bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Microclimatic conditions drive summer flight phenology of Platypus cylindrus in managed cork oak stands
Authors: Muñoz‐Adalia Emigdio Jordán , Ahmed Jaher , Colinas Carlos
Published: May 2022

The oak pinhole borer, Platypus cylindrus F., mainly colonizes oaks (Quercus sp.), and it is considered among the most serious pests of cork oak (Quercus suber L.). Despite being traditionally considered as a secondary pest in thermophilic oak woodlands, outbreaks seem to be more frequent throughout the Mediterranean Basin thus becoming a growing forest health concern. In the Iberian Peninsula, this insect mainly attacks cork oaks (Q. suber) causing intense stress to mature trees specially after cork harvesting season. In this study, we investigated the summer flight phenology of P. cylindrus in six stands located in north‐eastern Spain. We recorded the number of insects trapped in pheromone‐baited traps from late April to early September of 2021, and computed sex ratio, average date of flight and season flight curve in each plot. We fitted a GAM model to evaluate how population dynamics are driven by date and climatic factors. A total of 1795 insects were collected during the sampling period. Population peaks occurred from late May to mid‐August. The fitted GAM predicted changes in the number of captures throughout the summer varying with microclimatic conditions. In addition, diversity of trapped non‐target Curculionidae resulted moderate with low evenness including either ambrosia or bark beetles. This study represents the first attempt at modelling P. cylindrus flight, thus providing insights into the association between climate, pests and forestry.
Investigation of the genome sizes and ploidy within the genus Monocercomonoides
Authors: Kornalíková Martina , Hampl Vladimír , Treitli Sebastian Cristian
Published: May 2022

Monocercomonoides is a genus of anaerobic flagellates found mainly in the gut of insects and vertebrates. We explored the ploidy of six strains of Monocercomonoides using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) with probes against the SufDSU gene known to be in a single copy in M. exilis. Our results show that all investigated strains are haploid, with a single clear signal displayed in most of the analyzed nuclei. Staining of the telomeric repeats TTAGGG using FISH revealed that all investigated strains, except for strains of M. merkovicensis, exhibit a similar number of telomeric signals to those of M. exilis. DNA content of the nuclei in seven strains was assessed using flow cytometry. With the knowledge of the ploidy, their haploid genome sizes were estimated to vary from 60 to 161 Mbp. The genome size variation observed in Monocercomonoides is much larger than the variation within other genera of metamonads such as Trichomonas, Tritrichomonas, or Giardia, but similar to the variations observed within genera of algae or plants.
No strong associations between temperature and the host–parasite interaction in wild stickleback
Authors: Granroth‐Wilding Hanna M. V. , Candolin Ulrika
Published: May 2022

As climate change progresses, thermal stress is expected to alter the way that host organisms respond to infections by pathogens and parasites, with consequences for the fitness and therefore population processes of both host and parasite. The authors used a correlational natural experiment to examine how temperature differences shape the impact of the cestode parasiteSchistocephalus soliduson its host, the three‐spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). Previous laboratory work has found that high temperatures benefitS. soliduswhile being detrimental to the stickleback. The present study sought to emulate this design in the wild, repeatedly sampling naturally infected and uninfected fish at matched warmer and cooler locations in the Baltic Sea.

In this wild study, the authors found little evidence that temperature was associated with the host–parasite interaction. Although infection reduced host condition and reproductive status overall, these effects did not vary with temperature. Host fitness indicators correlated to some extent with temperature, with cooler capture sites associated with larger size but warmer sites with improved reproductive potential. Parasite fitness (prevalence or size) was not correlated with temperature at the capture site.

These mismatches between laboratory and field outcomes illustrate how findings from well‐controlled laboratory experiments may not fully reflect processes in more variable natural settings. Nonetheless, the findings of this study indicate that temperature can influence host fitness regardless of infection, with potential consequences for both host demography and parasite transmission dynamics in this complex system.
Detection of fish species from marine protected areas of the North Sea using environmental DNA
Authors: Barco Andrea , Kullmann Björn , Knebelsberger Thomas , Sarrazin Victoria , Kuhs Vanessa , Kreutle Axel , Pusch Christian , Thiel Ralf
Published: May 2022

This report describe the first application of environmental DNA‐metabarcoding approach for the assessment of fish species diversity in two marine protected areas of the North Sea: the Doggerbank and the Sylt Outer Reef. We collected 64 water samples and detected 24 fish species. We discuss qualitative differences between MPAs and compare the results with those obtained from bottom‐trawl surveys in the same areas. We found three additional species to those documented in the same year with trawls, including the critically endangered European eel.
Molecular and morphological characterization ofDollfustrema bagarii(Digenea: Bucephalidae) metacercariae from aquaculture channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) in northern Vietnam
Authors: Kim Van Van , Nguyen Hung Manh , Greiman Stephen E. , Nguyen Ha Van , Nguyen Chinh Ngoc , Vu Manh Duc , Hoai Truong Dinh , Madsen Henry
Published: May 2022

