bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Apelin Alleviates Meniscus Endothelial Cell Apoptosis in Osteoarthritis
Authors: Lu Dinggui , Wei Jihua , Chen Jian , Zhao Jingjie , Wang Jiajia , Gong Yuanxun , Wei Liuzhi , Wei Qiuju , Ban Huadeng , Li Yueyong , Wang Zechen , Luo Changtai , Zhou Haidong , Shen Jiajia , Liao Qiujiao , He Siyuan , Zhang Weiyang , Luo Qunqiang , Xie Kegong , Song Jian , Meng Lingzhang
Published: January 2022

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative disease characterized by articular cartilage and/or chondrocyte destruction, and although it has long been considered as a primary disease, the importance of meniscus endothelial cell modulation in the subchondral microenvironment has recently drawn attention. Previous studies have shown that apelin could potentially inhibit cellular apoptosis; however, it remains unclear whether apelin could play a protective role in protecting the endothelium in the OA meniscus. In this study, with the advantages of single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) data, in combination with flow cytometry, we identified two endothelial subclusters in the meniscus, featured by high expression of Homeobox A13 (HOXA13) and Ras Protein-Specific Guanine Nucleotide Releasing Factor 2 (RASGRF2), respectively. Compared with control patients, both subclusters decreased in absolute cell numbers and exhibited downregulated APJ endogenous ligand (APLN, coding for apelin) and upregulated apelin receptor (APLNR, coding apelin receptor). Furthermore, we confirmed that in OA, decreased endothelial cell numbers, including both subclusters, were related to intrinsic apoptosis factors: one more relevant to caspase 3 (CASP3) and the other to BH3-Interacting Domain Death agonist (BID). In vitro culturing of meniscal endothelial cells purified from patients proved that apelin could significantly inhibit apoptosis by downregulating these two factors in endothelial cell subclusters, suggesting that apelin could potentially serve as a therapeutic target for patients with OA.
Apatinib and Ginsenoside-Rb1 Synergetically Control the Growth of Hypopharyngeal Carcinoma Cells
Authors: Li YanWei , He Feng , Zhang Yu , Pan ZhanYu
Published: January 2022

Background. Apatinib is an anticancer drug known to inhibit the vascular endothelial growth factor receptor-2 (VEGFR-2) through regulating tyrosine kinases. Drug resistance and reduced activity in various cancers is the matter of great concern; thus, researchers opt to use combination of the two or more drugs. So far, its gynergetic anticancer role with a traditional Chinese drug Ginsenoside-Rb1 (G-Rb1) has not been studied in cancers including hypopharyngeal carcinoma. Objective. The current study is aimed at investigating the anticancer synergetic effects of G-Rb1 and apatinib in hypopharyngeal carcinoma. Methods. The synergetic effects of both drugs on cell proliferation, wound healing and cell migration, and cell apoptosis were studied in hypopharyngeal carcinoma cells. Furthermore, the xenograft rat model was generated, and tumor inhibition was monitored after treating rats with both drugs as mono- and combination therapy. In addition, protein expression and localization were performed by western blotting and immunofluorescent staining, respectively. Results. The analyses of the data showed that combination therapy of apatinib and G-Rb1 significantly inhibited the proliferation, migration, and wound healing capability of hypopharyngeal carcinoma cells. Moreover, the glycolysis rate of the cells in the combination therapy (apatinib and G-Rb1) group was significantly decreased as compared to that in the monotherapy group or no treatment group, suggesting that the glycolysis inhibition led to the inhibition of tumor growth. Moreover, the combination therapy on xenograft rats dramatically reduced the tumor size. Furthermore, combination therapy also exhibited an increased count of CD3+ and CD4+ T cells, as well as the ratio between CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Conclusion. Interestingly, a combination of apatinib and G-Rb1 induced more tumor cell apoptosis and reduced cell proliferation than the individual drug treatment and promote antitumor immunity by enhancing immunomodulatory molecules. Thus, we believe that this study could serve as a valuable platform to assess the synergetic anticancer effects of the herbal as well as synthetic medicines.
Thrombotic vs. Bleeding Events of Interruption of Dual Antiplatelet Therapy within 12 Months among Patients with Stent-Driven High Ischemic Risk Definition following PCI
Authors: Wang Hao-Yu , Xu Bo , Song Chen-Xi , Guan Chang-Dong , Xie Li-Hua , Zhao Yan-Yan , Cai Zhong-Xing , Yuan Sheng , Dou Ke-Fei
Published: January 2022

