bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Anticancer Effect of in Vivo Inhibition of Nitric Oxide Synthase in a Rat Model of Breast Cancer
Authors: Avtandilyan Nikolay , Javrushyan Hayarpi , Ginovyan Mikayel , Karapetyan Anna , Trchounian Armen
Published: December 2021

High expression of nitric oxide (NO)-synthase has been found in different cancers like cervical, breast, and central nervous system. NO-synthase activity inhibition has been suggested as a possible tool to prevent breast cancer. The anti-tumor therapeutic effect of L-nitro arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) in vivo remains understudied. Here we hypothesized that NOS inhibition by L-NAME has some antitumor effects on breast cancer development as it inhibits NO levels, which is a pathophysiological modulator of cell proliferation, cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, and angiogenesis. We utilized a novel anti-cancer treatment model by the administration of NO-synthase inhibitor L-NAME (30 mg/kg in a day, intraperitoneal), injected every third day for five weeks (in parallel to tumors evolution) in opposition to high activity of NOS during 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene-induced breast tumor in rats in vivo. The blood concentrations of nitrite anions, polyamines, malondialdehyde, NH4+ levels, and arginase activity decreased in DMBA+L-NAME-treated rats compared with DMBA rats. The reduction of these compounds also affects the decrease of the mortality rate of rats, tumor number, weight and volume, and the histopathological grade of breast cancer. Treatment with L-NAME showed increases in time of tumor incidence and body weight compared with DMBA-cancer rats. Therefore, the co-administration of L-NAME influences as a potent anti-cancer agent to treat breast cancer and can lead to the development of therapeutic methods for cancers in the future.
The Oncogenic Potential of TCTEX1D4 is Modulated by the Phosphoprotein Phosphatase PP1
Authors: Felgueiras Juliana , Sousa Luís , Teixeira Ana Luísa Luísa , Regadas Bárbara , Korrodi-Gregório Luís , Luers Georg , Ahlers Ann-Kristin , Medeiros Rui , Fardilha Margarida
Published: December 2021

Protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) regulates several cellular events via interaction with multiple regulatory subunits. The human prostate proteome includes various PP1-interacting proteins; however, a very limited number of interactions is yet characterized and their role in prostate tumorigenesis remains poorly understood. Tctex1 domain-containing protein 4 (TCTEX1D4) was previously identified as a PP1-interacting protein, but its function, as well as the relevance of its interaction with PP1, are virtually unknown. In this study we addressed the role of the PP1/TCTEX1D4 complex in prostate tumorigenesis. We found distinct expression levels and subcellular distributions for TCTEX1D4 and PP1γ in human prostate epithelial normal-like and malignant cells. Moreover, we showed that TCTEX1D4 participates in the regulation of cell proliferation and modulation of microRNAs expression and that its interaction with PP1 controls its function. Taken together, our study provides first evidence for the involvement of the PP1/TCTEX1D4 complex in prostate tumorigenesis.
Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii, Rubella and Cytomegalovirus Among Women of Reproductive Age in Mashhad, Northeast of Iran
Authors: Nasimi Ali , Fani Mona , Salehi Mitra , Ghasemi Hamed , Nezami Hossein , Haghighi Faria Hassanzadeh
Published: December 2021

Purpose: TORCH syndrome is responsible for 2-3% of all congenital anomalies caused by Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii), Rubella virus (RV), Cytomegalovirus (CMV), and Herpes simplex virus (HSV). The current study aimed to determine the prevalence of TORCH infection in women in Mashhad. Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 417 patients who were referred to three laboratories in Mashhad, Iran. Laboratory data were collected from ​April 2016 to March 2020 to detect the specific IgG and IgM against TORCH syndrome.Result: The specific IgG antibodies were found to be positive in for CMV in 402 cases (96.4%), for RV in 394 cases (94.5%), and for T. gondii in 80 cases (19.2%). Moreover, 7 (1.6%) of them were found to be positive for anti-CMV IgM, 6 (1.4%) for anti-IgM RV, and 8 (1.9%) for anti-IgM T. gondii. In addition, the relationship between age and anti- T. gondii IgG in the age group of 37-47 years was 6.44 times higher than the age group of 17-27 years. Also, The relationship between age and anti-CMV IgG in the age group of 27-37 years was 4.13 times higher than the age group of 37-47 years.Conclusion: All women of reproductive age should be screened for the TORCH complex regularly to prevent congenital TORCH syndrome.
Association of Underlying Comorbidities and progression of COVID-19 Infection Among 2586 Patients Hospitalized in the National Capital Region of India: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Rana Rashmi , Ranjan Vivek , Kumar Naveen , Chugh Parul , Khillan Kamini , Gogia Atul , Rana Devinder Singh , Ganguly Nirmal Kumar
Published: December 2021

