bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Adsorption, viscosity and thermal behaviour of nanosized proteins with different internal stability immobilised on the surface of mesoporous activated biocarbon obtained from the horsetail herb precursor
Authors: Wiśniewska Małgorzata , Sternik Dariusz , Nowicki Piotr , Chibowski Stanisław , Medykowska Magdalena , Gęca Marlena , Szewczuk-Karpisz Katarzyna
Published: March 2021

The thermal analysis methods were used for the description of the adsorption behaviour of selected proteins differing in internal stability (ovalbumin (OVA) and lysozyme (LSZ)). These proteins were immobilised on the surface of activated biocarbon obtained from the horsetail herb precursor. The values of the hydrodynamic radius of both biopolymer macromolecules in the solution were determined by the use of the viscosimetry method. This parameter is important for the specification of the possibility of proteins nano-molecules to penetrate the nano-pores of the adsorbent which leads to the increase of biopolymers adsorption. Such behaviour is observed at the pH value which is very close to the pI value of specific biopolymer (the greatest adsorption of proteins on the activated carbon surface occurs- at pH 5 for OVA being 323 mg/g, as well as at pH 11 for LSZ which is 464 mg/g). Under such conditions, the proteins macromolecules assume conformations characterized by the lowest values of hydrodynamic radius, i.e. 2.76 nm for OVA and 1.07 nm for LSZ. The data obtained from the analysis of gaseous products of thermal decomposition of the samples indicated the types of biocarbon surface groups as well as the enabled specification of the protein macromolecules adsorption mechanism.
Prenatal Diagnosis of Fetal Immature Oropharyngeal Teratoma in the First Trimester: A Case Report
Authors: Banu Shaheen , Mohamad Hafiz , Dubey Aditi , Elango Nithya , Vikraman Seneesh Kumar
Published: March 2021

Epignathus or oro-pharyngeal teratoma is an extremely rare, benign congenital tumor, occurring in 1 in 35,000–200,000 live births. They usually arise from the sphenoid region of the hard palate, posterior nasopharynx, upper lip and nose, soft palate, tonsil or tongue. The typical appearance is that of a solid irregular mass containing both cystic and solid elements, protruding from the oral cavity. Their occurrence in the first trimester is extremely rare. We report a case of fetal immature orofacial teratoma detected in the first trimester and confirmed with histopathological diagnosis. The index pregnancy presented at 13 1/7 weeks of gestation. Ultrasound examination demonstrated an irregular, mixed echogenic mass with solid and cystic components protruding from the fetal mouth, between the tongue and the palate. Following extensive counselling, the couple opted for termination of the pregnancy. Histopathological examination confirmed the tumor to be an immature oral teratoma.
Living Well with Kidney Disease by patient and care-partner empowerment: Kidney Health for Everyone Everywhere
Authors:   for the World Kidney Day Steering Committee, Kalantar-Zadeh Kamyar , Li Philip Kam-Tao , Tantisattamo Ekamol , Kumaraswami Latha , Liakopoulos Vassilios , Lui Siu-Fai , Ulasi Ifeoma , Andreoli Sharon , Balducci Alessandro , Dupuis Sophie , Harris Tess , Hradsky Anne , Knight Richard , Kumar Sajay , Ng Maggie , Poidevin Alice , Saadi Gamal , Tong Allison
Published: March 2021

Living with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is associated with hardships for patients and their care-partners. Empowering patients and their care-partners, including family members or friends involved in their care, may help minimize the burden and consequences of CKD-related symptoms to enable life participation. There is a need to broaden the focus on living well with kidney disease and re-engagement in life, including an emphasis on patients being in control. The World Kidney Day (WKD) Joint Steering Committee has declared 2021 the year of “Living Well with Kidney Disease” in an effort to increase education and awareness on the important goal of patient empowerment and life participation. This calls for the development and implementation of validated patient-reported outcome measures to assess and address areas of life participation in routine care. It could be supported by regulatory agencies as a metric for quality care or to support labeling claims for medicines and devices. Funding agencies could establish targeted calls for research that address the priorities of patients. Patients with kidney disease and their care-partners should feel supported to live well through concerted efforts by kidney care communities including during pandemics. In the overall wellness program for kidney disease patients, the need for prevention should be reiterated. Early detection with a prolonged course of wellness despite kidney disease, after effective secondary and tertiary prevention programs, should be promoted. WKD 2021 continues to call for increased awareness of the importance of preventive measures throughout populations, professionals, and policy makers, applicable to both developed and developing countries.