Background. There is a paucity of real-world data regarding the clinical impact of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) interruption (temporary or permanent) among patients at high ischemic risk. The aim of this study was to assess the risk of cardiovascular events after interruption of DAPT in high-risk PCI population. Methods. This study used data from the Fuwai PCI registry, a large, prospective cohort of consecutive patients who underwent PCI. We assessed 3,931 patients with at least 1 high ischemic risk criteria of stent-related recurrent ischemic events proposed in the 2017 ESC guidelines for focused update on DAPT who were free of major cardiac events in the first 12 months. The primary ischemic endpoint was 30-month major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events, and the key safety endpoints were BARC class 2, 3, or 5 bleeding and net adverse clinical events. Results. DAPT interruption within 12 months occurred in 1,122 patients (28.5%), most of which were due to bleeding events or patients’ noncompliance to treatment. A multivariate Cox regression model, propensity score (PS) matching, and inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) based on the propensity score demonstrated that DAPT interruption significantly increased the risk of primary ischemic endpoint compared with prolonged DAPT (3.9% vs. 2.2%; Cox-adjusted hazard ratio (HR): 1.840; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.247 to 2.716; PS matching-HR: 2.049 [1.236–3.399]; IPTW-adjusted HR: 1.843 [1.250–2.717]). This difference was driven mainly by all-cause death (1.8% vs. 0.7%) and MI (1.3% vs. 0.5%). Furthermore, the rate of net adverse clinical events (4.9% vs. 3.2%; Cox-adjusted HR: 1.581 [1.128–2.216]; PS matching-HR: 1.639 [1.075–2.499]; IPTW-adjusted HR: 1.554 [1.110–2.177]) was also higher in patients with DAPT interruption (≤12 months), whereas no significant differences between groups were observed in terms of BARC 2, 3, or 5 bleeding. These findings were consistent across various stent-driven high-ischemic risk subsets with respect to the primary ischemic endpoints, with a greater magnitude of harm among patients with diffuse multivessel diabetic coronary artery disease. Conclusions. In patients undergoing high-risk PCI, interruption of DAPT in the first 12 months occurred infrequently and was associated with a significantly higher adjusted risk of major adverse cardiovascular events and net adverse clinical events. 2017 ESC stent-driven high ischemic risk criteria may help clinicians to discriminate patient selection in the use of long-term DAPT when the ischemic risk certainly overcomes the bleeding one.
COVID‐19 Pandemic and Periodontal Practice: The Immunological, Clinical, and Economic Points of View
Authors: Darestani Meshkat Naeimi , Akbari Amir , Yaghobee Siamak , Taheri Mina , Akbari Solmaz
Published: January 2022

