bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Influence of Some Secondary Tillage Implement and Mixing Organic Residues on Some Physical Properties of Soil at the Beginning and End of the Oat (Triticum aestivum L.) Growing Season
Authors: Aldaoseri Mahmood J. , Muhsin Sadiq J.
Published: August 2022

The study was conducted in one of the fields affiliated to the Agricultural Research Station at the University of Basra, Karmat Ali site. The agricultural field experiment was carried out by dividing the field land according to the Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) in a one-time split plots design, where the main plots represent smoothing machines and sub-plots, the levels of organic residues and three replicators. The soil was plowed with a moldboard plow at a depth of 25-30 cm, and the organic residues were mixed with the soil by use of secondary tillage equipment. While the area of the experimental unit was (150 * 250) cm2, a distance of 2m was left between the experimental sectors and units to ensure that there was no overlap between the treatments. Seeds of oats were planted for all experimental units after the implementation of the treatments and at a seeding rate according to the recommendation followed in the region. Soil characteristics are measured for depths (0-15, 15-30) cm and for two periods (beginning and end of the plant growing season), and plant growth and yield indicators are measured at the end of the growing season. The aim of the research is to study the effect of adding levels of manure residues mixed with the surface layer in different ways on soil characteristics at the beginning and end of the oat crop growing season. The results of the experiment indicate the superiority of the spring cultivator and the percentage of adding organic residues (40 tons. Ha-1) over the rest of the machines and fertilization treatments by achieving the lowest apparent density at the beginning and end of the oats growing season, which amounted to 0.992 and 1.113 Mg m-3, respectively. In addition, they have achieved the highest the percentage of total porosity was 62.56 and 57.97 %, respectively. It also gave the highest weighted average diameter, which reached 0.859 and 0.688 mm, respectively. In addition, it gave the lowest soil penetration resistance, which reached 0.887 and 1.130 MPa, respectively.
Constraints Facing Rice Farmers in Iraq
Authors: Kshash Bassim Haleem , Oda Hayat Kadhum
Published: August 2022

There is a decrease in cultivated area and production of rice in Iraq. This study was conducted in Mahanawiyah District, Diwaniyah Province, Iraq, to identify constraints facing rice farmers. One hundred and thirty rice farmers were randomly selected. A list of 3 categories affecting rice cultivation: production, financial and institutional, covering 25 constraints was prepared and administered to the respondents.50% of rice farmers indicated there was a high level of constraint facing them. Water shortage, low price during harvested, laborious nature of rice cultivation, weeding problems, poor extension service, scarcity of trained labor, high cost of inputs(fertilizer, pesticides), reluctance of rural youth to involve in rice cultivation, high cost of irrigation, high cost of improved varieties, instability of government policies for rice production, low productivity, unfavorable government marketing system, and high cost of land preparation, were the most cited. There were a negative significant relationships between respondents age, educational level and years of experience in rice cultivation with overall constraint score. Constraints were differed in their effect depending on rice farmer’s characteristics’.
A new nanohybrid with BODIPY and Fe3O4 modified graphdiyne oxide in theranostic
Authors: Lin Yanxin , Jiang Xu , Liu Yanhui , Wang Ning , Shi Ruijie , Wang Yingpu , Feng Yaqing , Huang He , Meng Shuxian
Published: August 2022

Graphdiyne (GDY) is a new 2D carbon material different from graphene, and its ideal drug carrying and photothermal therapy efficacy had been noticed recently. Graphdiyne-oxide (GDYO), which few phototherapy researches had been reported, has more oxygen functional groups than GDY. Metal-organic framework materials Fe3O4@UiO-66-NH2 (FU) can covalently connect to GDYO layers and obtain covalent-organic framework-like structures FUGYO. FU enlarged interlamellar space of GDYO, which avoided the aggregation of FUGYO multiple layers. At the same time, more acetylenic bonds and hydrophilic group were exposed, which brings out advantages like stability, hydrophily, high drug-loading, as well as magnetic targeting and better magnetic resonance imaging efficacy. To promote cancer treatment effect and water solubility, we loaded chemotherapy drug doxorubicin (DOX) in FUGYO, then encapsulated FUGYO/DOX in phosphatidylcholine and fluorescent organic polymer BODIPY-PEG (BP) to integrate image-guided and synergistic therapy in one nanoparticle (BPFG/DOX). Due to the unique structure of BPFG/DOX, the π–π interaction between GDYO and BP improved photodynamic therapy efficiency. About 10 μg ml−1 BPFG/DOX have nearly 90% cell lethality to MCF-7 (human breast cancer cell line) cells with laser irradiation. In vivo, BPFG/DOX possessed ideal magnetic targeting and effectively inhibited tumor growth in 6 d. In conclusion, BPFG/DOX not only acts as an excellent tumor theranostic agent but also provides a scheme for applying GDYO in the biomedical region.
Metal oxide-doped elastomeric materials for amplifying visible light-based antimicrobial activity
Authors: McShea Laura , Kambo Harjot S , Maclean Michelle , Sandison Mairi E
Published: August 2022

