bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Syzygium aromaticum Reduces Diabetes-induced Glucotoxicity via the NRF2/Glo1 Pathway
Authors: Do Moon Ho , Choi Jiwon , Kim Yoonsook , Ha Sang Keun , Yoo Guijae , Hur Jinyoung
Published: July 2020

Advanced glycation end products and methylglyoxal are known to show increased levels in diabetic conditions and induce diverse metabolic disorders. However, the antiglycation ability of the bark of Syzygium aromaticum is not yet studied. In this study, we determined the inhibitory effects of S. aromaticum on AGE formation. Moreover, S. aromaticum showed breakage and inhibitory ability against the formation of AGE-collagen crosslinks. In SV40 MES13 cells, treatment with the S. aromaticum extract significantly ameliorated MG-induced oxidative stress as well as cytotoxicity. Furthermore, in the S. aromaticum extract-treated group, there was a reduction in levels of several diabetic markers, such as blood glucose, kidney weight, and urinary albumin to creatinine ratio in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Treatment with the S. aromaticum extract significantly increased the expression of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2, a transcription factor involved in the expression of antioxidant enzymes. Moreover, the treatment significantly upregulated the expression of glyoxalase 1 and downregulated the expression of receptor for AGEs. These results suggest that the S. aromaticum extract might ameliorate diabetes-induced renal damage by inhibiting the AGE-induced glucotoxicity and oxidative stress through the Nrf2/Glo1 pathway.
Non-planar Boron Lewis Acids Taking the Next Step: Development of Tunable Lewis Acids, Lewis Superacids and Bifunctional Catalysts
Authors: Berionni Guillaume , Chardon Aurélien , Osi Arnaud , Mahaut Damien , Saida Ali Ben
Published: July 2020

Although boron Lewis acids commonly adopt a trigonal planar geometry, a number of compounds in which the trivalent boron atom is located in a pyramidal environment have been described. This review will highlight the recent developments of the chemistry and applications of non-planar boron Lewis acids, including a series of non-planar triarylboranes derived from the triptycene core. A thorough analysis of the properties and of the influence of the pyramidalization of boron Lewis acids on their stereoelectronic properties and reactivities is presented based on recent theoretical and experimental studies.

1 Non-planar Trialkylboranes

2 Non-planar Alkyl and Aryl-Boronates

3 Non-planar Triarylboranes and Alkenylboranes

3.1 Previous Investigations on Bora Barrelenes and Triptycenes

3.2 Recent Work on Boratriptycenes from Our Research Group

4 Applications of Non-planar Boranes

4.1 Non-planar Alkyl Boranes and Boronates

4.2 Non-planar Triarylboranes (Boratriptycenes)

5 Other Non-planar Group 13 Lewis Acids

6 Further Work and Perspectives
What Is the Prevalence of Measles Immunity among Pregnant Women?
Authors: Chu Lam Melissa T. , Schmidt-Beuchat Emily , Geduldig Emma , Brustman Lois E. , Choi Katie Hyewon , Overbey Jessica R. , Woods Krystina L. , Al-Ibraheemi Zainab
Published: July 2020

Objective This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of measles immunity in a cohort of pregnant women in New York City and determine if there is a positive correlation of measles immunity with patient demographics, rubella immunity, number of measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine (MMR) doses received, and age at last vaccination.

Study Design This is a cross-sectional study of pregnant patients seen at a single institution from January 2019 to May 2019. Patients were classified as measles and rubella immune or nonimmune using commercial immunoglobulin G (IgG) tests. Patient characteristics were compared using t-tests, Chi-square tests, or Fisher's exact tests as appropriate. The association of age at last vaccination with immunity status was assessed using multivariable logistic regression adjusted for age at presentation. The utility of rubella IgG for distinguishing measles immunity was assessed using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis.

Results Serologic immunity for measles and rubella was obtained for 1,366 patients. Of these, 1,047 (77%) were measles immune and 1,291 (95%) were rubella immune. Patients born after 1989 were less likely to be immune to measles, while multiparity and private insurance were associated with increased measles immunity. Documentation of MMR vaccination was available for 140 (10%) patients. Of these, 44 (31%) were serologically nonimmune to measles and 9 (6.4%) were nonimmune to rubella. In patients known to have received one dose of MMR, 62% (24/39) were immune to measles with an improvement to 72% (69/96) among those who received two or more doses. Age at last vaccination was not associated with measles immunity. Rubella IgG level was a poor predictor of positive measles titer (area under the curve = 0.59).

Conclusion Approximately one of every four pregnant patients is serologically measles nonimmune, even among women with documented MMR vaccination or documented rubella immunity. These findings raise concerns that relying on vaccination history or rubella immune status may not be sufficient to assure protection from infection with measles. If further suggests that measles serology should be added to routine prenatal laboratory testing to identify nonimmune patients that may benefit from postpartum vaccination.

Key Points
Maternal Outcomes of Ongoing Pregnancies Complicated by Fetal Life-Limiting Conditions
Authors: Coney Talia , Russell Rachel , Leuthner Steven R. , Palatnik Anna
Published: July 2020

Objective This study aimed to examine maternal outcomes of ongoing pregnancies complicated by fetal life-limiting conditions.

