bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
RNA Sequencing in COVID-19 patients identifies neutrophil activation biomarkers as a promising diagnostic platform for infections
Authors: Wargodsky Richard , Dela Cruz Philip , LaFleur John , Yamane David , Kim Justin Sungmin , Benjenk Ivy , Heinz Eric , Irondi Obinna Ome , Farrar Katherine , Toma Ian , Jordan Tristan , Goldman Jennifer , McCaffrey Timothy A.
Published: January 2022

Infection with the SARS-CoV2 virus can vary from asymptomatic, or flu-like with moderate disease, up to critically severe. Severe disease, termed COVID-19, involves acute respiratory deterioration that is frequently fatal. To understand the highly variable presentation, and identify biomarkers for disease severity, blood RNA from COVID-19 patient in an intensive care unit was analyzed by whole transcriptome RNA sequencing. Both SARS-CoV2 infection and the severity of COVID-19 syndrome were associated with up to 25-fold increased expression of neutrophil-related transcripts, such as neutrophil defensin 1 (DEFA1), and 3-5-fold reductions in T cell related transcripts such as the T cell receptor (TCR). The DEFA1 RNA level detected SARS-CoV2 viremia with 95.5% sensitivity, when viremia was measured by ddPCR of whole blood RNA. Purified CD15+ neutrophils from COVID-19 patients were increased in abundance and showed striking increases in nuclear DNA staining by DAPI. Concurrently, they showed >10-fold higher elastase activity than normal controls, and correcting for their increased abundance, still showed 5-fold higher elastase activity per cell. Despite higher CD15+ neutrophil elastase activity, elastase activity was extremely low in plasma from the same patients. Collectively, the data supports the model that increased neutrophil and decreased T cell activity is associated with increased COVID-19 severity, and suggests that blood DEFA1 RNA levels and neutrophil elastase activity, both involved in neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), may be informative biomarkers of host immune activity after viral infection.
A novel hybrid soft computing optimization framework for dynamic economic dispatch problem of complex non-convex contiguous constrained machines
Authors: Ahmed Ijaz , Alvi Um-E-Habiba , Basit Abdul , Khursheed Tayyaba , Alvi Alwena , Hong Keum-Shik , Rehan Muhammad
Published: January 2022

The reformations of the electrical power sector have resulted in very dynamic and competitive market that has changed many elements of the power industry. Excessive demand of energy, depleting the fossil fuel reserves of planet and releasing the toxic air pollutant, has been causing harm to earth habitats. In this new situation, insufficiency of energy supplies, rising power generating costs, high capital cost of renewable energy equipment, environmental concerns of wind power turbines, and ever-increasing demand for electrical energy need efficient economic dispatch. The objective function in practical economic dispatch (ED) problem is nonlinear and non-convex, with restricted equality and inequality constraints, and traditional optimization methods are incapable of resolving such non-convex problems. Over the recent decade, meta-heuristic optimization approaches have acquired enormous reputation for obtaining a solution strategy for such types of ED issues. In this paper, a novel soft computing optimization technique is proposed for solving the dynamic economic dispatch problem (DEDP) of complex non-convex machines with several constraints. Our premeditated framework employs the genetic algorithm (GA) as an initial optimizer and sequential quadratic programming (SQP) for the fine tuning of the pre-optimized run of GA. The simulation analysis of GA-SQP performs well by acquiring less computational cost and finite time of execution, while providing optimal generation of powers according to the targeted power demand and load, whereas subject to valve point loading effect (VPLE) and multiple fueling option (MFO) constraints. The adequacy of the presented strategy concerning accuracy, convergence as well as reliability is verified by employing it on ten benchmark case studies, including non-convex IEEE bus system at the same time also considering VPLE of thermal power plants. The potency of designed optimization seems more robust with fast convergence rate while evaluating the hard bounded DEDP. Our suggested hybrid method GA-SQP converges to achieve the best optimal solution in a confined environment in a limited number of simulations. The simulation results demonstrate applicability and adequacy of the given hybrid schemes over conventional methods.
Marker effects and heritability estimates using additive-dominance genomic architectures via artificial neural networks in Coffea canephora
Authors: Coelho de Sousa Ithalo , Nascimento Moysés , de Castro Sant’anna Isabela , Teixeira Caixeta Eveline , Ferreira Azevedo Camila , Damião Cruz Cosme , Lopes da Silva Felipe , Ruas Alkimim Emilly , Campana Nascimento Ana Carolina , Vergara Lopes Serão Nick
Published: January 2022

