bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Influence of ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy on cervical lymph node metastasis and prognosis of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma
Authors: Min Ding , Zhao Zhifeng , Xu Dan , Lin Tingyu , Shen Dongjie , Xie Rongli , Fei Jian
Published: November 2021

Purpose

To analyze the potential association between UGFNA and cervical lymph node metastasis (CLNM) of papillary thyroid microcarcinoma (PTMC) and whether it would influence the long-term prognosis of PTMC. Then we could give advice for the application of UGFNA for thyroid nodules less than 1cm.
Methods

A total of 367 adult patients with PTMC who underwent thyroidectomy in our hospital during January 2014 and December 2015 were enrolled in this retrospective cohort study. Univariate and multivariate analysis were conducted to explore the potential risk factors of CLNM. Propensity score (PS) matching was performed to select patients with homogeneous baseline characteristics. Then the rate of CLNM was compared in matched samples by chi-squared (χ2). Survival analysis was made by Kaplan-Meier method in PS-matching cohort.
Results

CLNM rate in PS-matching cohort showed no significant difference between UGFNA group and non-UGFNA group. (29.5% vs 23.7%, P>0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that male sex (OR=3.997, 95%CI 2.148~7.439, P<0.01), larger tumor size (OR=2.319, 95%CI 1.285~4.186, P<0.01) were independent risk factors of CLNM. With a median follow-up of 63.8 months (range 3.1-84.9 months), the 5-year cumulative recurrence-free survival (RFS) rate was 99.3% in UGFNA group and 97.7% in non-UGFNA group. After PS-matching, Kaplan-Meier curves showed no significant difference from each other (P >0.05).
Conclusions

UGFNA was a very safe diagnostic tool, which would not influence the CLNM rate and long-term prognosis of patients with PTMC. Regardless of the costs, we recommend routine UGFNA for suspicious thyroid nodules ≦1cm.
Risk Factors for Injuries in Female Soldiers: a Systematic Review
Authors: Schram Ben , Canetti Elisa , Orr Rob , Pope Rodney
Published: November 2021

Background: Female soldiers form an integral part of any modern defence force. Previous reports have highlighted that female soldiers report injuries at higher rates than male personnel. One possible reason for this is an actual difference in underlying injury rates, purported to be due to several factors, including levels of fitness. The aim of this review was to determine risk factors for injuries in female soldiers. Methods: A systematic search was conducted for studies which reported on risk factors for injuries in female soldiers. Databases searched included PUBMED, CINAHL and Medline through OVID. Eligible studies were rated for their methodological quality using the Critical Appraisal Skills Program (CASP) tools and data were extracted and synthesized using a critical narrative approach. Results: A total of 18 articles were included in this review which reported on 18 risk factors for injury. Smoking, previous injury, no history of deployment, heavy occupational tasks, lower levels of aerobic fitness and lower number of push-up repetitions appear to be risk factors for injuries in female soldiers. Age, height, body fat, high or low BMI and body mass do not appear to be consistent risk factors for injury in female soldiers and there appears to be minimal evidence for current levels of activity, sit-up ability, and other assessments of strength, power, speed, or movement being associated with injury risk. Additionally, neither flexibility nor previous levels of activity appear to be associated with injury risk in female soldiers. Conclusion: Strategies to improve aerobic fitness and upper limb endurance, reduce smoking, and optimise rehabilitation from injuries and risk management for heavy occupational tasks need to be developed for female soldiers. Such strategies are also likely to reduce risks for male soldiers.
Serum proteomics reveals the proteomic characteristics involved in the progressive feature of acute ischemic stroke (AIS)
Authors: Lai Minchao , Zhang Xiaojun , Zhou Danya , Zhang Xiaojuan , Zhu Mengting , Liu Qingxian , Wang Dian
Published: November 2021

Background

To distinguish acute progressive ischemic stroke (APIS) from acute non-progressive ischemic stroke (ANPIS) is clinically critical for the precise treatment and prevention of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) deterioration. Serum proteins could reflect the unique pathophysiological processes of APIS. It is expected to find serum protein biomarkers to identify APIS at the early state, especially when typical symptoms have not been present in conventional clinical indices.
Methods

We recruited 178 subjects, including 133 AIS patients and 45 healthy controls. The discovery set, which included 10 age- and sex- matched cases from each of the APIS, ANPIS and control groups, was used for serum proteomic analysis with a mass spectrometry-based proteomics. The disrupted proteins of APIS were screened, of which, those common to ANPIS and specific to APIS were particularly concerned. Potential biomarkers of APIS were screened based on the theoretical knowledge to explain the mechanism and diagnostic value, and subsequently tested in the validated set (25 APIS patients, 88 ANPIS patients, and 35 controls).
Results

We found that 46 serum proteins were disturbed in the APIS patients; 23 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) were common to these two groups, and 23 DEPs were associated with APIS alone. Enrichment analysis suggested that complement activation, cytolysis, proteolysis, positive regulation of fibrinolysis, blood coagulation were specifically associated with APIS; while inflammatory response, neutrophil chemotaxis, oxygen transport, and positive regulation of cell death process were common to AIPS and ANPIS. Serum amyloid A1 (SAA1) and S100 calcium binding protein A9 (S100-A9) jointly conferred a moderate value (AUC = 0.799) to diagnose APIS and to distinguish APIS from ANPIS (AUC = 0.699).
Conclusions