The recent global health problem, COVID‐19, has had far‐reaching impacts on lifestyles. Although many effective WHO‐approved vaccines have been produced that have reduced the spread and severity of the disease, it appears to persist in humans for a long time and possibly forever as everyday it turns out to have new mutations. COVID‐19 involves the lungs and other organs primarily through cytokine storms, which have been implicated in many other inflammatory disorders, including periodontal diseases. COVID‐19 is in a close association with dental and periodontal practice from two respects: first, repeated mandatory lockdowns have reduced patient referrals to dentists and limited the dental and periodontal procedures to emergency treatments, whereas it is important to recognize the oral manifestations of COVID‐19 as well as the influence of oral and periodontal disease on the severity of COVID‐19. Second, dentistry is one of the high‐risk professions in terms of close contact with unmasked individuals, necessitating redefining the principles of infection control. The pressures of the economic recession on patients as well as dentists add to the difficulty of resuming elective dental services. Therefore, this study is divided into two parts corresponding to what mentioned above: the first part examines the clinical and immunological associations between COVID‐19 and periodontal and oral diseases, and the second part delineates the measures needed to control the disease transmission in dental clinics as well as the economic impact of the pandemic era on dental services.
Blame the Message Senders Not the Messenger: The Defence Case of the English “Native Speaker” Teacher
Authors: Alqahtani Muneer Hezam
Published: January 2022

This article investigates how “native speaker” teachers define who a “native speaker” is and how they view themselves in relation to the concept. It further explores how they feel about discriminatory practices in employability and the pay gap that are systemically carried out against their “nonnative speaker” counterparts by recruiters. Data were gathered from 10 English language teachers: five males and five females from the UK, Canada, Ireland, and South Africa, who were hired by a state university in Saudi Arabia on the basis that they are “native speakers.” The findings show that although the place of birth and the official status of English in a given country were the main defining criteria for hiring a “native speaker,” the interviewees did not view the concept of the “native speaker” in the same ways as their recruiters did, who they believed used those criteria in an overly simplistic and reductive way rooted in native-speakerism. The findings also show that the participants did not enjoy the unjustified privileges given to them by their recruiters at the expense of their “non-native speaker” colleagues. Instead, in some cases, they attempted to confront their recruiters over such discriminatory practices, and in some others, they attempted to bridge the gap and ease the tension between themselves and their “nonnative speaker” counterparts, although these efforts were hindered by the system’s unfair and unjust practices.
Risk Factors of Stunting and Wasting among Children Aged 6–59 Months in Household Food Insecurity of Jima Geneti District, Western Oromia, Ethiopia: An Observational Study
Authors: Yazew Tamiru
Published: January 2022

Undernutrition is the most difficult and widespread public health concern in low-income nations including Ethiopia. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the associated risk factors of stunting and wasting among children aged 6–59 months in Jima Geneti district, Western Oromia, Ethiopia. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 500 children from December 1 to 28, 2020. A multiple-stage sampling method was performed to select children from each kebele. Anthropometric measurements were taken, and the nutritional status was generated using WHO Anthro v. 3.2.1. Data analysis was performed using the SPSS version 20.0. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were carried out to identify the associated risk factors of stunting and wasting among children in the study area. Statistical significance was set at

p
<
0.05

. The study results showed that the prevalence of stunting and wasting among children was 27% and 11.8%, respectively. The findings of this study also revealed that the prevalence of household food insecurity and poor dietary diets was 19.6% and 52.2%, respectively. Low wealth status (AOR = 2.5; 95% CI: 1.1, 5.55) and poor dietary diets (AOR = 4.7; 95% CI: 2.5, 8.83) were associated risk factors for stunting. However, child meal frequency (AOR = 3.9; 95% CI: 1.23, 12.6), and children who did feed leftover food (AOR = 2.75; 95% CI: 1.02, 7.44) were associated risk factors for wasting. Poor dietary diets (AOR = 2.65; 95% CI: 1.06, 6.66) were also associated risk factors for wasting. The findings of this study concluded that the prevalence of stunting and wasting was high in the study area. Therefore, addressing family-level risk factors which are major drivers of children’s nutritional status is crucial to ensure the nutritional status of children.
Selective Chelating Resin for Copper Removal and Recovery in Aqueous Acidic Solution Generated from Synthetic Copper-Citrate Complexes from Bioleaching of E-waste
Authors: Suwannahong Kowit , Sripirom Jiyapa , Sirilamduan Chadrudee , Thathong Vanlop , Kreetachart Torpong , Panmuang Piyapat , Deepatana Anat , Punbut Suphot , Wongcharee Surachai
Published: January 2022