Many methodologies are used to predict the genetic merit in animals and plants, but some of them require priori assumptions that may increase the complexity of the model. Artificial neural network (ANN) has advantage to not require priori assumptions about the relationships between inputs and the output allowing great flexibility to handle different types of complex non-additive effects, such as dominance and epistasis. Despite this advantage, the biological interpretability of ANNs is still limited. The aim of this research was to estimate the heritability and markers effects for two traits inCoffea canephorausing an additive-dominance architecture ANN and to compare it with genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP). The data used consists of 51 clones ofC.canephoravarietal Conilon, 32 of varietal group Robusta and 82 intervarietal hybrids. From this, 165 phenotyped individuals were genotyped for 14,387 SNPs. Due to the high computational cost of ANNs, we used Bagging decision tree to reduce the dimensionality of the data, selecting the markers that accumulated 70% of the total importance. An ANN with three hidden layers was run, each varying from 1 to 40 neurons summing 64,000 neural networks. The network architectures with the best predictive ability were selected. The best architectures were composed by 4, 15, and 33 neurons in the first, second and third hidden layers, respectively, for yield, and by 13, 20, and 24 neurons, respectively for rust resistance. The predictive ability was greater when using ANN with three hidden layers than using one hidden layer and GBLUP, with 0.72 and 0.88 for yield and coffee leaf rust resistance, respectively. The concordance rate (CR) of the 10% larger markers effects among the methods varied between 10% and 13.8%, for additive effects and between 5.4% and 11.9% for dominance effects. The narrow-sense (ha2) and dominance-only (hd2) heritability estimates were 0.25 and 0.06, respectively, for yield, and 0.67 and 0.03, respectively for rust resistance. The ANN was able to estimate the heritabilities from an additive-dominance genomic architectures and the ANN with three hidden layers obtained best predictive ability when compared with those obtained from GBLUP and ANN with one hidden layer.
A 15-year follow-up study of hip bone mineral density and associations with leisure time physical activity. The Tromsø Study 2001–2016
Authors: Mikkilä Saija , Johansson Jonas , Nordström Anna , Nordström Peter , Emaus Nina , Handegård Bjørn Helge , Morseth Bente , Welde Boye
Published: January 2022

Aims

The aim was to investigate the long-term association between leisure time physical activity and hip areal bone mineral density (aBMD), in addition to change in hip aBMD over time, in 32–86 years old women and men.

Methods

Data were retrieved from the 2001, 2007–2008, and 2015–2016 surveys of the Tromsø Study, a longitudinal population study in Norway. Leisure time physical activity was assessed by the four-level Saltin-Grimby Physical Activity Level Scale which refers to physical exertion in the past twelve months. Hip aBMD was assessed by Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry. Linear Mixed Model analysis was used to examine long-term associations between physical activity and hip aBMD (n = 6324). In addition, the annual change in hip aBMD was analyzed in a subsample of 3199 participants.

Results

Physical activity was significantly and positively associated with total hip aBMD in the overall cohort (p<0.005). Participants who reported vigorous activity had 28.20 mg/cm2 higher aBMD than those who were inactive (95% CI 14.71; 41.69, controlled for confounders), and even light physical activity was associated with higher aBMD than inactivity (8.32 mg/cm2, 95% CI 4.89; 11.76). Associations between physical activity and femoral neck aBMD yielded similar results. Hip aBMD decreased with age in both sexes, although more prominently in women. From 2001 to 2007–2008, aBMD changed by –5.76 mg/cm2 per year (95% CI –6.08; –5.44) in women, and –2.31 mg/cm2 (95% CI –2.69; –1.93), in men. From 2007–2008 to 2015–2016, the change was –4.45 mg/cm2 per year (95% CI –4.84; –4.06) in women, and –1.45 mg/cm2 (95% CI –1.92; –0.98) in men.

Conclusions

In this cohort of adult men and women, physical activity levels were positively associated with hip aBMD in a dose-response relationship. Hip aBMD decreased with age, although more pronounced in women than men.
Thermography of cannabis extract vaporization cartridge heating coils in temperature- and voltage-controlled systems during a simulated human puff
Authors: Oar Michael A. , Savage Cynthia H. , Rufer Echoleah S. , Rucker Richard P. , Guzman Jesse A.
Published: January 2022

Vaporized cannabis is believed to be safer than smoking, but when heated to excessive temperatures nearing combustion (>900 °C) harmful byproducts may form. While some cannabis extract vaporizers operate well below these high temperatures, heating coil temperatures obtained during actual use are frequently not reported and many operate at high temperatures. We report on two major objectives: 1) development of an infrared thermography method to measure heating coil temperatures in cannabis extract vaporizers during a simulated puff and 2) a comparison of temperature- to voltage- controlled cannabis extract vaporization systems during a puff. Infrared thermography was used to measure heating coil temperatures in one temperature-controlled and two voltage-controlled systems. The cartridges were modified for direct line-of-sight on the heating coils, the wick and coils were saturated with cannabis extract, and fixtures were developed to force two liters per minute air flow past the coils for the full duration of the puff allowed by the device. The voltage-controlled systems produced higher temperatures with greater variability than the temperature-controlled system. At the highest temperature setting (420 °C) the temperature-controlled system reached an average heating coil temperature of 420 ± 9.5 °C whereas the 4.0V setting on the variable voltage system reached an average temperature of 543 ± 95.9 °C and the single voltage (3.2V) system an average of 450 ± 60.8 °C. The average temperature at the lowest setting (270 °C) on the temperature-controlled system was 246 ± 5.1 °C and the variable voltage system (2.4V) was 443 ± 56.1 °C. Voltage alone was a poor indicator of coil temperature and only the temperature-controlled system consistently maintained temperatures less than 400 °C for the full puff duration. These lower temperatures could reduce the likelihood of harmful thermal degradation products and thus may reduce potential health risk to consumers when vaporizing cannabis extracts.
Effect of a freeze-dried coffee solution in a high-fat diet-induced obesity model in rats: Impact on inflammatory response, lipid profile, and gut microbiota
Authors: Cavalcanti Marilia Hermes , Roseira João Paulo Santos , Leandro Eliana dos Santos , Arruda Sandra Fernandes
Published: January 2022