White grub metacercariae were found in the livers and kidneys of diseased specimens of an introduced channel catfish,Ictalurus punctatus(Rafinesque), in Vietnam. Based on morphological features and 28S rDNA sequence analysis, the isolated metacercariae were identified asDollfustrema bagarii(Digenea: Bucephalidae) Moravec & Sey. Histopathological examination shows that encysted metacercariae can change the tissue structure of the infected organs and is often accompanied by haemorrhaging and the presence of eosinophilic granular cell infiltration. Degenerative changes were also observed.
Artesunate restores mitochondrial fusion‐fission dynamics and alleviates neuronal injury in Alzheimer's disease models
Authors: Qin Yi‐Ren , Ma Chi‐Qian , Jiang Jian‐Hua , Wang Da‐Peng , Zhang Quan‐Quan , Liu Mei‐Rong , Zhao Hong‐Ru , Fang Qi , Liu Yang
Published: May 2022

Alzheimer's disease (AD) remains a leading cause of dementia and no therapy that reverses underlying neurodegeneration is available. Recent studies suggest the protective role of artemisinin, an antimalarial drug, in neurological disorders. In this study, we investigated the therapeutic potential of artesunate, a water‐soluble derivative of artemisinin, on amyloid‐beta (Aβ)‐treated challenged microglial BV‐2, neuronal N2a cells, and the amyloid precursor protein/presenilin (APP/PS1) mice model. We found that Aβ significantly induced multiple AD‐related phenotypes, including increased expression/production of pro‐inflammatory cytokines from microglial cells, enhanced cellular and mitochondrial production of reactive oxygen species, promoted mitochondrial fission, inhibited mitochondrial fusion, suppressed mitophagy or biogenesis in both cell types, stimulated apoptosis of neuronal cells, and microglia‐induced killing of neurons. All these in vitro phenotypes were attenuated by artesunate. In addition, the over‐expression of the mitochondrial fission protein Drp‐1, or down‐regulation of the mitochondrial fusion protein OPA‐1 both reduced the therapeutic benefits of artesunate. Artesunate also alleviated AD phenotypes in APP/PS1 mice, reducing Aβ deposition, and reversing deficits in memory and learning. Artesunate protects neuronal and microglial cells from AD pathology, both in vitro and in vivo. Maintaining mitochondrial dynamics and simultaneously targeting multiple AD pathogenic mechanisms are associated with the protective effects of artesunate. Consequently, artesunate may become a promising therapeutic for AD.

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What determines cognitive estimation ability? Changing contributions of semantic and executive domains as a function of age
Authors: Hoffman Paul , MacPherson Sarah E.
Published: May 2022

The Cognitive Estimation Test (CET) is commonly used in neuropsychological assessment. It is typically assumed to load on executive functions, although research has shown that CET performance also depends on access to semantic knowledge. It is unknown whether these contributions vary with age. It is important to examine this question as these abilities have divergent life course trajectories: executive functions tend to decline as people age but semantic knowledge continues to accrue. In addition, previous research has not examined potential contributions to CET performance from semantic control abilities, that is cognitive control processes involved specifically in the retrieval and use of semantic information. To address these questions, we investigated cognitive predictors of CET performance in healthy young and older adults. We found that better executive function was associated with more accurate estimation in both age groups. However, the effect of semantic knowledge on CET performance was significantly larger in older people, having no predictive power in the younger group. The ability to detect weak semantic associations, which is thought to index controlled search and retrieval of semantic information, also had divergent effects on CET performance in the two age groups. Our results provide empirical support for the idea that older people are more reliant on semantic knowledge when estimating quantities, which may explain why age‐related decline in CET scores is not typically found. We conclude that deficits on the CET may be indicative either of semantic or executive impairments, particularly in older age groups.
The inefficiency of plea bargaining
Authors: GORMLEY JAY
Published: May 2022

The fundamental assumption underlying plea bargaining is that it is ‘efficient’. Even ardent critics of plea bargaining often accept the assumption that it is efficient in being cost effective. For proponents, beliefs about plea bargaining's efficiency are used to argue that it is beneficial, even necessary, on pragmatic grounds. From this assumption about efficiency, volumes of laws and policies have been created. This article uses empirical data to demonstrate the flaws in this foundational tenet of plea‐bargaining logic. The article shows that, in reality, plea‐bargaining practices have imported their own inherent inefficiencies into the criminal process. These inefficiencies are detrimental not only to cost effectiveness but also to justice and fairness. Foremost among these inefficiencies are the (some argue iniquitous) game‐playing cultures that, ironically, policymakers have unintentionally fostered in striving for efficiency. The article demonstrates the pressing need to better recognize and understand these counterintuitive inefficient consequences of plea bargaining.
Tradition and reinvention: the making and unmaking of herbal medicines in the UK
Authors: URQUIZA‐HAAS NAYELI , CLOATRE EMILIE
Published: May 2022

This article looks at the development of the regulation of traditional herbal medicines in the European Union (EU) context and its effects in the United Kingdom (UK). Drawing on socio‐legal encounters with science and technology studies (STS), it explores how UK and EU stakeholders have struggled to regulate herbal products, and suggests that in order to tackle growing concerns about their safety, emerging EU legislation built on socio‐technical imaginaries of ‘tradition’. We argue that in doing so, the law also reshaped herbal medicines in the UK, rewriting their histories and potential futures by fostering new practices of herbal medicine making that sit precariously on the boundaries of what is lawful. Through an empirical exploration of the everyday landscape of herbal medicine in the UK, this article shows how the label of ‘tradition’ embedded in the new legislation transformed and unsettled the existing material practices and relationships that had underpinned herbal and traditional medicine.
Functional MRI in major depressive disorder: A review of findings, limitations, and future prospects
Authors: Pilmeyer Jesper , Huijbers Willem , Lamerichs Rolf , Jansen Jacobus F. A. , Breeuwer Marcel , Zinger Svitlana
Published: May 2022