Study design This was a retrospective matched cohort study of women with a diagnosis of fetal life-limiting condition between 2010 and 2018 in a single academic center. Cases were matched to controls (women who had normal fetal anatomic survey) according to year of delivery, body mass index, and parity in a 1:4 ratio. Bivariable and multivariable analyses were performed to compare the prevalence of the primary composite outcome, which included any one of the following: preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, cesarean delivery, third and fourth degree laceration, postpartum hemorrhage, blood transfusion, endometritis or wound infection, maternal intensive care unit admission, hysterectomy and maternal death, between cases and controls.

Results During the study period, we found 101 cases that met inclusion criteria, matched to 404 controls. The rate of the composite maternal outcome did not differ between the two groups (39.6 vs. 38.9%, p = 0.948). For individual outcomes, women with diagnosis of fetal life-limiting condition had higher rates of blood transfusion (2.0 vs. 0%, p = 0.005) and longer length of the first stage of labor (median of 12 [6.8–22.0] hours vs. 6.6 [3.9–11.0] hours; p < 0.001). In a multivariable analysis, first stage of labor continued to be longer by an average of 6.48 hours among women with a diagnosis of fetal life-limiting condition compared with controls.

Conclusion After controlling for confounding factors, except a longer first stage of labor, women diagnosed with fetal life-limiting conditions who continued the pregnancy did not have a higher rate of adverse maternal outcomes.

Key Points
Determination of macroscopic stress from diffraction experiments: A critical discussion
Authors: Mishurova Tatiana , Bruno Giovanni , Evsevleev Sergei , Sevostianov Igor
Published: July 2020

The paper is motivated by some inconsistencies and contradictions present in the literature on the calculation of the so-called diffraction elastic constants. In an attempt at unifying the views that the two communities of Materials Science and Mechanics of Materials have on the subject, we revisit and define the terminology used in the field. We also clarify the limitations of the commonly used approaches and show that a unified methodology is also applicable to textured materials with a nearly arbitrary grain shape. We finally compare the predictions based on this methodology with experimental data obtained by in situ synchrotron radiation diffraction on additively manufactured Ti-6Al-4V alloy. We show that (a) the transverse isotropy of the material yields good agreement between the best-fit isotropy approximation (equivalent to the classic Kröner's model) and the experimental data and (b) the use of a general framework allows the calculation of all components of the tensor of diffraction elastic constants, which are not easily measurable by diffraction methods. This allows us to extend the current state-of-the-art with a predictive tool.
Predicting molecular dipole moments by combining atomic partial charges and atomic dipoles
Authors: Veit Max , Wilkins David M. , Yang Yang , DiStasio Robert A. , Ceriotti Michele
Published: July 2020

The molecular dipole moment (μ) is a central quantity in chemistry. It is essential in predicting infrared and sum-frequency generation spectra as well as induction and long-range electrostatic interactions. Furthermore, it can be extracted directly—via the ground state electron density—from high-level quantum mechanical calculations, making it an ideal target for machine learning (ML). In this work, we choose to represent this quantity with a physically inspired ML model that captures two distinct physical effects: local atomic polarization is captured within the symmetry-adapted Gaussian process regression framework which assigns a (vector) dipole moment to each atom, while the movement of charge across the entire molecule is captured by assigning a partial (scalar) charge to each atom. The resulting “MuML” models are fitted together to reproduce molecular μ computed using high-level coupled-cluster theory and density functional theory (DFT) on the QM7b dataset, achieving more accurate results due to the physics-based combination of these complementary terms. The combined model shows excellent transferability when applied to a showcase dataset of larger and more complex molecules, approaching the accuracy of DFT at a small fraction of the computational cost. We also demonstrate that the uncertainty in the predictions can be estimated reliably using a calibrated committee model. The ultimate performance of the models—and the optimal weighting of their combination—depends, however, on the details of the system at hand, with the scalar model being clearly superior when describing large molecules whose dipole is almost entirely generated by charge separation. These observations point to the importance of simultaneously accounting for the local and non-local effects that contribute to μ; furthermore, they define a challenging task to benchmark future models, particularly those aimed at the description of condensed phases.
Propulsive performance and flow-field characteristics of a jellyfish-like ornithopter with asymmetric pitching motion
Authors: Liu Yaoyao , Pan Chong , Liu Yanpeng
Published: July 2020

Direct force and time-resolved two-dimensional particle image velocimetry measurements were performed on a jellyfish-like ornithopter model, which consists of two anti-phase flapping wings in a side-by-side arrangement. The focus is to study the effect of the time asymmetric pitching motion on the propulsive performance of this kind of ornithopter in a hovering state. It was shown that the fast downstroke and slow upstroke pattern is superior to symmetric back and forth pitching. Namely, more thrust and less fluctuations in the side force can be achieved. In order to provide explanations for this observation, various analyzing techniques, including vortex identification and tracking, spectral analysis, velocity triple decomposition, and reduced-order representation, were taken for a systematical characterization of the flow field in the wake. The spatiotemporal evolution of leading-edge vortices shedding from the wingtip during the downstroke and upstroke stages, as well as their mutual interaction, was found to be one of the key factors to account for the role of time asymmetric pitching on the alternation of thrust generation. Moreover, the delay of the transition of the wake to a turbulent state was observed in the scenario of fast downstroke. This is expected to be beneficial for the improvement of the hovering stability of the ornithopter.
Current-driven skyrmionium in a frustrated magnetic system
Authors: Xia Jing , Zhang Xichao , Ezawa Motohiko , Tretiakov Oleg A. , Hou Zhipeng , Wang Wenhong , Zhao Guoping , Liu Xiaoxi , Diep Hung T. , Zhou Yan
Published: July 2020