Objectives This study is conducted to observe the association of diabetes (DM), hypertension (HTN), and chronic kidney disease on the prognosis and mortality of COVID-19 infection in hospital admitted patients.Methods This is a single centre, observational, retrospective study carried out at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Delhi, India. the burden of comorbidities on the prognosis and clinical outcome of COVID-19 patients admitted patients from April 8, 2020, to October 4, 2020. Chi-square and relative risk test were used to observe the association of comorbidities and disease prognosis.Results A total of 2586 patients were included in the study consisting of 69.6% of male patients. All the comorbidities were significantly associated with ICU admission and mortality. The relative risk showed that CKD is most prone to severity as well as mortality of the COVID-19 infection followed by HTN and DM. Further with the increase in comorbidity, the risk of ICU admission and mortality increases.Conclusion Diabetes, hypertension and CKD, all are associated with progression of COVID-19 disease to severity and higher mortality risk. The number of underlying comorbid condition is directly proportional to the progression of disease severity and mortality.
A Novel Polishing Process with Rigid-Flexible Composite Structure Plate and Its Performance in Polishing Sapphire Wafer
Authors: Xu Yongchao , Lin Chen , Wang Qianting , Zheng Charlesming , Zhan Youji , Chen Bingsan
Published: December 2021

A novel flexible polishing process has been developed for sapphire wafer by using a polishing plate with rigid-flexible composite structure to satisfy the demands of excellent surface shape accuracy and high surface topography quality simultaneously. This new polishing plate was fabricated by alternately casting and curing the ring structure of soft and hard unsaturated resins. It is found that the overall stiffness of the polishing plate is improved due to the “hard support frame” of rigid-flexible polishing plate, as well as the ability of removal selectivity of the polishing plate is strengthened. The topography quality and shape accuracy of sapphire wafer polished by presented novel polishing process have been compared with those polished by conventional flexible polishing, respectively. Both experiment and simulation results are shown that the surface roughness and topographical variations of sapphire wafer polished by the novel rigid-flexible composite structure polishing plate have been greatly improved. Comparing with the conventional flexible polishing, the surface shape accuracy of the sapphire wafer polished by the presented novel polishing process can be improved by 54.1%.
Prevalence of Parasitic Infections in a Tertiary Hospital in China: A 12-Year Retrospective Study
Authors: Zhang Jinming , Xu Jing , Tang Weiliang , Shang Dabao , Lu Jie , Li Ziqiang , Wang Xiaolin , Cai Wei , Wang Hui , Shi Dongmei , Xie Qing , Xiang Xiaogang
Published: December 2021

BackgroundParasitic infections represent a worldwide public health issue in many developing countries. Few epidemiological studies regarding parasitic infections and the evolution of infection spectrum in China have been reported up to date. It is necessary to investigate the epidemiological feature of parasitic infection during recent years.MethodsThree hundred and thirty-six cases of parasitic infections were retrospectively enrolled and analyzed. Electronic medical records of the enrolled parasitic patients from January 1, 2010 to May 31, 2021 were retrieved from the Electronic Medical Record System of a tertiary hospital in China. Demographic characteristics and data of laboratory tests were exported in Excel and analysis were performed using Graphpad Prism 5.ResultsOverall, seventeen species of parasites were detected in 336 admissions with a total number of infected individuals reached the peak in 2018. Moreover, the regions of patients distributed mainly included: Shanghai (40.48%), Zhejiang (18.45%), Anhui (6.85%), Jiangsu (6.25%) and Jiangxi (4.76%). Two hundred and eighty-eight cases were diagnosed with single species of parasitic infection and 47 cases were found mixed species infection. Foodborne parasites (FBPs) were the primary species of parasites and the top 4 were clonorchis sinensis (24.70%), sparganum mansoni (16.07%), paragonimus westermani (20.83%) and cysticercus (17.86%). Obvious eosinophil elevation was found in 56.54% enrolled patients. Patients with periods of infection before the time of diagnosis lasted longer than 6 months includes four parasites: sparganum mansoni (28.30%, 15/53), paragonimus westermani (38.57%, 27/70), cysticercus (25.00%, 15/60).ConclusionsOur study demonstrated the prevalence of parasitic infection over the latest 12 years in a single center of China. The trend of parasitic infection rate reached the peak in 2018 with the dominating parasitic species changed from soil origin to foodborne. Furthermore, with the emergence of various dietary habits and the development of living conditions, unclean diets especially eating raw meat had become the main route of transmission for parasites, which alarmed that food safety education for public should be strengthened and enlarged. Although eosinophil elevation and IgE is reliable indicators for initiating screening of parasitic infection but enough for diagnosis, novel diagnostic kits for parasites should be devepoled.
Butyrate Impedes the Recruitment of MDSCs to Alleviate CAC Development by Inhibition of the TLR2/MyD88/NF-κB Signaling Pathway
Authors: Xiao Tengfei , Chang Yi , Chen Hongmei , Kang Jingjing , Sun Mingzhong
Published: December 2021