Objective diagnosis and prognosis in major depressive disorder (MDD) remains a challenge due to the absence of biomarkers based on physiological parameters or medical tests. Numerous studies have been conducted to identify functional magnetic resonance imaging‐based biomarkers of depression that either objectively differentiate patients with depression from healthy subjects, predict personalized treatment outcome, or characterize biological subtypes of depression. While there are some findings of consistent functional biomarkers, there is still lack of robust data acquisition and analysis methodology. According to current findings, primarily, the anterior cingulate cortex, prefrontal cortex, and default mode network play a crucial role in MDD. Yet, there are also less consistent results and the involvement of other regions or networks remains ambiguous. We further discuss image acquisition, processing, and analysis limitations that might underlie these inconsistencies. Finally, the current review aims to address and discuss possible remedies and future opportunities that could improve the search for consistent functional imaging biomarkers of depression. Novel acquisition techniques, such as multiband and multiecho imaging, and neural network‐based cleaning approaches can enhance the signal quality in limbic and frontal regions. More comprehensive analyses, such as directed or dynamic functional features or the identification of biological depression subtypes, can improve objective diagnosis or treatment outcome prediction and mitigate the heterogeneity of MDD. Overall, these improvements in functional MRI imaging techniques, processing, and analysis could advance the search for biomarkers and ultimately aid patients with MDD and their treatment course.
“Doing the Right and the Good”: Thinking Against Mass Incarceration
Authors: Cohen Aryeh
Published: May 2022

In 1952, Rabbi Eliezer Yehudah Waldenberg (a member of the Supreme Rabbinical Court of Israel) and Rabbi Ben Zion Meir Chai Uziel (theRishon LeTziyonand Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel) addressed the question of incarceration in a Jewish state according to the halakhic tradition. A generation later, Rabbi Chaim David Halevi the Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv‐Yaffo) also addressed this question. Their approaches shed light on the way we should be thinking about incarceration in general, and the overwhelming problem of the current moment in the United States: mass incarceration.
Treasured relations: Towards partnership and the protection of Māori relationships with taonga plants in Aotearoa New Zealand
Authors: Jefferson David J.
Published: May 2022

For more than three decades, the system of intellectual property for plants in Aotearoa New Zealand has been the subject of controversy. Critics claim that the system fails to fulfil the promises of the nation's founding document, Te Tiriti o Waitangi|The Treaty of Waitangi (1840), which guarantees that Māori will retain tino rangatiratanga (absolute sovereignty) over their taonga (treasured and significant) plant species. The 2021 Plant Variety Rights Bill aims to address this concern while also complying with international obligations that New Zealand undertook when it joined the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans‐Pacific Partnership (2018). Thus, the Bill endeavours to uphold the government's commitments under Te Tiriti and to give effect to the 1991 Act of the UPOV Convention. These plural and sometimes divergent goals manifest a deeper tension that underlies how legal systems in Aotearoa New Zealand conceptualise human relationships with nonhuman beings and environments. While a Pākehā (Western/European) approach to intellectual property conceives of plants as alienable economic objects, tikanga Māori (customary protocols and values) understands that like humans, plants possess mauri (life force) and whakapapa (genealogy) that connect these beings with the environments they inhabit. This article explores how tensions between ontological, legal, and political systems imbue the Plant Variety Rights Bill. While the proposal represents a progressive reform, it may fall short of living up to its aspirations for authentic partnership between Māori and the Crown.
Biological control of problematic bacterial populations causing foaming in activated sludge wastewater treatment plants—phage therapy and beyond
Authors: Petrovski S. , Batinovic S. , Rose J.J.A. , Seviour R.J.
Published: May 2022

The production of a stable foam on the surfaces of reactors is a global operating problem in activated sludge plants. In many cases, these foams are stabilized by hydrophobic members of the Mycolata, a group of Actinobacteria whose outer membranes contain long-chain hydroxylated mycolic acids. There is currently no single strategy which works for all foams. One attractive approach is to use lytic bacteriophages specific for the foam stabilizing Mycolata population. Such phages are present in activated sludge mixed liquor and can be recovered readily from it. However, no phage has been recovered which lyses Gordonia amarae and Gordonia pseudoamarae, probably the most common foaming Mycolata members. Whole genome sequencing revealed that both G. amarae and G. pseudoamarae from plants around the world are particularly well endowed with genes encoding antiviral defence mechanisms. However, both these populations were lysed rapidly by a parasitic nanobacterium isolated from a plant in Australia. This organism, a member of the Saccharibacteria, was also effective against many other Mycolata, thus providing a potential agent for control of foams stabilized by them.
Genetic trade‐offs and unexpected life history traits shape local adaptation in Trifolium repens
Authors: Anderson Jill T.
Published: May 2022