Magnetic skyrmionium can be used as a nanometer-scale non-volatile information carrier, which shows no skyrmion Hall effect due to its special structure carrying zero topological charge. Here, we report the static and dynamic properties of an isolated nanoscale skyrmionium in a frustrated magnetic monolayer, where the skyrmionium is stabilized by competing interactions. The frustrated skyrmionium has a size of about 10 nm, which can be further reduced by tuning perpendicular magnetic anisotropy or the magnetic field. It is found that the nanoscale skyrmionium driven by the damping-like spin-orbit torque shows directional motion with a favored Bloch-type helicity. A small driving current or magnetic field can lead to the transformation of an unstable Néel-type skyrmionium to a metastable Bloch-type skyrmionium. A large driving current may result in the distortion and collapse of the Bloch-type skyrmionium. Our results are useful for the understanding of frustrated skyrmionium physics, which also provide guidelines for the design of spintronic devices based on topological spin textures.
Effects of interstocks on growth and photosynthetic characteristics in ‘Yuanxiaochun’ Citrus seedlings
Authors: Wang Tie , Xiong Bo , Tan Liping , Yang Youting , Zhang Yue , Ma Mengmeng , Xu Yinghuan , Liao Ling , Sun Guochao , Liang Dong , Xia Hui , Zhang Xiaoai , Wang Zhihui , Wang Jun
Published: July 2020

To obtain the compatibility of interstocks crossing with ‘Yuanxiaochun’, we performed a comparative analysis with five interstocks. From the 60th to 240th day after grafting, there was a significant difference between different treatments. All the new shoot/interstock diameter ratios were <1, indicating that there was no obvious phenomenon of small feet in ‘Yuanxiaochun’ seedlings of five kinds of interstocks. The density of ‘Yuanxiaochun’ was significantly different. Chl a, Chl b, T-Chl content of ‘Shiranuhi’, ‘Harumi’, ‘Tarocco’ changed greatly from the 90th to 120th day after grafting. The intercellular CO2 concentration (Ci) of ‘Shiranuhi’ was significantly higher than the other interstocks. In addition, when ‘Yuanxiaochun’ was grafted onto ‘Shiranuhi’, net photosynthetic rate (Pn), stomatal conductance (gs) and tanspiration rate (Tr) were higher. When ‘Harumi’ were used as the interstocks of ‘Yuanxiaochun’, the light saturation point (LSP) value was larger, which was conducive to the utilisation of strong light. Moreover, the value of LSP-LCP (LCP, light compensation point) of ‘Harumi’ and ‘Tarocco’ were significantly higher than the other three interstocks. The apparent quantum efficiency (AQE), RuBP maximum regeneration rate (Jmax) and maximum carboxylation efficiency of Rubisco (Vcmax) value of ‘Shiranuhi’ was significantly lower than that of ‘Ponkan’. The CO2 compensation point (CCP) of ‘Harumi’ interstock was lower, but the CO2 saturation point (CSP) of ‘Tarocco’ interstock was higher than those of other interstocks respectively. There was a small difference in initial fluorescence (F0) of different interstocks. The maximal photochemical efficiency of PSII in the dark (Fv/Fm) of ‘Kumquat’ was the lowest. In addition, Both Y(II) and ETR values of the ‘Yuanxiaochun’ leaves of ‘Ponkan’ interstock was the largest one. However, the non-photochemical quenching (qN) of ‘Ponkan’ was significantly lower, and that of ‘Tarocco’ interstock was the highest one. Interstocks have different effect on the growth and development, photosynthetic characteristics related to physiological characteristics of ‘Yuanxiaochun’ trees. ‘Ponkan’ and ‘Kumquat’ as the interstock of ‘Yuanxiaochun’ was more conducive to the rapid accumulation of photosynthetic products for normal vegetative and reproductive growth of plants.
Prototypical pacemaker neurons interact with the resident microbiota
Authors: Klimovich Alexander , Giacomello Stefania , Björklund Åsa , Faure Louis , Kaucka Marketa , Giez Christoph , Murillo-Rincon Andrea P. , Matt Ann-Sophie , Willoweit-Ohl Doris , Crupi Gabriele , de Anda Jaime , Wong Gerard C. L. , D’Amato Mauro , Adameyko Igor , Bosch Thomas C. G.
Published: July 2020