Graphic abstract
Risk assessment on landslides focused on the role of the water: examples from model regions (Rio de Janeiro State and Hong Kong)
Authors: Leal Sousa Rita , Vargas Eurípedes , Chaminé Helder I. , Ribeiro e Sousa Luis , Karam Karim
Published: March 2021

Landslides are one of the most vital natural hazards on Earth. To satisfy the demand for protection against landslides, it is necessary to systematically assess and manage landslide hazards and risk. Landslide mechanisms related to hydrology are analyzed with focus in the major risks, and formal risk assessment methodologies are presented in the paper. Issues related to risk assessment are discussed and different steps are described. The management of accidents in slopes is discussed, with particular emphasis to Hong Kong and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. Hong Kong is a region of China with a large population density and very mountainous. There is a history of tragic accidents in the slopes. The territory has a tradition of a high standard in the practice of slope engineering. The establishment of an efficient security system developed by Geotechnical Engineering Office was established in the territory. Also, specific aspects of slope instability in the state of Rio de Janeiro are discussed, and in Rio de Janeiro city, with focus on cases which occurred in the mountainous region of the State. The mega-disaster that occurred in 2011, with high number of deaths and significant economic losses, is studied with incidence in individual landslides.
Forest fire risk mapping using analytical hierarchy process (AHP) and earth observation datasets: a case study in the mountainous terrain of Northeast India
Authors: Lamat Ridalin , Kumar Mukesh , Kundu Arnab , Lal Deepak
Published: March 2021

This study presents a geospatial approach in conjunction with a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) tool for mapping forest fire risk zones in the district of Ri-Bhoi, Meghalaya, India which is very rich in biodiversity. Analytical hierarchy process (AHP)-based pair-wise comparison matrix was constructed to compare the selected parameters against each other based on their impact/influence (equal, moderate, strong, very strong, and extremely strong) on a forest fire. The final output delineated fire risk zones in the study area in four categories that include very high-risk, high-risk, moderate-risk, and low-risk zones. The delineated fire risk zones were found to be in close agreement with actual fire points obtained from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) fire data for the study area. Results indicated that Ri-Bhoi’s 804.31 sq. km. (32.86%) the area was under ‘very high’ fire susceptibility. This was followed by 583.10 sq. km. (23.82%), 670.47 sq. km. (27.39%), and 390.12 sq. km. (15.93%) the area under high, moderate, and low fire risk categories, respectively. These results can be used effectively to plan fire control measures in advance and the methodology suggested in this study can be adopted in other areas too for delineating potential fire risk zones.
Integration of multivariate statistics and water quality indices to evaluate groundwater quality and its suitability in middle Gangetic floodplain, Bihar
Authors: Bhatt Ajay Govind , Kumar Anand , Trivedi Priya Ranjan
Published: March 2021

This study is conducted along the middle Gangetic floodplain, to investigate the hydrogeochemical characteristics and suitability of groundwater for irrigation and human consumptions. Altogether 65 groundwater samples were collected and analyzed for major ions and water quality parameters. pH of all the samples except 1 is found > 7, which suggests alkaline aquifer condition. Groundwater samples predominately belong to Ca-Mg-HCO3 water type followed by Na-HCO3, Mg-HCO3 and Mg-SO4 water types. Hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) combines groundwater into two distinct groups, Group 1 is found as less mineralized as the average EC value is found 625.3 μS/cm, while it is found 1375 μS/cm for Group 2. The results of correlation analysis and PCA suggest influence of natural and anthropogenic activities on groundwater. PCA extracts four major PCs which describes 71.7% of total variance. PC1 indicates influence of both lithogenic and anthropogenic activities on groundwater quality. PC2 and PC3 infer natural factors, and PC4 suggests influence of anthropogenic activities on groundwater. Exceeding concentration of F−, Fe and Mn above WHO guidelines are found as major public health concern. WQI of all except 4 groundwater samples suggests excellent to good water quality; however, 23% of the samples are not suitable based on WPI values. Irrigation indices suggest that groundwater is mostly suitable for irrigation; however, 10.7%, 12.3% and 3% samples for RSBC, MAR and KR, respectively, exceed the recommended limits and are unsuitable for irrigation. A proper management strategy and quality assurance is recommended before groundwater consumption and use in the study area.
Experimental study on heat transfer of an engine radiator with TiO2/EG-water nano-coolant
Authors: Zubair Mohd Muzammil , Seraj Md. , Faizan Mohd. , Anas Mohd , Yahya Syed Mohd.
Published: March 2021

Nanofluid as a transport medium displays a great potential in engineering applications involving heat transfer. In this paper, the execution of water and ethylene glycol-based TiO2 nanofluid as a radiator coolant is resolved experimentally. The convective heat transfer coefficient of TiO2/EG-Water nanocoolant has been estimated and contrasted with the information acquired experimentally. Nanocoolant were set up by taking 25% ethylene glycol and 75% water with low volume concentration of TiO2 nanoparticles. All the experiments were led for the distinctive volume flow rates in the range going from 30 to 180 L/h (LPH). The nanocoolant made to flow through curved radiator tubes in every experiment, so that it can exchange heat effectively. Result shows that increasing the volume flow rate of nanocoolant flowing in the radiator tubes, increases the heat transfer as well as the convective heat transfer coefficient of nanocooant. Maximum heat transfer enhancement of 29.5% was recorded for nanocoolant with 0.03% nanoparticle concentration as compared to water at 150 LPH. Apart from this nanoparticle concentration into the base fluid, no further enhancement in heat transfer has been observed at any volume flow rate.
Cahn-Hilliard Navier-Stokes simulations for marine free-surface flows
Authors: Kühl Niklas , Hinze Michael , Rung Thomas
Published: March 2021

