bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ability‐grouping and problem behavior trajectories in childhood and adolescence: Results from a U.K. population‐based sample
Authors: Papachristou Efstathios , Flouri Eirini , Joshi Heather , Midouhas Emily , Lewis Glyn
Published: September 2021

Ability‐grouping has been studied extensively in relation to children's academic, but not emotional and behavioral outcomes. The sample comprised 7259 U.K. children (50% male) with data on between‐class and within‐class ability‐grouping at age 7. Peer, emotional, hyperactivity, and conduct problems were measured at ages 7, 11, and 14 years. Children in low within‐class ability groups showed more hyperactivity and emotional problems across the study period compared to non‐grouped children, after adjustments for the different types of ability grouping and confounding. Additionally, children in the middle within‐class ability groups showed more, and those in the top within‐class groups less, hyperactivity compared to non‐grouped children, after adjustment. Children in lower within‐class groups should be monitored closely to ensure that their well‐being is not compromised.
A comparative retrospective study of different surgical guide designs for static computer‐assisted implant surgery in posterior single edentulous sites
Authors: De Souza Andre Barbisan , Kang Michael , Negreiros William Matthew , El‐Rafie Khaled , Finkelman Matthew , Papaspyridakos Panos
Published: September 2021

Aim

The aim of this retrospective clinical study was to compare the accuracy of static Computer‐assisted implant surgery (sCAIS) in posterior single edentulous patients using different surgical guide designs.

Materials and Methods

Thirty‐seven partially edentulous patients with a total of 54 implants were included in the study. Seventeen implants were included in Group 1—Unbounded Tooth‐Mucosa Supported; 18 implants in Group 2—Unbounded Tooth Supported; and 19 implants in Group 3 (Control)—Bounded Tooth Supported. All partially edentulous patients were treated with fully guided implant surgery using the corresponding surgical guide. Discrepancies between the pre‐planned and post‐operative implant position were evaluated.

Results

The mean angular deviation ± standard deviation (SD) was 2.91 ± 1.56°, 3.33 ± 1.72° and 2.25 ± 1.13° for Groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. The mean ± SD 3D offset at base was 0.66 ± 0.29 mm, 0.77 ± 0.24 mm, and 0.49 ± 0.22 mm; and 3D offset at tip was 0.84 ± 0.45 mm, 1.07 ± 0.38 mm, and 0.75 ± 0.25 mm for Groups 1, 2, and 3, respectively. No statistically significant differences between groups were found for angular deviation. There were statistically significant differences between Groups 2 and 3 for 3D offset at base (p = .002) and 3D offset at tip (p = .010).

Conclusions

Different surgical guide designs for posterior single edentulous areas appear to be associated with the accuracy level of sCAIS. In unbounded sites, having additional posterior attached soft tissue support is preferable.
Changing legislative thinking in China to better protect wild animals and human health
Authors: Fang Guirong , Liu Hong , Wu Ka , Wei Tongqing , Wang Qing
Published: September 2021

The COVID‐19 pandemic has exposed the inadequacy of China's legal protection of wildlife. Long‐standing illegal wildlife trade in China and worldwide increases the risk of zoonotic infectious diseases. We sought to improve the understanding of China’ legal system for the protection of wildlife, which has at its core the wildlife protection law, by systematically evaluating the laws and regulations of China's Wildlife Protection Framework. We examined how existing legal documents (e.g., the Wildlife Protection Law 2018) are directly or indirectly related to wildlife conservation. The inherent defects of wildlife protection legislation include a narrow scope of protection, insufficient public participation, and inconsistent enforcement among responsible agencies. Solutions to improve China's Wildlife Protection Law include expanding the legal protection of wildlife, and improving monitoring of wildlife protection. Strengthening legislation will be the basis for effective regulation of the use of wild animals. We advocate the establishment of a sound wildlife protection legal system for resolving conflicts between humans and wild animals and preventing zoonotic disease, such a system will have a profound impact on the sustainable development of China's wildlife resources.
AnIoTassisted clinical decision support system for wound healthcare monitoring
Authors: Sattar Hina , Bajwa Imran Sarwar , Shafi Umar Farooq
Published: September 2021

The patients with surgical and nonsurgical skin wounds shall maintain regular check on wounds in order to assure in‐time wound healing. There are numerous measures need to verify during wound checking, that is, wound appearance (wound color and size), wound environment. The wound appearance could verify by a number of clinical techniques presented by researchers of wound care domain, however measurement of wound environment shall fulfill by verification of different environmental factors as wound environment is composition of different factors which collectively formed wound internal environment and external environment. In current research, we presented a framework based on clinical decision support system for measurement of wound environment both internal and external. This framework contains different working module, which shall collaborate in order to check wound environment. We elaborated structural and implementation sketch of all these modules. The presented framework based on Internet of Things and machine learning algorithms to collect and analyze data effectively.
CBX8 interacts with chromatin PTEN and is involved in regulating mitotic progression
Authors: Choi Byeong Hyeok , Colon Tania Marlyn , Lee Eunji , Kou Ziyue , Dai Wei
Published: September 2021

Objectives

Besides its role in regulating phosphatidylinositol‐3 kinase (PI3K) signalling in the cytosol, PTEN also has a nuclear function. In this study, we attempted to understand the mechanism of chromatin PTEN in suppressing chromosomal instability during cell division.