Background: The colitis-associated colorectal cancer (CAC) with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) serving as its prelude often has a poor prognosis due to the hysteretic diagnosis. As a representative of short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), butyrate has been proved to have obvious antitumor effect. Here, we aimed to examine its effect on CAC and possible mechanism in tumor microenvironment (TME).Method: The establishment of CAC mouse model was mainly based on the combination of AOM intraperitoneal injection and DSS three cycle. HE staining was used to analyze the degree of colonic inflammation and tumor dysplasia. The proportion of MDSCs population was mainly evaluated by flow cytometry assay. RT-PCR, immunohistochemical staining and western blot analysis was carried out to detect protein molecular expression.Results: In our current study, the AOM-DSS induced CAC mouse model was utilized to evaluate the effect of butyrate on CAC. The administration of butyrate significantly improved the weight loss, falling survival rate, higher DAI index and anal prolapse caused by the AOM-DSS during the CAC modeling process. Anatomical results including the size and number of tumors and histological results including the abnormal hyperplasia shown by HE staining also confirmed the inhibitory effect of butyrate on CAC. In addition, the proportion of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) assisting tumor immune escape in tumor microenvironment (TME) decreased under the intervention of butyrate. And inflammatory mediators including CCL2, IL-6 and TNF-α in TME that induce the recruitment of MDSCs showed the same trend as MDSCs. Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) as a receptor molecule related to inflammation and immune function was also up-regulated in CAC, accompanied by the synchronous up-regulation of downstream Myd88 and NF-κB molecules, while the use of butyrate significantly inhibited the up-regulation of these molecules.Conclusions: Butyrate might reduce the release of CCL2, IL-6 and TNF-α in TME by inhibiting TLR2/MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway to reduce the recruitment of MDSCs in TME, which eventually weakened the immune escape of tumors and retarded the progress of CAC.
Discovery of Innovative Polymers for Next-Generation Gas-Separation Membranes using Interpretable Machine Learning
Authors: Yang Jason , Tao Lei , He Jinlong , McCutcheon Jeffrey R. , Li Ying
Published: December 2021

Polymer membranes perform innumerable separations with far-reaching environmental implications. Despite decades of research on membrane technologies, design of new membrane materials remains a largely Edisonian process. To address this shortcoming, we demonstrate a generalizable, accurate machine-learning (ML) implementation for the discovery of innovative polymers with ideal separation performance. Specifically, multitask ML models are trained on available experimental data to link polymer chemistry to gas permeabilities of He, H2, O2, N2, CO2, and CH4. We interpret the ML models and extract chemical heuristics for membrane design, through Shapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) analysis. We then screen over nine million hypothetical polymers through our models and identify thousands of candidates that lie well above current performance upper bounds. Notably, we discover hundreds of never-before-seen ultrapermeable polymer membranes with O2 and CO2 permeability greater than 104 and 105 Barrer, respectively. These hypothetical polymers are capable of overcoming undesirable trade-off relationship between permeability and selectivity, thus significantly expanding the currently limited library of polymer membranes for highly efficient gas separations. High-fidelity molecular dynamics simulations confirm the ML-predicted gas permeabilities of the promising candidates, which suggests that many can be translated to reality.
Perceptions and Expressions Pertaining to Cultural Ecosystem Services in Urban Green Spaces Using Text Mining Techniques
Authors: Ko Hajung
Published: December 2021

Objectives: To distinguish between the differences in cultural services based on the type of urban green area, through atypical expressions.Context: Urban green spaces provide important ecosystem services, with cultural ecosystem services (CES) playing a significant role in citizens’ lives. Nevertheless, these are often undervalued as it is difficult to quantitatively evaluate the characteristics of an individuals’ subjective perception of urban space. By examining social media content, we can analyze the content created by users and grasp demand values. Methods: This study analyzed urban green areas in the inland of Ansan city in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. Data were collected twice, on October 3, 2017 and October 4, 2018, to verify that the extracted keywords were representative. We extracted keywords from blog posts related to CES and evaluated the possibility of using them as quantitative indicators. Results: The results indicate that the perceived expression words were different depending on the type of green space. Certain CES such as “exhibit” and “climbing” are affected by green space type. However, it was difficult to identify emotional responses to CES. We found that some words contained double meanings, which made it difficult to evaluate individuals’ perceptions of CES based on the frequency of specific words.Conclusions: This study demonstrates that social media data on CES greatly extends the type and, especially, the volume and scale of information derived from traditional survey methods. The significance of this study lies in its attempt to quantitatively evaluate the recognition of CES in daily life.
Application of Binomial Models on the Determinants of Hypertension Patients in Haramaya Woreda, Eastern Hararghe, Ethiopia
Authors: Kebede Kindu , Mohammed Murad , Wesenu Million
Published: December 2021

