bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Association between serum prostate‐specific antigen concentrations and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus in Chinese men: A cohort study
Authors: Huang Shao‐fen , Yu Ying‐lin , Cui Yun‐feng , Lou Yan‐mei , Liao Min‐qi , Wang Chang‐yi , Xu Shan , Chen Hong‐en , Gao Xu‐ping , Dai Shu‐hong , Peng Xiao‐lin , Zhao Dan , Wang Li , Ping Zhao , Zeng Fang‐fang
Published: February 2021

Aims/Introduction

The current literature suggests that men with diabetes have a lower prostate‐specific antigen concentration than men without diabetes, but the causal association remains unclear. We aimed to investigate the association between serum prostate‐specific antigen concentrations and the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus in a cohort study of a Chinese population.

Materials and Methods

We designed a cohort study that comprised 16,811 initially non‐diabetic Chinese men who received annual health checkups between 2009 and 2016. The outcome of this study was type 2 diabetes mellitus, identified by medical diagnosis, self‐reportage, medication use, fasting glucose, 2‐h post oral glucose or glycated hemoglobin measurements. Cox proportional hazards models were carried out to evaluate the association.

Results

During a median follow‐up period of 3.8 years (interquartile range 1.91–5.73 years), 1,260 participants developed incident type 2 diabetes mellitus. The multivariable model, adjusted for various potential confounders, showed that serum prostate‐specific antigen concentrations were inversely related to type 2 diabetes mellitus risk (P for trend = 0.014). Compared with the lowest quartile of serum prostate‐specific antigen, the hazard ratio and 95% confidence intervals of type 2 diabetes mellitus risk for quartile 2–4 were 0.84 (0.66–1.07), 0.75 (0.59–0.94) and 0.77 (0.62–0.96), respectively. Subgroup analyses suggested the inverse relationship was more prominent in overweight or obese participants (P for interaction = 0.013).

Conclusions

High serum prostate‐specific antigen concentration was associated with a low risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus in Chinese men. Future studies are required to confirm these findings and investigate underlying mechanisms.
Outcome assessment in dermatology: a tree in need of pruning
Authors: Ragamin A. , Nijsten T.
Published: February 2021

Linked article: T. Lange et al. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol 2021; 35: 523–535. https://doi.org/10.1111/jdv.16854.
Deep‐learning system for real‐time differentiation between Crohn's disease, intestinal Behçet's disease, and intestinal tuberculosis
Authors: Kim Jung Min , Kang Jun Gu , Kim Sungwon , Cheon Jae Hee
Published: February 2021

Background and Aim

Pattern analysis of big data can provide a superior direction for the clinical differentiation of diseases with similar endoscopic findings. This study aimed to develop a deep‐learning algorithm that performs differential diagnosis between intestinal Behçet's disease (BD), Crohn's disease (CD), and intestinal tuberculosis (ITB) using colonoscopy images.

Methods

The typical pattern for each disease was defined as a typical image. We implemented a convolutional neural network (CNN) using Pytorch and visualized a deep‐learning model through Gradient‐weighted Class Activation Mapping. The performance of the algorithm was evaluated using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC).

Results

A total of 6617 colonoscopy images of 211 CD, 299 intestinal BD, and 217 ITB patients were used. The accuracy of the algorithm for discriminating the three diseases (all‐images: 65.15% vs typical images: 72.01%, P = 0.024) and discriminating between intestinal BD and CD (all‐images: 78.15% vs typical images: 85.62%, P = 0.010) was significantly different between all‐images and typical images. The CNN clearly differentiated colonoscopy images of the diseases (AUROC from 0.7846 to 0.8586). Algorithmic prediction AUROC for typical images ranged from 0.8211 to 0.9360.

Conclusion

This study found that a deep‐learning model can discriminate between colonoscopy images of intestinal BD, CD, and ITB. In particular, the algorithm demonstrated superior discrimination ability for typical images. This approach presents a beneficial method for the differential diagnosis of the diseases.
Regional Effects of Exchange Rate Fluctuations
Authors: HOUSE CHRISTOPHER L. , PROEBSTING CHRISTIAN , TESAR LINDA L.
Published: February 2021

We exploit differences across U.S. states' exposure to trade to study the effects of changes in the exchange rate on economic activity. Across states, trade‐weighted exchange rate depreciations are associated with increased state exports, reduced state unemployment, and higher state hours worked. The effects are particularly strong during periods of economic slack. A multiregion model with interstate trade and labor flows, calibrated to match state‐level trade data and migration flows, replicates the empirical relationship between exchange rates and unemployment. The high degree of interstate trade plays an important role in transmitting shocks across states in the first year, whereas interstate migration shapes cross‐sectional patterns in later years. We use the model to study the regional effects of tariffs in the United States. The model suggests that a 25% Chinese import tariff on U.S. goods would be felt throughout the United States, even in states with small direct linkages to China, raising unemployment rates by 0.2 to 0.7 percentage points in the short run.
Medium‐Term Money Neutrality and the Effective Lower Bound
Authors: EGGERTSSON GAUTI B. , GIANNONI MARC P.
Published: February 2021