Healthcare-associated infection through transmission of pathogenic bacteria poses a huge threat to public health. One of the main transmission routes is via contaminated surfaces, including those of medical devices, and therefore significant efforts are being invested in developing new surface decontamination strategies. This includes visible light-based approaches, which offer improved compatibility with mammalian cells but lower germicidal efficacy with respect to UV-light. This study investigates the potential to enhance the antimicrobial efficacy of 405 nm light for surface decontamination through use of a photocatalytic TiO2-doped elastomer, elastomers being selected due to their wide use in biomaterials. Poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) was doped with TiO2 nanoparticles and the surface elastomer etched to expose the embedded nanoparticles. As etching results in increased surface roughness, samples with control nanoparticles (SiO2 and Fe3O4) were also investigated to decouple the effects of roughness and photoinactivation upon bacterial attachment and inactivation. Characterisation by SEM, AFM and contact angle analysis confirmed that etching produced a rougher (39.3 ± 15.3 versus 5.11 ± 1.29 nm RMS roughness; etched versus unetched TiO2-PDMS), more hydrophobic surface (water contact angle of 120 ± 2.5° versus 110 ± 1.0°; etched TiO2-PDMS versus native PDMS). This surface, rich in exposed photocatalytic TiO2 nanoparticles, allows direct contact between contaminating bacteria and nanoparticles, enabling ROS generation in closer proximity to the bacteria and consequent enhancement of visible light treatment. Incorporating TiO2 into PDMS significantly improved the photoinactivation efficacy (mean bacterial count for light-treated samples normalised to untreated samples of 0.043 ± 0.0081) compared to PDMS alone (0.19 ± 0.036), when seeded with Staphylococcus aureus and exposed to 405 nm, 60 J cm−2 light. However, photoinactivation efficacy was significantly (p < 0.001) enhanced by etching the TiO2-PDMS surface (0.015 ± 0.0074), resulting in greater photoinactivation than that obtained for etched (47.0 ± 14.5 nm RMS roughness), non-photocatalytic SiO2-PDMS (0.10 ± 0.093). Results suggest this doping and etching strategy shows significant potential for facilitating decontamination of elastomer-based biomaterials.
Morphological investigation of maleic anhydride-grafted nitrile/nanoclay nanocomposites
Authors: Zemzem Mohamed , Vinches Ludwig , Hallé Stéphane
Published: August 2022

The dispersion and orientation of three different montmorillonite clay nanoparticles embedded in nitrile-based nanocomposites were examined in the current study. Maleic anhydride was grafted onto a nitrile structure for the purpose of enhancing compatibility, and the resulting nanocomposites were investigated. The grafting of maleic anhydride seemed to have a pronounced effect, leading the structure to a near-exfoliation state. Using energy dispersive x-ray spectrometer, the state of distribution of layered silicate clusters in the nanocomposite was assessed, and it was observed that maleic anhydride provided a reduction in the size of agglomerations and enhanced the homogeneity of the system. The intercalation and delamination of the layered silicates over grafting were validated by transmission electron microscopy. Inter-lamellar spacing measurements were found to correlate perfectly with x-ray data. On the other hand, the alignment of the clay nanoparticles was examined by small angle x-ray scattering. A 3D-orientation approach was developed based on the scattering stereographs.
Investigation on the electrical conductivity and tribological properties of NbSe2-doped lubricating grease
Authors: Wu Lining , Yan Jie , Cao Zhengfeng , Xia Yanqiu , Wu Hao
Published: August 2022

Developing lubricants with good electrical conductivity and good tribological properties is necessary for the power equipment. Here, niobium selenide (NbSe2) and boron nitride (BN) were employed to act as additives to fabricate the lubricating greases with superior electrical conductivity and tribological properties. The lubricating grease containing different concentrations of additives were synthesized and their conductivities were measured by a volume resistance meter at the room temperature of about 25 °C. The tribological properties of the lubricating greases were also investigated and the worn surfaces were characterized in detail by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Raman spectroscopy to analyze the lubrication mechanism after friction test. The results showed that NbSe2 could effectively reduce the volume resistivity by ten times as compared with the base grease. Tribological tests showed that when the concentration of NbSe2 was 2 wt%, it could reduce the COF and wear scar width by 23.5% and 12.8% under 150 N and 5 Hz, indicating 2 wt% NbSe2 doped lubricating grease exhibited the outstanding tribological properties. In addition, based on the analysis of the wear surfaces, the superior tribological properties of NbSe2 grease were attributed to the effective lubricating film generated on the friction surface, which played a key role in reducing friction and anti-wear.
Functional tumor diameter measurement with molecular breast imaging: development and clinical application
Authors: Lopez Benjamin P , Rauch Gaiane M , Adrada Beatriz , Kappadath S Cheenu
Published: August 2022