This research focused on batch experiment using a new generation of chelating resins via an ion exchange process to describe the metabolic adsorption and desorption capacity onto iminodiacetic acid/Chelex 100, bis-pyridylmethyl amine/Dowex m4195, and aminomethyl phosphonic/Lewatit TP260 functional groups in bioleaching. The results showed that Dowex m4195 had the highest performance of adsorption capacity for copper removal in both H+-form and Na+-form. Results for Lewatit TP260 and Chelex 100 revealed lower adsorption performance than results for Dowex m4195. The investigation of desorption from chelating resins was carried out, and it was found that 2 M ammonium hydroxide concentration provided the best desorption capacity of about 64.86% for the H+-form Dowex m4195 followed by 52.55% with 2 M sulfuric acid. Lewatit with 2 M hydrochloric acid gave the best desorption performance in Na+-form while Chelex 100 using hydrochloric at 1 M and 2 M provided similar results in terms of the H+-form and Na+-form. As aspects of the selective chelating resins for copper (II) ions in aqueous acidic solution generated from synthetic copper-citrate complexes from bioleaching of e-waste were considered, H+-form Dowex m4195 was a good performer in adsorption using ammonium hydroxide for the desorption. However, chelating resins used were subsequently reused for more than five cycles with an acidic and basic solution. It can be concluded from these results that selective chelating resins could be used as an alternative for the treatment of copper (II) ions contained in e-waste or application to other divalent metals in wastewater for sustainable water and adsorbent reuse as circular economy.
Qiguiyin Decoction Improves Multidrug‐Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa Infection in Rats by Regulating Inflammatory Cytokines and the TLR4/MyD88/NF‐κB Signaling Pathway
Authors: Chen Guochao , Zhang Wanqiao , Kong Lingbo , Wang Chengxiang , Lai Xiaojing , Yu Xue , Guo Yuying , Wu Jun , Ma Qun
Published: January 2022

Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA), a Gram‐negative bacterium, has a high detection rate in hospital‐acquired infections. Recently, the frequent appearance of multidrug‐resistant (MDR) PA strain with high morbidity and mortality rates has aggravated the difficulty in treating infectious diseases. Due to its multiple resistance mechanisms, the commonly used antibiotics have gradually become less effective. Qiguiyin decoction (QGYD) is a clinically experienced prescription of Chinese herbal medicine, and its combined application with antibiotics has been confirmed to be effective in the clinical treatment of MDR PA infection, which could be a promising strategy for the treatment of drug‐resistant bacterial infections. However, the mechanism of QGYD restoring antibiotics susceptibility to MDR PA remains unclear. In the present study, we investigated the effects of QGYD and levofloxacin (LEV) singly or in combination on MDR PA‐induced pneumonia rat models. Further analysis was carried out in the serum differential expression profiles of inflammatory cytokines by cytokine antibody array. Besides, the lung TLR4/MyD88/NF‐κB signaling pathway was detected by RT‐qPCR. Our results showed that based on the treatment of MDR PA‐infected rat model with LEV, the combination of QGYD improved the general state and immune organ index. Furthermore, it moderately increased the expressions of proinflammatory cytokines including IL‐1β, IL‐6, and TNF‐α in the early stage of infection and decreased their release rapidly in the later stage, while regulated the same phase change of anti‐inflammatory cytokine IL‐10. In addition, the adhesion molecule ICAM‐1 was significantly downregulated after QGYD combined with LEV treatment. Moreover, the mRNA expressions of TLR4, MyD88, NF‐κB, and ICAM‐1 were significantly downregulated. These results indicated that the mechanism of QGYD restoring LEV susceptibility to MDR PA was related to its regulation of inflammatory cytokines and the TLR4/MyD88/NF‐κB signaling pathway, which provides theoretical support for the clinical application of QGYD combined with LEV therapy to MDR PA infection.
Research on Teaching Practice of Blended Higher Education Based on Deep Learning Route
Authors: Li Yang , Zhang Lijing , Tian Yuan , Qi Wanqiang
Published: January 2022

