and stigmas, a further step in understanding the regulatory network of anthocyanin biosynthesis in rice.
Association of temporary Environmental Protection Agency regulation suspension with industrial economic viability and local air quality in California, United States
Authors: Chang Emily , Zhang Kenneth , Paczkowski Margaret , Kohler Sara , Ribeiro Marco
Published: April 2021

Background

This study seeks to answer two questions about the impacts of the 2020 Environmental Protection Agency’s enforcement regulation rollbacks: is this suspension bolstering the economic viability of industries as oil and manufacturing executives claim they will and are these regulations upholding the agency’s mission of protecting the environment?

Results

To answer the former question, we utilized 6 months of state employment level data from California, United States, as a method of gauging the economic health of agency-regulated industries. We implemented a machine learning model to predict weekly employment data and at-test to indicate any significant changes in employment. We found that, following California's state-issued stay-at-home order and the agency’s regulation suspension, oil and certain manufacturing industries had statistically significant lower employment values.

To answer the latter question, we used 10 years of PM2.5levels in California, United States, as a metric for local air quality and treatment–control county pairs to isolate the impact of regulation rollbacks from the impacts of the state lockdown. Using the agency’s data, we performed at-test to determine whether treatment–control county pairs experienced a significant change in PM2.5levels. Even with the statewide lockdown—a measure we hypothesized would correlate with decreased mobility and pollution levels—in place, counties with oil refineries experienced the same air pollution levels when compared to historical data averaged from the years 2009 to 2019.

Conclusions

In contrast to the expectation that the suspension would improve the financial health of the oil and manufacturing industry, we can conclude that these industries are not witnessing economic growth with the suspension and state shutdown in place. Additionally, counties with oil refineries could be taking advantage of these rollbacks to continue emitting the same amount of PM2.5, in spite of state lockdowns. For these reasons, we ask international policymakers to reconsider the suspension of enforcement regulations as these actions do not fulfill their initial expectations. We recommend the creation and maintenance of pollution control and prevention programs that develop emission baselines, mandate the construction of pollution databases, and update records of pollution emissions.
Bayesian genomic models boost prediction accuracy for survival to Streptococcus agalactiae infection in Nile tilapia (Oreochromus nilioticus)
Authors: Joshi Rajesh , Skaarud Anders , Alvarez Alejandro Tola , Moen Thomas , Ødegård Jørgen
Published: April 2021

Background

Streptococcosis is a major bacterial disease in Nile tilapia that is caused byStreptococcus agalactiaeinfection, and development of resistant strains of Nile tilapia represents a sustainable approach towards combating this disease. In this study, we performed a controlled disease trial on 120 full-sib families to (i) quantify and characterize the potential of genomic selection for survival toS. agalactiaeinfection in Nile tilapia, and (ii) identify the best genomic model and the optimal density of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for this trait.

Methods

In total, 40 fish per family (15 fish intraperitoneally injected and 25 fish as cohabitants) were used in the challenge test. Mortalities were recorded every 3 h for 35 days. After quality control, genotypes (50,690 SNPs) and phenotypes (0 for dead and 1 for alive) for 2472 cohabitant fish were available. Genetic parameters were obtained using various genomic selection models (genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP), BayesB, BayesC, BayesR and BayesS) and a traditional pedigree-based model (PBLUP). The pedigree-based analysis used a deep 17-generation pedigree. Prediction accuracy and bias were evaluated using five replicates of tenfold cross-validation. The genomic models were further analyzed using 10 subsets of SNPs at different densities to explore the effect of pruning and SNP density on predictive accuracy.

Results

Moderate estimates of heritabilities ranging from 0.15 ± 0.03 to 0.26 ± 0.05 were obtained with the different models. Compared to a pedigree-based model, GBLUP (using all the SNPs) increased prediction accuracy by 15.4%. Furthermore, use of the most appropriate Bayesian genomic selection model and SNP density increased the prediction accuracy up to 71%. The 40 to 50 SNPs with non-zero effects were consistent for all BayesB, BayesC and BayesS models with respect to marker id and/or marker locations.

Conclusions

These results demonstrate the potential of genomic selection for survival toS. agalactiaeinfection in Nile tilapia. Compared to the PBLUP and GBLUP models, Bayesian genomic models were found to boost the prediction accuracy significantly.
Heritability of perching behavior and its genetic relationship with incidence of floor eggs in Rhode Island Red chickens
Authors: Wolc Anna , Settar Petek , Fulton Janet E. , Arango Jesus , Rowland Kaylee , Lubritz Danny , Dekkers Jack C. M.
Published: April 2021

Background

As cage-free production systems become increasingly popular, behavioral traits such as nesting behavior and temperament have become more important. The objective of this study was to estimate heritabilities for frequency of perching and proportion of floor eggs and their genetic correlation in two Rhode Island Red lines.