This study provides human serum proteomic evidence that inflammation, oxidative stress, and necrosis in APIS are common to ANPIS; the progressive feature of APIS may be mainly associated with complement activation, more serious inflammation, and lipid metabolic disorder; SAA1 and S100-A9 may be considered as potential biomarker panel of APIS.
Phase I Pharmacokinetic Study of Single Agent Trametinib in Patients With Advanced Cancer and Hepatic Dysfunction
Authors: Voon Pei Jye , Chen Eric X. , Chen Helen X. , Lockhart Albert C. , Sahebjam Solmaz , Kelly Karen , Vaishampayan Ulka N. , Subbiah Vivek , Razak Albiruni R. , Renouf Daniel J. , Hotte Sebastien J. , Singh Arti , Bedard Philippe L. , Hansen Aaron R. , Ivy S. Percy , Wang Lisa , Stayner Lee-Anne , Siu Lillian L. , Spreafico Anna
Published: November 2021

BackgroundTrametinib is an oral MEK 1/2 inhibitor, with a single agent recommended phase 2 dose (RP2D) of 2 mg daily (QD). This study was designed to evaluate RP2D, maximum tolerated dose (MTD), and pharmacokinetic (PK) profile of trametinib in patients with advanced solid tumors who had various degrees of hepatic dysfunction (HD). MethodsAdvanced cancer patients were stratified into 4 HD groups based on Organ Dysfunction Working Group hepatic function stratification criteria: normal (Norm), mild (Mild), moderate (Mod), severe (Sev). Dose escalation was based on “3+3” design within each HD group. PK samples were collected at cycle 1 days 15-16. ResultsForty-six patients were enrolled with 44 evaluable for safety [Norm=17, Mild=7, Mod (1.5mg)=4, Mod (2mg)=5, Sev (1mg)=9, Sev (1.5mg)=2] and 22 for PK analysis. Treatment related adverse events were consistent with prior trametinib studies. No treatment related deaths occurred. Dose limiting toxicities (DLTs) were evaluable in 15 patients (Mild=6, Mod (1.5mg)=3, Mod (2mg)=2, Sev (1mg)=3 and Sev (1.5mg)=1). One DLT (grade 3 acneiform rash) was observed in a Sev patient (1.5mg). Dose interruptions or reductions due to treatment related adverse events occurred in 15 patients (34%) [Norm=9, 53%; Mild=2, 29%; Mod (1.5mg)=1, 33%; Mod (2mg)=2, 33%; Sev (1mg)=1, 11%; Sev (1.5mg)=1; 50%]. There were no significant differences across HD groups for all PK parameters when trametinib was normalized to 2 mg. However, only limited PK data were available for the Mod (n=3) and Sev (n=3) groups compared to Norm (n=10) and Mild (n=6) groups. Trametinib is heavily protein bound, with no correlation between serum albumin level and unbound trametinib fraction (p=0.26). ConclusionRP2D for trametinib in Mild HD patients is 2 mg QD. There are insufficient number of evaluable patients due to difficulty of patient accrual to declare RP2D and MTD for Mod and Sev HD groups. DLTs were not observed in the highest dose cohorts that reached three evaluable patients – 1.5 mg QD in Mod group, and 1 mg QD in Sev group. Trial registrationThis study was registered in the ClinicalTrials.gov website (NCT 02070549) on February 25, 2014. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02070549NCI
Gut Microbial Dysbiosis is Correlated with Stroke Severity Markers in Aged Rats Following Stroke
Authors: Hammond Tyler C. , Messmer Sarah , Frank Jaqueline A. , Lukins Douglas , Colwell Rita , Lin Ai-Ling , Pennypacker Keith
Published: November 2021

Background: An imbalanced gut microbial community, or dysbiosis, has been shown to occur following stroke. It is possible that this dysbiosis negatively impacts stroke recovery and rehabilitation. Species level resolution measurements of the gut microbiome following stroke are needed to develop and test precision interventions such as probiotic or fecal microbiota transplant therapies that target the gut microbiome following stroke. Previous studies have used 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing in young male mice to obtain broad profiling of the gut microbiome at the genus level following stroke, but further investigations will be needed with whole genome shotgun sequencing in aged rats of both sexes to obtain species level resolution in a model which will better translate to the demographics of human stroke patients.Results: 39 aged male and female rats underwent middle cerebral artery occlusion. Fecal samples were collected before stroke and three days post stroke to measure gut microbiome. Machine learning was used to identify the top ranked bacteria which were changed following stroke. MRI imaging was used to obtain infarct and edema size and cerebral blood flow (CBF). ELISA was used to obtain inflammatory markers. Dysbiosis was demonstrated by an increase in pathogenic bacteria such as Butyricimonas virosa (15.52 fold change, p<0.0001), Bacteroides vulgatus (7.36 fold change, p<0.0001), and Escherichia coli (47.67 fold change, p<0.0001). These bacteria were positively associated with infarct and edema size and with the inflammatory markers Ccl19, Ccl24, IL17a, IL3, and complement C5; they were negatively correlated with CBF. Conversely, beneficial bacteria such as Ruminococcus flavefaciens (0.14 fold change, p<0.0001), Akkermansia muciniphila (0.78 fold change, p<0.0001), and Lactobacillus murinus (0.40 fold change, p<0.0001) were decreased following stroke and associated with all the previous parameters in the opposite direction of the pathogenic species. There were not significant microbiome differences between the sexes.Conclusion: The species level resolution measurements found here can be used as a foundation to develop and test precision interventions targeting the gut microbiome following stroke. Probiotics that include Ruminococcus flavefaciens, Akkermansia muciniphila, and Lactobacillus murinus should be developed to target the deficit following stroke to measure the impact on stroke severity.
Dataset of Oyster Virome and the Remarkable Virus Diversity in Filter-Feeding Oysters
Authors: Jiang Jing-Zhe , Fang Yi-Fei , Wei Hong-Ying , Guo Ying-Xiang , Yang Li-Ling , Jin Tao , Shi Mang , Shi Shao-Kun , Wang Meng , Yao Tuo , Lu Jie , Ye Ling-Tong , Duan Ming , Zhang Dian-Chang
Published: November 2021