Coffee beans contain high polyphenol content, which have the potential to modulate the intestinal microbiota, and possibly attenuate weight gain and the associated dyslipidemia. This study investigated the effect of freeze-dried coffee solution (FCS) consumption on physiological parameters, lipid profile, and microbiota of Wistar rats fed a high-fat diet (HF) or control diet (CT). FCS combined with a high-fat diet increased the fecal and cecal Bifidobacterium spp. population and decreased the cecal Escherichia coli population and intestinal Il1b mRNA level. Regardless of the diet type, FCS increased the serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C); however, it did not affect body weight, food intake, low-density lipoprotein, triglycerides, fecal bile acids, and intestinal Il6 mRNA levels. The high-fat diet increased weight gain, hepatic cholesterol and triglycerides, fecal bile acids, and the fecal and cecal Lactobacillus spp. population, and reduced food intake, the fecal E. coli population, and intestinal Il6 mRNA level. The results suggest that FCS consumption exhibits positive health effects in rats fed a high-fat diet by increasing Bifidobacterium spp. population and HDL-C reverse cholesterol transport, and by reducing Il1b mRNA level. However, FCS administration at a dose of 0.39 g/100 g diet over an eight-week period was not effective in controlling food intake, and consequently, preventing weight gain in rats of high-fat diet-induced obesity model.
Detection of breast cancer by ATR-FTIR spectroscopy using artificial neural networks
Authors: Tomas Rock Christian , Sayat Anthony Jay , Atienza Andrea Nicole , Danganan Jannah Lianne , Ramos Ma. Rollene , Fellizar Allan , Notarte Kin Israel , Angeles Lara Mae , Bangaoil Ruth , Santillan Abegail , Albano Pia Marie
Published: January 2022

In this study, three (3) neural networks (NN) were designed to discriminate between malignant (n = 78) and benign (n = 88) breast tumors using their respective attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectral data. A proposed NN-based sensitivity analysis was performed to determine the most significant IR regions that distinguished benign from malignant samples. The result of the NN-based sensitivity analysis was compared to the obtained results from FTIR visual peak identification. In training each NN models, a 10-fold cross validation was performed and the performance metrics–area under the curve (AUC), accuracy, positive predictive value (PPV), specificity rate (SR), negative predictive value (NPV), and recall rate (RR)–were averaged for comparison. The NN models were compared to six (6) machine learning models–logistic regression (LR), Naïve Bayes (NB), decision trees (DT), random forest (RF), support vector machine (SVM) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA)–for benchmarking. The NN models were able to outperform the LR, NB, DT, RF, and LDA for all metrics; while only surpassing the SVM in accuracy, NPV and SR. The best performance metric among the NN models was 90.48% ± 10.30% for AUC, 96.06% ± 7.07% for ACC, 92.18 ± 11.88% for PPV, 94.19 ± 10.57% for NPV, 89.04% ± 16.75% for SR, and 94.34% ± 10.54% for RR. Results from the proposed sensitivity analysis were consistent with the visual peak identification. However, unlike the FTIR visual peak identification method, the NN-based method identified the IR region associated with C–OH C–OH group carbohydrates as significant. IR regions associated with amino acids and amide proteins were also determined as possible sources of variability. In conclusion, results show that ATR-FTIR via NN is a potential diagnostic tool. This study also suggests a possible more specific method in determining relevant regions within a sample’s spectrum using NN.
In silico, in vitro and in vivo safety evaluation of Limosilactobacillus reuteri strains ATCC PTA-126787 & ATCC PTA-126788 for potential probiotic applications
Authors: Gangaiah Dharanesh , Mane Shrinivasrao P. , Tawari Nilesh R. , Lakshmanan Nallakannu , Ryan Valerie , Volland Alyssa , Susanti Dwi , Patel Milind , Abouzeid Abraham , Helmes Emily B. , Kumar Arvind
Published: January 2022

The last two decades have witnessed a tremendous growth in probiotics and in the numbers of publications on their potential health benefits. Owing to their distinguishing beneficial effects and long history of safe use, species belonging to the Lactobacillus genus are among the most widely used probiotic species in human food and dietary supplements and are finding increased use in animal feed. Here, we isolated, identified, and evaluated the safety of two novel Limosilactobacillus reuteri (L. reuteri) isolates, ATCC PTA-126787 & ATCC PTA-126788. More specifically, we sequenced the genomes of these two L. reuteri strains using the PacBio sequencing platform. Using a combination of biochemical and genetic methods, we identified the two strains as belonging to L. reuteri species. Detailed in silico analyses showed that the two strains do not encode for any known genetic sequences of concern for human or animal health. In vitro assays confirmed that the strains are susceptible to clinically relevant antibiotics and do not produce potentially harmful by-products such as biogenic amines. In vitro bile and acid tolerance studies demonstrated that the two strains have similar survival profiles as the commercial L. reuteri probiotic strain DSM 17938. Most importantly, daily administration of the two probiotic strains to broiler chickens in drinking water for 26 days did not induce any adverse effect, clinical disease, or histopathological lesions, supporting the safety of the strains in an in vivo avian model. All together, these data provide in silico, in vitro and in vivo evidence of the safety of the two novel candidates for potential probiotic applications in humans as well as animals.
Data analysis and personalized recommendation of western music history information using deep learning under Internet of Things
Authors: Yang Zongye
Published: January 2022