This paper establishes a hybrid education teaching practice quality evaluation system in colleges and constructs a hybrid teaching quality evaluation model based on a deep belief network. Karl Pearson correlation coefficient and root mean square error (RMSE) indicators are used to measure the closeness and fluctuation between the effective online teaching quality evaluation results evaluated by this method and the actual teaching quality results. The experimental results show the following: (1) As the number of iterations increases, the fitting error of the DBN model decreases significantly. When the number of iterations reaches 20, the fitting error of the DBN model stabilizes and decreases to below 0.01. The experimental results show that the model used in this method has good learning and training performance, and the fitting error is low. (2) The evaluation correlation coefficients are all greater than 0.85, and the root mean square error of the evaluation is less than 0.45, indicating that the evaluation results of this method are similar to the actual evaluation level and have small errors, which can be effectively applied to online teaching quality evaluation in colleges and universities.
Digital Image Art Style Transfer Algorithm Based on CycleGAN
Authors: Fu Xuhui
Published: January 2022

With the continuous development and popularization of artificial intelligence technology in recent years, the field of deep learning has also developed relatively rapidly. The application of deep learning technology has attracted attention in image detection, image recognition, image recoloring, and image artistic style transfer. Some image art style transfer techniques with deep learning as the core are also widely used. This article intends to create an image art style transfer algorithm to quickly realize the image art style transfer based on the generation of confrontation network. The principle of generating a confrontation network is mainly to change the traditional deconvolution operation, by adjusting the image size and then convolving, using the content encoder and style encoder to encode the content and style of the selected image, and by extracting the content and style features. In order to enhance the effect of image artistic style transfer, the image is recognized by using a multi-scale discriminator. The experimental results show that this algorithm is effective and has great application and promotion value.
Reconstruction of Polyhalite Ore-Formed Temperature from Late Middle Pleistocene Brine Temperature Research in Kunteyi Playa, Western China
Authors: Li Jun , Li Wenxia , Miao Weiliang , Tang Qiliang , Li Yongshou , Yuan Xiaolong , Hai Qingyu , Du Yongsheng , Zhang Xiying
Published: January 2022

Kunteyi Salt Lake (KSL), located in the northwest of the Qaidam Basin (QB), is rich in polyhalite resources. However, there is no relevant research on the ore-formed temperature of polyhalite in nature, such as KSL. The homogenization temperature (

T

h

) of salt mineral inclusions can directly reveal the form temperature of minerals. In view of the poor diagenesis of polyhalite in KSL, almost no polyhalite crystals are formed. Therefore, the ore-formed temperature of polyhalite in KSL is revealed by using the

T

h

of fluid inclusions in halite associated with polyhalite as a substitute index. A total of 472

T

h

data from 34 halite samples and 34 maximum homogenization temperature (

T

hMAX

) data ranged from 17.1°C to 35.5°C, among which 24 data were concentrated at 17-23°C and the average value is 22.1°C. Brine temperature of other salt lakes in QB and paleoclimate characteristics of the study area were combined. It suggests that the temperature conditions of polyhalite mineralization in the study area are generally low. However, under the overall low-temperature background, polyhalite seems to be easily enriched at relatively high temperature; for example, the content of polyhalite is generally high in the first relatively dry and hot salt-forming period, and the brine temperature at the peak stage of polyhalite at 45 m is relatively high, which indicates that the high temperature conditions promote the formation of polyhalite in KSL. As far as the overall relationship between temperature and polyhalite is concerned, polyhalite is deposited at both low temperature and relatively high temperature, which verifies the previous understanding that polyhalite is a mineral with wide temperature phase, and also shows that temperature has a limited effect on polyhalite formation under natural conditions. In addition, combined with the chemical composition of halite fluid inclusions, it is found that the concentration of Mg2+ in nature has an influence on the temperature measurement process. According to the previous experimental research, speculate that the actual temperature of ancient brine and ore-formed temperature of polyhalite in KSL are lower than the measured