The paper is devoted to the simulation of maritime two-phase flows of air and water. Emphasis is put on an extension of the classical Volume-of-Fluid (VoF) method by a diffusive contribution derived from a Cahn-Hilliard (CH) model and its benefits for simulating immiscible, incompressible two-phase flows. Such flows are predominantly simulated with implicit VoF schemes, which mostly employ heuristic downwind-biased approximations for the concentration transport to mimic a sharp interface. This strategy introduces a severe time step restriction and requires pseudo time-stepping of steady flows. Our overall goal is a sound description of the free-surface region that alleviates artificial time-step restrictions, supports an efficient and robust upwind-based approximation framework, and inherently includes surface tension effects when needed. The Cahn-Hilliard Navier-Stokes (CH-NS) system is verified for an analytical Couette-flow example and the bubble formation under the influence of surface tension forces. 2D validation examples are concerned with laminar standing waves reaching from gravity to capillary scale as well as a submerged hydrofoil flow. The final application refers to the 3D flow around an experimentally investigated container vessel at fixed floatation for Re = 1.4 × 107 and Fn = 0.26. Results are compared with data obtained from VoF approaches, supplemented by analytical solutions and measurements. The study indicates the superior efficiency, resharpening capability, and wider predictive realm of the CH-based extension for free-surface flows with a confined spatial range of interface Courant numbers.
Coupled Rapid Erosion and Foreland Sedimentation Control Orogenic Wedge Kinematics in the Himalayan Thrust Belt of Central Nepal
Authors: DeCelles P. G. , Carrapa B.
Published: March 2021

Spatial and temporal coincidence among rapid Pliocene‐Holocene bedrock exhumation, development of a topographic bight, abundant monsoonal precipitation, accumulation of anomalously thick proximal foreland basin deposits, and development of an opposite‐polarity salient‐reentrant couple on the two most frontal major thrust faults in the Himalayan orogenic wedge of central Nepal provide a basis for a model that links these diverse phenomena and could be operating in other parts of the frontal Himalaya. Rapid bedrock erosion is documented by a concentration of young (<5 Ma) low‐temperature thermochronologic ages in the Narayani River catchment basin. Where the river exits the Lesser Himalayan Zone, the Main Boundary thrust has a 15‐km‐amplitude reentrant. Directly south of the reentrant lies the ∼50 km wide Chitwan wedge‐top basin, which is confined by a large salient on the Main Frontal thrust. Rapid erosion and sediment flux out of the Narayani catchment basin, possibly due to anomalously intense monsoonal precipitation in this topographically depressed region of central Nepal, causes greater flexural subsidence and surface aggradation in the foreland, both of which increase initial wedge taper and render this region more susceptible to anomalous forward propagation of the thrust front. Analysis of the modern and post‐early Miocene taper history of the thrust belt suggests that rapid erosion hindered forward propagation of the contemporaneous Main Boundary thrust, but simultaneously produced conditions in the foreland that eventually elevated initial taper to a critical/supercritical value promoting forelandward propagation of the Main Frontal thrust. This analysis has implications for large damaging earthquakes in the Himalaya.
Mixed-metal hybrid ultramicroporous material (HUM) precursor to graphene-supported tetrataenite as a highly active and durable NPG catalyst for the OER
Authors: Haikal Rana R. , Kumar Amrit , O'Nolan Daniel , Kumar Naveen , Karakalos Stavros G. , Hassanien Abdou , Zaworotko Michael J. , Alkordi Mohamed H.
Published: March 2021

A one-pot pathway to construct the highly efficient water splitting catalyst NiFe alloy (tetrataenite), supported on graphene to alleviate its low electrical conductivity.
Recent advances in the application of noble metal nanoparticles in colorimetric sensors for lead ions
Authors: Singh Harpreet , Bamrah Amy , Bhardwaj Sanjeev K. , Deep Akash , Khatri Madhu , Brown Richard J. C. , Bhardwaj Neha , Kim Ki-Hyun
Published: March 2021

Recent developments in nanotechnology and engineering have produced a plethora of nanomaterials with amazing physical/chemical properties and enhanced sensing potential for various heavy metals in the environment.
A first-principles study on double-sided decorated boron–nitrogen co-doped graphene by vanadium for enhanced low-temperature reversible hydrogen storage
Authors: Nachimuthu Santhanamoorthi , He Liang , Cheng Hsiang-Jung , Tiono Reinard Dona , Jiang Jyh-Chiang
Published: March 2021

Boron–nitrogen co-doped graphene (BNDG) sheets are decorated with Ti and V metal atoms, and their structural and thermal stability towards hydrogen adsorption is investigated using first principles calculations.
The Difficult Neck Patient—Practical Management: A Personal Approach
Authors: Hutson Kristian Haynes , D'Souza Alwyn Ray
Published: March 2021

With increasing global trends in aesthetic surgery, the facial plastic surgeon will undoubtedly encounter a variety of patient types including those with more unfavorable underlying anatomy. The “difficult” neck represents a cohort of individuals that exhibit both anatomical and patient-related factors that may limit overall surgical improvement. Anatomical issues that contribute to the difficult neck include excessive fat (“heavy” neck), ptosis of deep structures, obtuse cervicomental angle, and abnormalities of the underlying skeletal framework, such as a low set hyoid and inadequate chin projection. It is important that these factors are recognized and highlighted preoperatively, and that surgery is tailored appropriately to the individual. Although satisfactory results can be achieved, these may be ultimately limited, and it is important that patients understand this. We will present a review of current thinking alongside our own practice in the identification and management of these “difficult neck” patients.
Translating strangers
Authors: Bielsa Esperança
Published: March 2021