Introduction: Hypertension is along with a medical condition, in which the blood pressure in the arteries is high, which is a major health problem in the community. The main aim of the study was to assess the determinants associated with patients who experienced hypertension in Haramaya Woreda using a binomial model. Methods: A cross-sectional study design was conducted to assess the associated factors of hypertension patients’ complications in the Haramaya Hospital, Eastern Hararghe zone from December 1st to 30th, 2020. Data were statistically analyzed using the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version-23 (SPSS Inc., USA). A sample of 1417 respondents having hypertension chronic disease was included. Statistical tools such as descriptive statistics, chi-square test of association, and binomial regression were used to summarize and interpret the hypertension patients’ dataset and a 5% level of significance was also used as a baseline comparison. Results: Both chi-square test of association and binomial model revealed that age group, gender, residence, presence of diabetes mellitus and congestive heart failure were significantly associated with hypertension patients at a 5% level of significance. Multivariable binomial regression model indicated that an estimated odd ratio(OR) with 95% confidence interval were age group of 21-30year3.502(95%CI=1.310-9.361),31-40year6.108(95%CI=2.364-15.782),41-50year 11.070(95%CI=4.276-28.661), 51-60 year 12.530(95% CI=4.890-32.107) and greater than 60 years 12.713(95%CI=4.827-33.482), being male (OR=1.859; 95%CI=1.320-2.617), living in rural (OR=0.545. 95%CI=0.381-0.778).The presence of diabetes mellitus (OR=0.028, 95%CI=0.019-0.040), and congestive heart failure (OR=0.017, 95%CI=0.009-0.032) are associated risk factors of hypertension patients. Conclusions: The main hypertension risk factors were age category, gender, residence, having diabetes mellitus, and congestive heart failure (p=0.0001). Those were significantly associated with hypertension in both the chi-square test of association and binomial model. To predict the participants being a hypertensive binomial model with logit link function best fit the dataset.
Centering Racial and Ethnic Equity in Health Care Throughout Spatial Data Analysis
Authors: Bell Nathaniel , Cai Bo , Brooks John , Lòpez-DeFede Ana
Published: December 2021

BackgroundThe ongoing COVID-19 pandemic as well as a host of social movements have put a nation-sized spotlight on structural inequality and racial disparities in health throughout America. As health care systems begin to advance health equity by holding plans and payers accounting for racial and socioeconomic disparities in care, quantitative methods are needed that emphasize the distinct linkages between physical locations and racially disparate outcomes.MethodsWe apply a counterfactual model to compare differences in avoidable and potentially avoidable emergency department (ED) admissions among a panel of 8,924 non-Hispanic White, Black, and Hispanic Medicaid participants between 2016 - 2018. The magnitude of disparity estimates is examined in relation to geographic proximity to health care providers, neighborhood socioeconomic contexts, as well as the type of primary care delivery model individuals received. The adjusted rates were assessed by generalized estimating equations (GEE) and average marginal effects models to contrast differences in probability of events in association with race/ethnicity, proximity to care, and treatment through patient-centered medical homes (PCMH). ResultsAttending a patient-centered medical home was associated with a 3.4 percentage point (p <0.001) decrease in Black-White racial disparity and a 1.8 percentage point (p < 0.10) reduction in the overall Black-White disparity for potentially avoidable ED admissions. PCMH attendance was attributed to a 2.6 percentage point (p < 0.10) reduction in Hispanic-White disparities in potentially avoidable admissions, but this difference was not substantial enough to curb the overall Hispanic-White racial disparity in ED admissions. No statistically significant reductions in Black-White or Hispanic-White disparities in avoidable ED admissions were observed. ConclusionMedical homes may be able to curb, but not necessarily eliminate, racial disparities in ED admissions. Counterfactual models of health disparities are in line with recent transitions toward evaluating patient- and value-centered health care reform changes as they are designed to measure health and racial equity. This strategy, or variations of it, are adaptable to other investigations where emphasis on physical locations is considered essential to understanding racial disparities in health outcomes.
Metal Contamination of Canal Versus Sewage Water Irrigated Vegetables in Metropolitan Area of Sargodha, Pakistan
Authors: Shahzad Ahsan , Ahmad Hamaad Raza , Farooqi Zia Ur Rahman , Sabir Muhammad , Ayub Muhammad Ashar , Ilic Predrag , Tariq Sanaullah
Published: December 2021

The reduction in the fresh water supply and increase in the domestic effluents with increase in population and urbanization in the Pakistan force the farmers to use untreated sewage water for the irrigation purposes. Besides high nutrient content Sewage water also have source of metal contamination in the food chain. The present field study was conducted to compare the nickel (Ni), copper (Cu) and lead (Pb) contamination in vegetables grown on soils irrigated with sewage water and canal water in Sargodha, Punjab, Pakistan. The Ni, Cu and Pb contamination was assessed using soil quality indices i.e., contamination factor (CF), metal translocation factor (MTF), pollution load index (PLI), geo-accumulation index (Igeo) and ecological risk index (ERI) were calculated in the collected samples. The physico-chemical properties of soil and water samples were determined. Based on the results, it was revealed that sewage irrigated areas were at higher risks of metals contamination compared to canal irrigated areas. From the studied metals, Pb showed highest contamination potential based on the soil quality indices. In sewage irrigated sites, metal concentrations were found higher in edible parts of the vegetables confirming that sewage water contains and supply more metals than canal irrigated water and pose more health and ecological risks.
Adolescent Perspectives on Participating in a Feasibility Trial Investigating Shoe Inserts for Patellofemoral Pain
Authors: O’Sullivan Isobel C. , Costa Nathalia , Smith Melinda M Franettovich , Vicenzino Bill , Crossley Kay M , Kamper Steven J , Middelkoop Marienke van , Menz Hylton B , Tucker Kylie , O'Leary Karina T , Collins Natalie J
Published: December 2021