Purpose: Molecular breast imaging (MBI) is used clinically to visualize the uptake of 99mTc-sestamibi in breast cancers. Here, we use Monte Carlo simulations to develop a methodology to estimate tumor diameter in focal lesions and explore a semi-automatic implementation for clinical data. Methods: A validated Monte Carlo simulation of the GE Discovery NM 750b was used to simulate >75,000 unique spherical/ellipsoidal tumor, normal breast, and image acquisition conditions. Subsets of this data were used to 1) characterize the dependence of the full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) of a tumor profile on tumor, normal breast, and acquisition conditions, 2) develop a methodology to estimate tumor diameters, and 3) quantify the diameter accuracy in a broad range of clinical conditions. Finally, the methodology was implemented in patient images and compared to diameter estimates from physician contours on MBI, mammography, and ultrasound imaging. Results: Tumor profile FWHM was determined be linearly dependent on tumor diameter but independent of other factors such as tumor shape, uptake, and distance from the detector. A linear regression was used to calculate tumor diameter from the FWHM estimated from a background-corrected profile across a tumor extracted from a median-filtered single-detector MBI image, i.e., diameter = 1.2 mm + 1.2 × FWHM, for FWHM ≥ 13 mm. Across a variety of simulated clinical conditions, the mean error of the methodology was 0.2 mm (accuracy), with >50% of cases estimated within 1-pixel width of the truth (precision). In patient images, the semi-automatic methodology provided the longest diameter in 94% (60/64) of cases. The estimated true diameters, for oval lesions with homogeneous uptake, differed by ± 5 mm from physician measurements. Conclusion: This work demonstrates the feasibility of accurately quantifying tumor diameter in clinical MBI, and to our knowledge, is the first to explore its implementation and application in patient data.
Stability of exponentially damped oscillations under perturbations of the Mori-Chain
Authors: Heveling Robin , Wang Jiaozi , Bartsch Christian , Gemmer Jochen
Published: August 2022

There is an abundance of evidence that some relaxation dynamics, e.g., exponential decays, are much more common in nature than others. Recently, there have been attempts to trace this dominance back to a certain stability of the prevalent dynamics versus generic Hamiltonian perturbations. In the paper at hand, we tackle this stability issue from yet another angle, namely in the framework of the recursion method. We investigate the behavior of various relaxation dynamics with respect to alterations of the so-called Lanczos coefficients. All considered scenarios are set up in order to comply with the ‘universal operator growth hypothesis’. Our numerical experiments suggest the existence of stability in a larger class of relaxation dynamics consisting of exponentially damped oscillations. Further, we propose a criterion to identify ‘pathological’ perturbations that lead to uncommon dynamics.
Free-form surface inspection path planning using improved ant colony optimisation algorithm
Authors: Chen Yueping , Tan Bo
Published: August 2022

To improve the inspection efficiency of free-form surfaces using coordinate measuring machines (CMMs), this paper proposes a free-form CMM inspection path optimization method based on an improved ant colony optimisation algorithm. The inspection path composition and its mathematical model are first analysed, and then the improved ant colony optimisation algorithm is applied to minimize the objective function. To address the problem that the ant colony optimisation algorithm has difficulty jumping out of local optimal solutions, this paper introduces a negative feedback mechanism in the pheromone update rule to improve the probability of the ant colony optimisation algorithm jumping out of the local optimal solution, so as to obtain the global optimal solution with a higher probability. Experiments showed that the inspection path length optimised by the improved ant colony optimisation algorithm was at least 5.2% and 8.6% shorter than those of the traditional ant colony optimisation and simulated annealing algorithms, respectively.
Flow direction algorithm-based machine learning approaches for the prediction of high-performance concrete strength property
Authors: He Deng , Zong-Wei He , Jie Xu
Published: August 2022

The main significance of utilizing high-performance concrete as an effective item in the construction industry is the compressive strength assessment which requires a vast investigation of the design mix with calculated relevant compressive strength. Through the intelligence approaches, planning an accurate relationship between high-performance concrete different mix designs and their compressive strength is obtainable with the lowest cost of time and finance. Two models based on support vector regression methods are developed in this regard. The optimal output is calculated by tuning support vector regression key constraints by flow direction and biography-based optimization algorithm. The data set collected from the literature is divided into the training, and the testing phase, where the training data is used to develop the models, and the testing data is utilized to validate the accuracy of the models. The results showed a higher accuracy of the FDA_SVR method than the BBO_SVR method, with R2 values of 0.9939 and 0.9755, respectively. moreover, the

U

95

confidence level obtained about 4.0273 and 7.367 for the FDA-SVR and BBO-SVR, respectively, demonstrating the accurate prediction capacity of the FDA-SVR model for high-performance concrete compressive strength.
Investigation of variation in temperature on steep subthreshold slope nanowire tunnel field effect transistor based biosensor
Authors: Sachdeva Rohit , Bhushan Aditya , Bajaj Aayush , Gupta Maneesha , Kumar Prateek , Raman Ashish , Ranjan Ravi , Kumar Naveen
Published: August 2022

Biosensors are critical part of today’s lifestyle. They have vast applications in medical industries making continuous advancement in the domain crucial. To further extend their utilities in this manuscript effect of variation in temperature on charge plasma based tunnel field effect transistor as biosensor is investigated. To investigate, device is simulated at 200 K, 300 K and 400 K and various device, analog and linearity characteristics are examined. To create the cavity for accommodation of biomolecules, source electrode is extended. Analyzed device resulted in steepest subthreshold slope of 17.61mV dec−1 and 8.81mV dec−1 for κ = 3 at T = 200 K. Device also has high ION sensitivity for entire temperature range. Due to promising characteristics, investigated biosensor can be used in future for detection of different biomolecules.
Population co-exposure to extreme heat and wildfire smoke pollution in California during 2020
Authors: Rosenthal Noam , Benmarhnia Tarik , Ahmadov Ravan , James Eric , Marlier Miriam E
Published: August 2022