Background:Viruses are the most abundant biological entities, and they play critical roles in entire ecosystems. Nevertheless, current knowledge about them is no more than 1% of the estimated diversity of the Earth’s virosphere. Oysters are filter-feeding molluscan bivalves and are ideal sentinels for marine virus exploration and viral ecology studies. Results: Here we report a Dataset of Oyster Virome (DOV) that contains 728,784 nonredundant viral operational taxonomic unit (vOTU) contigs and 3,473 high-quality viral genomes, enabling the first comprehensive overview of viral communities in oysters. As in other marine viromes, families Siphoviridae, Podoviridae, and Myoviridae are dominant in the DOV. However, Circoviridae is the most abundant family among the high-quality genomes, indicating that oysters may be their potential hotspots. Despite performing target amplification for RNA genomes, the diversity of RNA viruses was much lower than the diversity of DNA viruses. Notably, most of the vOTUs in the DOV were previously undescribed viruses and could not be clustered with any sequences in three reference datasets. Three approaches (based on references, vOTUs, and auxiliary metabolic genes) consistently showed that host health status, location, and sampling date had potential impacts on virome structures. Conclusions: This study highlights the practicality of oysters for marine virus exploration and provides a new direction to understand the relationship between marine bivalves and the environment.
An implementation framework and a feasibility evaluation of a clinical decision support system for diabetes management in secondary mental healthcare using CogStack
Authors: Patel Dipen , Msosa Yamiko Joseph , Wang Tao , Mustafa Omar G , Gee Siobhan , Williams Julie , Roberts Angus , Dobson Richard JB , Gaughran Fiona
Published: November 2021

Background: Improvements to the primary prevention of physical health illnesses like diabetes in the general population have not been mirrored to the same extent in people with serious mental illness (SMI). This work evaluates the technical feasibility of implementing an electronic clinical decision support system (eCDSS) for supporting the management of dysglycaemia and diabetes in patients with serious mental illness in a secondary mental healthcare setting. Methods: A stepwise approach was taken as an overarching and guiding framework for this work. Participatory methods were employed to design and deploy a monitoring and alerting eCDSS. The eCDSS was evaluated for its feasibility. The initial part of the feasibility evaluation was conducted in an outpatient community mental health team. Thereafter, the evaluation of the eCDSS progressed to a more in-depth in silico validation. Results: A digital health intervention that enables monitoring and alerting of at-risk patients based on an approved diabetes management guideline was developed. The eCDSS generated alerts according to expected standards and in line with clinical guideline recommendations. Conclusions: It is feasible to design and deploy a functional monitoring and alerting eCDSS in secondary mental healthcare. Further work is required in order to fully evaluate the integration of the eCDSS into routine clinical workflows. By describing and sharing the steps that were and will be taken from concept to clinical testing, useful insights could be provided to teams that are interested in building similar digital health interventions.
Return to work, activities of daily living and sports after spinal ependymoma resection: a monocenter experience with long-term follow-up
Authors: Butenschoen Vicki Marie , Gloßner Till , Hostettler Isabel C. , Meyer Bernhard , Wostrack Maria
Published: November 2021

Introduction: Adult spinal ependymoma presents a rare benign tumor entity. Due to its incidence peak in the fourth decade of life, it mostly affects patients during a professionally and physically active time of life.Methods: We performed a retrospective monocentric study, including all patients operated upon for spinal ependymoma between January 2009 and September 2020. We prospectively collected data on professional reintegration, physical activities and quality-of-life parameters using EQ-5D and SF-36. Issues encountered in returning to work and physical activities were assessed using existing spinal-cord-specific questionnaires and free-text questions.Results: In total, 65 of 114 patients operated on for spinal ependymomas agreed to participate. Most patients suffered from only mild pre- and postoperative impairment on the modified McCormick scale, but 67% confirmed difficulties performing physical activities in which they previously engaged due to pain, coordination problems and fear of injuries. We observed a shift from full- to part-time employment and patients unable to work, independently from tumor dignity and neurological function.Conclusion: Despite its benign nature and formal only mild neurological deficits occurring in patients suffering from spinal ependymoma, the studied population described severe difficulties returning to their preoperative physical activity and profession. Clinical scores such as the McCormick grade and muscle strength may not reflect the entire self-perceived impairment appropriately.
The relative effects of cognitive, emotional and physiological factors on human response to urban and park environments
Authors: Saadi Diana , Hijazi Basem , Tirosh Emanuel , Schnell Izhak
Published: November 2021