It has been argued that traditional notions of
the stranger, as put forward in classical accounts by Simmel, Schütz
and others, need to be re-examined in the light of widespread social
developments that challenge the divisions between the self and the
other that were once taken for granted. This chapter addresses the
significance of the cosmopolitan stranger, whose skills are
especially important under conditions of generalised societal
strangeness. A consideration of the interrelated notions of distance
and strangeness in the social experience of the stranger is offered
and the specific features of the cosmopolitan stranger examined.
After that, the cases of two cosmopolitan strangers (“dog whisperer”
Cesar Millan and 9/11 impostor survivor Tania Head) who have played
a prominent social role in societies that were not initially their
own are discussed. A concluding section returns to the notions of
distance and strangeness in order to generalise from these
particular cases by relating them to different strategies for
translating the foreign.
Tom, Dick and Harry as well as Fido and Puss in boots are
translators
Authors: Marais Kobus
Published: March 2021

As a field, translation studies arose from the
practice of interlingual, mostly written translation. Though not an
invalid point of departure, this assumption, which had not really
been investigated critically despite lip service to Jakobson’s
categories of intralinguistic, interlinguistic and intersemiotic
translation, has meant that translation studies has limited its
field of interest to, mainly, written, literary, professional
translation as instantiated by Western practices. This linguistic
bias has an anthropocentric bias as its logical implication. The
limited conceptualization of translation has become untenable for a
number of reasons, not least of which is the growth in multimodal
communication made possible by information-technology developments
as well as the growth in posthumanist thinking. Lastly, semiotic
conceptualizations of translation clearly pose theoretical
challenges to a translation studies that is conceptualized on the
basis of interlinguistic translation only or that is based on a
linguicentric and thus anthropocentric bias.

This chapter investigates the Peircean definition
of meaning as “the translation of a sign into another system of
signs” (Peirce
1931–1966: 4.127), in particular the ways in which this kind
of thinking has evolved in the modern field of biosemiotics. If all
meaning creation is, per definition, translation, it means that
every living organism is a translator. It further means that one
needs to consider translational actions by animals and plants at
both intraspecific and interspecific levels. The chapter addresses
the asymmetry both in the relationships between human and non-human
animals and in the attention that translation studies pays to this
power dynamic.
Child language brokering in Swedish welfare institutions
Authors: Gustafsson Kristina
Published: March 2021

This chapter investigates the asymmetries
associated to child language brokering in Swedish welfare
institutions. Group interviews with (a) people who have experiences
of language brokering as children and (b) public service
professionals who have used children as brokers in encounters with
non-Swedish speaking service users are analyzed. Results show that
both groups consider that resorting to child language brokering is
wrong but at the same time they reproduce this social practice and
see benefits in it. This ambiguity leads interviewees to lay
responsibility on several levels: the parents who place unreasonable
demands on their children; the public service professionals who
allow children to take on responsibility in precarious situations,
and society at large that may be accomplice to structural
discrimination of non-Swedish speaking service users. The
responsibilities identified by interviewees in their narratives are
critically discussed in relation to the concept of
“structural complicity” showing how power
relations and social structures create situations where individuals
act with complicity even when they do something that they consider
to be a good solution for an imperative problem and for which they
do not see any alternatives.
Translating values
Authors: Monzó-Nebot Esther
Published: March 2021

In June 2018, the Aquarius, a search and rescue
vessel operating in the Mediterranean Sea, rescued 630 migrants at
sea and asked to dock at the nearest port. First Italy and then
Malta refused and the dramatic situation of those on board made the
news and highlighted the increasingly restrictive nature of European
migration policies. Progressive parties in the Valencian regional
and Spanish central governments provided the conditions to offer a
safe berth and to implement the regional government’s plan to assist
refugees in a crisis situation. This chapter will offer an overview
of the plan, focusing on its linguistic component, and analyze how
translation and interpreting were approached by the policymakers
responsible for its inception and development. A distance between
the values protected by translation and interpreting professional
codes of practice and those that policymakers desire to advance in
crisis situations will be evinced as revolving around the role of
translation and interpreting in mediating asymmetries.
Against the asymmetry of the post-Francoist canon
Authors: Godayol Pilar
Published: March 2021

The emergence of women’s social and cultural
movements in Spain after the death of Francisco Franco led to the
appearance of remarkable feminist publication series and publishing
houses in a search for foreign ideological mothers. In Barcelona,
three such feminist projects were founded in 1977: Colección
Feminismo (1977–1979), of Ediciones de Feminismo, La Educación
Sentimental (1977–1984), of Anagrama, and the hybrid and
multipurpose cultural and political café-bar LaSal, the embryo of
LaSal, Edicions de les Dones (1978–1990), the first feminist press
in Spain. In this chapter three feminist imprints of the Transition
period will be presented. All of them fought to combat the chronic
lack of ideological mothers that the Francoist regime had imposed.
Aimed at restoring the historical memory of women and creating an
identity debate, the importation of foreign feminist literature was
crucial for the social transformations of the time. Translation
became one of the elements of social change, a political act in
trying to achieve canonical equality.
(Re)locating translation within asymmetrical power
dynamics
Authors: Martín Ruano M. Rosario
Published: March 2021