Conventional wisdom suggests that medium‐term money neutrality imposes strong limitations on the effects of monetary policy. The point of this paper is that models with medium‐ and long‐term money neutrality are prone to generate nonexistence of equilibria at the effective lower bound (ELB) on interest rates. Nonexistence is suggestive of sharp output contractions—so‐called contractionary black holes—at the ELB. Paradoxically, the case for expansionary monetary policy at the ELB is even stronger in models that feature near money neutrality. The results highlight the benefits of a monetary policy regime in which the central bank temporarily overshoots its inflation target once confronted by the ELB.
The Dynamics of Unemployment and Inflation in New Keynesian Models with Two Labor Margins
Authors: CLERC PIERRICK
Published: February 2021

New Keynesian models for which firms unilaterally adjust labor along both the intensive, and extensive margins usually fail to reproduce the volatility of unemployment. In this paper, we show that a marginal wage much more responsive than the average wage to shocks—in accordance with empirical observations—is a crucial mechanism allowing these models to replicate unemployment dynamics. At the same time, the large movements of the marginal wage are consistent with the low volatility of inflation as such movements induce strong strategic complementarities between price setters.
Adaptive Learning, Social Security Reform, and Policy Uncertainty
Authors: COTTLE HUNT ERIN
Published: February 2021

I develop an adaptive learning model to study the welfare effects of Social Security policy uncertainty in an aging economy. Agents combine full knowledge of the political process (which Social Security reforms are possible and when they could occur) with limited knowledge about the structure of the economy. The adaptive learning amplifies cyclical dynamics along the transition path to the new steady state. This magnifies the welfare effects of policy uncertainty, compared to a standard rational expectations model. The ex ante consumption equivalent variation that equates the expected utility of consumption (with policy uncertainty) to the utility of expected consumption (across the possible policies without uncertainty) ranges between −0.29% and 0.21% of lifetime consumption in the adaptive learning model compared to −0.012% to −0.018% in the standard model. The welfare cost to future generations is also larger in the adaptive learning model compared to the rational model.
Political Pressure on Central Banks
Authors: Binder Carola Conces
Published: February 2021

I construct a quarterly data set on political pressure faced by 118 central banks from 2010 to 2018 using country‐level reports. I code whether each central bank is reportedly succumbing to pressure or resisting pressure. About 10% of central banks reportedly face political pressure in an average year. Even central banks with high legal independence frequently face pressure—nearly always for looser monetary policy. Pressure on the central bank is associated with higher inflation and inflation persistence. Pressure is more likely to come from governments with left‐wing or nationalist executives, few checks and balances, or weak electoral competition.
Contemplation‐action‐maintenance model of behaviour change for persons with coronary heart disease: A qualitative study
Authors: Yue Peng , Wu Ying , Zhang Yan , Chen Yuling , Li Jia , Xu Yahong , Liu Yisi
Published: February 2021

Aims and objectives

To explore factors of health behaviour maintenance from the perspective of coronary heart disease (CHD) patients.

Background

The majority of CHD patients do not achieve appropriate theory‐based intervention to maintain health behaviours. Previous health behaviour change theories give little importance to behaviour maintenance.

Design

A qualitative descriptive study.

Methods

Thirty CHD patients were recruited purposively and interviewed from four hospitals in Beijing, China, during January 2017–August 2019. Data were analysed using template analysis methods. The COREQ checklist was used.

Results

Perceived enjoyment and perceived effectiveness from the newly adopted behaviours emerged as vital factors for maintaining health behaviour; contemplation‐action‐maintenance (CAM) model to explain the behaviour change and maintenance of CHD patients was constructed.

Conclusions

The CAM model provides insight into the factors of health behaviour action and maintenance among CHD patients. Professionals can develop interventions from the perspective of patients' experiences to promote maintenance of behaviour.

Relevance to clinical practice

Professionals need to consider that the goal of behavioural intervention should initially and continuously target patients' perseverance. Interventions of health behaviour that bring enjoyment may aid long‐term maintenance. Also, healthcare providers can enhance patients’ perception of effectiveness to motivate their behaviour maintenance in lifestyle change programmes.
A Triangular Relationship of Visual Attention, Spatial Ability, and Creative Performance in Spatial Design: An Exploratory Case Study
Authors: Suh Joori , Cho Ji Young
Published: February 2021

Eye movements are highly dependent on the task and stimuli given to a viewer. If no tasks are specified, do individuals see the item or scene in the same way? How are one's spatial ability and creative performance in spatial design related to visual attention when looking at various visual aspects of an environment scene? This exploratory case study aimed at understanding individuals’ visual attentional pattern when looking at three–dimensional environment scenes with spatially relevant or decorative elements and its potential link with spatial ability and creative performance, using eye–tracking technology. Thirty–eight interior design students at a Midwestern university participated in the study. Three results emerged. First, visual engagement with spatially relevant elements in an environment scene was typically stronger with the high spatial ability group. Second, although the statistical evidence was not strong, regardless of the location of the decorative visual stimuli, the high spatial ability group tended to pay more attention to spatial components than the low spatial ability group; whereas the low spatial ability group seemed to be more attracted to decorative visual stimuli. Third, in a few images, an individual's tendency to view certain aspects was found to negatively or positively correlate with creative performance. The study represents the initial step in understanding an individual's visual attention to spatial elements in environment scenes and its potential correlation with spatial ability and creative performance in spatial design.
Head Start and Nonresident Fathers' Involvement with Children
Authors: Haralampoudis Alexandra , Nepomnyaschy Lenna , Donnelly Louis
Published: February 2021

Objective

This study explores the associations of children's Head Start participation with the involvement and material contributions of their nonresident fathers.