Significance

Here, we discover prototypical pacemaker neurons in the ancient cnidarian
Hydra
and provide evidence for a direct interaction of these neurons with the commensal microbiota. We uncover a remarkable gene-expression program conservation between the
Hydra
pacemaker neurons and pacemaker cells in
Caenorhabditis elegans
and the mammalian gut. We suggest that prototypical pacemaker cells emerged as neurons using components of innate immunity to interact with the microbial environment and ion channels to generate rhythmic contractions. The communication of pacemaker neurons with the microbiota represents a mechanistic link between the gut microbiota and gut motility. Our discoveries improve the understanding of the archetypical properties of the enteric nervous systems, which are perturbed in human dysmotility-related conditions.
The dual nature of the dead-water phenomenology: Nansen versus Ekman wave-making drags
Authors: Fourdrinoy Johan , Dambrine Julien , Petcu Madalina , Pierre Morgan , Rousseaux Germain
Published: July 2020

Significance

A ship evolving in a stratified fluid is sometimes slowed down in comparison to a homogeneous case. This dead-water phenomenon was reported by the Norwegian explorer Fridtjöf Nansen during his North polar expedition in 1893. The physicist and oceanographer Vagn Walfrid Ekman was the first to study in the laboratory the physical origin of dead-water phenomenon in 1904: at the interface between saline water and freshwater, internal gravity waves appear, propagate, and generate a wave-making drag. Here we show that the velocity oscillations of pulled ships models à la Ekman caught in dead water are due to a transient internal dispersive undulating depression produced during the initial acceleration of the ship that we predict with a linear analytical model.
Discovery of potent thrombin inhibitors from a protease-focused DNA-encoded chemical library
Authors: Dawadi Surendra , Simmons Nicholas , Miklossy Gabriella , Bohren Kurt M. , Faver John C. , Ucisik Melek Nihan , Nyshadham Pranavanand , Yu Zhifeng , Matzuk Martin M.
Published: July 2020

Significance

To rapidly identify small-molecule lead compounds to target healthcare-associated proteases, we constructed a unique 9.8-million-membered protease-focused DNA-encoded chemical library. Affinity selection of this library with a healthcare-relevant protease (i.e., thrombin, a key protein necessary for blood coagulation) revealed potent inhibitors in the first screening attempt. Our results emphasize the utility of a structurally focused DNA-encoded chemical library approach to rapidly uncover hits for healthcare targets (e.g., proteases) where no drug exists (e.g., male contraception) and for emerging diseases (e.g., coronavirus disease 2019).
Denominal verb formationin English and Modern Greek
Authors: Koutsoukos Nikos
Published: July 2020

Cross-linguistically, there are different patterns for denominal verb formation and languages show preferences for certain patterns (cf.McIntyre, 2015). In this paper, I focus on denominal verb formation in English and Modern Greek. The analyzed data come from the TenTen corpora (Sketch Engine,Kilgariffet al., 2014). The first aim is to quantify the use of the patterns of denominal verb formations in both languages. The results of the analysis corroborate the findings of previous analyses, such as the strong preference for conversion for denominal verb formation in English and for suffixation in Modern Greek. However, the present paper aims to go a step further. The second aim is to discuss why English and Modern Greek show these preferences. I propose that the preferences can be explained if we correlate the parameters of inflectional marking, word order/configurationality, system of lexical category assignment and boundary permeability.
Homescape
Authors: Boivin Nettie
Published: July 2020

This article presents the redefined concept of the homescape as space where transnational, newly
arrived, and settled families can provide agency for their identity framing through multisensory discourse resources. The study
investigated the experiential, non-interactional multisensory discourse resources in the homescape. The homescape extends from the
Linguistic Landscape and houses temporal and spatial components, which occur over time. The yearlong ethnographic case study of
three Nepalese families (two transmigrant Ghurkha families and one immigrant family) included 150 hours of observational data
triangulated with qualitative interviews. The study posed two questions: How do transmigrant and transnational families find
capacity for agency in the homescape? How do families use experiential multisensory discourse resources embedded in homescape to
facilitate identity framing? Findings highlighted that experiential multisensory discourse resources are threads of identity in
the home that have yet to be fully recognized as research evidence by ethnographers in the home context.
Impact of an Antimicrobial Stewardship Program Pharmacist During Microbiology Rounds
Authors: Sapozhnikov Julia , Huang Angela , Revolinski Sara , Ledeboer Nathan A , Buchan Blake W
Published: July 2020

Objectives

The purpose of this study is to describe and evaluate the impact of the participation of an antimicrobial stewardship program (ASP) pharmacist in microbiology rounds at our institution.

Methods

This single-center retrospective descriptive study included inpatient and ambulatory adults (≥18 years) with a susceptibility request reviewed during microbiology rounds between October 2018 and March 2019. In October 2018, multidisciplinary telephone microbiology rounds were initiated with the medical directors of the clinical microbiology laboratory and ASP pharmacist to review susceptibility requests. Numbers and types of interventions made by an ASP pharmacist and potential benefits were recorded and analyzed.

Results

Sixty-seven susceptibility requests were reviewed by an ASP pharmacist, of which 83.6% were inpatient. An ASP pharmacist completed chart reviews for 92.5% of requests and contacted the requester or primary team 74.6% of the time. About half (47.8%) of susceptibility requests were approved, and only 65.2% of requests from an infectious diseases provider were approved (P = .039). The most frequent potential benefits of the intervention included preventing unnecessary susceptibility testing (47.8%), improving clinician understanding (40.3%), and preventing treatment of a culture result deemed as a contaminant (19.4%).