This article proposes a critical approach to any
instance of translation which (1) contributes to the (re)thinking of
translation beyond the idea of bridge-building; (2) is based on a
conceptualisation of culture(s) and identity(ies) in terms of
translation and in inevitably political terms; and (3) may be useful
for exploring alternative, resistant translation policies and
practices inspired by an ideal of social conviviality. It will be
argued that this is especially necessary in our superdiverse
societies and in the contemporary era, where the potentialities of
translation, both as a metaphor and as a practice, for social
cohesion can be rethought and exploited. Translation perceived and
practised as a dialogic and empowering tool will be posited as a
powerful antidote to the perverse effects of the model of
globalisation which is accepted as dominant in the current digital
paradigm.
Phylogenetic Systematics of the Millipede Family Xystodesmidae
Authors: Means Jackson C , Hennen Derek A , Tanabe Tsutomu , Marek Paul E
Published: March 2021

The millipede family Xystodesmidae includes 486 species distributed primarily in temperate deciduous forests in North America and East Asia. Species diversity of the family is greatest in the Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States, with 188 species. Although the group includes notable taxa such as those that are bioluminescent and others that display Müllerian mimicry, producing up to 600 mg of cyanide, basic alpha-taxonomy of the group is woefully incomplete and more than 50 species remain undescribed in the Appalachian Mountains alone. In order to establish a robust phylogenetic foundation for addressing compelling evolutionary questions and describing species diversity, we assembled the largest species phylogeny (in terms of species sampling) to date in the Diplopoda. We sampled 49 genera (out of 57) and 247 of the species in the family Xystodesmidae, recollecting fresh material from historical type localities and discovering new species in unexplored regions. Here, we present a phylogeny of the family using six genes (four mitochondrial and two nuclear) and include pivotal taxa omitted from previous studies including Nannaria, Erdelyia, taxa from East Asia, and 10 new species. We show that 6 of the 11 tribes are monophyletic, and that the family is paraphyletic with respect to the Euryuridae and Eurymerodesmidae. Prior supraspecific classification is in part inconsistent with the phylogeny and convergent evolution has caused artificial genera to be proposed. Subspecific classification is likewise incongruent with phylogeny and subspecies are consistently not sister to conspecifics. The phylogeny is used as a basis to update the classification of the family, diagnose monophyletic groups, and to inform species hypotheses.
Evaluating the utility of synthetic COVID-19 case data
Authors: El Emam Khaled , Mosquera Lucy , Jonker Elizabeth , Sood Harpreet
Published: March 2021

Background

Concerns about patient privacy have limited access to COVID-19 datasets. Data synthesis is one approach for making such data broadly available to the research community in a privacy protective manner.

Objectives

Evaluate the utility of synthetic data by comparing analysis results between real and synthetic data.

Methods

A gradient boosted classification tree was built to predict death using Ontario’s 90 514 COVID-19 case records linked with community comorbidity, demographic, and socioeconomic characteristics. Model accuracy and relationships were evaluated, as well as privacy risks. The same model was developed on a synthesized dataset and compared to one from the original data.

Results

The AUROC and AUPRC for the real data model were 0.945 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.941–0.948] and 0.34 (95% CI, 0.313–0.368), respectively. The synthetic data model had AUROC and AUPRC of 0.94 (95% CI, 0.936–0.944) and 0.313 (95% CI, 0.286–0.342) with confidence interval overlap of 45.05% and 52.02% when compared with the real data. The most important predictors of death for the real and synthetic models were in descending order: age, days since January 1, 2020, type of exposure, and gender. The functional relationships were similar between the two data sets. Attribute disclosure risks were 0.0585, and membership disclosure risk was low.

Conclusions

This synthetic dataset could be used as a proxy for the real dataset.
Animals selected for postweaning weight gain rate have similar maintenance energy requirements regardless of their residual feed intake classification
Authors: Batalha Camila Delveaux Araujo , Tedeschi Luís Orlindo , de Araújo Fabiana Lana , Branco Renata Helena , Cyrillo Joslaine Noely dos Santos Gonçalves , Bonilha Sarah Figueiredo Martins
Published: March 2021