Background

Patellofemoral pain (PFP) affects one-quarter of adolescents, yet there are few evidence-informed recommendations to treat PFP in this population. HAPPi Kneecaps! is a randomised, controlled, participant- and assessor-blind, parallel-group feasibility trial of shoe inserts for adolescents with PFP. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore adolescents’ perspectives of participating in HAPPi Kneecaps!.
Methods

All 36 adolescents with PFP from the HAPPi Kneecaps! study were invited to participate in semi-structured interviews. We used a descriptive qualitative methodology underpinned by a relativist framework to investigate adolescents’ perspectives on participating in the trial. Inductive thematic analysis was used to examine patterns regarding how each adolescent experienced the HAPPi Kneecaps! study within their social, cultural, and historical contexts.
Results

14 out of 36 HAPPi Kneecaps! participants provided consent and participated in interviews (12 females; mean [SD] age 14.9 [2.4] years). Overall, most adolescents responded positively when discussing their experience, such as improvements in their knee pain and satisfaction with how the study was run. Major themes emerging from the analysis and feedback were: (1) shoe inserts require little effort to use; (2) shoe inserts improve symptoms and function; (3) participation in the trial could be made easier; (4) warm weather matters; and (5) life happens.
Conclusion

Adolescents with PFP who participated in the HAPPi Kneecaps! study found that shoe inserts were easy to wear. Most adolescents experienced an improvement in their symptoms and enhanced participation in sport and exercise. Adolescents with PFP prefer an option for warmer climates (e.g. flip flops or sandals), access to online logbooks, and clinicians who are easily accessible.
Trial registration:

Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR): ACTRN12619000957190. Date registered: 8/07/2019.
Perceived Stress, Psychological Capital, and Psychological Distress Among Chinese Nursing Students: A Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Sun Feifei , Xu Cuiping , Xue Jiaomei , Su Jing , Lu Qinghua , Wang Bin
Published: December 2021

Background: Previous studies have investigated variables related to psychological distress among nurses; however, the relationship among psychological capital, perceived stress, and psychological stress is poorly understood. This cross-sectional study examined the relationship between psychological capital, psychological distress, and perceived stress, and examined the mediating role of psychological capital in the relationship between perceived stress and psychological distress.Methods: Responses to questionnaires to assess psychological capital, psychological distress, and perceived stress were collected from 369 nursing students in a tertiary hospital in Shandong Province, China.Results: There was a statistically significant difference in perceived stress among students, based on whether or not they liked the nursing profession (P<0.01). Relative to college students, undergraduates experienced significantly higher levels of perceived stress (P<0.01). Nevertheless, there were no significant differences in perceived stress between the variables of gender, place of residence, and being an only child. Psychological distress was positively correlated (r=0.632, p<0.001), whereas psychological capital was negatively correlated, with perceived stress (r=-0.662, p<0.001). Psychological capital played a potential mediating role in the relationship between psychological distress and perceived stress.Conclusions: This study revealed the importance of psychological capital in reducing perceived stress to decrease psychological distress among Chinese nursing students. Managers should take meaningful steps to improve nursing students’ psychological capital and thereby reduce the negative impact of psychological distress.
Camptothecin-Carrying Cuco2s4 Nanoparticles: Sustained Drug Release And Anticancer Activity
Authors: Pillai Archana Sumohan , Alexander Aleyamma , Manikantan Varnitha , Varalaks Govindaraj Sri , Akash Bose Allben , Enoch Israel V M V
Published: December 2021

Nanocarriers of anticancer drugs are delicately designed with precision addition at every attempt. In this paper, we report CuCo2S4 nanoparticles that show light-absorption in the NIR-II wavelength range and possess magnetic characteristics. The synthesized nanoparticles are characterized employing XRD, SEM, DLS, TGA, and XPS methods. The nanoparticles form a composite with biocompatible polymeric β-cyclodextrin. The nanoparticles possess a band gap energy of 2.25 eV. The magnetic property arises due to the cobalt-incorporation in the nanoparticles. The anticancer drug, camptothecin, is loaded in the nanocarrier with an 89% adsorption efficiency. The in vitro release of the drug occurs in a sustained fashion. Further, the in vitro anticancer potential of the nanocarrier is examined on breast cancer (MDA=MB-231) cell lines and the activities of the free- and the drug-loaded nanocarrier are compared. The cobalt-containing copper sulfide nanoparticle-poly-β-cyclodextrin composite works as a promising nanocarrier of camptothecin.
A Significance of Land Cover - Why Wisents Succeed to Outlive Aurochs?
Authors: Augustyn M. , Perzanowski Kajetan
Published: December 2021