Studies on the effect of urban and green environments on human risk to health and well-being tend to focus on either physiological or cognitive and emotional effects. For each of these effects, several indicators have been proposed. They are determined either by a physiological-emotional theory or by a cognitive theory of direct attention. However, the interrelationships between these indices have not been thoroughly investigated. Recently, a neurovisceral model that incorporates all three aspects has been proposed. Furthermore, it appears that the autonomic system, as measured by Heart Rate Variability (HRV), influences emotional and cognitive performance. The present article focuses on the interrelations among nine commonly used indices that represent the physiological, emotional and cognitive aspects of environmental response to urban and green environments. Path analysis and principal component analysis are used in order to identify the interrelations among the physiological, cognitive and emotional indices and the directions of these interrelations. According to the findings, the autonomic nervous system (ANS), as measured by HRV and primarily the parasympathetic tone (High frequency -HF) is the pivotal mechanism that modulates emotions and cognition in response to environmental nuisances. The ANS response precedes and may trigger the emotional and cognitive responses, which are only partially interrelated. It appears that the autonomic balance measured by SDNN and HF, the cognitive index of restoration and the emotional indices of discomfort and relaxation are closely interrelated. These seemingly disparate operands work together to form a comprehensive underlying network that causes stress and risk to health in urban environments while restoring health in green environments. The relative effects of cognitive, emotional and physiological factors on human response to urban and park environments
FPM: A Collection of Large-scale Foundation Pre-trained Language Models
Authors: Shen Dezhou
Published: November 2021

Recent work in language modeling has shown that train-
ing large-scale Transformer models has promoted the lat-
est developments in natural language processing applica-
tions. However, there is very little work to unify the cur-
rent effective models. In this work, we use the current ef-
fective model structure to launch a model set through the
current most mainstream technology.
We think this will
become the basic model in the future.
For Chinese, us-
ing the GPT-2[9] model, a 10.3 billion parameter language
model was trained on the Chinese dataset, and, in particu-
lar, a 2.9 billion parameter language model based on dia-
logue data was trained; the BERT model was trained on the
Chinese dataset with 495 million parameters; the Trans-
former model has trained a language model with 5.6 bil-
lion parameters on the Chinese dataset. In English, cor-
responding training work has also been done. Using the
GPT-2 model, a language model with 6.4 billion param-
eters was trained on the English dataset; the BERT[3]
model trained a language model with 1.24 billion param-
eters on the English dataset, and in particular, it trained a
688 million parameter based on single card training tech-
nology Language model; Transformer model trained a lan-
guage model with 5.6 billion parameters on the English
dataset.
In the TNEWS classification task evaluated by
CLUE[13], the BERT-C model exceeded the 59.46% accu-
racy of ALBERT-xxlarge with an accuracy rate of 59.99%,
an increase of 0.53%. In the QQP classification task evalu-
ated by GLUE[11], the accuracy rate of 78.95% surpassed
the accuracy rate of BERT-Large of 72.1%, an increase of
6.85%. Compared with the current accuracy rate of ERNIE,
the first place in the GLUE evaluation of 75.2%, an increase
of 3.75%.
Rural-Urban Differences in Food Insecurity and Associated Cognitive Impairment Among Older Adults: Findings from a Nationally Representative Survey
Authors: Srivast Shobhit , Muhammad T
Published: November 2021

IntroductionDue to rapid urbanization, Covid-19 pandemic, and increasing food prices, a higher rate of food insecurity has been observed in recent years in India. Thus, we aim to study the prevalence of food insecurity among older Indian adults and the association of food insecurity as a modifiable risk factor with late-life cognitive impairment.MethodData for this study was utilized from the recent release of Longitudinal Ageing Study in India which was conducted 2017-18. The total sample size for the present study is 31,464 older adults aged 60 years and above. Descriptive statistics along with cross-tabulation were presented in the present study. Additionally, binary logistic regression analysis was used to fulfil the objective of the present study. ResultsIt was found that 7.7% of older adults in rural areas reduced their size of meals due to unavailability (urban, 3.2%), 41.2% of them did not eat enough food of their choice (urban, 38.3%), 6.9% were hungry but did not eat food (urban, 2.6%), 5.0% did not eat for whole day (urban, 2.2%), and 6.9% lost weight due to lack of food in their household (urban, 2.9%). It was found that older adults who did not have enough food of their choice had significantly higher odds of suffering from cognitive impairment in reference to their counterparts. Similarly, the older adults who were hungry but did not eat were 33% more likely to suffer from cognitive impairment in reference to their counterparts. Interaction model revealed that older adults who had food insecurity in rural areas had higher odds of cognitive impairment than older adults who had food insecurity in urban areas. ConclusionThe results of the study highlight that the food security status in older adults may bring about greater challenges due to their limited economic resources. Interventions focusing on food security may have unintended positive impacts on late-life mental wellbeing as the older age is associated with higher cognitive deficits.
Gravitational cells and gravitational strings as a necessary part of the gravitational field. Obtaining new physical formulas and indicators (the formula for the gravitational constant, the formula for the mass of the hydrogen atom, etc.)
Authors: Chernov Andrey
Published: November 2021