Excessive warming from climate change has increased the total wildfire burned area over the past several decades in California. This has increased population exposure to both hazardous concentrations of air pollutants from fires such as fine particulate matter (smoke PM2.5) and extreme heat events. Exposure to PM2.5 and extreme heat are individually associated with negative health impacts and recent epidemiological evidence points to synergistic effects from concurrent exposures. This study characterizes the frequency and spatial distribution of co-occurring extreme heat and smoke PM2.5 events in California during the record-setting wildfire season of 2020. We measure exceedances over extreme thresholds of modeled surface-level smoke PM2.5 concentrations and heat index based on observed temperature and humidity. We estimate that, during the studied period, extreme smoke and heat co-occurred at least once within 68% of the state’s area (∼288 000 km2) and an average 2.5 times across all affected areas. Additionally, 16.5 million people, mostly in lower population density areas, were impacted at least once in 2020 by such synergistic events. Our findings suggest that public health guidance and adaptation policies should account for co-exposures, not only distinct exposures, when confronting heat and smoke PM2.5.
Identifying cellular cancer mechanisms through pathway-driven data integration
Authors: Windels Sam F L , Malod-Dognin Noël , Pržulj Nataša
Published: August 2022

Motivation

Cancer is a genetic disease in which accumulated mutations of driver genes induce a functional reorganization of the cell by reprogramming cellular pathways. Current approaches identify cancer pathways as those most internally perturbed by gene expression changes. However, driver genes characteristically perform hub roles between pathways. Therefore, we hypothesize that cancer pathways should be identified by changes in their pathway–pathway relationships.

Results

To learn an embedding space that captures the relationships between pathways in a healthy cell, we propose pathway-driven non-negative matrix tri-factorization. In this space, we determine condition-specific (i.e. diseased and healthy) embeddings of pathways and genes. Based on these embeddings, we define our ‘NMTF centrality’ to measure a pathway’s or gene’s functional importance, and our ‘moving distance’, to measure the change in its functional relationships. We combine both measures to predict 15 genes and pathways involved in four major cancers, predicting 60 gene–cancer associations in total, covering 28 unique genes. To further exploit driver genes’ tendency to perform hub roles, we model our network data using graphlet adjacency, which considers nodes adjacent if their interaction patterns form specific shapes (e.g. paths or triangles). We find that the predicted genes rewire pathway–pathway interactions in the immune system and provide literary evidence that many are druggable (15/28) and implicated in the associated cancers (47/60). We predict six druggable cancer-specific drug targets.

Availability and implementation

The code and data are available at: https://gitlab.bsc.es/swindels/pathway_driven_nmtf

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Quasi-Entropy Closure: a fast and reliable approach to close the moment equations of the Chemical Master Equation
Authors: Wagner Vincent , Castellaz Benjamin , Oesting Marco , Radde Nicole
Published: August 2022

Motivation

The Chemical Master Equation is a stochastic approach to describe the evolution of a (bio)chemical reaction system. Its solution is a time-dependent probability distribution on all possible configurations of the system. As this number is typically large, the Master Equation is often practically unsolvable. The Method of Moments reduces the system to the evolution of a few moments, which are described by ordinary differential equations. Those equations are not closed, since lower order moments generally depend on higher order moments. Various closure schemes have been suggested to solve this problem. Two major problems with these approaches are first that they are open loop systems, which can diverge from the true solution, and second, some of them are computationally expensive.

Results

Here we introduce Quasi-Entropy Closure, a moment-closure scheme for the Method of Moments. It estimates higher order moments by reconstructing the distribution that minimizes the distance to a uniform distribution subject to lower order moment constraints. Quasi-Entropy Closure can be regarded as an advancement of Zero-Information Closure, which similarly maximizes the information entropy. Results show that both approaches outperform truncation schemes. Quasi-Entropy Closure is computationally much faster than Zero-Information Closure, although both methods consider solutions on the space of configurations and hence do not completely overcome the curse of dimensionality. In addition, our scheme includes a plausibility check for the existence of a distribution satisfying a given set of moments on the feasible set of configurations. All results are evaluated on different benchmark problems.

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
PanExplorer: a web-based tool for exploratory analysis and visualization of bacterial pan-genomes
Authors: Dereeper Alexis , Summo Marilyne , Meyer Damien F
Published: August 2022

Motivation

As pan-genome approaches are largely employed for bacterial comparative genomics and evolution analyses, but still difficult to be carried out by non-bioinformatician biologists, there is a need for an innovative tool facilitating the exploration of bacterial pan-genomes.

Results

PanExplorer is a web application providing various genomic analyses and reports, giving intuitive views that enable a better understanding of bacterial pan-genomes. As an example, we produced the pan-genome for 121 Anaplasmataceae strains (including 30 Ehrlichia, 15 Anaplasma, 68 Wolbachia).