To improve the teaching effect of western music history, the curriculum reform of history education needs to be promoted under the background of the Internet of Things (IoT). At first, a discussion is made on the characteristics of history course, which is combined with the characteristics of teaching data easy to collect under the background of IoT. An analysis is conducted on the related theory of educational data mining. Then, the concept of personalized recommendation is proposed based on deep learning (DL) algorithm. Finally, online and offline experiments are designed to verify the performance of the algorithm from review and investigation, smoothness, and participation of difficulty. The research results show that in terms of offline recommendation accuracy, the average record length in Math data set is 24.5, which is much smaller than that in range data set. The research has obvious innovation significance compared with other studies. In the process of target review and investigation, it is found that the research method here involves a wider range of knowledge and higher reliability. In terms of the difficulty of recommending questions, the Deep Reinforcement Exercise (DRE) recommendation algorithm can adaptively adjust the difficulty of recommending questions. It also allows students to set different learning goals through participation goals. But in the experiments on Math data set, Step 10’s recommendation results are not very good, and the difficulty level varies greatly. If the goal setting is high, the problem recommended to students is too difficult, students may answer these questions wrongly, forcing the algorithm to adjust the difficulty adaptively. According to the above results, DRE recommendation algorithm can adapt to different learning needs and customize the recommendation results, thus opening up a new path for the teaching of western music history. Besides, the combination of DL algorithm and western music history teaching design can recommend learning materials, which is of great significance in the teaching of history courses.
Determinants of maternal influenza vaccination in the context of low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review
Authors: Raut Shrish , Apte Aditi , Srinivasan Manikandan , Dudeja Nonita , Dayma Girish , Sinha Bireshwar , Bavdekar Ashish
Published: January 2022

Background

Pregnancy and early infancy are considered to be the vulnerable phases for severe influenza infection causing morbidity and mortality. Despite WHO recommendations, influenza is not included in the immunization programs of many low- and middle-income countries. This systematic review is aimed at identifying barriers and facilitators for maternal influenza vaccination amongst the perinatal women and their health care providers in low- and middle-income countries.

Methods

We selected 11 studies from the 1669 records identified from PubMed, CABI, EMBASE and Global Health databases. Studies related to both pandemic and routine influenza vaccination and studies conducted amongst women in the antenatal as well as postnatal period were included. Both qualitative, quantitative, cross-sectional and interventional studies were included.

Results

Knowledge about influenza disease, perception of the disease severity during pregnancy and risk to the foetus/newborn and perceived benefits of influenza vaccination during pregnancy were associated with increased uptake of influenza vaccination during pregnancy. Recommendation by health care provider, vaccination in previous pregnancy and availability of vaccine in public health system facilitated vaccine uptake. High parity, higher education, vaccination in the later months of pregnancy, less than 4 antenatal visits, concerns about vaccine safety and negative publicity in media were identified as barriers for influenza vaccination. Lack of government recommendation, concerns about safety and effectiveness and distrust in manufacturer were the barriers for the healthcare providers to recommend vaccination.

Conclusion

While availability of influenza vaccine in public health system can be a key to the success of vaccine implementation program, increasing the awareness about need and benefits of maternal influenza vaccination amongst pregnant women as well as their health care providers is crucial to improve the acceptance of maternal influenza vaccination in low and middle-income countries.
Predictive factors of clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19 treated with tocilizumab: A monocentric retrospective analysis
Authors: Cassone Giulia , Dolci Giovanni , Besutti Giulia , Braglia Luca , Pavone Paolo , Corsini Romina , Sampaolesi Fabio , Iotti Valentina , Teopompi Elisabetta , Massari Marco , Fontana Matteo , Ghidoni Giulia , Matei Anaflorina , Croci Stefania , Negri Emanuele Alberto , Costantini Massimo , Facciolongo Nicola , Salvarani Carlo
Published: January 2022

Objective

The aim of this retrospective observational study is to analyse clinical, serological and radiological predictors of outcome in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia treated with tocilizumab, providing clinical guidance to its use in real-life.

Method

This is a retrospective, monocentric observational cohort study. All consecutive patients hospitalized between February the 11th and April 14th 2020 for severe COVID-19 pneumonia at Reggio Emilia AUSL and treated with tocilizumab were enrolled. The patient’s clinical status was recorded every day using the WHO ordinal scale for clinical improvement. Response to treatment was defined as an improvement of one point (from the status at the beginning of tocilizumab treatment) during the follow-up on this scale. Bivariate association of main patients’ characteristics with outcomes was explored by descriptive statistics and Fisher or Kruskal Wallis tests (respectively for qualitative or quantitative variables). Each clinically significant predictor was checked by a loglikelihood ratio test (in univariate logistic models for each of the considered outcomes) against the null model.