Materials and methods

Immunocoprecipitation, ectopic expression, and deletional analyses were used to identify the physical interaction between Chromobox Homolog protein 8 (CBX8) and PTEN, as well as the functional domain(s) of PTEN mediating the interaction. Cell synchronization followed by immunoblotting was employed to study cell cycle regulation of CBX8 and the functional interaction between chromatin PTEN and CBX8. Small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) were used to study the role of PTEN and CBX8 in modulating histone epigenetic markers during the cell cycle.

Results

Polycomb group (PcG) proteins including CBXs function to repress gene expression in a wide range of organisms including mammals. We recently showed that PTEN interacted with CBX8, a component of Polycomb Repressing Complex 1 (PRC1), and that CBX8 co‐localized with PTEN in the nucleus. CBX8 levels were high, coinciding with its phosphorylation in mitosis. Phosphorylation of CBX8 was associated with monoubiquitinated PTEN and phosphorylated‐BubR1 on chromatin. Moreover, CBX8 played an important role in cell proliferation and mitotic progression. Significantly, downregulation of either PTEN or CBX8 induced H3K27Me3 epigenetic marker in mitotic cells.

Conclusion

CBX8 is a new component that physically interacts with chromatin PTEN, playing an important role in regulating mitotic progression.
Pigmented apocrine hamartoma: A distinct and uncommon pigmented lesion with dendritic melanocytes and appraisal of terminology
Authors: Kenny Bret , Zhao Yayuan , Banerjee Tamalina , Osmond Allison
Published: September 2021

A 20‐year‐old female presented to a gynecologist with an irregular, darkly pigmented, vulvar lesion. Histopathologic sections of a biopsy specimen showed cystically dilated glands with apical snouts, pigmented secretion, and numerous dendritic melanocytes. The lesion was diagnosed as a pigmented apocrine hamartoma of the vulva. We report the fifth case of this uncommonly encountered entity and discuss the conflicting terminology in the literature of this rare, pigmented lesion.
A step towards SDMs: A “couple‐and‐weigh” framework based on accessible data for biodiversity conservation and landscape planning
Authors: Iannella Mattia , Console Giulia , Cerasoli Francesco , De Simone Walter , D’Alessandro Paola , Biondi Maurizio
Published: September 2021

Aim

The ongoing global change makes landscape planning and management of ecological corridors crucial to preserve biodiversity. We propose a workflow optimizing the use of different data sources to convert ecological niche models (ENMs) into landscape‐focused species distribution models (SDMs), using these latter to compute ecological corridors. We infer corridors connecting present occurrence localities to future climatic refugia as well as to localities where extinct populations occurred. Also, a continuous connectivity change index is proposed to assess current–future differences. Finally, we discuss possible applications of our workflow to conservation, assessing the capability of established protected areas to preserve ecological corridors.

Location

Europe.

Methods

As case study to illustrate our framework, we use a database comprising occurrence localities of Vipera ursinii, one of the most endangered European reptiles. We obtain weighted SDMs for each of the four V. ursinii subspecies by coupling climate‐based ENMs with standardized occurrence frequencies along land use and altitude gradients through weighted averaging in GIS. We calculate current and future landscape connectivity for each subspecies based on the corresponding weighted SDM. We compare predictive performance of “traditional” ENMs, including climate, land use and topography as predictors and weighted SDMs.

Results

Weighted SDMs outperform ENMs, according to Boyce index. SDMs are used to infer connectivity, predicted to decrease in all future scenarios for V. ursinii, and assess where connections may favour movements of individuals to, for example, future suitable areas. Generally, protected areas are predicted to cover low‐connectivity territories.

Main conclusions

The proposed “couple‐and‐weigh” approach could represent a helpful tool to investigate biogeography, conservation and landscape planning topics, as it permits to capitalize on occurrence records and accessible environmental predictors by narrowing the target species’ potential distribution, estimated within “traditional” ENMs, to the realized one through post‐modelling GIS analyses, which in turn improves estimation of friction maps used to infer connectivity.
Endoscopic treatment for hepaticojejunostomy anastomotic stricture: Advantages and disadvantages of balloon dilatation with stenting
Authors: Kuwatani Masaki , Sakamoto Naoya
Published: September 2021

This Editorial refers to the article by T. Tomoda et al., p 604‐611 of this issue.
Diversity in spawning habitat use among Great Lakes Cisco populations
Authors: Paufve Matthew R. , Sethi Suresh A. , Weidel Brian C. , Lantry Brian F. , Yule Daniel L. , Rudstam Lars G. , Jonas Jory L. , Berglund Eric , Connerton Michael J. , Gorsky Dimitry , Herbert Matthew E. , Smith Jason
Published: September 2021