Availability and implementation

PanExplorer is written in Perl CGI and relies on several JavaScript libraries for visualization (hotmap.js, MauveViewer, CircosJS). It is freely available at http://panexplorer.southgreen.fr. The source code has been released in a GitHub repository https://github.com/SouthGreenPlatform/PanExplorer. A documentation section is available on PanExplorer website.
Prosecution Deferred, Prosecution Exempt: On the Interests of (In)Justice in the Non-Trial Resolution of Transnational Corporate Bribery
Authors: Lord Nicholas
Published: August 2022

Nation-states face regulatory and enforcement dilemmas when dealing with corporations operating in international commerce that are implicated in the bribery of foreign public officials. As part of the regulatory landscape, non-trial resolutions, and Deferred Prosecution Agreements (DPAs) specifically, have emerged as a prominent method for gaining leverage against major implicated corporations. This article analyses how judges in England and Wales discursively rationalize the approval of DPAs, arguing that three interdiscursive mechanisms (deviance elastication; corporate dissociation; and, anticipatory offsetting) serve to underpin and communicate constructions of DPAs as in the interests of justice. Relatedly, the conditions of use of DPAs have generated a socially problematic enforcement infrastructure, whereby corporates are being exempt, not just deferred, from criminal prosecution.
Development of prognostic models for survival and care status in sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease
Authors: Nihat Akın , Ranson Janice M , Harris Dominique , McNiven Kirsty , Mok TzeHow , Rudge Peter , Collinge John , Llewellyn David J , Mead Simon
Published: August 2022

Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, the most common human prion disease, typically presents as a rapidly progressive dementia and has a highly variable prognosis. Despite this heterogeneity, clinicians need to give timely advice on likely prognosis and care needs. No prognostic models have been developed that predict survival or time to increased care status from the point of diagnosis. We aimed to develop clinically useful prognostic models with data from a large prospective observational cohort study. Five hundred and thirty-seven patients were visited by mobile teams of doctors and nurses from the National Health Service National Prion Clinic within 5 days of notification of a suspected diagnosis of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, enrolled to the study between October 2008 and March 2020, and followed up until November 2020. Prediction of survival over 10-, 30- and 100-day periods was the main outcome. Escalation of care status over the same time periods was a secondary outcome for a subsample of 113 patients with low care status at initial assessment. Two hundred and eighty (52.1%) patients were female and the median age was 67.2 (interquartile range 10.5) years. Median survival from initial assessment was 24 days (range 0–1633); 414 patients died within 100 days (77%). Ten variables were included in the final prediction models: sex; days since symptom onset; baseline care status; PRNP codon 129 genotype; Medical Research Council Prion Disease Rating Scale, Motor and Cognitive Examination Scales; count of MRI abnormalities; Mini-Mental State Examination score and categorical disease phenotype. The strongest predictor was PRNP codon 129 genotype (odds ratio 6.65 for methionine homozygous compared with methionine-valine heterozygous; 95% confidence interval 3.02–14.68 for 30-day mortality). Of 113 patients with lower care status at initial assessment, 88 (78%) had escalated care status within 100 days, with a median of 35 days. Area under the curve for models predicting outcomes within 10, 30 and 100 days was 0.94, 0.92 and 0.91 for survival, and 0.87, 0.87 and 0.95 for care status escalation, respectively. Models without PRNP codon 129 genotype, which is not immediately available at initial assessment, were also highly accurate. We have developed a model that can accurately predict survival and care status escalation in sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease patients using clinical, imaging and genetic data routinely available in a specialist national referral service. The utility and generalizability of these models to other settings could be prospectively evaluated when recruiting to clinical trials and providing clinical care.
miR-3154 promotes hepatocellular carcinoma progression via suppressing HNF4α
Authors: Wei Yuan , Wei Lai , Han Tao , Ding Shuang
Published: August 2022

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play an important role in cancer proliferation, metastasis, drug resistance and apoptosis by targeting oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes. miR-3154 has been reported to be up-regulated in cervical cancer and leukemia, but its role in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains unclear. Here, we for the first time demonstrated that miR-3154 was elevated in HCC and liver cancer stem cells (CSCs). Up-regulated miR-3154 was associated with overall survival and disease-free survival of HCC patients. MiR-3154 knockdown inhibits HCC cells self-renewal, proliferation, metastasis, and tumorigenesis. Mechanistically, miR-3154 target directly to HNF4α. MiR-3154 knockdown upregulated HNF4α mRNA and protein expression. HNF4α interference abolish the differences of self-renewal, proliferation, metastasis, and tumorigenesis between miR-3154 knockdown cells and control hepatoma cells. Furthermore, miR-3154 expression was negatively correlated with HNF4α in HCC tissues. The combined HHC panels exhibited a better disease-free survival prognostic value for HCC patients than any of these components alone. More importantly, miR-3154 determines the responses of hepatoma cells to lenvatinib treatment. Analysis of patient cohort and patient-derived xenografts (PDXs) further suggest that miR-3154 might predict lenvatinib clinical benefit in HCC patients. In conclusion, we reveal the crucial role of miR-3514 in HCC progression and lenvatinib response, suggesting potential therapeutic targets for HCC.
Is there sex disparity in vascular access at dialysis initiation in France? A mediation analysis using data from the Renal Epidemiology and Information Network registry
Authors: Beaumier Mathilde , Ficheux Maxence , Couchoud Cécile , Lassalle Mathilde , Launay Ludivine , Courivaud Cécile , Tiple Aurélien , Lobbedez Thierry , Chatelet Valérie
Published: August 2022

Background

This study was conducted to estimate the direct effect of sex on the proportion of hemodialysis (HD) catheters used at dialysis initiation and to investigate whether predialysis care or socioeconomic status acted as a mediator of the sex effect.