Results

A total of 173 patients were included. Only hypertension, the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, PaO2/FiO2, respiratory rate and C-reactive protein were selected for the multivariate analysis. In the multivariable model, none of them was significantly associated with response.

Conclusions

Evaluating a large number of clinical variables, our study did not find new predictors of outcome in COVID19 patients treated with tocilizumab. Further studies are needed to investigate the use of tocilizumab in COVID-19 and to better identify clinical phenotypes which could benefit from this treatment.
Utilization of social media communities for caregiver information support in stroke recovery: An analysis of content and interactions
Authors: Lobo Elton H. , Johnson Tara , Frølich Anne , Kensing Finn , Rasmussen Lene J. , Hosking Sarah M. , Page Amy T. , Livingston Patricia M. , Islam Sheikh Mohammed Shariful , Grundy John , Abdelrazek Mohamed
Published: January 2022

Background

Caregivers often use the internet to access information related to stroke care to improve preparedness, thereby reducing uncertainty and enhancing the quality of care.

Method

Social media communities used by caregivers of people affected by stroke were identified using popular keywords searched for using Google. Communities were filtered based on their ability to provide support to caregivers. Data from the included communities were extracted and analysed to determine the content and level of interaction.

Results

There was a significant rise in the use of social media by caregivers of people affected by stroke. The most popular social media communities were charitable and governmental organizations with the highest user interaction–this was for topics related to stroke prevention, signs and symptoms, and caregiver self-care delivered through video-based resources.

Conclusion

Findings show the ability of social media to support stroke caregiver needs and practices that should be considered to increase their interaction and support.
ASPICov: An automated pipeline for identification of SARS-Cov2 nucleotidic variants
Authors: Tilloy Valentin , Cuzin Pierre , Leroi Laura , Guérin Emilie , Durand Patrick , Alain Sophie
Published: January 2022

ASPICov was developed to provide a rapid, reliable and complete analysis of NGS SARS-Cov2 samples to the biologist. This broad application tool allows to process samples from either capture or amplicon strategy and Illumina or Ion Torrent technology. To ensure FAIR data analysis, this Nextflow pipeline follows nf-core guidelines and use Singularity containers. Pipeline is implemented and available at https://gitlab.com/vtilloy/aspicov.
Capillary density and caliber as assessed by optical coherence tomography angiography may be significant predictors of diabetic retinopathy severity
Authors: Kushner-Lenhoff Sam , Kogachi Kaitlin , Mert Melissa , Chu Zhongdi , Shahidzadeh Anoush , Palejwala Neal V. , Wolfe Jeremy , Itty Sujit , Drenser Kimberly A. , Capone Antonio , Dugel Pravin U. , Moshfeghi Andrew A. , Ameri Hossein , Daskivich Lauren P. , Wang Ruikang K. , Kashani Amir H.
Published: January 2022

Purpose

To validate retinal capillary density and caliber associations with diabetic retinopathy (DR) severity in different clinical settings.

Methods

This cross-sectional study assessed retinal capillary density and caliber in the superficial retinal layer of 3-mm OCTA scans centered on the fovea. Images were collected from non-diabetic controls and subjects with mild or referable DR (defined DR worse than mild DR) between February 2016 and December 2019 at secondary and tertiary eye care centers. Vessel Skeleton Density (VSD), a measure of capillary density, and Vessel Diameter Index (VDI), a measure of vascular caliber, were calculated from these images. Discriminatory performance of VSD and VDI was evaluated using multivariable logistic regression models predicting DR severity with adjustments for sex, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. Area under the curve (AUC) was estimated. Model performance was evaluated in two different cohorts.

Results

This study included 594 eyes from 385 subjects. Cohort 1 was a training cohort of 509 eyes including 159 control, 155 mild non-proliferative DR (NPDR) and 195 referable DR eyes. Cohort 2 was a validation cohort consisting of 85 eyes including 16 mild NPDR and 69 referable DR eyes. In Cohort 1, addition of VSD and VDI to a model using only demographic data significantly improved the model’s AUC for discrimination of eyes with any DR severity from controls (0.91 [95% CI, 0.88–0.93] versus 0.80 [95% CI, 0.76–0.83], p < 0.001) and eyes with referable DR from mild NPDR (0.90 [95% CI, 0.86–0.93] versus 0.69 [95% CI, 0.64–0.75], p < 0.001). The transportability of this regression model was excellent when implemented in Cohort 2 for the referable DR versus mild NPDR comparison. The odds ratio of having any DR compared to control subjects, and referable DR compared to mild DR decreased by 15% (95% CI: 12–18%), and 13% (95% CI: 10–15%), respectively, for every 0.001 unit increase in VSD after adjusting for comorbidities.

Conclusion

OCTA-derived capillary density has real world clinical value for rapidly assessing DR severity.
Environmental effect of air versus gas tamponade in the management of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment VR surgery: A multicentre study of 3,239 patients
Authors: Moussa George , Andreatta Walter , Ch’ng Soon Wai , Ziaei Hadi , Jalil Assad , Patton Niall , Ivanova Tsveta , Lett Kim Son , Park Dong Young
Published: January 2022

Purpose

To report the potential reduction of carbon emissions by utilising air-tamponade (AT), where possible, instead of fluorinated gases in the management of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD). We compared the carbon CO2 emissions produced at two large tertiary referral vitreoretinal (VR) centres where RRD are exclusively repaired using fluorinated gases to a tertiary VR mass of each gas used according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Materials and methods

Retrospective, continuous, comparative multicentre study of all procedures using fluorinated gases between 01/01/17-31/12/20 at the Manchester Royal Eye Hospital (MREH) and Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre (BMEC), and between 01/01/19-31/12/2020 at the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW).