Context Two native European large herbivores: the aurochs (Bos primigenius) and the wisent (Bison bonasus) lived simultaneously until late Medieval Ages. A rapid decline of aurochs occurred between XV and VII centuries, while wisents lived in the wild until early XX century. Aurochs went extinct despite their strict protection, imposed by Polish kings. Since XV century, radical changes in land cover occurred all over Europe, which could influence the survival of those species. Objectives We aimed to present differences in geographical distribution and occurrence of aurochs and wisents, and identify major changes in land cover of Europe since Medieval Ages. Considering those, we were trying to explain differences in the survival of so closely related and biologically similar species. Methods We compared distribution and incidence of traditional geographical names associated with both species in central-eastern Europe, with historical changes in land cover there. Considering biological differences between aurochs and wisents we attempted to identify possible reasons for such difference in their survival. Results Since aurochs were predominantly true grazers, having higher preference towards open landscapes, they apparently were stronger affected by the loss of suitable habitats due to the development of agriculture. Wisents being more flexible could survive in forests avoiding encounters and conflicts with people. Conclusions Changes in land cover may be critical for the survival of endangered species, even strictly protected. This issue has to be seriously considered in nature conservation planning and in the evaluation of habitat quality for wildlife.
Different Estradiol Level's Impact on Appetite Regulation, Food Intake, and Concentrations of Leptin, Glucagon-Like Peptide-1, and High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein During a Long Agonist IVF Protocol
Authors: Leppänen Jonna , Nuotio Petrus , Randell Kaisa , Romppanen Jarkko , Keski-Nisula Leea , Laitinen Tomi , Pihlajamäki Jussi , Schwab Ursula , Heinonen Seppo
Published: December 2021

Background: Do different hormonal phases affect appetite regulation, food intake, and concentrations of leptin, glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) during a long agonist in vitro fertilization (IVF) protocol? Does the IVF stimulation induce metabolic changes, which might impact maternal health? Methods: Fifty-four infertile women were encountered thrice, the first of which was at the beginning of their period (low estradiol). The other two were during a gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analog downregulation (low estradiol) and at the end of a follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) stimulation (high estradiol). The first visit was the reference; the women served as their controls. The concentrations of leptin, GLP-1, and hs-CRP were assessed from plasma. Dietary intake was assessed using food records (FRs) three days before each visit. In addition, weight, height, body mass index (BMI), and plasma levels of estradiol, glucose, HbA1c, insulin, and lipids were monitored. Twenty-six of the subjects also had a postprandial test, in which the blood samples were taken at five time points at every three visits. They also filled visual analog scales to exhibit satiety and appetite. Twenty-eight of the subjects had only fasting blood samples. Results: During the stimulation protocol, leptin concentrations elevated (P<0.001), and energy intake decreased (P=0.03) while estradiol levels increased (P<0.001). GLP-1 levels unchanged (P=0.75) and hs-CRP (P=0.03) concentrations diminished while estradiol levels increased. Conclusions: No increased food intake or weight gain occurred during the stimulation protocol; thus, leptin may protect from overeating during high estradiol levels, and leptin resistance may not occur during a short follow-up. Also, a favorable anti-inflammatory effect was detected. During this study, no harmful metabolic effects occurred, which might have a disproportionate impact on maternal health. Trial registration: Not applicable. This study is a clinical study without intervention.
Chronic Postsurgical Pain After Minimally Invasive Adrenalectomy: Prevalence and Impact on Quality of Life
Authors: Helden Esmee V. van , Uitert Allon van , Albers Kim I. , Steegers Monique A.H. , Timmers Henri J.L.M. , d'Ancona Frank C.H. , Wal Selina E.I. van der , Scheffer Gert-Jan , Keijzer Christiaan , Warlé Michiel C. , Langenhuijsen Johan F.
Published: December 2021

Background.

Minimally invasive adrenalectomy is the standard of care for small adrenal tumours. Both the transperitoneal lateral approach and posterior retroperitoneal approach are widely used and have been proven to be safe and effective. However, the prevalence of chronic postsurgical pain has not been specifically investigated in previous studies. The primary goal of this study was to identify the prevalence of chronic postsurgical pain after minimally invasive adrenalectomy.
Methods.

A cross-sectional study was performed among all consecutive patients who had undergone minimally invasive adrenalectomy in a single university medical centre. The primary outcome was the prevalence of chronic postsurgical pain. Secondary outcomes were the prevalence of localized hypoesthesia, risk factors for the development of chronic postsurgical pain, and the Health-Related Quality of Life. Three questionnaires were used to measure the prevalence and severity of chronic postsurgical pain, hypoesthesia, and Health-Related Quality of Life. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine risk factors for development of chronic postsurgical pain.
Results.