Background

Head Start, which provides comprehensive child care services to over 1 million low‐income children annually, aims to enhance relationships and increase parental involvement among participating families. Prior studies indicate that Head Start increases engagement among mothers of participating children; however, little is known about its effects on father involvement, particularly that of nonresident fathers.

Method

Analyses are based on longitudinal data from the first five waves of the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study and focus on children with nonresident biological fathers at years 5 (N = 1,464) and 9 (N = 1,173). Associations are estimated between children's Head Start participation prior to kindergarten entry (at Age 5) and nonresident fathers' material contributions and social involvement at years 5 and 9, controlling for a rich set of individual, family, and contextual factors, including fathers' involvement prior to Head Start participation.

Results

Results indicated that Head Start participation was associated with increased levels of nonresident fathers' contact and engagement with children, and more frequent provision of in‐kind support, but not more formal or informal cash child support. These associations appeared to operate through improving the strength and quality of coparenting and parents' relationships.

Conclusion

Head Start may be an effective intervention for increasing nonresident fathers' involvement with children, which is another pathway through which Head Start can reduce socioeconomic inequalities and improve well‐being among children in low‐income families.
Molar incisor hypomineralization (MIH): prevalence and degree of severity in a Mexican pediatric population living in an endemic fluorosis area
Authors: Sosa‐Soto Joselyn , Padrón‐Covarrubias Ana Isabel , Márquez‐Preciado Raúl , Ruiz‐Rodríguez Socorro , Pozos‐Guillén Amaury , Pedroza‐Uribe Isaac Murisi , Bayardo‐González Rubén Alberto , Garrocho‐Rangel Arturo
Published: February 2021

Objective

To estimate the prevalence and severity of molar incisor hypomineralization (MIH) in 8 years old children living in an endemic fluorosis area.

Methods

MIH prevalence rate was determined from a study sample comprising 613 participants. They were recruited from 11 urban public schools with similar socio‐economic status. Oral evaluations were performed and diagnosed MIH teeth were classified under Ghanim et al.'s criteria. Statistical descriptive and comparative analyzes were carried out.

Results

First permanent molars were the tooth group most affected, followed by the upper central incisors, lower central incisors, lower lateral incisors, and upper lateral incisors. There was no significant statistical difference by gender and by maxillary/mandible arches (P = 0.82 and 0.26, respectively). The frequency of MIH was more in molars compared to incisors (P < 0.02).

Conclusions

The MIH prevalence in this study was 12.4 percent. According to the MIH severity, degree 2 was the most frequently detected (76.4 percent).
Influence of Abiotic Factors on the Growth of Cyanobacteria Isolated from Nakdong River, South Korea1
Authors: Yadav Seema , Anam Giridhar Babu , Ahn Young‐Ho
Published: February 2021

Changes in physico‐chemical factors due to natural climate variability and eutrophication could affect the cyanobacterial growth patterns in aquatic systems that may cause environmental health problems. Based on morphological and 16S rRNA gene analysis, three cyanobacterial species isolated for the first time from the Nakdong River water sample in South Korea were identified as Amazoninema brasiliense, Microcystis elabens, and Nododsilinea nodulosa. The variations in temperature, pH, nitrogen, or phosphorus levels significantly impacted the cyanobacterial growth patterns. The optimal temperature range for the growth of isolates was from 25–30°C. A neutral or weak alkaline environment favored growth; however, A. brasiliense resulted in 44.2–87.5% higher biomass (0.75 g · L−1 as dry solids, DS) and growth rate (0.24 · d−1) at pH 7 than the other isolates (0.4–0.52 g DS · L−1, 0.16–0.19 · d−1). The increased nitrate‐nitrogen (NO3‐N) concentrations significantly (P < 0.05) favored biomass production and growth rate for A. brasiliense and M. elabens, respectively, and the maximum growth rate was observed for A. brasiliense at 3.5 mg NO3‐N · L−1. The orthophosphate concentration (PO4–P) from 0.1 to 0.5 mg PO4‐P · L−1 increased the growth of the isolates. These observations suggest that isolate growth rates in water bodies can vary depending on different physico‐chemical parameters. This study contributes to the further understanding of the growth of microalgae in natural freshwater bodies under fluctuating environmental conditions and aquatic ecosystem stability.
Effect of vitamin D3 on the osteogenic differentiation of human periodontal ligament stromal cells under inflammatory conditions
Authors: Blufstein Alice , Behm Christian , Kubin Barbara , Gahn Johannes , Rausch‐Fan Xiaohui , Moritz Andreas , Andrukhov Oleh
Published: February 2021

Objectives

Vitamin D3 is known to activate osteogenic differentiation of human periodontal ligament stromal cells (hPDLSCs). Recently, inflammatory stimuli were shown to inhibit the transcriptional activity of hPDLSCs, but their effect on vitamin D3‐induced osteogenic differentiation is not known. The present study aimed to investigate whether the effects of 1,25‐dihydroxvitamin D3 (1,25(OH)2D3) and 25‐hydroxvitamin D3 (25(OH)D3) on the osteogenic differentiation of hPDLSCs are also altered under inflammatory conditions. Furthermore, the expression of osteogenesis‐related factors by hPDLSCs under osteogenic conditions was assessed in the presence of inflammatory stimuli.