Methods

Patients who started dialysis between January 1, 2017, and June 30, 2018, in France were included using the data of the Renal Epidemiology and Information Network (REIN) registry. We performed logistic regression to study the association between sex and the proportion of HD catheters used. A mediation analysis with a counterfactual approach was carried out to evaluate whether there was an indirect effect of sex through the proxies of predialysis care {hemoglobin, albumin levels, glomerular filtration rate [GFR] at dialysis initiation} and socioeconomic status. Because an interaction between sex and social deprivation has been identified, we performed a subgroup analysis on deprived and nondeprived patients.

Results

The study included 16 032 patients, and the sex ratio (male to female) was 10 405:5627. In the multivariable analysis, women were associated with a greater risk of starting dialysis with a catheter {odds ratio [OR], 1.32 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.23–1.42]}. There was an indirect effect of sex on the proportion of HD catheters through proxies for predialysis care {albuminemia <30 g/L [OR, 1.08 (95% CI: 1.05–1.10)], hemoglobin <11 g/dL [OR, 1.03 (95% CI: 1.02–1.04)], glomerular filtration rate <7 mL/min [OR, 1.05 (95% CI: 1.04–1.07)]}. Among deprived patients, there was no direct effect of sex on catheter proportion.

Conclusions

Women were associated with a higher risk of starting dialysis through an HD catheter. The effect of sex was mediated by predialysis care, particularly for deprived patients.
Treatment Patterns and Standardized Outcome Assessments Among Patients With Inflammatory Conditions of the Pouch in a Prospective Multicenter Registry
Authors: Barnes Edward L , Deepak Parakkal , Beniwal-Patel Poonam , Raffals Laura , Kayal Maia , Dubinsky Marla , Chang Shannon , Higgins Peter D R , Barr Jennifer I , Galanko Joseph , Jiang Yue , Cross Raymond K , Long Millie D , Herfarth Hans H
Published: August 2022

Background

Much of our understanding about the natural history of pouch-related disorders has been generated from selected populations. We designed a geographically diverse, prospective registry to study the disease course among patients with 1 of 4 inflammatory conditions of the pouch. The primary objectives in this study were to demonstrate the feasibility of a prospective pouch registry and to evaluate the predominant treatment patterns for pouch-related disorders.

Methods

We used standardized diagnostic criteria to prospectively enroll patients with acute pouchitis, chronic antibiotic-dependent pouchitis (CADP), chronic antibiotic refractory pouchitis (CARP), or Crohn’s disease (CD) of the pouch. We obtained detailed clinical and demographic data at the time of enrollment, along with patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures.

Results

We enrolled 318 patients (10% acute pouchitis, 27% CADP, 12% CARP, and 51% CD of the pouch). Among all patients, 55% were on a biologic or small molecule therapy. Patients with CD of the pouch were more likely to use several classes of therapy (P < .001). Among patients with active disease at the time of enrollment, 23% with CARP and 40% with CD of the pouch were in clinical remission at 6 months after enrollment.

Conclusions

In a population where most patients had refractory inflammatory conditions of the pouch, we established a framework to evaluate PROs and clinical effectiveness. This infrastructure will be valuable for long-term studies of real-world effectiveness for pouch-related disorders.
Small vessel vasculitis associated with culture-negative infective endocarditis related to a cardiac device: a case report
Authors: El-Gaaly Maged , Tomlinson James Steven , Ezzo Talal
Published: August 2022

Background

Culture-negative endocarditis is uncommon, occurring in less than a third of all cases of infective endocarditis (IE). Culture-negative IE related to a cardiac device is an even greater diagnostic challenge due to its insidious presentation, with onset of symptoms ranging between 3 and 12 months after device implantation. Sensitivity of the modified Duke’s criteria remains low in culture-negative and cardiac device-related IE (CDRIE) since classical signs and symptoms of IE are often absent. Small vessel vasculitis has been reported as an immune response to IE. Recognizing immunological phenomenon related to IE is of paramount clinical importance, prompting the search for an underlying infection and avoiding the use of immunosuppressive medications which would otherwise result in an adverse outcome.

Case summary

An 81-year-old Caucasian male presented to the ambulatory medical unit with a two-week history of a symmetrical, generalized purpuric rash. He had an indwelling permanent pacemaker following a transcatheter aortic valve implantation for severe aortic stenosis five years ago. Blood tests showed an iron deficiency anaemia, thrombocytopenia and normal renal function, both CRP and ESR were raised at 61  and 30 mm/hr, respectively. Skin biopsy demonstrated small vessel cutaneous vasculitis. Transthoracic echocardiography revealed a mobile mass measuring 0.9 × 1.7 cm, confirmed on transoesophageal echocardiogram as pacing lead endocarditis. Blood cultures were persistently negative. The patient underwent pacemaker lead extraction, following which the vasculitic rash improved.