Cisco (Coregonus artedi) once dominated fish communities in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Restoring the abundance and distribution of this species has emerged as a management priority, yet our understanding of Cisco spawning habitat use is insufficient to characterise habitat needs for these populations and assess whether availability of suitable spawning habitat could be a constraint to recovery. We characterised the distribution of incubating Cisco eggs in situ across gradients of depth and substrate types to describe the spawning habitat used by three Great Lakes populations. In Chaumont Bay, Lake Ontario, eggs were concentrated on shallow bedrock shoals and not found on deeper silt or sand substrate. In contrast, eggs in Thunder Bay, Lake Superior, and Elk Rapids, Lake Michigan, were found on deeper fine grain sediments with low utilisation of shallow rocky and cobble habitats. These patterns of egg incubation habitat use suggest a broad spawning habitat niche at the species level but distinct spawning habitat preferences at the population level. While our results indicate some historical diversity in spawning habitat use has been maintained across the species’ range in the Great Lakes, comparisons of contemporary spawning habitat utilisation against historical accounts raise questions as to whether some spawning habitat use behaviours may no longer be prevalent within specific lakes. Thus, characterising the portfolio of spawning strategies remaining within lakes may improve our understanding of habitat needs and identify opportunities to maintain population diversity while supporting Cisco rehabilitation.
The Darwin Agreement: A collaboration between Australian restoration organisations in support of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration
Authors: Armitage Chris , Auld Tony , Bradby Keith , Campbell Heather , Clarkson Bruce , Cox Andrew , Dixon Peter , Fitzsimons James , Foran Brendan , Howling Gary , McLeod Ian , Norrish Shane , O'Connor Patrick , O'Gorman Dermot , Slater Helen , Wrigley Damian
Published: September 2021

The Darwin Agreement is a collective response from Australian national restoration organisations to the United Nation's declaration of 2021–2030 as the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. The agreement functions as terms of reference for a new alliance, the Restoration Decade Alliance, to optimise on‐ground actions and advocacy to retain native ecosystems, reduce impacts upon them and restore them to the highest extent practicable. The Restoration Decade Alliance is expected to grow in membership and influence throughout the Decade and to help galvanise increased action and improved policy across the whole of Australian society including government, industry and community sectors. The UN Decade initiative seeks to reinforce efforts of all players, small and large, to help shift the currently destructive trajectory of humankind to a trajectory of recovery for the benefit of humans and nature.
Defensive nymphs and water‐repellency in previously unknown galls of the social aphid Colophina monstrifica (Hemiptera: Aphididae: Eriosomatinae)
Authors: Uematsu Keigo , Aoki Shigeyuki , Yang Man‐Miao
Published: September 2021

The aphid Colophina monstrifica forms woolly colonies with sterile soldiers on the secondary host Clematis uncinata in Taiwan. However, the gall or primary‐host generation of C. monstrifica has not been found to date. We successfully induced galls of the species on Zelkova serrata by attaching its eggs to the trees, and also found a few naturally formed galls on another Z. serrata tree. The identity of the aphids was confirmed by examining their mitochondrial DNA sequences. First and second instar nymphs in the galls exhibited attacking behavior toward artificially introduced moth larvae. Observations with a scanning electron microscope revealed that the gall inner surface was densely covered with minute trichomes. This indicates the water repellency of the inner surface, and suggests that young nymphs of C. monstrifica dispose of honeydew globules outside the gall, as known in the congener Colophina clematis.
Local binary pattern and deep learning feature extraction fusion for COVID‐19 detection on computed tomography images
Authors: Mubarak Auwalu Saleh , Serte Sertan , Al‐Turjman Fadi , Ameen Zubaida Sa'id , Ozsoz Mehmet
Published: September 2021

The deadly coronavirus virus (COVID‐19) was confirmed as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) in December 2019. It is important to identify suspected patients as early as possible in order to control the spread of the virus, improve the efficacy of medical treatment, and, as a result, lower the mortality rate. The adopted method of detecting COVID‐19 is the reverse‐transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR), the process is affected by a scarcity of RT‐PCR kits as well as its complexities. Medical imaging using machine learning and deep learning has proved to be one of the most efficient methods of detecting respiratory diseases, but to train machine learning features needs to be extracted manually, and in deep learning, efficiency is affected by deep learning architecture and low data. In this study, handcrafted local binary pattern (LBP) and automatic seven deep learning models extracted features were used to train support vector machines (SVM) and K‐nearest neighbour (KNN) classifiers, to improve the performance of the classifier, a concatenated LBP and deep learning feature was proposed to train the KNN and SVM, based on the performance criteria, the models VGG‐19 + LBP achieved the highest accuracy of 99.4%. The SVM and KNN classifiers trained on the hybrid feature outperform the state of the art model. This shows that the proposed feature can improve the performance of the classifiers in detecting COVID‐19.
Credentialing and certification: Overview, science, and impact on policy, regulation, and practice
Authors: Chappell Kathy B. , Howard Matthew S. , Lundmark Vicki , Ivory Cathy
Published: September 2021

Aim

To engage the global nursing community in sharing knowledge, experiences, and lessons learned about credentialing of individual nurses to improve nursing practice, patient safety, and quality of care.