Results

The percent of hens observed perching tended to increase and the proportion of eggs laid on the floor tended to decrease as the test progressed. This suggests the ability of hens to learn to use nests and perches. Under the bivariate repeatability model, estimates of heritability in the two lines were 0.22 ± 0.04 and 0.07 ± 0.05 for the percent of hens perching, and 0.52 ± 0.05 and 0.45 ± 0.05 for the percent of floor eggs. Estimates of the genetic correlation between perching and floor eggs were − 0.26 ± 0.14 and − 0.19 ± 0.27 for the two lines, suggesting that, genetically, there was some tendency for hens that better use perches to also use nests; but the phenotypic correlation was close to zero. Random regression models indicated the presence of a genetic component for learning ability.

Conclusions

In conclusion, perching and tendency to lay floor eggs were shown to be a learned behavior, which stresses the importance of proper management and training of pullets and young hens. A significant genetic component was found, confirming the possibility to improve nesting behavior for cage-free systems through genetic selection.
Region-specific expression of young small-scale duplications in the human central nervous system
Authors: Brohard-Julien Solène , Frouin Vincent , Meyer Vincent , Chalabi Smahane , Deleuze Jean-François , Le Floch Edith , Battail Christophe
Published: April 2021

Background

The duplication of genes is one of the main genetic mechanisms that led to the gain in complexity of biological tissue. Although the implication of duplicated gene expression in brain evolution was extensively studied through comparisons between organs, their role in the regional specialization of the adult human central nervous system has not yet been well described.

Results

Our work explored intra-organ expression properties of paralogs through multiple territories of the human central nervous system (CNS) using transcriptome data generated by the Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) consortium. Interestingly, we found that paralogs were associated with region-specific expression in CNS, suggesting their involvement in the differentiation of these territories. Beside the influence of gene expression level on region-specificity, we observed the contribution of both duplication age and duplication type to the CNS region-specificity of paralogs. Indeed, we found that small scale duplicated genes (SSDs) and in particular ySSDs (SSDs younger than the 2 rounds of whole genome duplications) were more CNS region-specific than other paralogs. Next, by studying the two paralogs of ySSD pairs, we observed that when they were region-specific, they tend to be specific to the same region more often than for other paralogs, showing the high co-expression of ySSD pairs. The extension of this analysis to families of paralogs showed that the families with co-expressed gene members (i.e. homogeneous families) were enriched in ySSDs. Furthermore, these homogeneous families tended to be region-specific families, where the majority of their gene members were specifically expressed in the same region.

Conclusions

Overall, our study suggests the involvement of ySSDs in the differentiation of human central nervous system territories. Therefore, we show the relevance of exploring region-specific expression of paralogs at the intra-organ level.
Resilience, plasticity and robustness in gene expression during aging in the brain of outbred deer mice
Authors: Soltanmohammadi E , Zhang Y , Chatzistamou I , Kiaris H.
Published: April 2021

Background

Genes that belong to the same network are frequently co-expressed, but collectively, how the coordination of the whole transcriptome is perturbed during aging remains unclear. To explore this, we calculated the correlation of each gene in the transcriptome with every other, in the brain of young and older outbred deer mice (P. leucopus and P. maniculatus).

Results

In about 25 % of the genes, coordination was inversed during aging. Gene Ontology analysis in both species, for the genes that exhibited inverse transcriptomic coordination during aging pointed to alterations in the perception of smell, a known impairment occurring during aging.

In P. leucopus, alterations in genes related to cholesterol metabolism were also identified. Among the genes that exhibited the most pronounced inversion in their coordination profiles during aging was THBS4, that encodes for thrombospondin-4, a protein that was recently identified as rejuvenation factor in mice. Relatively to its breadth, abolishment of coordination was more prominent in the long-living P. leucopus than in P. maniculatus but in the latter, the intensity of de-coordination was higher.

Conclusions

There sults suggest that aging is associated with more stringent retention of expression profiles for some genes and more abrupt changes in others, while more subtle but widespread changes in gene expression appear protective. Our findings shed light in the mode of the transcriptional changes occurring in the brain during aging and suggest that strategies aiming to broader but more modest changes in gene expression may be preferrable to correct aging-associated deregulation in gene expression.
Cholelithiasis and cholecystitis in children and adolescents: Does this increasing diagnosis require a common guideline for pediatricians and pediatric surgeons?
Authors: Diez Sonja , Müller Hanna , Weiss Christel , Schellerer Vera , Besendörfer Manuel
Published: April 2021

Background

In contrast to adults, for whom guidelines on the cholelithiasis treatment exist, there is no consistent treatment of pediatric patients with cholelithiasis throughout national and international departments, most probably due to the lack of evidence-based studies.

Methods

We evaluated the German management of pediatric cholelithiasis in a dual approach. Firstly, a retrospective, inter-divisional study was established, comparing diagnostics and therapy of patients of the pediatric surgery department with the management of patients aged < 25 years of the visceral surgery department in our institution over the past ten years. Secondarily, a nation-wide online survey was implemented through the German Society of Pediatric Surgery.