Local adaptation has evolved in numerous taxa across the tree of life in response to divergent selection acting on populations that inhabit different environments (Briscoe Runquist et al., 2019; Hargreaves et al., 2019; Hereford, 2009). The genetic basis of local adaptation has intrigued researchers for decades. In their foundational reciprocal transplant study, Clausen and Hiesey (1960) evaluated the genetics of adaptation primarily using hybrid lines derived from crosses of low elevation and alpine Potentilla glandulosa (Rosaceae) ecotypes. Their work revealed that transgressive segregation can lead to a wider range of trait values than expressed by the parents, complex traits are often genetically correlated and evolve in tandem, and local adaptation is typically polygenic, that is, controlled by many loci of small effect (Clausen & Hiesey, 1960). Within the past 15 years, a burgeoning literature has investigated whether local adaptation evolves through genetic trade‐offs, such that local alleles at a QTL (quantitative trait locus) or candidate gene have a fitness advantage in their home environment, but suffer a fitness cost when transplanted into a contrasting habitat type (Mitchell‐Olds et al., 2007). Alternatively, local adaptation could arise through conditional neutrality, in which an allele native to one habitat type has elevated fitness in its home site relative to foreign alleles, but is not at a fitness disadvantage elsewhere. Conditional neutrality could maintain local adaptation if gene flow is spatially restricted (Hall et al., 2010). In a From the Cover article in this issue of Molecular Ecology, Wright et al. (2022) examined the genetic basis of local adaptation in white clover (Trifolium repens), discovering strong signatures of local adaptation, and revealing that both genetic trade‐offs and conditional neutrality contribute to local adaptation. The most surprising and intriguing result to emerge from this study was that variation in a key antiherbivore defence did not appear to influence contemporary patterns of local adaptation. Rather, divergence in life history strategies was crucial, with early reproduction favoured in the southern garden and delayed reproduction and longer lifespans emerging in the north. These findings highlight the challenges of identifying the multivariate targets of divergent selection in locally‐adapted systems, and reveal that not all traits that vary across populations contribute to adaptive differentiation. As studies continue to investigate local adaptation, experiments that manipulate environmental conditions and quantify the magnitude and direction of selection on traits will shed light on the processes that drive local adaptation.
Monstrosity in P. B. Shelley'sThe Triumph of Lifethrough Akkerman’sCitadel‐to‐Gardentrajectory
Authors: Datli Beigi Roohollah , Abbasi Pyeaam , Jannessari Ladani Zahra
Published: May 2022

Through its impossible and grotesque form, the monstrous expresses an original sense of the Dionysian philosophical critique of rationality. Challenging the epistemological authority of form, structure, and identity, the monster guides the mind toward a new understanding about the nature of things. Presenting Rousseau and the rider of the chariot of life as a deformed monster, Shelley'sThe Triumph of Lifechallenges the poet's previous identity as an alienated self and paves the way for a new understanding and a restoration of his communal self that provides the basis for the New Jerusalem as the opposite of the Tower of Babel, that is, the biblical prototype of the Citadel. Using the concept of monster and applying Abraham Akkerman's myths of the Garden and the Citadel, this article will attempt to explore the modality of the transition from the Tower of Babel (the Citadel) to the New Jerusalem (the Garden) in Shelley'sThe Triumph.
Treatment zone decentration promotes retinal reshaping in Chinese myopic children wearing orthokeratology lenses
Authors: Li Xue , Huang Yingying , Zhang Jiali , Ding Chenglu , Chen Yunyun , Chen Hao , Bao Jinhua
Published: May 2022

Purpose

To investigate whether the treatment zone (TZ) decentration in orthokeratology (OK) lenses affects retinal expansion in Chinese children with myopia.

Methods

Children aged 8 to 13 years (n = 30) were assessed over 13 months comprising 12 months of OK lens wear followed by discontinuation of lens wear for 1 month. Corneal topography was measured at 0, 1, 3, 6, 9, 12 and 13 months. TZ decentration of the OK lens was calculated, and subjects were subdivided into a small decentration group (group S) and a large decentration group (group L) based on the median value of the weighted average decentration (dave). Central axial length (AL) and peripheral eye lengths (PELs) at the central retina, as well as 10°, 20° and 30° nasally and temporally were measured at 0 and 13 months under cycloplegia. Second‐order polynomial (y = ax2 + bx + c) and linear fits (y = Kx + B) were applied to the peripheral relative eye length (PREL), and the coefficients ‘a’ and ‘K’ were used to describe the shape of the eye.

Results

Mean AL growth for one year was 0.28 ± 0.17 mm. In a multiple linear regression model, AL elongation was related to the baseline age (β = −0.41, p = 0.01) and the dave (β = −0.37, p = 0.03) (R2 = 0.34, p = 0.002). When compared with smaller dave (0.45 ± 0.15 mm), a larger dave (0.89 ± 0.17 mm) was associated with slower ocular growth (central: 0.20 ± 0.13 mm vs. 0.35 ± 0.17 mm, p = 0.009; 10° nasal: 0.26 ± 0.18 mm vs. 0.45 ± 0.21 mm, p = 0.02; 10° temporal: 0.17 ± 0.14 mm vs. 0.32 ± 0.19 mm, p = 0.02) and more oblate retina shape (‘a’: −0.13 ± 0.02 vs. −0.14 ± 0.02, p = 0.02; Knasal: 0.35 ± 0.11 vs. 0.39 ± 0.09, p = 0.02; Ktemporal: −0.42 ± 0.08 vs. −0.46 ± 0.08, p = 0.004).