Background

Although the United States has a long and robust history of credentialing individual nurses, the opportunity exists to expand the dialogue globally, and is supported by globally focused governing bodies who call for increased or expanded investment in nursing certification and credentialing. Foundational work to define and operationalize certification for research purposes and develop an administrative home for stakeholders interested in certification can be leveraged by countries and regions globally. Existing frameworks for credentialing research may be used to drive theory‐based research in the future.

Sources of Evidence

PubMed, International Council of Nurses, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, World Health Organization, American Nurses Association, American Nurses Credentialing Center, and the authors’ own experiences.

Discussion

Credentialing as a form of self‐governance, as a method for public protection, and as a foundational element in the increasingly new forms of healthcare delivery is intensifying in importance. Credentials provide an opportunity to evaluate relationships between key elements such as nursing practice, environments where nursing care is delivered, and nursing programs with outcomes of interest for the profession such as safety, quality of care, and patient outcomes.

Conclusions

Establishing rigorous credentials for nurses demonstrates a commitment to excellence. Credentialing frameworks that are universally applied could enable nurses to move seamlessly across geographic boundaries, permit regulators and employers of nurses to have a common set of standards and expectations, and ensure a level of competency for nursing practice that can be interpreted and trusted by various stakeholders.

Implications for Nursing Policy

Policymakers have a pivotal role in advancing credentialing in nursing worldwide. Countries developing credentialing programs in nursing need to study their results to help inform how practice might be required to change over time.
Prevalence of dental neglect and associated risk factors in children and adolescents—A systematic review
Authors: Khalid Ghazal , Metzner Franka , Pawils Silke
Published: September 2021

Background

Dental neglect (DN) is characterized within the wider framework of child neglect, though it is under‐recognized by professionals.

Aim

To get an overview of the prevalence of DN worldwide and highlight the possible risk factors associated with it.

Methods

A systematic review was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines. Studies on children and adolescents aged 0–19 years were included. Studies were identified by searching in the various scientific databases up to 14 January 2020.

Results

Ten primary studies were included in which DN or indicators of DN were examined. The prevalence estimate range of DN reported by seven of the included studies after removing the outliers is from 34% to 56%. The prevalence of untreated caries reported by three of the included studies ranged from 38.9% to 99%. The education level and SES of parents and parental attitudes towards dental health affect children's oral health. Moreover, looked‐after children and children of refugees are at higher risk of DN.

Conclusion

The study showed a high prevalence of DN and untreated caries. Due to the under‐reporting of DN and a limited number of included studies, the results cannot be generalized worldwide. There is a need to make policies that include reporting of DN to higher authorities by dental professionals.
Ordered domain engineering and physical property modification of Ba(Co1/3Nb2/3)O3 complex perovskite ceramics
Authors: Shi Rui Da , Liu Lu , Zhu Xiao Li , Chen Xiang Ming
Published: September 2021

In the present work, the physical properties modification by ordered domain engineering has been systematically investigated in Ba(Co1/3Nb2/3)O3 ceramics. The 1:2 ordered structure with an ordering degree up to 0.92 with uniform ordered domain size distribution is achieved in Ba(Co1/3Nb2/3)O3 ceramics after post‐densification annealing, where the significantly enhanced electric resistivity, thermal conductivity, and dielectric strength, and subsequently the superior energy storage characteristics are achieved. The dielectric strength increases from 618 kV cm–1 to 972 kV cm–1 in the present ceramics by such means of ordered domain engineering, while the energy storage density increases from 0.65 J cm–3 to 1.42 J cm–3. There are three primary parameters in ordered domain engineering: ordering degree, ordered domain size and its distribution, and ordered domain boundary type. The final physical properties are determined by these three parameters.
Slight up‐regulation of Kir2.1 channel promotes endothelial progenitor cells to transdifferentiate into a pericyte phenotype by Akt/mTOR/Snail pathway
Authors: Cui Xiaodong , Li Xiaoxia , He Yanting , Yu Jie , Dong Naijun , Zhao Robert Chunhua
Published: September 2021

It was shown that endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) have bidirectional differentiation potential and thus perform different biological functions. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of slight up‐regulation of the Kir2.1 channel on EPC transdifferentiation and the potential mechanism on cell function and transformed cell type. First, we found that the slight up‐regulation of Kir2.1 expression promoted the expression of the stem cell stemness factors ZFX and NS and inhibited the expression of senescence‐associated β‐galactosidase. Further studies showed the slightly increased expression of Kir2.1 could also improve the expression of pericyte molecular markers NG2, PDGFRβ and Desmin. Moreover, adenovirus‐mediated Kir2.1 overexpression had an enhanced contractile response to norepinephrine of EPCs. These results suggest that the up‐regulated expression of the Kir2.1 channel promotes EPC transdifferentiation into a pericyte phenotype. Furthermore, the mechanism of EPC transdifferentiation to mesenchymal cells (pericytes) was found to be closely related to the channel functional activity of Kir2.1 and revealed that this channel could promote EPC EndoMT by activating the Akt/mTOR/Snail signalling pathway. Overall, this study suggested that in the early stage of inflammatory response, regulating the Kir2.1 channel expression affects the biological function of EPCs, thereby determining the maturation and stability of neovascularization.
Rethinking researcher bias in health research
Authors: Buetow Stephen , Zawaly Kristina
Published: September 2021