Six hundred two patients underwent minimally invasive adrenalectomy between January 2007 and September 2019, of whom 328 signed informed consent. The prevalence of chronic postsurgical pain was 14.9%. Young age was a significant predictor for developing chronic postsurgical pain. The prevalence of localized hypoesthesia was 15.2%. In patients with chronic postsurgical pain, Health-Related Quality of Life was significantly lower, compared to patients without pain.
Conclusions.

The prevalence of chronic postsurgical pain following minimally invasive adrenalectomy is considerable. Furthermore, the presence of chronic postsurgical pain was correlated with a significant and clinically relevant lower Health-Related Quality of Life. These findings should be included in the preoperative counselling of the patient. In the absence of evidence for effective treatment in established chronic pain, prevention should be the key strategy and topic of future research.
The Influence of Anaesthetic Choice on Electroconvulsive Therapy Parameters; Etomidate Versus Methohexital
Authors: Chomrikh¹ Laila , Ahmadi Mustafa , Kuijper Martijn , Vlugt Joris J.B. Van der , Koopman Seppe J.H.A.
Published: December 2021

Background

Many of the anaesthetic drugs used for electroconvulsive therapy have anticonvulsant properties and may influence efficacy of electroconvulsive therapy. With this study we aim to provide more information on the effect of etomidate and methohexital on seizure duration. We explore the relationship between induction drug, motor and electroencephalography seizure duration. Moreover, we study the relationship of seizure duration and number of therapies.
Methods

In this retrospective study we collected data from patient records from 2005 until 2016. Inclusion criteria were the use of etomidate and/or methohexital and documentation of dosage, electroconvulsive therapy dosage and seizure duration. Exclusion criteria were missing data on either induction drug, dosage or seizure duration.
Results

Thirty seven patients were analysed. The mean age was 52 years and seventy six percent were female. Most patients were suffering from affective disorders (81%). Motor and electroencephalography seizure duration were analysed in 679 and 551 electroconvulsive therapies, respectively. Compared to methohexital, motor and electroencephalography seizures under etomidate were 7 and 13 seconds longer, respectively. Furthermore, there was a negative association between seizure duration and number of treatment and a negative association between seizure duration and electroconvulsive therapy dosage.
Conclusions

This study demonstrates significant longer motor and electroencephalography seizure duration using etomidate compared to methohexital. Etomidate might therefore increase the effectiveness of electroconvulsive therapy. Moreover, we observed a negative association between seizure duration, number of treatment and electroconvulsive therapy dosage. With this study we contribute to the available literature comparing methohexital and etomidate as induction agents for electroconvulsive therapy.
LINE-1 and Alu methylation Signatures in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Their Function in The Regulation of Autism-Related Genes
Authors: Saeliw Thanit , Permpoon Tiravut , Iadsee Nutta , Tencomnao Tewin , Sarachana Tewarit , Green Daniel , Sae-Lee Chanachai
Published: December 2021

BackgroundLong interspersed nucleotide element-1 (LINE-1) and Alu elements are retrotransposons whose abilities cause abnormal gene expression and genomic instability. Several studies have focused on DNA methylation profiling of gene regions, but the locus-specific methylation of LINE-1 and Alu elements has not been identified in autism spectrum disorder (ASD).MethodsHere, DNA methylation age was predicted using Horvath’s method. We interrogated locus- and family-specific methylation profiles of LINE-1 and Alu elements (22,352 loci) in ASD blood using publicly-available Illumina Infinium 450K methylation datasets from heterogeneous ASD (n = 52), ASD with 16p11.2 del (n = 7), and ASD with Chromodomain Helicase DNA-binding 8 (CHD8) variants (n = 15). The differentially methylated positions of LINE-1 and Alu elements corresponding to genes were combined with transcriptome data from multiple ASD studies. ROC curve was conducted to examine the specificity of target loci.ResultsEpigenetic age acceleration was significantly decelerated in ASD children over the age of 11 years. DNA methylation profiling revealed LINE-1 and Alu methylation signatures in each ASD risk loci by which global methylation were notably hypomethylated exclusively in ASD with CHD8 variants. When LINE-1 and Alu elements were clustered into subfamilies, we found methylation changes in a family-specific manner in L1P, L1H, HAL, AluJ, and AluS families in the heterogeneous ASD and ASD with CHD8 variants. Our results showed that LINE-1 and Alu methylation within target genes is inversely related to the expression level in each ASD variant. Moreover, LINE-1 and Alu methylation signatures can be used to predict ASD individuals from non-ASD.LimitationsIntegration of methylome and transcriptome datasets was performed from different ASD cohorts. The small sample size of the validation cohort used post-mortem brain tissues and necessitates future validation in a larger cohort.ConclusionsThe DNA methylation signatures of the LINE-1 and Alu elements in ASD, as well as their functional impact on ASD-related genes, have been studied. These findings are considered for further research into DNA methylation profiles and the expression of the LINE-1 and Alu elements in post-mortem brain tissue, which has been linked to ASD pathogenesis.
Quantitative Assessment of Dynamic Stability Characteristics for Jet Transport in Sudden Plunging Motion
Authors: Wang Yonghu , Chang Ray C. , Jiang Wei
Published: December 2021