This study introduces scientific concepts such as gravitational cells and gravitational strings. Gravitational cells and gravitational strings have been organically built into the concept of a gravitational field. This innovation has led to significant scientific results. These results include obtaining the formula for the gravitational constant, the formula for the electron mass, the formula for the mass of the hydrogen atom, the formula for the minimum distance of the action of the gravitational field, etc. All formulas were confirmed by experimental data. In this work, the Planck formula was successfully applied to the gravitational field. A distinctive feature of this study is the fact that most of the new formulas contain only fundamental physical constants (without introducing additional indicators and proportionality coefficients). In this work, the concept of a gravitational quantum is introduced and its value is determined. Also, a new physical constant was obtained - the mass of the gravitational cell of a black hole.
How Do The Number of Missing Daily Diary Days Impact The Psychometric Properties And Study Results Arising From a Weekly Average Summary Score?
Authors: Griffiths Pip , Williams Abi , Brohan Elaine
Published: November 2021

PurposeQuality of life research often collects daily information and averages this over a week, producing a summary score. When data are missing, arbitrary rules (such as requiring at least 4/7 observations) are used to determine whether a patient’s summary score is created or set to missing. This simulation work aimed to assess the impact of missing data on the estimates produced by summary scores, the psychometric properties of the resulting summary score estimates and the impact on efficacy results.MethodsComplete longitudinal data was simulated for 1000 samples of 400 patients with different day-to-day variability. Data was deleted from these samples in line with missingness mechanisms to create scenarios with up to six days of missing data. Summary scores were created for complete and missing data scenarios. Summary score estimates, psychometric properties and the ability to detect treatment differences were assessed for missing data scenarios compared to complete data. ResultsIn most cases, the 4/7 day rule was supported, but this depended on daily variability. Fewer days of data were sometimes acceptable, but this was also dependent on the type of analyses conducted. An interactive tool was created to allow researchers to assess the impact of missing data in their own work.ConclusionsThis work suggests that the missing data rule used to create summary scores impacts on the estimate, measurement properties, interpretation and observed treatment effect. However, the way the summary score is derived does not have a uniform impact across these analyses.
Investment Decisions of the Blockchain-Based Anti-Counterfeiting Traceability Service in A High-Quality Fresh Supply Chain
Authors: Liu Pan
Published: November 2021

Applications of the blockchain-based anti-counterfeiting traceability system (hereafter, blockchain-based ACTS) present a positive result in helping improve the repeat purchase rate and the product circulation rate. However, using the blockchain-based ACTS needs chain members’ additional expenditure. They want to know investment conditions about the blockchain-based ACTS and how to coordinate the supply chain. To solve these problems, we chosen a supply chain with one fresh producer and one retailer as the study object. Afterwards, considering the changes of the repeat purchase rate and the product circulation rate, we revised the demand function. Then, we constructed the profit functions before and after adopting the blockchain-based ACTS, and then a price discount and revenue-sharing contract was put forward to coordinate the supply chain. Findings: with the growth of the repurchase rate, benefits of chain members in the proposed three situations will increase. Thus, we can know that after using the blockchain-based ACTS.
Ponderomotive Forces in the System of Two Nanoparticles
Authors: Lozovski Valeri , Lysenko Volodymyr , Rusinchuk Natalia
Published: November 2021

Mechanical consequences of electromagnetic interaction of two nanoparticles have been modelled and simulated. It has been shown that local field enhancement effect in the studied system causes appearance of the local field gradients. As a consequence, the local field gradients can lead to ponderomotive forces acting on the nanoparticles near their surface. In the work the model describing the phenomena has been developed. The model is based on the near-field interaction in the self-consistent system and the effective susceptibility concept. Using the model distribution of the local field in the system of two different-sized nanparticles has been calculated and ponderomotive forces directions and values were simulated. It has been shown that in the system of two different-sized nanoparticles the forces act mainly on the surface of bigger nanoparticle and for some systems its value may acquire up to several tens of nanonewtons. Possible application of the results to study of biological systems has been also discussed.
Co-implementing Vitamin A supplementation with Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention in Sokoto State, Nigeria: a feasibility and acceptability study
Authors: Oresanya Olusola , Phillips Abimbola , Okereke Ekechi , Ahmadu Abraham , Ibinaiye Taiwo , Marasciulo-Rice Madeleine , Ward Charlotte , Adesoro Olatunde , Mohammed Rilwanu , Nikau Jamilu , Isokpunwu Chris Osa , Inname Mohammad Ali , Counihan Helen , Baker Kevin , Maxwell Kolawole , Smith Helen
Published: November 2021

Background

Bi-annual high dose vitamin A supplements administered to children aged 6-59 months can significantly reduce child mortality, but vitamin A supplementation (VAS) coverage is low in Nigeria. The World Health Organization recommends that VAS be integrated into other public health programmes which are aimed at improving child survival. Seasonal malaria chemoprevention (SMC) provides a ready platform for VAS integration to improve health outcomes.
Methods