Conclusions

Greater TZ decentration with the use of OK lenses was associated with slower axial growth and a more oblate retinal shape. TZ decentration caused local defocusing changes, which may inhibit myopic progression. These findings may have important implications for improving optical designs for myopia control.
Prediction of visual field defects from macular optical coherence tomography in glaucoma using cluster analysis
Authors: Tong Janelle , Alonso‐Caneiro David , Kalloniatis Michael , Zangerl Barbara
Published: May 2022

Purpose

To assess the accuracy of cluster analysis‐based models in predicting visual field (VF) defects from macular ganglion cell‐inner plexiform layer (GCIPL) measurements in glaucomatous and healthy cohorts.

Methods

GCIPL measurements were extracted from posterior pole optical coherence tomography (OCT), from locations corresponding to central VF test grids. Models incorporating cluster analysis methods and corrections for age and fovea to optic disc tilt were developed from 493 healthy participants, and 5th and 1st percentile limits of GCIPL thickness were derived. These limits were compared with pointwise 5th and 1st percentile limits by calculating sensitivities and specificities in an additional 40 normal and 37 glaucomatous participants, as well as applying receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses to assess the accuracy of predicting VF results from co‐localised GCIPL measurements.

Results

Clustered models demonstrated globally low sensitivity, but high specificity in the glaucoma cohort (0.28–0.53 and 0.77–0.91, respectively), and high specificity in the healthy cohort (0.91–0.98). Clustered models showed similar sensitivities and superior specificities compared with pointwise methods (0.41–0.65 and 0.71–0.98, respectively). There were significant differences in accuracy between clusters, with relatively poor accuracy at peripheral macular locations (p < 0.0001 for all comparisons).

Conclusions

Cluster analysis‐based models incorporating age correction and holistic consideration of fovea to optic disc tilt demonstrated superior performance in predicting VF results to pointwise methods in both glaucomatous and healthy eyes. However, relatively low sensitivity and poorer performance at the peripheral macula indicate that OCT in isolation may be insufficient to predict visual function across the macula accurately. With modifications to criteria for abnormality, the concepts suggested by the described normative models may guide prioritisation of VF assessment requirements, with the potential to limit excessive VF testing.
Gaze tracker parameters have little association with visual field metrics of intrasession frontloaded SITA‐Faster 24–2 visual field results
Authors: Phu Jack , Kalloniatis Michael
Published: May 2022

Purpose

To determine the usefulness of Humphrey Field Analyser (HFA) SITA‐Faster 24–2 gaze tracker outputs on interpreting intra‐visit visual field (VF) result pairs.

Methods

Analysis of 1380 right–left eye pairs and 1432 pairs of test 1‐test 2 intrasession VF results of patients seen within a university‐based glaucoma service was undertaken to understand gaze deviation distributions. Output gaze tracker results were aggregated into total ticks, sum of amplitudes and average amplitudes. Correlations between visual field indices (mean deviation [MD], “events” and overall hill of vision) and independent variables (age and test order) were performed using one eye from each subject.

Results

There was no association of test order (right–left, test 1‐test 2) with eye movements. There was a significant, but weak correlation between eye movements and age (r = 0.16). Correlations of eye movements with MD were driven by more severe MD values. There were no significant correlations between intrasession difference in eye movements and the change in MD, number of “events” and hill of vision, or in the root mean square of sensitivity and total deviation values. There was also no significant correlation between gaze tracker outputs and another commonly used “reliability” metric, false positive rate.

Conclusions

Eye movement parameters as currently reported by the HFA do not appear to be correlated with key sensitivity parameters when considering the repeatability of intrasession SITA‐Faster 24–2 VF results. Thus, current gaze tracker outputs do not appear to provide clinically meaningful information for interpretation of intra‐visit visual field results that cannot already be garnered using other strategies.
Learning retinoscopy: A journey through problem space
Authors: Hollis Jarrod , Allen Peter M , Heywood Jamie
Published: May 2022

Purpose

Retinoscopy is a skill that requires the integration of procedural skill and declarative knowledge. Whilst the actual technique is simple, retinoscopy is a complex skill to acquire and is one that students often find challenging. This study compared the strategies that novices, third‐year students and experts use when performing retinoscopy, with the aim of identifying the key stages of learning that may enlighten teaching practice.

Method

This study employed a protocol‐based approach in which the verbal protocols and cognitive strategies of novices, students and experts were recorded and then subjected to ‘problem space’ analysis.

Results

Clear differences existed when the retinoscopy of novices, students and experts was directly compared using a standardised simulated task. Experts were more accurate in performance and used defined strategies to reach the goal. The presence of these strategies significantly predicted the accuracy of the retinoscopy result.

Conclusion

This study highlights the importance of meta‐cognitive strategies and the need for an adequate theoretical foundation in skill acquisition. The underpinning knowledge provides a pedagogic tool that specifies activities which are beneficial to learning a clinical skill.
Uncommon output‐dependent paced QRS morphology transition during left bundle branch pacing
Authors: Iida Yoji , Makishima Nobuyuki
Published: May 2022

We report a patient who underwent left bundle branch pacing (LBBP) because of intermittent complete heart block. During unipolar pacing at a deep septal site, a transition in QRS morphology from nonselective to selective pacing (presence of a discrete component on the intracardiac electrogram) was observed, but this was accompanied by concomitant prolongation of the stimulus‐to‐left ventricular activation time (Stim‐LVAT) from 96 to 116 ms. However, with several additional turns of the lead, a transition from nonselective to selective LBBP with a short and constant Stim‐LVAT of 78 ms was achieved. Our case suggests that a paced QRS morphology transition from nonselective to selective pacing does not always indicate LBBP. Assessment of high‐output pacing is mandatory to achieve LBBP.
Using Kotter's 8 steps of change to tackle over‐fasting of children attending day surgery
Authors: Ong Su Ying , Walker Alyson
Published: May 2022