Data of comparative slaughter were used to determine Nellore bulls’ net energy requirements classified as efficient or inefficient according to residual feed intake (RFI) and selection lines (SL). Sixty-seven Nellore bulls from the selected (SE) and control (CO) lines of the selection program for postweaning weight gain were used. The animals underwent digestibility trials before being submitted to the finishing trial. Sixteen bulls were slaughtered at the beginning of the finishing trial, and their body composition was used as the baseline for the remaining animals. For body composition determinations, whole empty body components were weighed, ground, and subsampled for chemical analyses. Initial body composition was determined with equations developed from the baseline group using shrunk body weight, fat, and protein. The low RFI (LRFI) and CO animals had a lower dry matter (DMI) and nutrient intake (P < 0.05) than high RFI (HRFI) and SE animals, without alterations in digestibility coefficients (P > 0.05). During the finishing trial, DMI remained lower for LRFI and CO animals. Growth performance was similar between RFI classes, except for empty body weight gain that tended to be higher for LRFI than HRFI (P = 0.091). The SE animals had less fat content on the empty body (P = 0.005) than CO. Carcasses tended to be leaner for LRFI than HRFI (P = 0.080) and for SE than CO (P = 0.066) animals. LRFI animals retained more energy (P = 0.049) and had lower heat production (HP; P = 0.033) than the HRFI ones. Retained energy was not influenced by SL (P = 0.165), but HP tended to be higher for SE when compared to CO (P = 0.075) animals. Net energy requirement for maintenance (NEm) was lower for LRFI than HRFI (P = 0.009), and higher for SE than CO (P = 0.046) animals. There was an interaction tendency between RFI and SL (P = 0.063), suggesting that NEm was lower for LRFI+CO than HRFI+CO (P = 0.006), with no differences for SE (P = 0.527) animals. The efficiency of ME utilization for maintenance (km) of LRFI and HRFI animals were 62.6% and 58.4%, respectively, and for SE and CO were 59.0% and 62.1%, respectively. The breeding program for postweaning weight has not improved feed efficiency over the years, with RFI classification not being a promising selection tool for SE animals. Classification based on RFI seems to be useful in animals that have not undergone the breeding program, with LRFI animals having lower energy requirements than the HRFI ones.
Alteration in the Stylet Probing Behavior and Host Preference of the VectorMatsumuratettix hiroglyphicus(Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) After Infection with Sugarcane White Leaf Phytoplasma
Authors: Roddee Jariya , Backus Elaine A , Wangkeeree Juremart , Hanboonsong Yupa
Published: March 2021

The leafhopper (Matsumuratettix hiroglyphicus (Matsumura) (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae)) is a crucial insect vector of the phytoplasma associated with sugarcane white leaf (SCWL) disease. The aim of this study was to compare the stylet probing behaviors of M. hiroglyphicus on healthy sugarcane plants, asymptomatic, and symptomatic SCWL-infected sugarcane plants, using DC electropenetrography. We also used host-selection preference (free-choice) assays to identify the preferred types of host plants, and scanning electron microscopy to observe stylet puncture holes and salivary flanges after leafhopper probing. According to a quantitative analysis of M. hiroglyphicus stylet probing, mean durations per insect of both phloem ingestion (waveform D; the phytoplasma-acquisition behavior) and phloem salivation (waveform C; the phytoplasma-inoculation behavior) were significantly longer on both types of infected sugarcane than on healthy plants. These longer overall durations were mainly because the same number of significantly longer-duration C and D events was performed on infected sugarcane compared with healthy plants. On free-choice tested plants, M. hiroglyphicus displayed a significantly greater preference to settle on the infected plants (both types) than the healthy sugarcane. These results provide the first empirical evidence that acquiring the SCWL phytoplasma alters the host selection and stylet probing behaviors of its main vector (M. hiroglyphicus). Our study thus contributes to a better understanding of the interactions between the insect vector and SCWL phytoplasma-infected plants, and will aid in developing novel disease management tactics for sugarcane.
Boots on the Ground: Means, Ends, and the American Military Commitment to Europe
Authors: Schmidt Sebastian
Published: March 2021

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the security commitment it entails are cornerstones of the current international order. Despite this centrality, international relations scholarship is ill equipped to explain the origin of the American commitment to Europe in the form of a long-term, peacetime military presence. At the time, this disposition of military forces represented a historically novel practice. The rational and norm-oriented logics of action that characterize much international relations theory explain cooperation as proceeding from a foundation of given interests. This perspective constrains the ability of analysts to make sense of the dynamic nature and potential creativity of cooperative endeavors. Building on a pragmatist understanding of action, this paper conceptualizes cooperation as a contingent process, characterized by the reciprocal relationship of means and ends, through which actors’ initially ambiguous interests become more concrete. The ends of cooperation emerge endogenously, and the potential for creativity is inherent in the process. This dynamic resulted in the specific form of the American commitment to Europe. A pragmatist account foregrounds agency and in doing so draws attention to important developments that traditional analyses may overlook or assume in the effort to reconstruct a pre-existing structure of interests as the basis for cooperation. By underlining the processual cast of action, this paper also helps recontextualize institutionalization as one step within a broader cooperative dynamic.
Short loop functional commonality identified in leukaemia proteome highlights crucial protein sub-networks
Authors: Chung Sun Sook , Ng Joseph C F , Laddach Anna , Thomas N Shaun B , Fraternali Franca
Published: March 2021