Bias is an ambiguous term, defined in different ways. In conventional usage, it indicates unwarranted prejudice. However, in health research, the notion that bias is invariably bad is biased. Although research bias is an error that is always harmful, researcher bias is a tendency to think in a particular way that may obscure or illuminate attempts to address research questions. Researcher bias begins with pre‐judgements whose continuing evaluation infuses the subjectivity of researchers as persons who are socially situated in health sciences focusing on human subjects. Two sets of conditions can make this bias in health researchers useful. The first is volume control. Researchers can vary the loudness of their own and other voices in different research environments. The second condition is smart working. It balances researcher bias against analytic thinking to work creatively with irregularity and uncertainty. Thus, health researchers need to bring their biases to consciousness. A dialectical approach can then engage the biases as conversational partners to innovate health policy that is informed by principles including transparency, good faith and tolerance. Less critical than whether researchers are biased is whose interests their bias serves given their positionality and role.
Design, development, and evaluation of paneer‐making machine
Authors: Sivaranjani S. , Pandian N. Karpoora Sundara , Prasath V. Arun , Pandiselvam R.
Published: September 2021

Paneer is an acid‐set dairy product having rising demand in the Indian subcontinent. A low‐cost machine was developed at the Department of Food Plant Operations, College of Food and Dairy Technology, India to mechanize the paneer production. The designed machine consisted of a milk heating tank, coagulation tank, pressing unit, and controller unit. The machine was evaluated for its performance in terms of yield (%), moisture content (% w.b.), acidity (%), and organoleptic properties at different levels of factors such as pressure applied (0.3, 0.4, 0.5, and 0.6 MPa), coagulant (vinegar and citric acid), and coagulation temperature (70, 80, and 90°C). In comparison, a maximum yield of 16.74% and hardness, adhesiveness, and chewiness values of 25723.03 g, −21.90 g·s, and 8998.93, respectively, were obtained when vinegar was used as coagulant at the coagulation temperature of 80°C at 0.5 MPa of applied pressure. The corresponding treatment recorded a moisture content of 51.35% (w.b.). The working capacity of the developed machine was 40 L/hr. The operational cost of the automatic paneer‐making machine was Rs. 2.11 per liter ($0.028 per liter), whereas it was estimated to be Rs. 2.56 per liter ($0.034 per liter) in the manual method. Thus, the developed machine proved to be economically feasible when compared to the manual method.

Practical Applications

The current manual practice followed for the production of paneer is tedious, time‐consuming, and laborious. Technology was developed toward the mechanization of unit operations involved in paneer processing for the benefit of the cottage industry. The research findings will reduce human drudgery, unhygienic handling, and hence quality paneer can be manufactured at low cost. This research would make a way to find automated paneer production techniques.
Disproportionate increases in schizophrenia diagnoses among Black nursing home residents with ADRD
Authors: Fashaw‐Walters Shekinah A. , McCreedy Ellen , Bynum Julie P. W. , Thomas Kali S. , Shireman Theresa I.
Published: September 2021

Background

Previous research demonstrated an increase in the reporting of schizophrenia diagnoses among nursing home (NH) residents after the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care. Given known health and healthcare disparities among Black NH residents, we examined how race and Alzheimer's and related dementia (ADRD) status influenced the rate of schizophrenia diagnoses among NH residents following the partnership.

Methods

We used a quasi‐experimental difference‐in‐differences design to study the quarterly prevalence of schizophrenia among US long‐stay NH residents aged 65 years and older, by Black race and ADRD status. Using 2011–2015 Minimum Data Set 3.0 assessments, our analysis controlled for age, sex, measures of function and frailty (activities of daily living [ADL] and Changes in Health, End‐stage disease and Symptoms and Signs scores) and behavioral expressions.

Results

There were over 1.2 million older long‐stay NH residents, annually. Schizophrenia diagnoses were highest among residents with ADRD. Among residents without ADRD, Black residents had higher rates of schizophrenia diagnoses compared to their nonblack counterparts prior to the partnership. Following the partnership, Black residents with ADRD had a significant increase of 1.7% in schizophrenia as compared to nonblack residents with ADRD who had a decrease of 1.7% (p = 0.007).