Conclusions

ASP pharmacists are uniquely accessible and able to assist with preventing unnecessary susceptibility testing, optimizing antimicrobial therapy, and providing education to other health care professionals.
Understanding the COVID-19 Pandemic Through the Lens of Population Health Science
Authors: Galea Sandro , Keyes Katherine
Published: July 2020

In a few devastating short months in 2020, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic changed global mobility and interaction in ways that were unimaginable to much of the world’s population as recently as in 2019. More than 10 million people have, at this writing, been infected by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) globally, and more than 850,000 have died of COVID-19. As our science progresses, it is becoming possible to apply the principles of population health science to help us better understand the pandemic. What does a formal approach to population health science teach us about COVID-19? Building on our previously published work about the foundations of population health, we offer a few observations—a first draft of population health science thinking—as it intersects with the COVID-19 pandemic. Of note, our collective understanding of the pathology and causes of COVID-19 are rapidly changing by the day, and thus we fully expect that this work will evolve and improve as science progresses.
Large-scale benchmark study of survival prediction methods using multi-omics data
Authors: Herrmann Moritz , Probst Philipp , Hornung Roman , Jurinovic Vindi , Boulesteix Anne-Laure
Published: July 2020

Multi-omics data, that is, datasets containing different types of high-dimensional molecular variables, are increasingly often generated for the investigation of various diseases. Nevertheless, questions remain regarding the usefulness of multi-omics data for the prediction of disease outcomes such as survival time. It is also unclear which methods are most appropriate to derive such prediction models. We aim to give some answers to these questions through a large-scale benchmark study using real data. Different prediction methods from machine learning and statistics were applied on 18 multi-omics cancer datasets (35 to 1000 observations, up to 100 000 variables) from the database ‘The Cancer Genome Atlas’ (TCGA). The considered outcome was the (censored) survival time. Eleven methods based on boosting, penalized regression and random forest were compared, comprising both methods that do and that do not take the group structure of the omics variables into account. The Kaplan–Meier estimate and a Cox model using only clinical variables were used as reference methods. The methods were compared using several repetitions of 5-fold cross-validation. Uno’s C-index and the integrated Brier score served as performance metrics. The results indicate that methods taking into account the multi-omics structure have a slightly better prediction performance. Taking this structure into account can protect the predictive information in low-dimensional groups—especially clinical variables—from not being exploited during prediction. Moreover, only the block forest method outperformed the Cox model on average, and only slightly. This indicates, as a by-product of our study, that in the considered TCGA studies the utility of multi-omics data for prediction purposes was limited. Contact:  moritz.herrmann@stat.uni-muenchen.de, +49 89 2180 3198 Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Briefings in Bioinformatics online. All analyses are reproducible using R code freely available on Github.
RNA-binding protein recognition based on multi-view deep feature and multi-label learning
Authors: Yang Haitao , Deng Zhaohong , Pan Xiaoyong , Shen Hong-Bin , Choi Kup-Sze , Wang Lei , Wang Shitong , Wu Jing
Published: July 2020

RNA-binding protein (RBP) is a class of proteins that bind to and accompany RNAs in regulating biological processes. An RBP may have multiple target RNAs, and its aberrant expression can cause multiple diseases. Methods have been designed to predict whether a specific RBP can bind to an RNA and the position of the binding site using binary classification model. However, most of the existing methods do not take into account the binding similarity and correlation between different RBPs. While methods employing multiple labels and Long Short Term Memory Network (LSTM) are proposed to consider binding similarity between different RBPs, the accuracy remains low due to insufficient feature learning and multi-label learning on RNA sequences. In response to this challenge, the concept of RNA-RBP Binding Network (RRBN) is proposed in this paper to provide theoretical support for multi-label learning to identify RBPs that can bind to RNAs. It is experimentally shown that the RRBN information can significantly improve the prediction of unknown RNA−RBP interactions. To further improve the prediction accuracy, we present the novel computational method iDeepMV which integrates multi-view deep learning technology under the multi-label learning framework. iDeepMV first extracts data from the views of amino acid sequence and dipeptide component based on the RNA sequences as the original view. Deep neural network models are then designed for the respective views to perform deep feature learning. The extracted deep features are fed into multi-label classifiers which are trained with the RNA−RBP interaction information for the three views. Finally, a voting mechanism is designed to make comprehensive decision on the results of the multi-label classifiers. Our experimental results show that the prediction performance of iDeepMV, which combines multi-view deep feature learning models with RNA−RBP interaction information, is significantly better than that of the state-of-the-art methods. iDeepMV is freely available at http://www.csbio.sjtu.edu.cn/bioinf/iDeepMV for academic use. The code is freely available at http://github.com/uchihayht/iDeepMV.
Clinical Experience of Implementing Oral Versus Intravenous Antibiotics (OVIVA) in a Specialist Orthopedic Hospital
Authors: Azamgarhi Tariq , Shah Ashik , Warren Simon
Published: July 2020

Background

The Oral Versus Intravenous Antibiotics (OVIVA) Trial demonstrated that oral therapy, when used during the initial 6 weeks in the treatment in bone and joint infection (BJI), is noninferior to intravenous therapy. To date there are no reports describing reproducibility of these findings in a real-world setting.