Results

We report on 3,239 (SF6:1,415 [43.7%], C2F6:1,235 [38.1%], C3F8:541 [16.7%], Air:48 [1.5%]) procedures. UHCW and BMEC utilise single use 30ml and 75ml cannisters, respectively and MREH use multi-use gas cylinders. UHCW used AT in 48 (70%) of RRD repairs. Mean equivalent mass CO2/patient was MREH:115.9kg, BMEC:7.9kg and UHCW:1.9kg. If assuming all centres used 30ml cannisters, the mean equivalent mass CO2/patient was MREH:3.5 kg, BMEC:3.1kg and UHCW:1.9kg. AT enabled UHCW to greatly reduce the need for the most environmentally damaging SF6 gas, leading to lower CO2 emissions by 47.0% and 41.1% compared to MREH and BMEC, respectively.

Conclusion

We demonstrate how AT vs. the fluorinated gases can reduce in carbon footprint in the management of RRD. Further studies are required to determine the most ‘environment-friendly’ intraocular tamponade without compromising patient outcomes centre that also routinely employs AT in selected RRD cases.
Masticatory index for patients wearing dental prosthesis as alternative to conventional masticatory ability measures
Authors: Limpuangthip Nareudee , Tumrasvin Wacharasak , Sakultae Chatwarin
Published: January 2022

Objectives

The study objectives were: 1) to develop a masticatory index for evaluating masticatory ability in patients wearing a dental prosthesis, including complete dentures (CD), removable partial denture (RPD), and fixed partial denture (FPD), 2) to test the reliability and validity of the index, and 3) to determine whether the index better reflected patients’ masticatory ability compared with conventional subjective and objective measures.

Methods

The present cross-sectional study consisted of 2 phases: 1) developing the Chulalongkorn University masticatory index (CUMI) consisting of 20 food items in 5 masticatory difficulty grades using a 3-point Likert scale, and 2) application of the CUMI in 110 patients wearing a dental prosthesis, including CD, RPD, and FPD (control group). The CUMI test-retest reliability was reevaluated 2 weeks later. The convergent validity was compared with objective masticatory performance evaluated with a standard peanut chewing test, and subjective eating impacts evaluated by the Oral Impacts on Daily Performances Index. Oral and denture status were determined clinically. The associations between CUMI score, peanut particle size, and eating impact score was identified using Spearman’s correlation coefficient. To evaluate discriminant validity, the associations between masticatory ability measurements and oral and denture status were analyzed using regression analyses.

Results

The CUMI’s Cronbach’s alpha and intraclass correlation coefficient values were 0.89 and 0.95, respectively. The convergent validity was shown by significant associations between the increased CUMI score, smaller peanut particle size and decreased eating impact score. Multivariable analyses found that the CUMI score, peanut particle size, and percentage of having an eating impact were significantly associated with the number of remaining teeth and posterior occluding pairs, and type and quality of dental prosthesis. However, the CUMI demonstrated better discriminant validity because significant dose-response relationships were found only between the decreased CUMI score and increased tooth loss severity, and unacceptable denture quality. Adjusted R2values of the CUMI models were the highest, followed by those of peanut particle size and eating impact.

Conclusion

CUMI is a reliable and valid tool to evaluate masticatory ability of patients wearing a dental prosthesis, including CD, RPD, and FPD. Due to a better discriminant validity, the CUMI better reflects masticatory ability of patients compared with conventional subjective and objective masticatory ability measures.
Preoperative exercise training for adults undergoing elective major vascular surgery: A systematic review
Authors: Tew Garry A. , Caisley Kim , Danjoux Gerard
Published: January 2022

Patients undergoing major vascular surgery may have an increased risk of postoperative complications due to poor ‘fitness for surgery’. Prehabilitation aims to optimise physical fitness and risk factors before surgery to improve outcomes. The role of exercise-based prehabilitation in vascular surgery is currently unclear. Therefore, the aim of this systematic review was to assess the benefits and harms of preoperative exercise training in adults undergoing elective vascular surgery. We searched MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, and CENTRAL databases, trial registries, and forward and backward citations for studies published between January 2008 and April 2021. We included randomised trials that compared patients receiving exercise training with those receiving usual care or no training before vascular surgery. Outcomes included mortality, complications, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Three trials with 197 participants were included. All studies involved people undergoing abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair. Low-certainty evidence could not differentiate between rates of all-cause mortality. Moderate-certainty evidence indicated that postoperative cardiac and renal complications were less likely to occur in people who participated in preoperative exercise training compared with those who did not. Low-certainty evidence also indicated better postoperative HRQOL outcomes in people who undertook prehabilitation. There were no serious exercise-related adverse events. The evidence on preoperative exercise training for AAA patients is promising, but currently insufficiently robust for this intervention to be recommended in clinical guidelines. High-quality trials are needed to establish its clinical and cost-effectiveness. Research is also needed to determine the feasibility and effects of prehabilitation before lower-limb revascularisation.