Conclusions

Following the partnership, Black NH residents with ADRD were more likely to have a schizophrenia diagnosis documented on their MDS assessments, and schizophrenia rates increased for Black NH residents with ADRD only. Further work is needed to examine the impact of “colorblind” policies such as the partnership and to determine if schizophrenia diagnoses are appropriately applied in NH practice, particularly for black Americans with ADRD.
The role of social media for patients with temporomandibular disorders: A content analysis of Reddit
Authors: Bronda Serena , Ostrovsky Michelle Greta , Jain Shruti , Malacarne Alberto
Published: September 2021

Background

Social media is frequently used to discuss health topics among users. Reddit is a popular social media platform particularly suit for discussion about chronic illness because of its anonymity that allow users to express uninhibited feelings. Temporomandibular disorders (TMD) represent a chronic painful disorder which has been rarely studied in terms of social media discussion.

Objectives

By exploring how Reddit is used to discuss about TMD, we aim to raise awareness to clinicians involved in TMD management about the online discussion on this topic.

Methods

A quantitative content analysis was performed on a pool of most relevant threads and comments about the topic “TMJ” on Reddit. Following a codebook, two independent coders assessed multiple clinically relevant variables. A third subject resolved eventual discrepancies.

Results

Reddit is mostly used by subjects with TMD asking for advice to other users about symptoms and treatment modalities. The most discussed causes of TMD were bruxism and dental occlusion, and the most discussed treatments were oral appliance therapy and complementary and alternative treatments. The most favourable opinions about treatment modalities were for self‐care and behavioural therapy while the least favourable opinions were for surgery and irreversible dental treatments.

Conclusions

Reddit represents an excellent data‐mining platform to retrieve valuable information about health‐related discussion by the community. Our findings suggest an overall alignment of such discussion with evidence‐based science about TMD; however, to further increase this trend, we encourage healthcare provider to take an active role in the digital spread of scientifically valid information.
Evaluation of hemostasis in hyperthyroid cats
Authors: Keebaugh Audrey E. , DeMonaco Stefanie M. , Panciera David L. , Abbott Jonathan A. , Boes Katie M. , Menciotti Giulio
Published: September 2021

Background

Hyperthyroid cats might have a predisposition to arterial thrombus formation. The mechanism for thrombogenesis currently is unknown but could be associated with systemic hypercoagulability as seen in hyperthyroid humans.

Objective

Our purpose was to evaluate markers of hemostasis in hyperthyroid cats compared to healthy cats, and in hyperthyroid cats before and after radioactive iodine treatment (RIT).

Animals

Twenty‐five cats with hyperthyroidism and 13 healthy euthyroid cats >8 years of age.

Methods

Prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT), fibrinogen concentration, antithrombin (AT), D‐dimers, thrombin‐antithrombin complexes (TAT), von Willebrand Factor antigen (vWF : Ag), and activity of factors VIII and IX were measured. An echocardiogram was performed in all cats. Hemostatic markers and echocardiogram were evaluated again 6 to 9 months after successful RIT in 7 cats.

Results

Hyperthyroid cats had higher fibrinogen concentration (P < .0001), AT activity (P < .0001), and vWF : Ag concentration (P = .01) than healthy control cats with all results decreasing significantly post‐RIT. Hyperthyroid cats were not more likely to be in a hypercoaguable state than euthyroid cats (P = .08). Serum T4 concentration was not a predictor of a hypercoagulable state (P = .53).

Conclusions and Clinical Importance

Hyperthyroid cats have evidence of altered hemostasis that does not appear to be solely attributable to cardiac abnormalities, but no evidence of a hypercoagulable state. Findings suggest altered hemostasis resolves after RIT. Hyperthyroid cats could have endothelial dysfunction as indicated by increased vWF : Ag which could potentiate thrombogenesis.
Distinct type II opsins in the eye decode light properties for background adaptation and behavioural background preference
Authors: Bertolesi Gabriel E. , Debnath Nilakshi , Atkinson‐Leadbeater Karen , Niedzwiecka Anna , McFarlane Sarah
Published: September 2021

Crypsis increases survival by reducing predator detection. Xenopus laevis tadpoles decode light properties from the substrate to induce two responses: a cryptic coloration response where dorsal skin pigmentation is adjusted to the colour of the substrate (background adaptation) and a behavioural crypsis where organisms move to align with a specific colour surface (background preference). Both processes require organisms to detect reflected light from the substrate. We explored the relationship between background adaptation and preference and the light properties able to trigger both responses. We also analysed which retinal photosensor (type II opsin) is involved. Our results showed that these two processes are segregated mechanistically, as there is no correlation between the preference for a specific background with the level of skin pigmentation, and different dorsal retina‐localized type II opsins appear to underlie the two crypsis modes. Indeed, inhibition of melanopsin affects background adaptation but not background preference. Instead, we propose pinopsin is the photosensor involved in background preference. pinopsin mRNA is co‐expressed with mRNA for the sws1 cone photopigment in dorsally located photoreceptors. Importantly, the developmental onset of pinopsin expression aligns with the emergence of the preference for a white background, but after the background adaptation phenotype appears. Furthermore, white background preference of tadpoles is associated with increased pinopsin expression, a feature that is lost in premetamorphic froglets along with a preference for a white background. Thus, our data show a mechanistic dissociation between background adaptation and background preference, and we suggest melanopsin and pinopsin, respectively, initiate the two responses.
Microfabrication and its use in investigating fungal biology
Authors: Bedekovic Tina , Brand Alexandra C.
Published: September 2021