Methods

We studied all patients diagnosed with BJI at our hospital 12 months pre- and postimplementation of the OVIVA trial findings into clinical practice. An infection consultant recommended antibiotic treatment and patients were followed up by an outpatient parenteral antibiotic therapy (OPAT) service. Prospective data from a local registry was used to analyze baseline clinical details, outcome, length of hospital stay (LOS), and costs.

Results

A cohort of 328 patients (145 pre- and 183 postimplementation) was analyzed. Postimplementation, 66.1% of patients were switched to a suitable oral antibiotic regimen. Definite failure at 1 year was 13.6% in the preimplementation group and 18.6% in the postimplementation group (P = .154). Postimplementation, definite failure was more common in patients requiring intravenous antibiotics due to lack of suitable oral options (intravenous, 26.7% and oral, 14.3%). Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) requiring closer monitoring or change to treatment were more common postimplementation (21.0% and 37.1%, respectively). ADR-related hospital readmissions were similar in both groups (2.1 and 2.2%). Comparing both groups, the postimplementation group showed a reduction of 4 days in the median LOS and a median cost reduction of £2764.28 per patient.

Conclusions

The OVIVA trial findings can be safely implemented into clinical practice when patients on oral antibiotics are followed up by an established OPAT service. Two-thirds of patients were switched to a suitable oral antibiotic regimen. Implementation led to reductions in hospital LOS and antibiotic costs.
A New Multilateralism? A Case Study of the Belt and Road Initiative
Authors: Zhou Jingyuan
Published: July 2020

The first five years (the first stage) of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) have drawn international attention and provoked scepticism and debate. This article explores questions about the nature of the BRI and its impact on multilateralism, which is increasingly fragile and under attack. After summarizing past practices employed in BRI investments, it analyses the characteristics of the BRI and assesses the results and implications. This article studies in depth one of the two primary BRI economic activities—special economic zones. The article introduces and compares the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and Chinese domestic banks in their respective financing practices and compares state-owned enterprises and privately owned enterprises in BRI practices. The article observes three characteristics from past BRI practices and analyzes their respective implications on the transformation of international trade governance. The first characteristic is the unconventional ‘infrastructure development first, institution next’ approach. The second is the plurilateral- and multilateral-focused method in international rule-setting processes. The third characteristic is innovation in the dispute settlement mechanism. Through a cautious examination, the article argues that experiences gained from BRI inform China’s international rule-making efforts and further its domestic trade liberalization reform agenda, which will likely contribute to the convergence of rule-making in international trade.
Preventive strategies for acute kidney injury in cancer patients
Authors: Cosmai Laura , Porta Camillo , Foramitti Marina , Perrone Valentina , Mollica Ludovica , Gallieni Maurizio , Capasso Giovambattista
Published: July 2020

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common complication of cancer that occurs in up to 50% of neoplastic patients during the natural history of their disease; furthermore, it has a huge impact on key outcomes such as overall prognosis, length of hospitalization and costs. AKI in cancer patients has different causes, either patient-, tumour- or treatment-related. Patient-related risk factors for AKI are the same as in the general population, whereas tumour-related risk factors are represented by compression, obstruction, direct kidney infiltration from the tumour as well by precipitation, aggregation, crystallization or misfolding of paraprotein (as in the case of multiple myeloma). Finally, treatment-related risk factors are the most common observed in clinical practice and may present also with the feature of tumour lysis syndrome or thrombotic microangiopathies. In the absence of validated biomarkers, a multidisciplinary clinical approach that incorporates adequate assessment, use of appropriate preventive measures and early intervention is essential to reduce the incidence of this life-threatening condition in cancer patients.
Protected by dragons: Density surface modeling confirms large population of the critically endangered Yellow-crested Cockatoo on Komodo Island
Authors: Reuleaux Anna , Siregar Benny A , Collar Nigel J , Panggur Maria R , Mardiastuti Ani , Jones Martin J , Marsden Stuart J
Published: July 2020

Intense trapping of the critically endangered Yellow-crested Cockatoo (Cacatua sulphurea) for the international pet trade has devastated its populations across Indonesia such that populations of >100 individuals remain at only a handful of sites. We combined distance sampling with density surface modeling (DSM) to predict local densities and estimate total population size for one of these areas, Komodo Island, part of Komodo National Park (KNP) in Indonesia. We modeled local density based on topography (topographic wetness index) and habitat types (percentage of palm savanna and deciduous monsoon forest). Our population estimate of 1,113 (95% CI: 587–2,109) individuals on Komodo Island was considerably larger than previous conservative estimates. Our density surface maps showed cockatoos to be absent over much of the island, but present at high densities in wooded valleys. Coincidence between our DSM and a set of independent cockatoo observations was high (93%). Standardized annual counts by KNP staff in selected areas of the island showed increases in cockatoo records from <400 in 2011 to ~650 in 2017. Taken together, our results indicate that KNP, alongside and indeed because of preserving its iconic Komodo dragons (Varanus komodoensis), is succeeding in protecting a significant population of Indonesia’s rarest cockatoo species. To our knowledge this is the first time DSM has been applied to a critically endangered species. Our findings highlight the potential of DSM for locating abundance hotspots, identifying habitat associations, and estimating global population size in a range of threatened taxa, especially if independent datasets can be used to validate model predictions.
Beetle Orientation Responses of Gastrophysa viridula and Gastrophysa polygoni (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) to a Blend of Synthetic Volatile Organic Compounds
Authors: Piesik Dariusz , Bocianowski Jan , Sendel Sebastian , Krawczyk Krzysztof , Kotwica Karol
Published: July 2020