Materials and Methods

Primary hPDLSCs of six donors were cultured in osteogenic induction medium containing either 1,25(OH)2D3 (0‐10 nM) or 25(OH)D3 (0‐100 nM) in the presence and absence of Porphyromonas gingivalis lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or Pam3CSK4 for 7, 14 and 21 days. Osteogenic differentiation of hPDLSCs was evaluated by analysis of mineralization as assessed by Alizarin Red S staining and gene expression levels of osteogenesis‐related factors osteocalcin, osteopontin and runt‐related transcription factor 2 (RUNX2) were analysed with qPCR.

Results

Treatment with 1,25(OH)2D3 significantly enhanced the osteogenic differentiation of hPDLSCs and their expression of osteocalcin and osteopontin. The 1,25(OH)2D3‐triggered expression of osteogenesis‐related factors was significantly lower in the presence of Pam3CSK4, but not P. gingivalis LPS. None of the inflammatory stimuli had significant effects on the 1,25(OH)2D3‐induced osteogenic differentiation. 25(OH)D3 neither affected gene expression levels nor osteogenic differentiation of hPDLSCs cultured in osteogenic induction medium.

Conclusion

The results of this study indicate that inflammatory stimuli also diminish the 1,25(OH)2D3‐induced expression of osteogenesis‐related factors in hPDLSCs under osteogenic conditions, while having no effect on the osteogenic differentiation.
Symmetric dimethylarginine and creatinine concentrations in serum of healthy draft horses
Authors: Schott Harold C. , Gallant Lisanne R. , Coyne Michael , Murphy Rachel , Cross Julie , Strong‐Townsend Marilyn , Szlosek Donald , Yerramilli Maha , Li Jun
Published: February 2021

Background

Symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) is considered a more sensitive indirect estimate of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) than creatinine (Cr). Symmetric dimethylarginine is not affected by sex or muscle mass in small animals.

Objectives

To validate a commercial SDMA immunoassay (IA) for equine serum; to compare SDMA and Cr in cohorts of draft horse breeds; and to assess effects of age, sex, and breed.

Animals

One hundred and sixty‐five healthy draft horses (0.5‐16 years), including 63 Percherons, 52 Clydesdales, and 50 Belgians.

Methods

Cross‐sectional study. The SDMA IA was validated for equine serum by comparison to liquid chromatography‐mass spectroscopy (LC‐MS) results and other methods. Symmetric dimethylarginine and Cr were compared by analysis of variance and correlation analysis.

Results

Median and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for LC‐MS (10.0 [9.4, 10.2] μg/dL) and IA (9.7 [9.5, 10.0] μg/dL) SDMA concentrations were strongly correlated (R = .74, P < .001). Symmetric dimethylarginine was lower (P < .01) in Percherons and Belgians, than in Clydesdales. Median values and 95% CI for Cr were 1.3 (1.2, 1.4), 1.4 (1.3, 1.5), and 1.4 (1.3, 1.5) mg/dL (P = .06) for Percherons, Clydesdales, and Belgians, respectively. Symmetric dimethylarginine was correlated to Cr (LC‐MS, R = .60, P < .001; IA, R = .66, P < .001). There were no differences in SDMA or Cr between sexes and there were no correlations between age and SDMA or Cr.

Conclusions and Clinical Importance

Although a significant breed effect on SDMA concentration was found, differences were small and all medians were <14 μg/dL, the cutoff value to support renal dysfunction in dogs and cats.
Effects of pimobendan in cats with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and recent congestive heart failure: Results of a prospective, double‐blind, randomized, nonpivotal, exploratory field study
Authors: Schober Karsten E. , Rush John E. , Luis Fuentes Virginia , Glaus Tony , Summerfield Nuala J. , Wright Kathy , Lehmkuhl Linda , Wess Gerhard , Sayer Margaret P. , Loureiro Joao , MacGregor John , Mohren Nicole
Published: February 2021

Background

The benefits of pimobendan in the treatment of congestive heart failure (CHF) in cats with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) have not been evaluated prospectively.

Hypothesis/Objectives

To investigate the effects of pimobendan in cats with HCM and recent CHF and to identify possible endpoints for a pivotal study. We hypothesized that pimobendan would be well‐tolerated and associated with improved outcome.

Animals

Eighty‐three cats with HCM and recently controlled CHF: 30 with and 53 without left ventricular outflow tract obstruction.

Methods

Prospective randomized placebo‐controlled double‐blind multicenter nonpivotal field study. Cats received either pimobendan (0.30 mg/kg q12h, n = 43), placebo (n = 39), or no medication (n = 1) together with furosemide (<10 mg/kg/d) with or without clopidogrel. The primary endpoint was a successful outcome (ie, completing the 180‐day study period without a dose escalation of furosemide).