T

h

. The confirmation of the influence of Mg2+ on temperature measurement is convenient for more accurate reconstruction of the metallogenic temperature of evaporite such as polyhalite. The research on the ore-formed temperature of KSL polyhalite enriches and perfects the polyhalite mineralization theory and provides theoretical basis for the basic and applied research of polyhalite.
Ensemble Classifiers for Arabic Sentiment Analysis of Social Network (Twitter Data) towards COVID-19-Related Conspiracy Theories
Authors: Al-Hashedi Abdullah , Al-Fuhaidi Belal , Mohsen Abdulqader M. , Ali Yousef , Gamal Al-Kaf Hasan Ali , Al-Sorori Wedad , Maqtary Naseebah
Published: January 2022

Sentiment analysis has recently become increasingly important with a massive increase in online content. It is associated with the analysis of textual data generated by social media that can be easily accessed, obtained, and analyzed. With the emergence of COVID-19, most published studies related to COVID-19’s conspiracy theories were surveys on the people's sentiments and opinions and studied the impact of the pandemic on their lives. Just a few studies utilized sentiment analysis of social media using a machine learning approach. These studies focused more on sentiment analysis of Twitter tweets in the English language and did not pay more attention to other languages such as Arabic. This study proposes a machine learning model to analyze the Arabic tweets from Twitter. In this model, we apply Word2Vec for word embedding which formed the main source of features. Two pretrained continuous bag-of-words (CBOW) models are investigated, and Naïve Bayes was used as a baseline classifier. Several single-based and ensemble-based machine learning classifiers have been used with and without SMOTE (synthetic minority oversampling technique). The experimental results show that applying word embedding with an ensemble and SMOTE achieved good improvement on average of F1 score compared to the baseline classifier and other classifiers (single-based and ensemble-based) without SMOTE.
One in a Million: A Case Report of Stiff Person Syndrome
Authors: Yadav Ruchi , Abrol Neeraj , Terebelo Sima
Published: January 2022

Stiff person syndrome (SPS) is a rare autoimmune disease caused by lack of inhibition to excitatory neurotransmitters in the central nervous system (CNS) leading to inappropriate motor unit firing. The pathophysiology is incompletely understood; however, high titers of antiglutamic acid decarboxylase antibody (anti-GAD Ab) are strongly associated with this disease. We present a 50-year-old woman with a history of ongoing gait and balance issues for 5 years with multiple negative workups. She recently had an acute exacerbation which left her bedbound, unable to move her legs or turn from side to side. After a negative workup at an outside hospital, the patient was discharged to a subacute rehabilitation facility. She then presented to our institution due to worsening of her condition and was ultimately diagnosed with SPS which was successfully treated. We review the case presentation and treatment options in the context of a severe disabling disease presentation.
[Retracted] Analysis of Brand Visual Design Based on Collaborative Filtering Algorithm
Authors: Chaomeng Gao , Yonggang Wang
Published: January 2022