The invasive weed Rumex confertus Willd. (mossy sorrel) is eaten and severely defoliated by oligophagous Gastrophysa viridula Deg. (dock leaf beetle) and Gastrophysa polygoni L. (knotweed leaf beetle). The most popular methods of plant protection involve the application of chemicals, but such methods often require repeated chemical treatments. Aromatic plants may constitute an eco-friendly alternative strategy owing to their repellent properties. To date, single compounds have been tested rather than blends; however, there is a need to investigate mixtures of compounds, because insects are subjected to blends of odors derived from their surrounding environments. The aim of the current study was to investigate behavioral responses of the dock leaf beetle and knotweed leaf beetle to a blend of synthetic plant volatile organic compounds. Plants were treated with standard repellents (a blend of volatile organic compounds) at two different concentrations (10 ng min−1 and 1,000 ng min−1). For further experiments, four rates (1 ng min−1, 10 ng min−1, 100 ng min−1, and 1,000 ng min−1 in 50 µl) were evaluated using a 4-way olfactometer. Leaf beetles of both sexes were repelled by the highest three concentrations tested. Female dock leaf beetles were also repelled by the lowest concentration tested, where individual components could have occasionally attracted insects. These results indicate a difference in responses to individual compounds and mixtures of compounds.
Compaction and control—the role of chromosome-organizing proteins inStreptomyces
Authors: Szafran Marcin J , Jakimowicz Dagmara , Elliot Marie A
Published: July 2020

Chromosomes are dynamic entities, whose organization and structure depend on the concerted activity of DNA-binding proteins and DNA-processing enzymes. In bacteria, chromosome replication, segregation, compaction and transcription are all occurring simultaneously, and to ensure that these processes are appropriately coordinated, all bacteria employ a mix of well-conserved and species-specific proteins. Unusually, Streptomyces bacteria have large, linear chromosomes and life cycle stages that include multigenomic filamentous hyphae and unigenomic spores. Moreover, their prolific secondary metabolism yields a wealth of bioactive natural products. These different life cycle stages are associated with profound changes in nucleoid structure and chromosome compaction, and require distinct repertoires of architectural—and regulatory—proteins. To date, chromosome organization is best understood during Streptomyces sporulation, when chromosome segregation and condensation are most evident, and these processes are coordinated with synchronous rounds of cell division. Advances are, however, now being made in understanding how chromosome organization is achieved in multigenomic hyphal compartments, in defining the functional and regulatory interplay between different architectural elements, and in appreciating the transcriptional control exerted by these ‘structural’ proteins.
Capacity-building partnerships for surgical post-graduate training in low- and middle-income countries: a scoping review of the literature with exploratory thematic synthesis
Authors: Voss Miranda , Swart Oostewalt , Abel Lucy , Mahtani Kamal
Published: July 2020

In recent years, international surgical programmes have moved away from vertical service delivery and towards collaborative, capacity-building partnerships. The aim of this review was to provide a map of the current literature on international surgical training partnerships together with an exploration of factors influencing their implementation. Three bibliographic databases were searched for peer-reviewed reports of surgical training partnerships between organizations in high- and low or middle-income countries to July 2018. Reports were sorted in an iterative fashion into groups of similar programmes, and data were extracted to record the intervention strategies, context, financing, reported results and themes around implementation. Eighty-six reports were grouped into five types of programme: full residency training, bi-institutional twinning partnerships, diagonal/sub-specialist programmes, focused interventions or courses and programmes using remote support. Few articles were written from the perspective of the low-middle income partner. Full residency programmes and some diagonal/sub-specialist programmes report numbers trained while twinning partnerships and focused interventions tend to focus on process, partners’ reactions to the programme and learning metrics. Two thematic networks emerged from the thematic synthesis. The first made explicit the mechanisms by which partnerships are expected to contribute to improved access to surgical care and a second identified the importance of in-country leadership in determining programme results. Training partnerships are assumed to improve access to surgical care by a number of routes. A candidate programme theory is proposed together with some more focused theories that could inform future research. Supporting the development of the surgical leadership in low- and middle-income countries is key.
Prediction of survival of patients in cardiogenic shock treated by surgically implanted Impella 5+ short-term left ventricular assist device
Authors: Nersesian Gaik , Tschöpe Carsten , Spillmann Frank , Gromann Tom , Roehrich Luise , Mueller Marcus , Mulzer Johanna , Starck Christoph , Falk Volkmar , Schoenrath Felix , Potapov Evgenij
Published: July 2020

OBJECTIVES

Short-term mechanical circulatory support is a life-saving treatment for acute cardiogenic shock (CS). This multicentre study investigates the preoperative predictors of 30-day mortality in CS patients treated with Impella 5.0 and 5.5 short-term left ventricular assist devices.

METHODS

Data of patients in CS (n = 70) treated with the Impella 5 (n = 63) and 5.5 (n = 7) in 2 centres in Berlin between October 2016 and October 2019 were collected retrospectively.