Results

The proportion of cats in the full analysis set population with a successful outcome was not different between treatment groups (P = .75). For nonobstructive cats, the success rate was 32% in pimobendan‐treated cats versus 18.2% in the placebo group (odds ratio [OR], 2.12; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.54‐8.34). For obstructive cats, the success rate was 28.6% and 60% in the pimobendan and placebo groups, respectively (OR, 0.27; 95% CI, 0.06‐1.26). No difference was found between treatments for the secondary endpoints of time to furosemide dose escalation or death (P = .89). Results were similar in the per‐protocol sets. Adverse events in both treatment groups were similar.

Conclusions and Clinical Importance

In this study of cats with HCM and recent CHF, no benefit of pimobendan on 180‐day outcome was identified.
Lenvatinib versus sorafenib in first‐line treatment of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma: An inverse probability of treatment weighting analysis
Authors: Casadei‐Gardini Andrea , Scartozzi Mario , Tada Toshifumi , Yoo Changhoon , Shimose Shigeo , Masi Gianluca , Lonardi Sara , Frassineti Luca Giovanni , Nicola Silvestris , Piscaglia Fabio , Kumada Takashi , Kim Hyung‐Don , Koga Hironori , Vivaldi Caterina , Soldà Caterina , Hiraoka Atsushi , Bang Yeonghak , Atsukawa Masanori , Torimura Takuji , Tsuj Kunihiko , Itobayashi Ei , Toyoda Hidenori , Fukunishi Shinya , Rimassa Lorenza , Rimini Margherita , Cascinu Stefano , Cucchetti Alessandro
Published: February 2021

Purpose

Data from common clinical practice were used to generate balanced cohorts of patients receiving either sorafenib or lenvatinib, for unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma, with the final aim to investigate their declared equivalence.

Methods

Clinical features of lenvatinib and sorafenib patients were balanced through inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) methodology, which weights patients’ characteristics and measured outcomes of each patient in both treatment arms. Overall survival was the primary endpoint and occurrence of adverse events was the secondary.

Results

The analysis included 385 patients who received lenvatinib, and 555 patients who received sorafenib. In the unadjusted cohort, lenvatinib did not show a survival advantage over sorafenib (HR: 0.85, 95% CI 0.70‐1.02). After IPTW adjustment, lenvatinib still not returned a survival advantage over sorafenib (HR: 0.82, 95% CI: 0.62‐1.07) even in presence of balanced baseline characteristics. Lenvatinib provided longer survival than sorafenib in patients previously submitted to TACE (HR: 0.69), with PS of 0 (HR: 0.73) or without extrahepatic disease (HR: 0.69).

Conclusion

Present results confirmed randomized controlled trial in the real‐life setting, but also suggests that in earlier stages some benefit can be expected.
Optimal dynamic risk sharing under the time‐consistent mean‐variance criterion
Authors: Chen Lv , Landriault David , Li Bin , Li Danping
Published: February 2021

In this paper, we consider a dynamic Pareto optimal risk‐sharing problem under the time‐consistent mean‐variance criterion. A group of n insurers is assumed to share an exogenous risk whose dynamics is modeled by a Lévy process. By solving the extended Hamilton–Jacobi–Bellman equation using the Lagrange multiplier method, an explicit form of the time‐consistent equilibrium risk‐bearing strategy for each insurer is obtained. We show that equilibrium risk‐bearing strategies are mixtures of two common risk‐sharing arrangements, namely, the proportional and stop‐loss strategies. Their explicit forms allow us to thoroughly examine the analytic properties of the equilibrium risk‐bearing strategies. We later consider two extensions to the original model by introducing a set of financial investment opportunities and allowing for insurers' ambiguity towards the exogenous risk distribution. We again explicitly solve for the equilibrium risk‐bearing strategies and further examine the impact of the extension component (investment or ambiguity) on these strategies. Finally, we consider an application of our results in the classical risk‐sharing problem of a pure exchange economy.
Evaluating the O‐Cr‐Mo isotope signatures in various meteorites representing core–mantle–crust fragments: Implications for partially differentiated planetesimal(s) accreted in the early outer solar system
Authors: Ali Arshad , Jabeen Iffat
Published: February 2021