A mixed methods study design was used to assess the feasibility and acceptability of co-implementing VAS with SMC in one local government area of Sokoto state in northern Nigeria. Existing SMC implementation tools and job aids were revised and community drug distributors, experienced in SMC delivery, were trained on the determination of VAS eligibility, administration of the correct doses and identification of adverse drug reactions. SMC and VAS were delivered using a door-to-door approach. VAS and SMC coverage were calculated and the outcome of the integration was assessed using questionnaires administered to 188 and 197 households at baseline and endline respectively. The Bowen framework was used to assess feasibility through focus group discussions and key informant interviews; thematic analysis was carried out on the qualitative data.
Results

At endline, the proportion of children who received at least one dose of VAS in the last six months increased significantly from 2–59% (p<0.001). There were no adverse effects on the coverage of SMC delivery with 70% eligible children reached at baseline, increasing to 76% (p=0.412) at endline. There was no significant change (p=0.264) in the quality of SMC, measured by proportion of children receiving their first dose as directly observed treatment (DOT), at endline (68%) compared to baseline (54%). Study findings demonstrated acceptability among caregivers, community drug distributors, State and National healthcare officials.
Conclusion

This study showed that it is feasible and acceptable to integrate VAS with SMC delivery in areas of high seasonal malaria transmission such as northern Nigeria, where SMC campaigns are implemented. SMC-VAS integrated campaign can significantly increase vitamin A coverage but more research is required to demonstrate the feasibility of this integration in different settings and on a larger scale.
Study of Controlled Migration of Cadmium and Lead Into Foods From Plastic Utensils for Children
Authors: Pereira Elizeu Chiodi , Leroux Isabelle Nogueira , Luz Maciel Santos , Lemos Bruno Batista , Olympio Kelly Polido Kaneshiro
Published: November 2021

Lead is a highly neurotoxic chemical element known for reducing intelligence quotient (IQ) and promoting antisocial behavior in children and adolescents, while cadmium is a carcinogenic bioaccumulative element. Contaminated foods and beverages are the most common routes of exposure. The objective of this study was to determine Cd and Pb concentrations in colored plastic utensils for use by children and to measure the specific migration of these elements into beverages and foods. Pb and Cd concentrations were determined using a handheld XRF. Specific migration tests were conducted using the simulant solutions. Migration levels were determined by ICP-MS and migration tests for Pb were also performed on actual samples GF-AAS determination. Utensils (n=87) were purchased for containing Cd and/or Pb concentrations above permitted limits. The mean of Pb and Cd were 1110 and 338 ppm respectively. For specific migration assays, Pb levels were 187, 13 and 380 times above the permitted limit for acetic acid, water and orange juice, respectively. Cd levels 50 and 2.4 times above the permitted limit for acetic acid and water, respectively. The districts where the utensils were purchased were grouped according to their Social Vulnerability Index and compared using ANOVA. Results revealed a group difference in mean Pb levels for low versus medium/high social vulnerability (p = 0.006). The findings corroborate the initial hypothesis that these utensils constitute a major source of exposure to PTEs such as Cd and Pb.
Identification of the Prognostic LncRNA Biomarkers and Comprehensive Analysis of LncRNA-Mediated ceRNA Network for Uterine Corpus Endometrial Carcinoma
Authors: Cai Yiran , Cui Jin , Wu Huiqun
Published: November 2021

Background

Given that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) involved in the tumor initiation or progression of the endometrium and that competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) plays an important role in increasingly more biological processes, lncRNA-mediated ceRNA is likely to function in the pathogenesis of uterine corpus endometrial carcinoma (UCEC). Our present study aimed to explore the potential molecular mechanisms for the prognosis of UCEC through an lncRNA-mediated ceRNA network.
Methods

The transcriptome profiles and corresponding clinical profiles of UCEC dataset were retrieved from CPTAC and TCGA databases respectively. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in UCEC samples were identified via “Edge R” package. Then, an integrated bioinformatics analysis including functional enrichment analysis, tumor infiltrating immune cell(TIIC) analysis, Kaplan-Meier curve, Cox regression analysis were conducted to analyze the prognostic biomarkers.
Results

In the CPTAC dataset of UCEC, a ceRNA network comprised of 36 miRNAs, 123 lncRNAs and 124 targeted mRNAs was established, and 8 of 123 prognostic-related DElncRNAs(Differentially Expressed long noncoding RNA) were identified. While in the TCGA dataset, a ceRNA network comprised of 38 miRNAs, 83 lncRNAs and 110 targeted mRNAs was established, and 2 of 83 prognostic-related DElncRNAs were identified. After filtered by risk grouping and Cox regression analysis, 10 prognostic-related lncRNAs including LINC00443, LINC00483, C2orf48, TRBV11-2, MEG-8 were identified. In addition, 33 survival-related DEmRNAs(Differentially Expressed messager RNA) in two ceRNA networks were further validated in the HPA database. Finally, six lncRNA/miRNA/mRNA axes were established to elucidate prognostic regulatory roles in UCEC.
Conclusion

Several prognostic lncRNAs are identified and prognostic model of lncRNA-mediated ceRNA network is constructed, which promotes the understanding of UCEC development mechanisms and potential therapeutic targets.
Integrating tick density and park visitor behaviors to assess the risk of tick exposure in urban parks on Staten Island, New York
Authors: Hassett Erin , Diuk-Wasser Maria , Harrington Laura , Fernandez Maria del Pilar
Published: November 2021