RESULTS

CS was caused by acute myocardial infarction (n = 16), decompensated chronic heart failure (n = 41), postcardiotomy syndrome (n = 5) and acute myocarditis (n = 8). Before implantation 12 (17%) patients underwent cardiopulmonary resuscitation and 32 (46%) patients were ventilated. INTERMACS level 1, 2 and 3 was established in 35 (50%), 29 (41%) and 6 (9%) of patients, respectively. The mean preoperative lactate level was 4.05 mmol/l. The median support time was 7 days (IR= 4–15). In 18 cases, the pump was removed for myocardial recovery, in 22 cases, durable left ventricular assist devices were implanted, and 30 patients died on support. The overall 30-day survival was 51%. Statistical analysis showed that an increase in lactate per mmol/l [odds ratio (OR) 1.217; P = 0.015] and cardiopulmonary resuscitation before implantation (OR 16.74; P = 0.009) are predictors of 30-day survival. Based on these data, an algorithm for optimal short-term mechanical circulatory support selection is proposed.

CONCLUSIONS

Impella treatment is feasible in severe CS. Severe organ dysfunction, as well as the level and duration of shock predict early mortality. An algorithm based on these parameters may help identify patients who would benefit from Impella 5+ support.
Reviewing Experts’ Restraint from Extremes and Its Impact on Service Providers
Authors: Nguyen Peter , Wang Xin (Shane) , Li Xi , Cotte June
Published: July 2020

This research investigates reviewing experts on online review platforms. The main hypothesis is that greater expertise in generating reviews leads to greater restraint from extreme summary evaluations. The authors argue that greater experience generating reviews facilitates processing and elaboration and enhances the number of attributes implicitly considered in evaluations, which reduces the likelihood of assigning extreme summary ratings. This restraint-of-expertise hypothesis is tested across different review platforms (TripAdvisor, Qunar, and Yelp), shown for both assigned ratings and review text sentiment, and demonstrated both between (experts vs. novices) and within reviewers (expert vs. pre-expert). Two experiments replicate the main effect and provide support for the attribute-based explanation. Field studies demonstrate two major consequences of the restraint-of-expertise effect. (i) Reviewing experts (vs. novices), as a whole, have less impact on the aggregate valence metric, which is known to affect page-rank and consumer consideration. (ii) Experts systematically benefit and harm service providers with their ratings. For service providers that generally provide mediocre (excellent) experiences, reviewing experts assign significantly higher (lower) ratings than novices. This research provides important caveats to the existing marketing practice of service providers incentivizing reviewing experts and provides strategic implications for how platforms should adopt rating scales and aggregate ratings.
Diverse transitions in diabetes status during the clinical course of patients with resectable pancreatic cancer
Authors: Shingyoji Ayako , Mikata Rintaro , Ogasawara Sadahisa , Kusakabe Yuko , Yasui Shin , Sugiyama Harutoshi , Ohno Izumi , Kato Jun , Takano Shigetsugu , Yoshitomi Hideyuki , Ohtsuka Masayuki , Kato Naoya
Published: July 2020

Objective

Pancreatic cancer and diabetes status have complex bilateral interactions; therefore, understanding their clinical features is essential for the clinical management of pancreatic cancer patients. We aimed to evaluate the diabetes status before diagnosis, after resection and until the time of recurrence in patients with resectable pancreatic cancer and to clarify the correlations among the clinical course of pancreatic cancer, operative procedure and diabetes status.

Methods

Between 2011 and 2016, we retrospectively identified 189 pancreatic cancer patients who underwent pancreatoduodenectomy or distal pancreatectomy at our institution. The entire clinical course of each patient was retrieved from the medical records, and the diabetes status in the longest possible duration was assessed.

Results

Among 115 pancreatic cancer patients who had normal glucose tolerance at the time of resection, 22 (19.1%) developed type 2 diabetes after resection. In a multivariate analysis, distal pancreatectomy was strongly associated with the development of postoperative diabetes. On the other hand, 74 pancreatic cancer patients had already been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes at the time of resection. During the follow-up period, 15 patients were noted to have diabetes resolution after resection; interestingly, the majority of these patients had newly diagnosed diabetes, which was defined as the diagnosis of diabetes within 3 months before resection. Moreover, newly diagnosed diabetes was an independent factor for diabetes resolution after resection.

Conclusions

In pancreatic cancer patients who underwent pancreatectomy, distal pancreatectomy was correlated with postoperative diabetes, and newly diagnosed diabetes had a high probability of resolution after resection.
TEM observation of inorganic substances distributed in gel materials for medical devices using ultra-thin cryosectioning
Authors: Ito Eri , Takase Hiroshi , Yamamoto Katsuhiro
Published: July 2020

In this study, a method was developed for examining the distribution pattern of inorganic substances dispersed in hydrogel-filled medical devices. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) using ultra-thin cryosectioning (owing to hydrogel’s water content) was performed on contact lenses with an iris pattern in which the distribution pattern of inorganic pigments was problematic. We confirmed the depth and distribution pattern of pigments in the hydrogel. The results indicated that ultra-thin cryosectioning with TEM was effective for inspecting the distribution of inorganic substances in hydrogel-filled devices.