The Allende, Eagle Station pallasites (ESP), some ungrouped achondrites (UA), and ungrouped irons (UI) represent different types of meteorites; these are traditionally distinguished as chondrule‐bearing chondrite, chondrule‐free stony irons, stones, and irons, respectively. Oxygen isotopic compositions of meteorites have long been used as a robust tool to identify the parent bodies of these extraterrestrial materials. We revisited the δ18O‐∆17O, along with ε54Cr and ε92Mo, of these meteorites and established a genetic link that possibly suggests that undifferentiated carbonaceous chondrites and their differentiated counterparts belong to a common reservoir. We observed that the differentiated counterparts of Allende CV3 including ESP, ungrouped achondrites, and ungrouped irons collectively provide the oxygen isotope trends comparable to those of the Y&R and the PCM lines, and are likely to represent the primitive isotope reservoirs in the solar nebula. ε54Cr and ε92Mo data of these meteorite types support their oxygen isotope trends. The idea of a common partially differentiated parent body also lends support from natural remnant magnetization in the CV chondrites and Eagle Station olivine. Furthermore, ∆17O‐ε54Cr data suggest that these meteorites originated from carbonaceous planetesimal(s) accreted at different heliocentric distances in the solar nebula in the outer solar system. As proposed earlier, these bodies remained separated from the inner solar system due to formation of Jupiter. Taken together, we propose that the ungrouped irons, ESP, and ungrouped achondrites could possibly represent the differentiated sections, such as core, core–mantle, and mantle of a planetesimal(s), respectively, with the Allende CV3 representing an undifferentiated chondritic crust.
Population structure in a continuously distributed coastal marine species, the harbor porpoise, based on microhaplotypes derived from poor‐quality samples
Authors: Morin Phillip A. , Forester Brenna R. , Forney Karin A. , Crossman Carla A. , Hancock‐Hanser Brittany L. , Robertson Kelly M. , Barrett‐Lennard Lance G. , Baird Robin W. , Calambokidis John , Gearin Pat , Hanson M. Bradley , Schumacher Cassie , Harkins Timothy , Fontaine Michael C. , Taylor Barbara L. , Parsons Kim M.
Published: February 2021

Harbor porpoise in the North Pacific are found in coastal waters from southern California to Japan, but population structure is poorly known outside of a few local areas. We used multiplexed amplicon sequencing of 292 loci and genotyped clusters of single nucleotide polymoirphisms as microhaplotypes (N = 271 samples) in addition to mitochondrial (mtDNA) sequence data (N = 413 samples) to examine the genetic structure from samples collected along the Pacific coast and inland waterways from California to southern British Columbia. We confirmed an overall pattern of strong isolation‐by‐distance, suggesting that individual dispersal is restricted. We also found evidence of regions where genetic differences are larger than expected based on geographical distance alone, implying current or historical barriers to gene flow. In particular, the southernmost population in California is genetically distinct (FST = 0.02 [microhaplotypes]; 0.31 [mtDNA]), with both reduced genetic variability and high frequency of an otherwise rare mtDNA haplotype. At the northern end of our study range, we found significant genetic differentiation of samples from the Strait of Georgia, previously identified as a potential biogeographical boundary or secondary contact zone between harbor porpoise populations. Association of microhaplotypes with remotely sensed environmental variables indicated potential local adaptation, especially at the southern end of the species’ range. These results inform conservation and management for this nearshore species, illustrate the value of genomic methods for detecting patterns of genetic structure within a continuously distributed marine species, and highlight the power of microhaplotype genotyping for detecting genetic structure in harbor porpoises despite reliance on poor‐quality samples.
Facilitating motivation for interprofessional education programmes
Authors: Davids Lameez
Published: February 2021

Reflecting on the competition that can exist between interprofessional and intraprofessional goals, Lameez offers comment on Ganotice et al.'s exploration of motivation's role.
Transport Infrastructure and Regional Integration in the Middle East
Authors: El‐Anis Imad
Published: February 2021

The soft aspects of the infrastructure of regionalism in the Middle East have previously been studied, while the impact of the region’s hard infrastructure, in particular transport infrastructure, has received little attention. This paper contributes to the study of regionalism in the Middle East by investigating the relationship between hard infrastructure and economic integration. It analyzes whether the state of domestic and cross‐border transport infrastructure in the region promotes regional trade. This is done by addressing the following sub‐questions: 1) What is the condition of domestic and cross‐border transport infrastructure in the Middle East? And 2) What is the relationship between domestic and cross‐border transport infrastructure and regional trade in the Middle East? These questions are answered by examining Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, and Turkey as representative samples of the broader region. It is argued that regionalism relies on the development of domestic and cross‐border transport infrastructure and where the latter is limited, regionalism cannot deepen. The study concludes that domestic and cross‐border transport infrastructure performance is weak in several of the countries studied and that this weakness hinders regional economic integration regardless of the level of the region’s soft infrastructure.
Pulmonary infection secondary to Blastobotrys raffinosifermentans in a cystic fibrosis patient: Review of the literature
Authors: Al‐Obaidi Mohanad , Badali Hamid , Cañete‐Gibas Connie , Patterson Hoja P. , Wiederhold Nathan P.
Published: February 2021

Background

The genus Blastobotrys consists of at least 20 species. Disease in humans has been reported with B adeninivorans, B raffinosifermentans, B proliferans and B serpentis, mostly in immunocompromised patients and those with cystic fibrosis.

Objective

We report a lung infection secondary to B raffinosifermentans in a cystic fibrosis patient successfully treated with isavuconazole and review the literature of invasive infections caused this genus. We also evaluated clinical isolates in our laboratory for species identification and antifungal susceptibility.

Methods

Phylogenetic analysis was performed on a collection of 22 Blastobotrys isolates in our reference laboratory, and antifungal susceptibility patterns were determined for nine clinically available antifungals against 19 of these isolates.

Results

By phylogenetic analysis, 21 of the 22 isolates in our collection were identified as B raffinosifermentans and only 1 as B adeninivorans. Most were cultured from the respiratory tract, although others were recovered from other sources, including CSF and blood. Isavuconazole, caspofungin and micafungin demonstrated the most potent in vitro activity, followed by amphotericin B. In contrast, fluconazole demonstrated poor activity. The patient in this case responded to isavuconazole treatment for breakthrough infection due to B raffinosifermentans that was cultured from pleural fluid while on posaconazole prophylaxis post–bilateral lung transplantation for cystic fibrosis.