Over‐fasting before surgery can lead to dehydration, irritability, lethargy, nausea, hypoglycemia, tricky intravenous cannulation, and decreased patient satisfaction (Newton et al., Pediatr Anesth, 2017, 27, 793). We used “Kotter's 8 steps for change” as an approach to tackling the problem of over‐fasting in our day surgery unit (Kotter, Leading Change, Harvard Business School Press, 1996). Using a video of a patient's experience with overfasting, we created a sense of urgency and need for change (Step1: create urgency). We formed a multi‐disciplinary fasting improvement team (FIT) (Step2: form a powerful coalition) and conducted a retrospective data analysis to establish a baseline. We then studied the system thoroughly using Ishikawa charts, process mapping, bench‐marking, user surveys, and Pareto charts. Using these findings, we created a vision for our change (Step3: create a vision for change). Within 6 months, we aimed for 90% of patients to have a fluid fasting time of <2 h and for 90% of afternoon patients to have had breakfast. We communicated this vision to all staff involved in the day surgery (Step4: communicate the vision). Following this, we empowered them (Step5: empower action) by asking for their opinions for changes and let them take over various tasks without micromanagement. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Psychology of Change Framework described a focus on the human side of change, to increase the likelihood that improvement efforts will succeed by activating people's agency (Hilton & Anderson. IHI Psychology of Change Framework to Advance and Sustain Improvement, Institute for Healthcare Improvement, 2018). Our change ideas were divided into “short‐term wins,” “intermediate term goals,” and “longer term goals.” We focussed on creating short‐term wins (Step6: create quick wins) and celebrated successes along the way to create initial momentum. We did this in parallel with working on longer term changes. We continued to work on cementing these new ideas (Step7: build on the changes), so that transformation in the day surgery would persist before using the same system to spread the change to the rest of the hospital (Step8: making it stick).
TAZ Reduces UVA‐mediated Photoaging through Regulates Cell Proliferation in Skin Fibroblasts
Authors: Wang Mei , Guo Yingying , Wan Meiyin , Chen Zheng , Zhong Julia Li
Published: May 2022

The transcriptional co‐activator with PDZ‐binding motif (TAZ) is a significant transcription factor downstream of the Hippo pathway regulating organ size, tissue regeneration, cell proliferation and apoptosis. Here, we report on TAZ in response to photoaging mediated by repeated UVA irradiation in skin fibroblasts. Continuous UVA irradiation caused a decrease in TAZ and targeted CTGF mRNA and protein expression in fibroblasts, accompanied by reduced cell proliferation, DNA damage, and cell cycle arrest in G1 phase and S phase reduction. Furthermore, P16 and P21 expression levels were increased, whereas Lamin B1 and Lamin A/C expression were decreased as a result of repeated UVA exposure. We further demonstrated that TAZ reduction enables photoaging caused by continuously UVA‐irradiated fibroblasts. TAZ overexpression decreases G1 phase, augments the S phase and reduces P16 and P21 protein expression levels in fibroblasts. However, TAZ overexpressing cells exposed to chronic‐UVA radiation show induced G1 phase arrest, an S phase reduction, and elevated P16 and P21 protein levels in fibroblasts, compared with TAZ overexpression cells. These findings suggest a novel function of TAZ to reduce photoaging in fibroblasts. This regulation implies that TAZ might be a viable therapeutic target for photoaging or UVA‐related skin disorders.
The risk of algorithm transparency: How algorithm complexity drives the effects on the use of advice
Authors: Lehmann Cedric A. , Haubitz Christiane B. , Fügener Andreas , Thonemann Ulrich W.
Published: May 2022

Although algorithmic decision support is omnipresent in many managerial tasks, a lack of algorithm transparency is often stated as a barrier to successful human–machine collaboration. In this paper, we analyze the effects of algorithm transparency on the use of advice from algorithms with different degrees of complexity. We conduct a set of laboratory experiments in which participants receive identical advice from algorithms with different levels of transparency and complexity. Our results indicate that not the algorithm itself, but the individually perceived appropriateness of algorithmic complexity moderates the effects of transparency on the use of advice. We summarize this effect as a plateau curve: While perceiving an algorithm as too simple severely harms the use of its advice, the perception of an algorithm as being too complex has no significant effect. Our insights suggest that managers do not have to be concerned about revealing algorithms that are perceived to be appropriately complex or too complex to decision‐makers, even if the decision‐makers do not fully comprehend them. However, providing transparency on algorithms that are perceived to be simpler than appropriate could disappoint people's expectations and thereby reduce the use of their advice.
Transcriptional cascades in the regulation of 2‐AP biosynthesis under Zn supply in fragrant rice
Authors: Imran Muhammad , Liu Yanhua , Shafiq Sarfraz , Abbas Farhat , Ilahi Sara , Rehman Naveed , Ahmar Sunny , Fiaz Sajid , Baran Nurettin , Pan Shenggang , Mo Zhaowen , Tang Xiangru
Published: May 2022