Discussion

Blood cultures in IE are more likely to be negative if there is a prior antibiotic administration or causative micro-organisms with limited proliferation which fail to grow in conventional media conditions. Transesophageal echocardiography (TOE) offers improved sensitivity and diagnostic yield when compared to transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) in patients with a high clinical suspicion of CDRIE. The evidence in the literature describing culture-negative IE associated with small vessel vasculitis is limited. However, it is recognized that cutaneous small vessel vasculitis may be associated with an underlying bacterial infection. IE produces an inflammatory response, resulting in the deposition of circulating immune complexes and cutaneous signs which are included in the modified Duke’s criteria to aid diagnosis. Management of CDRIE requires a multi-disciplinary team approach with an ‘Endocarditis Team.’ Pacemaker lead infection requires transvenous lead extraction if it is a newly implanted lead. Locking stylets, extraction sheaths or snare retrieval are usually required in cases of older implanted leads. Surgical lead extraction remains the gold standard for larger vegetations (>20 mm) or associated valve endocarditis.
A case report of successful physiological pacing in a patient with lamin A/C cardiomyopathy
Authors: Chandra Mohan Nitin , Foley Paul , Chandrasekaran Badrinathan
Published: August 2022

Background

Lamin A/C (LMNA) mutations account for 5–8% of familial dilated cardiomyopathies, and can manifest with conduction abnormalities and ventricular arrhythmias in 78% of patients. Therefore, when suspected, it is important to implant the correct type of device.

Case summary

A 52-year-old gentleman with a family history of cardiomyopathy, presented with asymptomatic atrial fibrillation and complete atrioventricular block associated with a narrow QRS interval. Investigations confirmed dilated and severely impaired left ventricular systolic function. He underwent successful conduction system pacing in combination with a primary prevention defibrillator. Genetic screening confirmed LMNA cardiomyopathy. During 3 years follow up, his left ventricular function remained unchanged with stable conduction system capture and he received appropriate therapy from his device for ventricular tachycardia.

Discussion

His-bundle pacing promotes rapid and synchronous activation of the ventricles via the intrinsic conduction system of the heart. In selected individuals with LMNA cardiomyopathy, conduction system pacing is viable alternative to conventional cardiac resynchronization therapy using coronary sinus tributaries.
A Matching Model of Co-Residence with a Family Network: Empirical Evidence from China
Authors: Guo Naijia , Xia Xiaoyu , Zhang Junsen
Published: August 2022

We develop a co-residence model between young adults and the elderly as an application of the Shapley–Shubik–Becker bilateral matching framework. This model captures competition between adult children and between parents and parents-in-law. Using microdata from China, we estimate our model by using a network simulation method to fill in partially unobservable marriage links. We find that our model explains the child-side and parent-side competitions observed in the data better than two alternative multinomial logit models with only one-sided competition. In addition, counterfactual experiments quantify the effects of changes in the one-child policy and housing prices on intergenerational co-residence.
Initial conditions and regional performance in the aftermath of disruptive shocks: the case of East Germany after socialism
Authors: Fritsch Michael , Wyrwich Michael
Published: August 2022

We investigate how specific regional conditions found in East Germany at the end of the socialist regime impact development during the turbulent shock transition to a market economy. Both the self-employment rate (an indicator of a pre-socialist entrepreneurial tradition) and the share of the workforce with a university degree (as measure of the general qualification of the workforce) have a strong positive effect on regional development. Our results show that entrepreneurship and knowledge are key regional resources for mastering disruptive historical shocks.
Novel use of reverse double switch operation in failed left ventricular recruitment pathway
Authors: Barretta Jorge O , Grinenco Sofía , Osuna Juan M , Napoli Natalia S
Published: August 2022

In spite of great advances in staged left ventricle recruitment strategy, some patients do not achieve biventricular circulation nor are candidates for reversal to single-ventricle palliation. We present a case of a successful reverse double switch operation in a patient with failure of left ventricle recruitment and pulmonary hypertension. This strategy provided a one-and-a-half repair with a sub-pulmonary hypoplastic left ventricle that improved the patient’s clinical status, becoming a novel alternative in this particular subset of patients.
Policy analysis: User monitoring of in-vitro diagnostic medical devices used for near-patient testing of infectious diseases
Authors: Dimech Wayne , Lamoury Francois , Ding Xavier C , Lastra Leticia Megias , Vincini Giuseppe , Sands Anita
Published: August 2022

Background

All individuals should have equitable access to accurate and timely testing for infectious diseases, which underpins diagnosis and treatment, safeguards blood supplies, and is used to determine disease prevalence. Disadvantaged populations have limited access to laboratory-based testing, so near-patient or point-of-care testing (PoCT) has been developed and implemented. Unlike laboratory-based testing, PoCT is often performed by non-laboratory staff and outside regulatory frameworks. Quality assurance (QA) of PoCT is often lacking or inappropriate, meaning inaccurate testing can go undetected, leading to poor patient outcomes.

Objective

To review the application of QA of PoCT use to detect infectious diseases and propose fit-for-purpose alternatives.