Advances in microfabrication technology, and its increasing accessibility, allow us to explore fungal biology as never before. By coupling molecular genetics with fluorescence live‐cell imaging in custom‐designed chambers, we can now probe single yeast cell responses to changing conditions over a lifetime, characterise population heterogeneity and investigate its underlying causes. By growing filamentous fungi in complex physical environments, we can identify cross‐species commonalities, reveal species‐specific growth responses and examine physiological differences relevant to diverse fungal lifestyles. As affordability and expertise broadens, microfluidic platforms will become a standard technique for examining the role of fungi in cross‐kingdom interactions, ranging from rhizosphere to microbiome to interconnected human organ systems. This review brings together the perspectives already gained from studying fungal biology in microfabricated systems and outlines their potential in understanding the role of fungi in the environment, health and disease.
From cells to atoms: Cryo‐EM as an essential tool to investigate pathogen biology, host–pathogen interaction, and drug discovery
Authors: Shepherd Doulin C. , Dalvi Somavally , Ghosal Debnath
Published: September 2021

Electron cryo‐microscopy (cryo‐EM) has lately emerged as a powerful method in structural biology and cell biology. While cryo‐EM single‐particle analysis (SPA) is now routinely delivering structures of purified proteins and protein complexes at near‐atomic resolution, the use of electron cryo‐tomography (cryo‐ET), together with subtomogram averaging, is allowing visualization of macromolecular complexes in their native cellular environment, at unprecedented resolution. The unique ability of cryo‐EM to provide information at many spatial resolution scales from ångströms to microns makes it an invaluable tool that bridges the classic “resolution‐gap” between structural biology and cell biology domains. Like in many other fields of biology, in recent years, cryo‐EM has revolutionized our understanding of pathogen biology, host–pathogen interaction and has made significant strides toward structure‐based drug discovery. In a very recent example, during the ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID‐19) pandemic, the structure of the stabilized severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) spike protein was deciphered by SPA. This led to the development of multiple vaccines. Alongside, cryo‐ET provided key insights into the structure of the native virion, mechanism of its entry, replication, and budding; demonstrating the unrivaled power of cryo‐EM in investigating pathogen biology, host–pathogen interaction, and drug discovery. In this review, we showcase a few examples of how different imaging modalities within cryo‐EM have enabled the study of microbiology and host–pathogen interaction.
Increasing morbidity and mortality of candidemia over one decade in a Swiss university hospital
Authors: Battistolo Julien , Glampedakis Emmanouil , Damonti Lauro , Poissy Julien , Grandbastien Bruno , Kalbermatter Laetitia , Pagani Jean‐Luc , Eggimann Philippe , Bochud Pierre‐Yves , Calandra Thierry , Marchetti Oscar , Lamoth Frederic ,   the Fungal Infection Network of Switzerland (FUNGINOS)
Published: September 2021

Background

The epidemiology of candidemia is evolving with raising concern about the emergence of intrinsically resistant non‐albicans Candida species and acquisition of antifungal resistance. In addition to microbiological surveys, epidemiological studies including clinical data are needed to assess the impact of candidemia on morbidity and mortality.

Objectives

To assess the clinical and microbiological trends of candidemia in a Swiss university hospital.

Patients/Methods.

This single‐centre retrospective study compared the incidence of candidemia, Candida species distribution, antifungal resistance profiles, clinical characteristics and outcomes between two periods separated by one decade.

Results

A total of 170 candidemic episodes were included (68 from period 1, 2004‐2006, and 102 from period 2, 2014‐2017). Incidence of candidemia (0.85 to 0.97 episode/10,000 patient‐days), species distribution (55%–57% C albicans) and antifungal susceptibilities remained unchanged. During period 2, candidemia was more frequently observed in intensive care units (ICU, 38% vs 19% in period 1, P = .01) and amongst older patients (median age 68 vs 59 years old, P < .01) with more immunosuppressive conditions (24% vs 9%, P = .01). Candidemia in period 2 was more frequently followed by septic shock (23% vs 7% in period 1, P = .01) and ICU admission (42% vs 12%, P < .01) and was associated with higher mortality (34% vs 18%, P = .03). Overall, factors associated with mortality in multivariate analyses included cirrhosis, solid malignancies and ICU stay at the time of candidemia.

Conclusions

Despite stable incidence, species distribution and antifungal resistance of candidemia, an epidemiological shift of the disease towards older and more critically ill patients was observed, with higher mortality rates.
Evaluation of an automated approach for facial midline detection and asymmetry assessment: A preliminary study
Authors: Yurdakurban Ebru , Duran Gökhan Serhat , Görgülü Serkan
Published: September 2021

Objective

To examine the level of agreement between the conventional method and a machine‐learning approach to facial midline determination and asymmetry assessment.

Settings and Sample Population

The study included a total of 90 samples (53 females; 37 males) with different levels of mandibular asymmetry.