Transcription factors (TFs) regulate gene expression to control certain genetic programs, such as growth and development, phytohormone regulation, and environmental stresses. 2‐acetyl‐1‐pyrroline (2‐AP) is the key element involved in aroma biosynthesis pathway, and the application of micronutrients can increase the 2‐AP levels. However, little is known about the micronutrient‐induced TFs involved in 2‐AP biosynthesis. Here, we identify a number of TF families in two fragrant rice varieties, “Meixiangzhan‐2” (M) and “Xiangyaxiangzhan” (X), in response to Zinc (Zn) application through transcriptomic analysis. A total of ~678 TFs were identified and grouped into 26 TF families, each of which was found to be involved in numerous signaling pathways. The WRKY TF family was found to be the most abundant, followed by bHLH and MYB. Furthermore, members of the WRKY, bHLH, MYB, ERF, HSF, MADS‐box, NFY, and AP2 TF families were significantly upregulated and may be involved in the transcriptional regulation of aroma biosynthesis. In brief, this study enhances our understanding of the molecular mechanism of 2‐AP biosynthesis and highlights the key TFs potentially involved in the production of aroma in fragrant rice.
Examining the impact of multilevel upper airway surgery on the obstructive sleep apnoea endotypes and their utility in predicting surgical outcomes
Authors: Wong Ai‐Ming , Landry Shane A. , Joosten Simon A. , Thomson Luke D. J. , Turton Anthony , Stonehouse Jeremy , Mansfield Darren R. , Burgess Glen , Hays Andrew , Sands Scott A. , Andara Christopher , Beatty Caroline J. , Hamilton Garun S. , Edwards Bradley A.
Published: May 2022

Background and objective

Upper airway surgery for obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is an alternative treatment for patients who are intolerant of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). However, upper airway surgery has variable treatment efficacy with no reliable predictors of response. While we now know that there are several endotypes contributing to OSA (i.e., upper airway collapsibility, airway muscle response/compensation, respiratory arousal threshold and loop gain), no study to date has examined: (i) how upper airway surgery affects all four OSA endotypes, (ii) whether knowledge of baseline OSA endotypes predicts response to surgery and (iii) whether there are any differences when OSA endotypes are measured using the CPAP dial‐down or clinical polysomnographic (PSG) methods.

Methods

We prospectively studied 23 OSA patients before and ≥3 months after multilevel upper airway surgery. Participants underwent clinical and research PSG to measure OSA severity (apnoea–hypopnoea index [AHI]) and endotypes (measured in supine non‐rapid eye movement [NREM]). Values are presented as mean ± SD or median (interquartile range).

Results

Surgery reduced the AHITotal (38.7 [23.4 to 79.2] vs. 22.0 [13.3 to 53.5] events/h; p = 0.009). There were no significant changes in OSA endotypes, however, large but variable improvements in collapsibility were observed (CPAP dial‐down method: ∆1.9 ± 4.9 L/min, p = 0.09, n = 21; PSG method: ∆3.4 [−2.8 to 49.0]%Veupnoea, p = 0.06, n = 20). Improvement in collapsibility strongly correlated with improvement in AHI (%∆AHISupineNREM vs. ∆collapsibility: p < 0.005; R2 = 0.46–0.48). None of the baseline OSA endotypes predicted response to surgery.

Conclusion

Surgery unpredictably alters upper airway collapsibility but does not alter the non‐anatomical endotypes. There are no baseline predictors of response to surgery.
Rigorous justification of the Whitham modulation equations for equations of Whitham type
Authors: Clarke William A. , Marangell Robert , Perkins Wesley R.
Published: May 2022

We prove that the modulational instability criterion of the formal Whitham modulation theory agrees with the spectral stability of long‐wavelength perturbations of periodic traveling wave solutions to the generalized Whitham equation. We use the standard WKB procedure to derive a quasilinear system of three Whitham modulation equations, written in terms of the mass, momentum, and wave number of a periodic traveling wave solution. We use the same quantities as parameters in a rigorous spectral perturbation of the linearized operator, which allows us to track the bifurcation of the zero eigenvalue as the Floquet parameter varies. We show that the hyperbolicity of the Whitham system is a necessary condition for the existence of purely imaginary eigenvalues in the linearized system, and hence also a prerequisite for modulational stability of the underlying wave. Since the generalized Whitham equation has a Hamiltonian structure, we conclude that strict hyperbolicity is a sufficient condition for modulational stability.
The novel HLA‐B*07:461 allele and confirmation of the HLA‐C*15:193 allele in individuals from Eastern India
Authors: Rajak Jyoti , Tambe Manisha , Phuntsok Tenzin , Z. D'Silva Selma , Singh Meenakshi
Published: May 2022

A novel HLA‐B*07:461 and an extended HLA‐C*15:193 allele were detected during routine HLA typing process.
Discovery of the HLA‐C*08:99 allele in a Chinese individual
Authors: Gao Su‐Qing , Zhong Yan‐Ping , Pen Long , Ye Xian‐Lin
Published: May 2022

HLA‐C*08:99 differs by one non‐synonymous nucleotide from C*08:01:01 in exon 5, codon 288 GTT>ATT.
Economic and clinical burden associated with respiratory viral infections after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant in the United States
Authors: Ison Michael G. , Marty Francisco M. , Chao Nelson , Moon Seung Hyun , Zhang Zhiji , Chandak Aastha
Published: May 2022

Background

Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant (allo‐HCT) recipients are at increased risk for respiratory viral infections (RVIs), which invoke substantial morbidity and mortality. Limited effective antiviral options and drug resistance often hamper successful RVI treatment, creating additional burden for patients and the health care system.