Direct drug targeting of mutated proteins in cancer is not always possible and efficacy can be nullified by compensating protein–protein interactions (PPIs). Here, we establish an in silico pipeline to identify specific PPI sub-networks containing mutated proteins as potential targets, which we apply to mutation data of four different leukaemias. Our method is based on extracting cyclic interactions of a small number of proteins topologically and functionally linked in the Protein–Protein Interaction Network (PPIN), which we call short loop network motifs (SLM). We uncover a new property of PPINs named ‘short loop commonality’ to measure indirect PPIs occurring via common SLM interactions. This detects ‘modules’ of PPI networks enriched with annotated biological functions of proteins containing mutation hotspots, exemplified by FLT3 and other receptor tyrosine kinase proteins. We further identify functional dependency or mutual exclusivity of short loop commonality pairs in large-scale cellular CRISPR–Cas9 knockout screening data. Our pipeline provides a new strategy for identifying new therapeutic targets for drug discovery.
Smartphone Inclinometry Is a Valid and Reliable Tool for Measuring Frontal Plane Tibial Alignment in Healthy and Osteoarthritic Knees
Authors: Tse Calvin T F , Charlton Jesse M , Lam Jennifer , Ho Joanne , Bears Jessica , Serek Amanda , Hunt Michael A
Published: March 2021

Objective

Frontal plane knee alignment plays an integral role in tibiofemoral knee osteoarthritis development and progression. Accessible methods for obtaining direct or indirect measures of knee alignment may help inform clinical decision making when specialized equipment is unavailable. The present study evaluated the concurrent validity, as well as intersession (within-rater) and interrater (within-session) reliability of smartphone inclinometry for measuring static frontal plane tibial alignment—a known proxy of frontal plane knee alignment.

Methods

Twenty healthy individuals and 38 patients with knee osteoarthritis were measured for frontal plane tibial alignment by a pair of raters using smartphone inclinometry, manual inclinometry, and 3-dimensional motion capture simultaneously. Healthy participants were measured on 2 separate days. Bland-Altman analysis, supplemented with intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC)(2,k), was used to assess concurrent validity. ICC(2,k), SEM, and minimum detectable change with 95% confidence limits (MDC95) were used to assess measurement reliability.

Results

Compared against motion capture, smartphone inclinometry measured frontal plane tibial alignment with a mean difference of 0.7 and 1.1 degrees (biased toward varus) for healthy participants and participants with knee osteoarthritis, respectively (ICC[2,k] ≥ 0.87). Smartphone inclinometry measurements demonstrated adequate intersession (within-rater) relative (ICC[2,k] = 0.91) and absolute (SEM = 0.7 degrees; MDC95 = 1.8 degrees) reliability, which outperformed manual inclinometry (ICC[2,k] = 0.85; SEM = 1.0 degrees; MDC95 = 2.6 degrees). Interrater (within-session) reliability of smartphone inclinometry was acceptable in both cohorts (ICC[2,k] = 0.93; SEM = 0.4 degrees to 1.2 degrees; MDC95 = 1.2 degrees to 3.2 degrees).

Conclusion

Smartphone inclinometry is sufficiently valid and reliable for measuring frontal plane tibial alignment in healthy individuals and patients with medial tibiofemoral knee osteoarthritis.

Impact

Smartphones are readily accessible by clinicians and researchers. Our assessment of measurement validity and reliability supports the use of smartphone inclinometry as a clinically available tool to measure frontal plane tibial alignment without medical imaging or specialized equipment.
Brain function in children with obstructive sleep apnea: a resting-state fMRI study
Authors: Ji Tingting , Li Xiaodan , Chen Jun , Ren Xuemin , Mei Lin , Qiu Yue , Zhang Jie , Wang Shengcai , Xu Zhifei , Li Hongbin , Zheng Li , Peng Yun , Liu Yue , Ni Xin , Tai Jun , Liu Jiangang
Published: March 2021

Objective

To explore the neural difference between children with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and healthy controls, together with the relation between this difference and cognitive dysfunction of children with OSA.

Methods

Twenty children with OSA (7.2 ± 3.1 years, apnea hypopnea index (AHI): 16.5 ± 16.6 events/h) and 29 healthy controls (7.7 ± 2.8 years, AHI: 1.7 ± 1.2 events/h) were recruited and matched with age, gender, and handedness. All children underwent resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI) and T1-wighted imaging. Some children were sedated for MRI scanning. We compared amplitude of low frequency fluctuation (ALFF) and regional homogeneity (ReHo) of children with OSA with those of healthy controls. During resting-state, the former reflects the intensity of the spontaneous neural activities, whereas the latter reflects temporal similarity of the spontaneous neural activities within a local brain region. Pearson correlation analysis was performed between these features of rs-fMRI and cognitive scores among children with OSA.

Results

Compared with controls, children with OSA showed decreased ALFF in the left angular gyrus but increased ALFF in the right insula, and decreased ReHo in the left medial superior frontal gyrus, right lingual gyrus, and left precuneus. Additionally, among children with OSA, the ReHo value in the right lingual gyrus was negatively correlated with FIQ and VIQ, whereas that in the left medial superior frontal gyrus was positively correlated with VIQ.