Conclusions

Blastobotrys species are rare causes of infections in humans and primarily occur in immunocompromised hosts. In our collection, the majority of isolates were identified as B raffinosifermentans. To our knowledge, this is the first report of successful treatment of such an infection with isavuconazole.
Abnormal prion protein deposits with high seeding activities in the skeletal muscle, femoral nerve, and scalp of an autopsied case of sporadic Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease
Authors: Honda Hiroyuki , Mori Shinichiro , Watanabe Akihiro , Sasagasako Naokazu , Sadashima Shoko , Đồng Trang , Satoh Katsuya , Nishida Noriyuki , Iwaki Toru
Published: February 2021

We report the general autopsy findings of abnormal prion protein (PrP) deposits with their seeding activities, as assessed by the real‐time quaking‐induced conversion (RT‐QuIC) method, in a 72‐year‐old female patient with sporadic Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (sCJD). At 68 years of age, she presented with gait disturbance and visual disorders. Electroencephalography showed periodic synchronous discharge. Myoclonus was also observed. A genetic test revealed that PRNP codon 129 was methionine/methionine (MM). She died of pneumonia three years and four months after disease onset, and a general autopsy was performed. The brain weighed 650 g and appeared markedly atrophic. Immunohistochemistry for PrP revealed synaptic PrP deposits and coarse PrP deposits in the cerebral cortices, basal ganglia, cerebellum, and brainstem. Western blot analysis identified type 1 proteinase‐K‐resistant PrP in frontal cortex samples. PrP deposits were also observed in systemic organs, including the femoral nerve, psoas major muscle, abdominal skin, adrenal medulla, zona reticularis of the adrenal gland, islet cells of the pancreas, and thyroid gland. The RT‐QuIC method revealed positive seeding activities in all examined organs, including the frontal cortex, femoral nerve, psoas major muscle, scalp, abdominal skin, adrenal gland, pancreas, and thyroid gland. The following 50% seeding dose (SD50) values were 9.5 (frontal cortex); 8 ± 0.53 (femoral nerve); 7 ± 0.53 (psoas major muscle); and 7.88 ± 0.17 (scalp). The SD50 values for the adrenal gland, dermis, pancreas, and thyroid gland were 6.12 ± 0.53, 5.25, 4.75, and 4.5, respectively. PrP deposits in general organs may be associated with long‐term disease duration. This case indicated the necessity for general autopsies in sCJD cases to establish strict infection control procedures for surgical treatment and to examine certain organs.
Governing families that care for a sick relative: the contributions of Donzelot’s theory for nursing
Authors: Paradis‐Gagné Etienne , Holmes Dave
Published: February 2021

According to the literature, the family is now considered to be the most important resource for the care and support of a sick family member. Families are being increasingly invited and trained to play a utilitarian role, not just as family caregivers, but as healthcare agents. Healthcare institutions, based on neoliberal health policies, are encouraging them to perform increasingly complex and professionalized tasks. The burden associated with this expanded healthcare function, however, is significant (fatigue, emotional distress and exhaustion). The aim of this article was to present French sociologist Jacques Donzelot's theoretical perspective on governing through the family. According to Donzelot, such a government is exercised through various power techniques, including the instrumentalization of the family role and the transfer to families of the responsibility for health care. This author describes how healthcare institutions call on the family to perform hospital and biomedical practices within the home. A spin‐off of neoliberalism, the practices of governing through families specifically target women, who are considered to be the pillar of the family. Donzelot's perspective is very relevant to nursing, but is still rarely mobilized in the discipline. His critical perspective allows for a re‐reading of relations of power and mechanisms of surveillance and control of families, issues that are often overlooked in nursing research.
Pancreatic islet reserve in type 1 diabetes
Authors: Flatt Anneliese J. S. , Greenbaum Carla J. , Shaw James A. M. , Rickels Michael R.
Published: February 2021

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by pancreatic islet β cell loss and dysfunction resulting in insulin deficiency and hyperglycemia. During a presymptomatic phase of established β cell autoimmunity, β cell loss may first be evident through assessment of β cell secretory capacity, a measure of functional β cell mass. Reduction in pancreatic islet β cell reserve eventually manifests as impaired first‐phase insulin response to glucose and abnormal glucose tolerance, which progresses until the functional capacity for β cell secretion can no longer meet the demand for insulin to control glycemia. A functional β cell mass of ∼25% of normal may be required to avoid symptomatic T1D but is already associated with dysregulated glucagon secretion. With symptomatic T1D, stimulated C‐peptide levels >0.60 ng/mL (0.200 pmol/mL) indicate the presence of clinically meaningful residual β cell function for contributing to glycemic control, although even higher residual C‐peptide appears necessary for evidencing glucose‐dependent islet β and α cell function that may contribute to maintaining (near)normal glycemia. β cell replacement by islet transplantation can restore a physiologic reserve capacity for insulin secretion, confirming thresholds for functional β cell mass required for independence from insulin therapy.
Twenty years of pediatric diabetes surveillance: what do we know and why it matters
Authors: Dabelea Dana , Sauder Katherine A. , Jensen Elizabeth T. , Mottl Amy K. , Huang Alyssa , Pihoker Catherine , Hamman Richard F. , Lawrence Jean , Dolan Lawrence M. , Agostino Ralph D’ , Wagenknecht Lynne , Mayer‐Davis Elizabeth J. , Marcovina Santica M.
Published: February 2021

SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth (SEARCH) was initiated in 2000 as a multicenter study to address major gaps in the understanding of childhood diabetes in the United States. An active registry of youth diagnosed with diabetes at age <20 years since 2002 assessed prevalence, annual incidence, and trends by age, race/ethnicity, sex, and diabetes type. An observational cohort nested within the population‐based registry was established to assess the natural history and risk factors for acute and chronic diabetes‐related complications, as well as the quality of care and quality of life of children and adolescents with diabetes from diagnosis into young adulthood. SEARCH findings have contributed to a better understanding of the complex and heterogeneous nature of youth‐onset diabetes. Continued surveillance of the burden and risk of type 1 and type 2 diabetes is important to track and monitor incidence and prevalence within the population. SEARCH reported evidence of early diabetes complications highlighting that continuing the long‐term follow‐up of youth with diabetes is necessary to further our understanding of its natural history and to develop the most appropriate approaches to primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of diabetes and its complications. This review summarizes two decades of research and suggests avenues for further work.
Empirical Evidence on the Dynamics of Investment Under Uncertainty in the U.S.*
Authors: Haque Qazi , Magnusson Leandro M. , Tomioka Kazuki
Published: February 2021

We study the time‐varying effects of financial uncertainty shocks in the United States using a vector autoregression with drifting parameters and stochastic volatilities. We find negative effects of financial uncertainty shocks on real activity with both consumption and investment growth declining significantly and comoving along the entire sample. These effects remained fairly stable in the post‐WWII period but the negative response of investment growth became more pronounced during the Zero Lower Bound episode. Our findings lend empirical support to theoretical frameworks that can successfully capture this macroeconomic comovement following an uncertainty shock. Remarkably, we find a limited role for financial uncertainty shocks during the Great Recession.
Physiology of weight regain: Lessons from the classic Minnesota Starvation Experiment on human body composition regulation
Authors: Dulloo Abdul G.
Published: February 2021

Since its publication in 1950, the Biology of Human Starvation, which describes the classic longitudinal Minnesota Experiment of semistarvation and refeeding in healthy young men, has been the undisputed source of scientific reference about the impact of long‐term food deprivation on human physiology and behavior. It has been a guide in developing famine and refugee relief programs for international agencies, in exploring the effects of food deprivation on the cognitive and social functioning of those with anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, and in gaining insights into metabolic adaptations that undermine obesity therapy and cachexia rehabilitation. In more recent decades, the application of a systems approach to the analysis of its data on longitudinal changes in body composition, basal metabolic rate, and food intake during the 24 weeks of semistarvation and 20 weeks of refeeding has provided rare insights into the multitude of control systems that govern the regulation of body composition during weight regain. These have underscored an internal (autoregulatory) control of lean–fat partitioning (highly sensitive to initial adiposity), which operates during weight loss and weight regain and revealed the existence of feedback loops between changes in body composition and the control of food intake and adaptive thermogenesis for the purpose of accelerating the recovery of fat mass and fat‐free mass. This paper highlights the general features and design of this grueling experiment of simulated famine that has allowed the unmasking of fundamental control systems in human body composition autoregulation. The integration of its outcomes constitutes the “famine reactions” that drive the normal physiology of weight regain and obesity relapse and provides a mechanistic “autoregulation‐based” explanation of how dieting and weight cycling, transition to sedentarity, or developmental programming may predispose to obesity. It also provides a system physiology framework for research toward elucidating proteinstatic and adipostatic mechanisms that control hunger–appetite and adaptive thermogenesis, with major implications for a better understanding (and management) of cachexia, obesity, and cardiometabolic diseases.
Possibility of potential coalitions in gas exports from the Southern Corridor to Europe: a cooperative game theory framework
Authors: Jafarzadeh Amir , Shakeri Abbas , Ghasemi Abdolrasoul , Javan Afshin
Published: February 2021

The dependence of European gas imports on Russia has led European countries to consider different ways to compete with Russia. One of the most important of these is the Caspian and Middle East countries, which delivers gas to Turkey via the southern corridor and then to other European countries. The region's gas supplies are still in dispute. One of the main concerns of European countries is to choose the best option for gas supply for this project. Currently, not only Azerbaijan exports to Europe, but other countries are also interested in European countries due to concerns over its ability to continue exporting. Therefore, in addition to Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkmenistan and Iraq are among the main gas supply options in the region. In the present article, with the approach of cooperative game theory, different gas export coalitions from this region to Europe have been investigated and bargaining power of all countries has been obtained through Shapley solution. The results show that Turkey plays the most important role in the gas pipeline network as a transistor, because without this country no area would be able to export gas to Europe. It also appears that the pipelines could increase the bargaining power of one country, which could increase gas transmission capacity without the need for a country other than Turkey.