Background

Public green spaces are important for human health, but they may expose visitors to ticks and tick-borne pathogens. We sought to understand risk and drivers of tick-preventative behavior in three popular parks on Staten Island, NY, USA by integrating tick hazard and park visitors’ behaviors.
Methods

From 20 May to 19 August 2019, ticks were collected via drag cloth sampling in multiple parks, sites, and habitats to estimate tick density. Human behavior was assessed by observing usage (time spent and activity type) in each site and habitat. To evaluate risk of tick exposure, we compared park usage by demographics across sites and compared individual exposure time per site and habitat. To assess visitors’ tick prevention behaviors, a knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) survey was administered.
Results

Three tick species (Ixodes scapularis, Amblyomma americanum and Haemaphysalis longicornis) were collected. The density of nymphs was heterogenous across parks, with the greatest density in unmaintained herbaceous habitats and trails. The fewest people entered the highest tick risk park and within-park locations. The KAP survey revealed that most respondents (N= 190) could not identify a nymphal stage tick when shown examples of various arthropods. Interviewees identified parks as the main location for tick exposure, but most believed they themselves had minimal risk for tick encounter. Consequently, many visitors did not conduct tick checks. People were most likely to practice tick checks if they knew multiple prevention methods and perceived a high likelihood of tick encounter.
Conclusions

By integrating acarological indices and park visitor behaviors we found a mismatch between the areas with higher tick densities and areas more frequently used by park visitors. However, this exposure risk varied among demographic groups and the type of activities. Moreover, the use of preventative measures was associated with the perceived probability of tick encounter and knowledge of tick habitat, which would modify the ultimate risk of tick encounter and disease given exposure. Our research is a first step towards identifying visitor risk, attitudes, and practices that could be targeted by optimized messaging strategies for tick bite prevention among park visitors.
Good practices and innovations during the realization of the practical training of the pedagogy students
Authors: V A Ivanova
Published: November 2021

The practical training is a significant and obligatory part of the whole training process of the pedagogy students in the specialties for the educational and qualification degrees of Bachelor and Master and of the post-graduate qualification trainees. The professional and practical training of the students obtaining the professional qualification of teacher is regulated in the Order for the unified state requirements for the higher education obtaining with the professional qualification of teacher [5]. The study is focused on the attitudes and the evaluations of the mentor-teachers because they are the direct bearers of the necessary professional qualities to be acquired by the students. They are also the subjects of the good pedagogical practices and to a great extend of the innovations. The mentor-teachers determine the nearest perspective for the student progress and they form the following interaction: student /trainee teacher/ - training teacher /mentor/ - pupil, where the practical education results are manifested. Methods of the study: inquiry investigation, mathematical and statistical analysis. Results and conclusions: The study shows that the training teachers support the up-dating of the student practical training putting the accent on the activity and the motivation of the trainee teachers. An important result of the study is the positive attitudes of the training teachers toward the partnership with the higher school in the context of the whole life learning and their own professional development.
Preliminary research on biochemical investigations of the naval pentathlon team from the Naval Academy "Mircea cel Batran" – seamenship sample
Authors: A Abramiuc
Published: November 2021

In the study we underwent research a series of biochemical parameters (hemoglobin, proteins, lactic acid), which condition the physical effort. The proposed biochemical investigations were conducted in preliminary research at baseline and end point. By applying these lab investigations, I followed: 1. if the results obtained fall within the normal limits proposed by medical specialists; 2. to what extent the investigative values obtained are influenced by the complexity of the pentathlon complex. The results obtained in the two tests were statistically processed (tabular and graphical) and analyzed between the samples investigated in the two tests.
Use of Social Media for Strategies to Improve the Indonesian Economy for the Sustainability of MSMES
Authors: Azraputra Rofif Satria , Maryani Maryani , Halim Erwin
Published: November 2021

Indonesia is currently entering the phase of this demographic bonus that must be used well. In the process of advancing micro, small and medium economic development, many Indonesians become small entrepreneurs selling products to others. The proportion of young people exceeds 25% of Indonesia's total population of around 250 million, plus 59.2 million Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) units, contributing 61.41% of GDP. Indonesia is Indonesia's two main economic powers. However, even though the January 2016 data shows that the potential for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructure has reached around 90% of the population, and the mobile penetration rate of internet users exceeds 126%, there are still 90% of MSMEs. The unit is still running in the offline domain. Reaching 51.8% of the total population of Indonesia. Although he can only hold information technology by hand, one of them is through social media. You can take advantage of social media such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to sell goods. E-UMKM is an Android-based application designed to sell Indonesian MSME products online and has been integrated with the system. The steps that must be taken include data collection, MSME product certification, application development, socialization and delivery systems. This activity is expected to help MSME business players in selling their businesses online through social media.
Airflow Limitation, Fatigue, and Health-Related Quality of Life in Kidney Transplant Recipients
Authors: Knobbe Tim J. , Kremer Daan , Eisenga Michele F. , van Londen Marco , Gomes-Neto António W. , Douwes Rianne M. , Gan C. Tji , Corpeleijn Eva , Annema Coby , Navis Gerjan , Berger Stefan P. , Bakker Stephan J.L.
Published: November 2021

Background and objectives

Many kidney transplant recipients suffer from fatigue and poor health-related quality of life. Airflow limitation may be an underappreciated comorbidity among kidney transplant recipients, which could contribute to fatigue and lower health-related quality of life in this population. In this study, we compared the prevalence of airflow limitation between kidney transplant recipients and healthy controls and investigated associations of airflow limitation with fatigue and health-related quality of life in kidney transplant recipients.