Conclusions

Children with OSA presented abnormal neural activities in some brain regions and impaired cognitive functions with the former possibly being the neural mechanism of the latter.
Between Civilization and Savagery: How Reconstruction Era Federal Indian Policy Led to the Indian Wars
Authors: Cothran Boyd
Published: March 2021

This article considers the event of a single year, 1873, to explain how President Ulysses S. Grant’s federal Indian policy led to the Indian wars of the late nineteenth century. Some historians have argued that Grant’s so-called Peace Policy failed due to systemic mismanagement and corruption; others have suggested it was due to administrative incompetence or ambivalence, while still others have accused the administration of cynicism in its approach to Indigenous affairs. This article argues that the Peace Policy reflected the unresolved tensions inherent in the era’s zeitgeist and that it failed to usher in a lasting peace because it did not account for the enmeshed reality of life in the American West where the boundaries and borders between Indian reservations and settler communities were entangled to say the least. The article begins with a detailed consideration of the Grant administration’s Indian policy as articulated by Francis Amasa Walker in the winter of 1872–73. Largely overlooked by historians of post–Civil War Indian policy, Walker was an influential thinker in his day whose policy recommendations emphasized the moral necessity of proprietary individualism and racial segregation on isolated reservations. The article then turns to the unfolding drama of the Modoc War (1872–73) to explore why the federal government abandoned the project of peacefully incorporating Indigenous people into the body politic, leading to a harsher and more militant approach to Indian affairs. By focusing on the nexus of ideas and events as they played out at this critical historical juncture, this article argues that the Modoc War was the precipitating event that marked the end of Grant’s so-called Peace Policy and the resumption of the Indian wars in the decades following the Civil War.
Polysubstance Overdose Deaths in the Fentanyl Era: A Latent Class Analysis
Authors: Park Ju Nyeong , Schneider Kristin E. , Fowler David , Sherman Susan G. , Mojtabai Ramin , Nestadt Paul S.
Published: March 2021

Objectives:

To elucidate the main latent classes of substances detected among overdose decedents, and latent class associations with age, sex, race, and jurisdiction of death in Maryland.

Methods:

We used toxicology data from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of Maryland for all decedents. We analyzed all cases of drug overdose deaths that occurred from 2016 to 2018 (N = 6566) using latent class analysis and regression.

Results:

Drug overdose deaths were concentrated in 2 of 24 counties in Maryland (Baltimore City and County). Fentanyl was involved in 71% of all drug overdose deaths, and the majority (76%) of these deaths included multiple substances. Three latent classes emerged: (1) fentanyl/heroin/cocaine (64%); (2) fentanyl/alcohol (18%); and (3) prescription drugs including opioids, benzodiazepines and antidepressants (18.0%). The fentanyl/heroin/cocaine class members were significantly younger (<30 years), female and White compared to the fentanyl/alcohol class, but more male and non-White than the prescription drugs class (all P < 0.05). Deaths in Baltimore City/County were more likely than in other locations to involve fentanyl/alcohol (P < 0.05).

Conclusions:

The majority of fentanyl-involved overdose deaths in Maryland involved multiple substances, and several demographic and geographic differences in these patterns emerged. Geographically-targeted interventions that are tailored to reduce the harms associated with polysubstance use (including cocaine, alcohol, and prescription drugs) for different demographic groups are warranted.
Reverse Triggering Dyssynchrony 24 h after Initiation of Mechanical Ventilation
Authors: Mellado Artigas Ricard , Damiani L. Felipe , Piraino Thomas , Pham Tai , Chen Lu , Rauseo Michela , Telias Irene , Soliman Ibrahim , Junhasavasdikul Detajin , Santis César , Smith Orla M. , Goligher Ewan , Comtois Norman , Sinderby Christer , Heunks Leo , Brochard Laurent
Published: March 2021

Background

Reverse triggering is a delayed asynchronous contraction of the diaphragm triggered by passive insufflation by the ventilator in sedated mechanically ventilated patients. The incidence of reverse triggering is unknown. This study aimed at determining the incidence of reverse triggering in critically ill patients under controlled ventilation.

Methods

In this ancillary study, patients were continuously monitored with a catheter measuring the electrical activity of the diaphragm. A method for automatic detection of reverse triggering using electrical activity of the diaphragm was developed in a derivation sample and validated in a subsequent sample. The authors assessed the predictive value of the software. In 39 recently intubated patients under assist-control ventilation, a 1-h recording obtained 24 h after intubation was used to determine the primary outcome of the study. The authors also compared patients’ demographics, sedation depth, ventilation settings, and time to transition to assisted ventilation or extubation according to the median rate of reverse triggering.

Results

The positive and negative predictive value of the software for detecting reverse triggering were 0.74 (95% CI, 0.67 to 0.81) and 0.97 (95% CI, 0.96 to 0.98). Using a threshold of 1 μV of electrical activity to define diaphragm activation, median reverse triggering rate was 8% (range, 0.1 to 75), with 44% (17 of 39) of patients having greater than or equal to 10% of breaths with reverse triggering. Using a threshold of 3 μV, 26% (10 of 39) of patients had greater than or equal to 10% reverse triggering. Patients with more reverse triggering were more likely to progress to an assisted mode or extubation within the following 24 h (12 of 39 [68%]) vs. 7 of 20 [35%]; P = 0.039).

Conclusions

Reverse triggering detection based on electrical activity of the diaphragm suggests that this asynchrony is highly prevalent at 24 h after intubation under assist-control ventilation. Reverse triggering seems to occur during the transition phase between deep sedation and the onset of patient triggering.

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