Method

A review of the current QA of PoCT was undertaken by experienced QA providers by mapping the points of failure. Barriers to providing PoCT QA include inappropriate and unstable sample types; expensive shipping to remote sites, including dry ice shipment; cost of international QA programmes; regulatory costs; fixed test events; and a lack of technology for simple, centralized data collection facilitating rapid analysis and reporting of test results. Based on these findings, a novel, fit-for-purpose model of QA for PoCT for infectious diseases is described.

Results

The new model for QA for PoCT identifies and describes novel sample types, including dry tube samples, dried swabs, or liquid-stable clinical samples that are inactivated and stable at ambient temperature; modified distribution channels; and a method for data collection and analysis using mobile phone technology.

Conclusion

The findings of this paper seek to describe a fit-for-purpose process, which aims to improve the quality of testing for infectious diseases at PoCT, globally.
Autonomous construction of parameterizable 3D leaf models from scanned sweet pepper leaves with deep generative networks
Authors: Moon Taewon , Choi Hayoung , Kim Dongpil , Hwang Inha , Kim Jaewoo , Shin Jiyong , Son Jung Eek
Published: August 2022

Visible traits can be criteria for selecting a suitable crop. Three-dimensional (3D)-scanned plant models can be used to extract visible traits; however, collecting scanned data and physically manipulating point-cloud structures of the scanned models are difficult. Recently, deep generative models have shown high performance in learning and creating target data. Deep generative models can improve the versatility of scanned models. The objectives of this study were to generate sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum) leaf models and to extract their traits by using deep generative models. The leaves were scanned, preprocessed and used to train the deep generative models. The variational autoencoder, generative adversarial network (GAN) and latent space GAN were used to generate the desired leaves. The optimal number of latent variables in the model was selected via the Jensen–Shannon divergence (JSD). The generated leaves were evaluated by using the JSD, coverage and minimum matching distance to determine the best model for leaf generation. Among the deep generative models, a modified GAN showed the highest performance. Sweet pepper leaves with various shapes were generated from eight latent variables following a normal distribution, and the morphological traits of the leaves were controlled through linear interpolation and simple arithmetic operations in latent space. Simple arithmetic operations and gradual changes in the latent space modified the leaf traits. Deep generative models can parameterize and generate morphological traits in digitized 3D plant models and add realism and diversity to plant phenotyping studies.
Antimicrobial-resistant Enterobacterales colonization in people with HIV
Authors: Henderson Heather I , Ruegsegger Laura , Alby Kevin , Smedberg Jason R , Hill Bravada M , Brown Dylan , Wohl David A , Napravnik Sonia , Van Duin David
Published: August 2022

Background

People with HIV (PWH) may be at increased risk for MDR Enterobacterales (MDR-E) infection or colonization, relative to individuals without HIV, due to a greater burden of comorbidities as well as HIV-related intestinal inflammation and microbiota alterations.

Objectives

To characterize antibiotic susceptibility of enteric Enterobacterales and risk factors for antimicrobial-resistant bacterial infections in a sample of PWH attending routine clinic visits.

Methods

Participants provided self-administered rectal swabs and completed questionnaires regarding healthcare, travel and occupational exposures for the prior 12 months. Rectal samples were processed to identify Enterobacterales species, and susceptibility testing was performed.

Results

Among 82 participants, 110 Enterobacterales isolates were obtained. Non-susceptibility was common for penicillins, sulphonamides and first-generation cephalosporins. MDR-E was present in 20% of participants. HIV-related characteristics, including current or nadir CD4 cell count, viral suppression, or AIDS-defining clinical conditions, were not associated with MDR-E.

Conclusions

MDR-E colonization is common in this population of PWH. Further research evaluating risk factors for MDR-E in PWH may inform infection prevention approaches to better protect at-risk populations from these difficult-to-treat infections.
Review of Burn Resuscitation: Is Plasmalyte® a Comparable Alternative to Ringer’s Lactate?
Authors: Cappuyns Laura , Tridente Ascanio , Stubbington Yvonne , Dempsey-Hibbert Nina Claire , Shokrollahi Kayvan
Published: August 2022

Ringer’s lactate has been the most widely used fluid for burn resuscitation for decades. Plasmalyte® (PL), a newer balanced crystalloid, is gaining popularity for use in the critically ill, including patients with burns. This popularity is partly due to the fact that PL theoretically offers a favorable metabolic profile, but may also be attributed to its relatively lower cost. Patients who are critically ill with large burns receive enormous volumes of fluids, especially during the resuscitation period. The choice of balanced crystalloid solution used is likely to have an impact on the metabolic status of patients and their overall outcomes. The choice of fluid for burn resuscitation has been one of the most researched topics in burn care and various types of fluids have been superseded based on research findings. This narrative review examines the evidence guiding fluid management in burns and explores the data supporting the use of balanced crystalloid solutions, in particular PL for burn resuscitation. Our literature search revealed only one study that focused on a direct comparison between PL and standard Ringer’s Lactate for burn resuscitation. Based on the limited literature on the use of PL in burns, it is difficult to draw meaningful conclusions. Further research, into the suitability of PL for use in burns, is needed before formulary changes are instituted widely.