Methods

Using an open‐source health care claims database, we examined differences in clinical outcomes, health resource utilization, and total reimbursements during the 1‐year period following allo‐HCT in patients with and without any RVI infection (respiratory syncytial virus, influenza, parainfluenza virus, and human metapneumovirus). RVIs were diagnosed at any time ≤1 year after allo‐HCT and identified by International Classification of Disease codes. Analyses were stratified by the presence or absence of acute or chronic graft‐versus‐host disease (GVHD).

Results

The study included 13 363 allo‐HCT patients, 1368 (10.2%) of whom had a diagnostic code for any RVI. A higher proportion of patients with any RVI had pneumonia ≤1 year after allo‐HCT compared to patients without any RVI, with or without GVHD. Patients with any RVI had higher all‐cause mortality risk, longer length of post‐allo‐HCT hospital stay, higher readmission rate, and higher number of hospital days after allo‐HCT compared to patients without the infection (all p < .05). Total unadjusted median reimbursements were higher for those with any RVI and each specific RVI assessed than those without the specific infection, with or without GVHD.

Conclusion

Allo‐HCT patients with RVIs had significantly worse clinical outcomes and increased health resource utilization and reimbursements during the year following allo‐HCT, with or without GVHD.

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Comparison of short‐course antibiotic therapy of 6 or less days with a longer treatment in patients with cholangitis after liver transplantation
Authors: Ferstl Philip G. , Queck Alexander , Bremer Katharina , Filmann Natalie , Weiler Nina , Welker Martin‐W. , Waidmann Oliver , Knabe Mate , Bechstein Wolf O. , Hogardt Michael , Kempf Volkhard A. J. , Zeuzem Stefan , Trebicka Jonel , Friedrich‐Rust Mireen , Walter Dirk
Published: May 2022

Objectives

Stenosis of the biliary anastomosis predisposes liver graft recipients to bacterial cholangitis. Antibiotic therapy (AT) is performed according to individual clinical judgment, but duration of AT remains unclear.

Methods

All liver graft recipients with acute cholangitis according to the Tokyo criteria grade 1 and 2 after endoscopic retrograde cholangiography (ERC) were included. Outcome of patients treated with short AT (<7 days) was compared to long AT (>6 days). Recurrent cholangitis (RC) within 28 days was the primary end point.

Results

In total, 30 patients were included with a median of 313 (range 34–9849) days after liver transplantation until first proven cholangitis. Among 62 cases in total, 51/62 (82%) were graded as Tokyo‐1 and 11/62 (18%) as Tokyo‐2. Overall median duration of AT was 6 days (1–14) with 36 cases (58%) receiving short AT and 26 (42%) receiving long AT. RC was observed in 10 (16%) cases, without significant difference in occurrence of RC in short versus long AT cases. CRP and bilirubin were significantly higher in patients with long AT, while low serum albumin and low platelets were associated with risk of RC.

Conclusion

A shorter antibiotic course than 7 days shows good results in selected, ERC‐treated patients for post‐transplantation biliary strictures.

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Prevalence and characteristics of ocular diseases in Sphynx cats: A retrospective assessment (2012–2021) and comparison withnon‐Sphynxcats
Authors: Sarfaty Havi , Ezra‐Elia Raaya , Sebbag Lionel
Published: May 2022

Purpose

To describe the prevalence of ocular diseases in Sphynx cats, and compare disease characteristics with other feline breeds.

Methods

Medical records of Sphynx cats presented to an ophthalmology referral center between 1/2012 and 4/2021 were examined. Cats of other breeds examined during the same period served as controls.

Results

One hundred ten Sphynx cats were examined during the study period, diagnosed with corneal sequestrum (n = 42 cats), lower eyelid entropion (n = 25), presumed herpetic keratoconjunctivitis (n = 19), conjunctivitis (n = 7), corneal ulcers (n = 6), nasolacrimal duct atresia/obstruction (n = 6), corneal dystrophy (n = 3), eosinophilic keratitis (n = 2), uveitis (n = 2), non‐ulcerative keratitis (n = 1), and cataract (n = 1). Corneal sequestrum was significantly more common in Sphynx versus non‐Sphynx cats (odds ratio = 8.0, 95% CI = 5.3–12.2,p < .001), and age of diagnosis was significantly younger in Sphynx cats (2.0 ± 1.5 years vs. 5.9 ± 4.0 years,p < .001). Corneal sequestrum recurrence was noted in 19.4% Sphynx eyes and 6.4% non‐Sphynx eyes undergoing surgery (p = .015). Lower eyelid entropion—most often bilateral (80%)—was significantly more common in Sphynx versus non‐Sphynx cats (odds ratio = 4.1, 95% CI = 2.3–7.1,p < .001), and age of diagnosis was significantly younger in Sphynx cats (0.9 ± 1.4 years vs. 3.5 ± 3.3 years,p < .005).

Conclusions

Corneal sequestrum and entropion were overrepresented and diagnosed at an earlier age in Sphynx cats when compared with the general feline population. Given the high prevalence, early age of onset, and relatively high recurrence of corneal sequestrum in Sphynx cats, further studies are warranted to better understand etiopathogenesis and preferred therapies.