Trial registration: PROSPERO ID: CRD42021245933.
Respect, interaction, immediacy and the role community plays in registering an organ donation decision
Authors: Moloney Gail , Sutherland Michael , Upcroft Leah , Clark Rachel , Punjabi-Jagdish Parul , Rienks Suzanne , Bowling Alison , Walker Iain
Published: January 2022

Background

Registering a donation decision is fundamental to increasing the number of people who donate the organs and tissues essential for transplantation, but the number of registered organ donors is insufficient to meet this demand. Most people in Australia support organ donation, but only a third have registered their decision on the Australian Organ Donor Register (AODR). We addressed this paradox by investigating how feelings of community, engendered through an ethic of hospitality and care and a non-proselytizing dialogue about organ donation, facilitated the decision to register.

Methods

An Immediate Registration Opportunity was set up in a large public hospital in NSW, Australia. The public was approached and invited to engage in an open, respectful dialogic interaction that met people where their beliefs were and allowed their concerns and fears about donation to be discussed. This included a survey that measured positive and negative beliefs about organ donation, mood, atmosphere, and feelings of community coupled with an on-the-spot opportunity to register their donation decision.

Results

Over four days, we interacted with 357 participants; 75.5% (210) of eligible-to-register participants registered on the AODR. Generalized Structural Equation Modelling highlighted that as connection to community increased, so did the salience of positive beliefs about organ donation. Positive beliefs, in turn, were negatively correlated with negative beliefs about donation and, as the strength of negative beliefs decreased, the probability of registration on the AODR increased. Participants who registered on the AODR reported stronger connection to the broader community than participants who did not register.

Conclusion

A respectful non-judgmental interaction that allows beliefs and concerns about organ donation to be discussed, coupled with an immediate opportunity to register, encouraged registration. Within this framework, feelings of belonging to a community were a key determinant that enabled many to make the decision to register.
Role of sacubitril-valsartan in the prevention of atrial fibrillation occurrence in patients with heart failure: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
Authors: Liu Xuehui , Liu Hongjun , Wang Lijun , Zhang Lei , Xu Qiang
Published: January 2022

Objective

Heart failure (HF) and atrial fibrillation (AF) are often coexisting. They have common risk factors and pathophysiologic mechanisms. Sacubitril/valsartan has shown efficacy and tolerability in patients with HF. Thus, the study was performed to evaluate the impact of sacubitril/valsartan on AF occurrence in patients with HF.

Methods

The Embase and PubMed were searched from their inception date to June 2021 for all relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the efficacy of sacubitril/valsartan in HF. The outcome of interest was the AF occurrence during the follow-up. Relative risks (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were pooled using a random-effects model.

Results

Six trials involving a total of 15,512 patients were included (7,750 randomized to sacubitril/valsartan and 7,762 to control). All trials were randomized, double-blind, and active-control. There was no significant difference in the prevention of AF occurrence between the sacubitril/valsartan group and the control group (enalapril or valsartan) in patients with HF (RR 1.07, 95%CI 0.95 to 1.19; I2 4%).

Conclusions

Sacubitril/valsartan was similar to either enalapril or valsartan in preventing the occurrence of AF in patients with HF.
Importin/exportin-mediated nucleocytoplasmic shuttling of cucumber mosaic virus 2b protein is required for 2b’s efficient suppression of RNA silencing
Authors: Kim Hangil , Shimura Hanako , Sueda Kae , Masuta Chikara
Published: January 2022

The 2b protein (2b) of cucumber mosaic virus (CMV), an RNA-silencing suppressor (RSS), is a major pathogenicity determinant of CMV. 2b is localized in the nucleus and cytoplasm, and its nuclear import is determined by two nuclear localization signals (NLSs); a carrier protein (importin [IMPα]) is predicted to be involved in 2b’s nuclear transport. Cytoplasmic 2bs play a role in suppression of RNA silencing by binding to small RNAs and AGO proteins. A putative nuclear export signal (NES) motif was also found in 2b, but has not been proved to function. Here, we identified a leucine-rich motif in 2b’s C-terminal half as an NES. We then showed that NES-deficient 2b accumulated abundantly in the nucleus and lost its RSS activity, suggesting that 2b exported from the nucleus can play a role as an RSS. Although two serine residues (S40 and S42) were previously found to be phosphorylated, we also found that an additional phosphorylation site (S28) alone can affect 2b’s nuclear localization and RSS activity. Alanine substitution at S28 impaired the IMPα-mediated nuclear/nucleolar localization of 2b, and RSS activity was even stronger compared to wild-type 2b. In a subcellular fractionation assay, phosphorylated 2bs were detected in the nucleus, and comparison of the accumulation levels of nuclear phospho-2b between wild-type 2b and the NES mutant showed a greatly reduced level of the phosphorylated NES mutant in the nucleus, suggesting that 2bs are dephosphorylated in the nucleus and may be translocated to the cytoplasm in a nonphosphorylated form. These results suggest that 2b manipulates its nucleocytoplasmic transport as if it tracks down its targets, small RNAs and AGOs, in the RNA silencing pathway. We infer that 2b’s efficient RSS activity is maintained by a balance of phosphorylation and dephosphorylation, which are coupled to importin/exportin-mediated shuttling between the nucleus and cytoplasm.
Conflict, COVID-19, climate change: The emergence and possible evolution of peace journalism
Authors: Navuku Kylie , Obijiofor Levi
Published: January 2022