Design, setting, participants, & measurements

Data from the ongoing TransplantLines Biobank and Cohort study were used. Airflow limitation was defined as forced exhaled volume in 1 second less than the fifth percentile of the general population. Fatigue and health-related quality of life were assessed using checklist individual strength 20 revised (CIS20-R) and Short Form-36 (SF-36) questionnaires.

Results

A total of 539 kidney transplant recipients (58% men; mean age 56±13 years) and 244 healthy controls (45% men; mean age 57±10 years) were included. Prevalence of airflow limitation was higher in kidney transplant recipients than in healthy controls (133 [25%] versus 25 [10%]). In multinomial regression models, airflow limitation was independently associated with fatigue severity (odds ratio moderate fatigue, 1.68; 95% confidence interval, 0.92 to 3.09 and odds ratio severe fatigue, 2.51; 95% confidence interval, 1.39 to 4.55; P=0.007) and lower physical health-related quality of life (−0.11 SDs; 95% confidence interval, −0.19 to −0.02; P=0.01) in kidney transplant recipients. In exploratory mediation analyses, fatigue accounted for 79% of the association of airflow limitation with physical health-related quality of life.

Conclusions

Airflow limitation is common among kidney transplant recipients. Its occurrence is associated with more than two times higher risk of severe fatigue, and it is associated with lower physical health-related quality of life. Mediation analyses suggest that airflow limitation causes fatigue, which in turn, decreases physical health-related quality of life.

Clinical Trial registry name and registration number:

TransplantLines: The Transplantation Biobank, NCT03272841

Podcast

This article contains a podcast at https://www.asn-online.org/media/podcast/CJASN/2021_11_08_CJN06600521.mp3
Translation techniques used in translating a smartphone user manual
Authors: Mustafa Faisal , Aziz Zulfadli A , Khabri Ihsanul
Published: November 2021

As many smartphones are imported from overseas and the user manuals are written in English, the translation of a user manual is, therefore, very important for the Indonesian customers whose English is not their second language. Good translation results are then very essential in order that the customers understand the information easily and clearly. The focus of this research is the bilingual English-Indonesian Samsung’s GT-19500 user manual. This research aims to find translation techniques applied in the book. In this descriptive research, the sentences were the tokens that were recorded in Microsoft Excel. The tokens were then analyzed based on the categories of translation techniques in question. It was found that there were nine translation techniques used in the user manual. The translation techniques used in Samsung’s GT-19500 user manual are borrowing (41%), literal translation (25%), calque (13%), transposition (7%), equivalence (6%), adaptation (5.3%), modulation (3%), and omission (2%). Therefore, the techniques used in translating a smartphone user manual are unique to this type of document because the document consists of many terms without Indonesian equivalence.
Implementasi Dynamic Multipoint Virtual Private Network Dual Hub
Authors: Iryani Nanda , Andika Dyas Dendi
Published: November 2021

Pesatnya perkembangan internet berdampak ke semua elemen orang yang memunculkan kebutuhan baru bagaimana menggunakan internet dengan cepat dan aman terutama bagi suatu perusahaan yang ingin terhubung dengan cabangnya. DMVPN menghadirkan sebuah solusi bagaimana menhubungkan beberapa perusahaan secara dinamis, fleksibel,cepat dan aman. Penelitian ini berusaha untuk mengimplementasikan DMVPN dengan routing IGP link state dan distance vector. Model pada penelitian akan menerapkan juga konsep bernama high availability yang akan menghasilkan ketersediaan yang tetap tinggi bahkan ketika salah satu perangkat pada DMPVN mengalami down dengan cara menambahkan sebuah hub baru (dual hub) sebagai router pusat dari DMVPN. Hasil yang didapatkan ketika menerapkan pada jaringan DMVPN dual hub menunjukan jika baik dari segi throughput, delay, jitter dan packet loss nilai terbaiknya terjadi ketika scenario komunikasi antar spoke atau antar cabang dengan menggunakan EIGRP. Nilai parameter yang ada berdasarkan standar tiphon tergolong kedalam kategori sangat bagus untuk throughput, jitter, dan packet loss dan masuk ke kategori bagus pada delaynya. Skenario pemodelan berikutnya mencoba hanya menggunakan satu buah hub saja, dari scenario tersebut diperoleh jika parameter yang dihasilkan routing EIGRP dan OSPF sama sama berimbang dengan throughput terbaik dimiliki oleh OSPF dengan kategori , delay dimiliki oleh EIGRP kategori standar sedang, jitter beserta packet loss kategori standar sangat bagus, keduanya dimilki OSPF dan EIGRP dengan catatan model komunikasi terbaiknya sama-sama menggunakan komunikasi hub spoke.