Materials and Methods

Two researchers placed predefined soft tissue landmarks individually on selected facial frontal photographs and created 10 reference lines. The midsagittal line was determined as perpendicular to the midpoint of the bipupillary line, and the same two reference lines and facial landmarks were automatically determined by the software using machine‐learning algorithms, and researchers created the other 8 reference lines using the facial landmarks that were determined automatically by the software. In the following stage, 2 linear and 10 angular measurements were made by a single researcher on 270 photographs, and the consistency and differences between the measurements were evaluated with a one‐sample t test, an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland‐Altman Plots.

Results

The level of agreement of measurements between the researchers and the software was low for eight parameters (ICC˂0.70). The one‐sample t test revealed that differences between the software and researcher measurements of lip canting and pronasale deviation were not statistically significantly different (P > .05). Aside from the body inclination difference in Group 3 (samples with a mandibular body inclination difference >6°), there was no clinically significant difference (˂3°) between the measurements of the two methods.

Conclusions

Machine‐learning algorithms have the potential for clinical use in asymmetry assessment and midline determination and can help clinicians in a manual approach.
Adaptive defence and sensing responses of host plant roots to fungal pathogen attack revealed by transcriptome and metabolome analyses
Authors: Ding Yi , Gardiner Donald M. , Powell Jonathan J. , Colgrave Michelle L. , Park Robert F. , Kazan Kemal
Published: September 2021

Plant root‐produced constitutive and inducible defences inhibit pathogenic microorganisms within roots and in the rhizosphere. However, regulatory mechanisms underlying host responses during root‐pathogen interactions are largely unexplored. Using the model species Brachypodium distachyon (Bd), we studied transcriptional and metabolic responses altered in Bd roots following challenge with Fusarium graminearum (Fg), a fungal pathogen that causes diseases in diverse organs of cereal crops. Shared gene expression patterns were found between Bd roots and spikes during Fg infection associated with the mycotoxin deoxynivalenol (DON). Overexpression of BdMYB78, an up‐regulated transcription factor, significantly increased root resistance during Fg infection. We show that Bd roots recognize encroaching Fg prior to physical contact by altering transcription of genes associated with multiple cellular processes such as reactive oxygen species and cell development. These changes coincide with altered levels of secreted host metabolites detected by an untargeted metabolomic approach. The secretion of Bd metabolites was suppressed by Fg as enhanced levels of defence‐associated metabolites were found in roots during pre‐contact with a Fg mutant defective in host perception and the ability to cause disease. Our results help to understand root defence strategies employed by plants, with potential implications for improving the resistance of cereal crops to soil pathogens.
Philosophy, politics, and economics of cryptocurrency II: The moral landscape of monetary design
Authors: Bailey Andrew M. , Rettler Bradley , Warmke Craig
Published: September 2021

In this article, we identify three key design dimensions along which cryptocurrencies differ – privacy, censorship‐resistance, and consensus procedure. Each raises important normative issues. Our discussion uncovers new ways to approach the question of whether Bitcoin or other cryptocurrenciesshouldbe used as money, and new avenues for developing a positive answer to that question. A guiding theme is that progress here requires a mixed approach that integrates philosophical tools with the purely technical results of disciplines like computer science and economics.
Tomato phytochromes B1 and B2 are part of the responses to the nutritional stress induced by NPK deficiency
Authors: Soares Mariana Bomfim , de Mello Prado Renato , Tenesaca Luis Felipe Lata , Lúcio José Clebson Barbosa , Carvalho Rogério Falleiros
Published: September 2021

Phytochromes are red‐light photoreceptors that play an important role in regulating many responses of plants, including its nutritional control. Nutrient deficiency in plants has become a constraint for agricultural production; thus, we investigated the role of phytochromes B1 and B2 in the nutritional, physiological, and growth changes of the control genotype (WT) and both phyB1 and phyB2 tomato mutants (deficient in phyB1 and phyB2) under nutritional sufficiency and individual deficiency of N, P, and K. Under complete solution, the plants of phyB1 and phyB2 had a decreased N, P, and K accumulation compared with WT and consequently a reduced content of chlorophyll and carotenoids, and dry weight production. In the condition of N deficiency, phyB1 had decreased N absorption, pigments concentration, and plant dry weight, while increased oxidative stress of membranes (MDA content). Similarly, phyB2 also had reduced N absorption. The deficiency of phyB1 mitigated the effects of P deficiency as phyB1 mutant had improved nutritional and physiological responses, increasing plant dry weight production. In contrast, phyB2 reduced N accumulation, quantum efficiency of photosystem II (Fv/Fm), and the concentration of pigments, while it increased MDA. Under K deficiency, phyB1 displayed a reduced P accumulation, as well as the total concentration of chlorophylls and carotenoids and K use efficiency. An increased concentration of MDA was found in phyB2 plants, as well as a reduction in chlorophylls concentration and in the use efficiency of K. Together, these results indicate a new perspective on the control of phytochromes in the nutrition of tomato plants under nutritional stress.