Peace journalism is a concept conventionally applied to reporting on violent conflict. In recent years, however, there has been increasing consideration of the possible links with other crucial subjects such as climate change and COVID-19 reporting. To date, such an extension of peace journalism has not yet been comprehensively considered in Australian scholarship on and about the Pacific Island region. This seeming lack of widespread engagement in the discussions about relevance and applicability of peace journalism in the region is part of the rationale for this article. The authors hope this article can inspire debate about the chosen approaches of Australian-based media scholars researching, writing and teaching about media in the Pacific.
Disseny i avaluació del programa d’intervenció psicosocial per promoure la integració intercultural en el context universitari cubà
Authors: Cabrera Ruiz Isaac Irán , Méndez López Ángel Joel , Ortí Salinas Lidia
Published: January 2022

En 2013, El present estudi va tenir com a objectiu dissenyar un programa d'intervenció psicosocial, per a la promoció de la integració intercultural en la Universidad Central “Marta Abreu” de Las Villas, des d'un enfocament historicocultural de les mediacions per la subjectivitat. La recerca és d’intervenció i continua un enfocament qualitatiu i interpretatiu. En aquest marc, es va realitzar una sistematització d'experiències i es va proposar un programa d'intervenció psicosocial. El programa integra els següents components: fonaments teoricometodològics psicosocials, estructura organitzativa i avaluació del programa. L'avaluació del programa, abans de la seva implementació, va correspondre al tipus d'avaluació qualitativa i externa. Va produir valoracions sobre les fortaleses i febleses del programa, així com recomanacions per a fer més efectiu el programa d'intervenció, en funció de les quals es van introduir modificacions.
Discursos a través de la celebritat local: la cupletista Adela Margot a València durant la dècada de 1910
Authors: Ferrer Senabre Isabel
Published: January 2022

Adela Margot fou una cupletista d’origen madrileny que va obtindre especial rellevància a València entre els anys 1911 i 1919, amb un ressò que ha perviscut fins a l’actualitat. L’estudi explora la idea que l’èxit de l’artista es va articular al voltant del conflicte sobre els espectacles que va enfrontar a les diferents ideologies polítiques presents aquell moment. A través de la figura de la Margot es va personalitzar la lluita per l’hegemonia discursiva d’allò considerat moralment desitjable en relació amb l’erotisme en escena, un protagonisme que va col·laborar en la popularització massiva del cuplet entre públic de la regió. Al mateix temps, Margot va recollir i va saber explotar els escàndols que esdevingueren al seu voltant per a mantindre l’estatus artístic mentre s’adaptava a les exigències dels canvis en els models femenins artístics de l’època. A través de la reconstrucció del recorregut biogràfic de l’artista, l’article aborda qüestions relatives a les dinàmiques de construcció de la celebritat local en interacció amb els discursos i productes culturals de l’entorn, participant en la comprensió global del fenomen de les estrelles en el gènere del cuplet.
Los centros regionales en la pugna catalanismo/anticatalanismo de la Segunda República. El caso de la Casa Regional de Murcia en Barcelona
Authors: Díaz Sánchez Miguel
Published: January 2022

El objetivo del presente trabajo es mostrar el potencial que ofrece el estudio del asociacionismo desarrollado por las distintas colonias de emigrantes en la ciudad de Barcelona durante el periodo republicano. En este caso se ha seleccionado el desplegado por los murcianos a través de la Casa Regional de Murcia. Se analizan las expresiones públicas, la evolución ideológica, las tácticas de persuasión política y los mecanismos de apoyo implementados por esta asociación. La colonia murciana se convirtió en epicentro de varios debates políticos surgidos en una Barcelona azotada por un duro contexto de crisis económica y fuertes confrontaciones sociales, políticas y sindicales. Un contexto que otorga al objeto de análisis de un valor especial para iniciar un camino de investigación aún por desarrollar.
CASTAÑO ZULUAGA, Luis Ociel, Modernidad jurídico-política en Hispanoamérica, 1808-1830. Villavicencio, Entreletras, 2021, 624 pp.
Authors: Olano-Garcia Hernan Alejandro
Published: January 2022

Reseña: CASTAÑO ZULUAGA, Luis Ociel, Modernidad jurídico-política en Hispanoamérica, 1808-1830. Villavicencio, Entreletras, 2021, 624 pp. ISBN: 9789585228481.
MIRALLES, Ricardo, Indalecio Prieto y el movimiento socialista. Reforma, revolución y reconciliación nacional. Madrid, Tecnos, 2021, 405 pp.
Authors: Cameno Mayo Diego
Published: January 2022

Reseña: MIRALLES, Ricardo, Indalecio Prieto y el movimiento socialista. Reforma, revolución y reconciliación nacional. Madrid, Tecnos, 2021, 405 pp. ISBN: 9788430982097.