Results

Management of pediatric patients with cholelithiasis was primarily performed by pediatricians in the retrospective analysis (p < 0.001). Pediatric complicated cholelithiasis was not managed acutely in the majority of cases with a median time between diagnosis and surgery of 22 days (range 4 days–8 months vs. 3 days in visceral surgery subgroup (range 0 days–10 months), p = 0.003). However, the outcome remained comparable. The hospital’s own results triggered a nation-wide survey with a response rate of 38%. Primary pediatric medical management of patients was confirmed by 36 respondents (71%). In case of acute cholecystitis, 22% of participants perform a cholecystectomy within 24 h after diagnosis. Open questions revealed that complicated cholelithiasis is managed individually.

Conclusions

The management of pediatric cholelithiasis differs between various hospitals and between pediatricians and pediatric surgeons. Evidence-based large-scale population studies as well as a common guideline may represent very important tools for treating this increasing diagnosis.
Socio-demographic characteristics and outcomes of pregnant women who delivered prior to and after the termination of the one-child policy in China: a comparative study
Authors: Zhang Xiaohui , Lou Haifeng , Tang Xuejuan , Chen Xiaoli
Published: April 2021

Background

The new Chinese fertility policy has recently received widespread public attention. However, there are few studies available on the comprehensive epidemiology of maternal and infant health with respect to the characteristic changes of childbearing women. In the study, we compared the maternal characteristics and pregnancy outcomes at different time points according to policy adjustments, accessed the possible relationship among these factors, and evaluated the impacts of these policies for medical and policy assistance.

Methods

This was a retrospective study. Data were collected from three representative hospitals in Zhejiang Province using stratified random sampling. The annual number of births, and maternal and child healthcare levels were the determining factors of sampling. Women who gave birth in November of 2012, 2014, and 2016 were recruited in accordance with the time of the change in the fertility policy, and we explored the differences in maternal socio-demographic characteristics, delivery mode and pregnancy outcomes.

Results

A total of 11,718 women were recruited, including 3480, 4044, and 4194 in November of 2012, 2014, and 2016, respectively. The proportions of multiparous women, women who aged ≥35 years, who received higher education, who had previous cesarean sections (CS), and who delivered in a high level hospital increased over time. In 2016, multipara accounted for 49.12, 14.47% were aged ≥35 years, nearly half of women had previous CS and delivered in a provincial hospital, 41.73% gave birth by CS, and 31.62% suffered pregnancy complications. The results of multiple logistic regression mode showed CS risk decreased significantly in 2014 (ORadj = 0.62; 95% CI, 0.55–0.67) relative to 2012, and risks of pregnancy complications (ORadj = 2.30; 95% CI, 1.86–2.83) and multiple births (ORadj = 3.25; 95% CI, 2.19–4.83) only increased in 2016 compared to 2012.

Conclusions

Some pregnancy outcomes increased as several key characteristics of childbearing women changed after China ended its “one-child” policy. This suggests that policy providers and medical staff need to strengthen healthcare in a consistent fashion regarding changes in birth policy.
Predictors of fear of childbirth and normal vaginal birth among Iranian postpartum women: a cross-sectional study
Authors: Mortazavi Forough , Mehrabadi Maryam
Published: April 2021

Background

Fear of childbirth (FOC) may contribute to postpartum depression, impaired maternal-infant relation, and preference for cesarean in future pregnancies. We aimed to investigate predictors of FOC and normal vaginal birth among postpartum women who had planned for a normal vaginal birth.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019 with postpartum women during the first 24 h after the birth. A sample of 662 women, selected using a convenient sampling method, filled out the questionnaire composed of socio-demographic and obstetric questions and the Wijma Delivery-Expectancy Questionnaire (W-DEQ). We used multiple logistic regression analyses to determine predictors of FOC and normal vaginal birth.

Results

The percentage of women with mild (score ≤ 37), moderate (38–65), high (66–84), severe (85–99), and intense FOC (score ≥ 100) were 7.9, 19.5, 40.9, 21.1, and 10.6% respectively. Predictors of intense FOC were age < 30, primiparity, low maternal satisfaction with pregnancy, and a low level of perceived marital satisfaction. Overall, 21.8% of women gave birth by cesarean. Predictors of normal vaginal birth were birth weight < 4 kg, spontaneous onset of labor pain, mother’s age < 30, term pregnancy, having a doula, multiparity, satisfaction with husband’s support, and overall satisfaction with pregnancy. A high level of perceived marital/sexual satisfaction was a risk factor for cesarean. Mode of birth was not a predictor of postpartum FOC.

Conclusions

The rate of severe and intense FOC among this group of postpartum women is high. Our findings highlight modifiable factors for reducing FOC and increasing normal vaginal birth. In designing programs to increase the rate of normal vaginal birth, the following factors should be considered: limiting induced labor, encouraging women to recruit a doula to help them at labor, facilitate husband’s attendance throughout antenatal/intrapartum, and postnatal care to support his wife, and pay attention to women’s common misunderstandings about the effect of vaginal birth on marital/sexual relationship. Our findings indicate that seeking novel ways to promote marital/sexual satisfaction and helping women to have a smooth, hassle-free pregnancy may contribute to a reduction in the rate of the FOC.