The main objective of this article is to present a training program of loss control prevention for the airlines to enhance aviation safety and operational efficiency. The assessments of dynamic stability characteristics based on the approaches of oscillatory motion and eigenvalue motion modes for jet transport aircraft response to sudden plunging motions are demonstrated in this article. A twin-jet transport aircraft encountering severe clear-air turbulence in transonic flight during the descending phase will be examined as the study case. The flight results in sudden plunging motions with abrupt changes in attitude and gravitational acceleration (i.e. the normal load factor). Development of the required thrust and aerodynamic models with the flight data mining and the fuzzy-logic modeling techniques will be presented. The oscillatory derivatives extracted from these aerodynamic models are then used in the study of variations in stability characteristics during the sudden plunging motion. The fuzzy-logic aerodynamic models are utilized to estimate the nonlinear unsteady aerodynamics while performing numerical integration of flight dynamic equations. The eigenvalues of all motion modes are obtained during time integration. The present quantitative assessment method is an innovation to examine possible mitigation concepts of accident prevention and promote the understanding of aerodynamic responses of the jet transport aircraft.
Application seismic refraction method to characterize the building site of Injibara University building site,injibara Ethiopia
Authors: Mulualem Abraham
Published: December 2021

Geophysical investigation using seismic refraction method was conducted for engineering characterization of the foundation conditions of Injibara University buildings construction site located in Injibara town of Amhara Regional State, northwestern Ethiopia. The principal objective of the research was studying the suitability of the foundation earth materials underlying the site, where Injibara University is established. The seven refraction seismic spreads, seismic velocity models interpretation have provided valuable geotechnical information incorporated with available geologic information in the study area. Interpretation of geophysical data revealed that the subsurface geology of the area is composed of three layers. The topsoil consisted of clay, silt and sand mixtures having a 1-4 m thickness and 255-510 m/s p-wave velocity ranges are mapped over the whole area. The second layer attributed to the highly weathered and fractured vesicular basalt is characterized by 948-1802 m/s P-wave velocity range and revealed somewhat undulating morphology. The depth extent of this layer varies from about 10m on the North West end and southeastern parts and to about 27m around the central part. The third layer occurred in the depth range of 10-27m is characterized by greater than 2550m/s average high p-wave velocity and it is due to moderately weathered and fractured basaltic bedrock, which is deeper near to the center of the profiles and gets shallower towards North West end and southeastern portions. Besides, analyses of collected data have suggested the possible locations of minor structural discontinuities (maybe local fractures).The geophysical results show that the bedrock is found at shallow depth in the northwestern end and southeastern part of the study area, whereas in the central part of the survey area the bedrock is found relatively at high depth. Therefore, setting the building foundation is more recommended in the southeastern part of the construction site.
Expression of transcription factor SALL4 in bladder urothelial carcinoma and its relationship with epithelial mesenchymal transformation
Authors: Zhang Wenmin
Published: December 2021

Purpose

To evaluate the expression levels of spalt-like transcription factor 4 (SALL4) in bladder urothelial carcinoma, and determine its role and underlying mechanism of action in mediating the proliferation, migration and invasion of bladder cancer cells.
Methods

SALL4 expression was examined in 170 bladder patient urothelial carcinoma tissue samples by immunohistochemistry. Using a SALL4 overexpression plasmid and siRNA-SALL4, the effects of overexpressing and silencing SALL4 on the proliferation, migration and invasion of T24 and 5637 bladder cancer cells was examined using CCK8, migration and invasion assays. Western blot analysis was performed to detect epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related protein expression.
Results

The expression rate of SALL4 in low-grade and high-grade urothelial carcinomas was found to be 10% and 49.12%, respectively (P < 0.001), while SALL4 expression was not observed in the normal urothelium. SALL4 protein expression was positively correlated with histological grade, depth of invasion, lymphatic metastasis and vascular invasion of bladder urothelial carcinoma (P < 0.05). In addition, a shorter overall survival time and poor prognosis was observed in the SALL4 protein expression group. Overexpression of SALL4 led to significantly increased cell proliferation, migration and invasion, while knockdown of SALL4 had the opposite effect. In the SALL4 overexpression group, N-cadherin, vimentin, Snail and β-catenin expression were significantly increased, while E-cadherin expression was significantly decreased (P < 0.05). Promotion of EMT was also observed in SALL4-overexpressing cells. In contrast, in the SALL4-siRNA-treated group, EMT was reversed and β-catenin expression was reduced.
Conclusions

Our data show that the SALL4 gene is associated with the proliferation, invasion and poor prognosis of bladder urothelial carcinoma, and may mediate its effects via the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, which regulates the EMT pathway. Thus, down-regulation of SALL4 may provide a novel therapeutic strategy for the treatment of bladder urothelial carcinoma.