With the continuous development of China’s social economy, the competitiveness of brand market is gradually increasing. In order to improve their own level in brand building, major enterprises gradually explore and study visual communication design. Brand visual design has also received more and more attention. Building a complete and rich visual design system can improve the brand level and attract users to consume. Based on the abovementioned situation, this paper proposes to use collaborative filtering algorithm to analyze and study brand visual design. Firstly, a solution is proposed to solve the problem of low accuracy of general recommendation algorithm in brand goods. Collaborative filtering algorithm is used to analyze the visual communication design process of enterprise brand. Research on personalized image design according to consumers’ trust and recognition of brand design is conducted. In traditional craft brand visual design, we mainly study the impact of image design on consumer behavior. The brand loyalty model is used to predict and analyze the visual design effect. Also, the user’s evaluation coefficient is taken as the expression of brand visual design recognition. Finally, the collaborative filtering algorithm is optimized to improve the consumer similarity based on the original algorithm. The results show that the brand visual design using collaborative filtering algorithm can help enterprises obtain greater benefits in their own brand construction. It provides effective data help in the development of traditional craft brands.
Caffeic Acid Prevents Vascular Oxidative Stress and Atherosclerosis against Atherosclerogenic Diet in Rats
Authors: Wang Ying , Kaur Gurpreet , Kumar Manish , Kushwah Ajay Singh , Kabra Atul , Kainth Ritu
Published: January 2022

Diet and lifestyle play a crucial role in the progress of some cardiovascular disorders (CVDs). Rising interest in natural products and their pharmacological investigations witnessed therapeutic potential against CVDs. Caffeic acid (CA) is an organic composite hydroxycinnamic acid derivative classified among phenolics. It is a secondary metabolite biosynthesized in all plant species in the form of ester conjugates. The reported pharmacological activities of CA are neuroprotective, cardioprotective, hypoglycemic, antioxidant, and immunomodulatory properties. This work is aimed to examine the outcome of CA in atherogenic diet- (Ath-) induced rat model on lipid profile changes and endothelium function. The method involves a study duration of 35 days utilizing (n = 6) male Wistar rats (180–200 g) that were fed either normal chow or Ath. Study groups are given (i) normal chow diet, (ii) Ath, (iii) Ath + CA (25 or 50 mg/kg, p.o.), (iv) normal chow diet + CA (50 mg/kg, p.o.), and (v) Ath + Atorvastatin (ATORVA) (5 mg/kg, p.o.). Blood samples were collected at the end of the study to measure serum lipid profile, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, lactate dehydrogenase, and tissue oxidative stress level. Hemodynamic parameters and aorta staining were performed. CA treatment ameliorated lipid profile and significantly reduced the oxidative stress level. Aorta staining examination revealed a marked reduction of the atherosclerotic lesions. These findings suggested that CA is an effective treatment approach for preventing atherosclerotic lesion progression attributed to protection against oxidative stress and various enzymatic activities in the Ath model.
Agroecology Is Affecting Village Chicken Producers’ Breeding Objective in Ethiopia
Authors: Tilahun Minyahel , Mitiku Mosa , Ayalew Wondossen
Published: January 2022

This study assessed factors that determine village chicken producers’ trait preferences in different agroecologies of Ethiopia. Three hundred and eighty village chicken producers were sampled for individual interviews. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical techniques. Inbreeding coefficients of chicken populations in the three major agroecologies were estimated. In addition, the multivariate regression model was employed to evaluate the degree to which agroecological difference and socioeconomic and institutional factors impact village chicken producers’ trait preferences. Egg and meat production for consumption and income generation were the three major village chicken production functions in the study. Plumage color and weight were ranked first for male and female chicken, respectively. Red plumage color (52.4%) was the primary choice followed by white color (24.5%). Agroecology and livestock holding (TLU) significantly (

P
<
0.05

) affected farmers’ preference toward economic traits, while land holding significantly (

P
<
0.05

) affected reproductive traits. Distance to market significantly (

P
<
0.05

) affected farmers’ preference toward adaptive traits. The inbreeding coefficient of 0.25, 0.23, and 0.06 was recorded in low, mid, and highland agroecologies, respectively. The agroecological difference is affecting village chicken producers’ breeding objective in Ethiopia. A higher inbreeding coefficient was observed in the low and mid agroecologies. Future breed improvement programs should give due consideration to village chicken producers’ socioeconomic characteristics and agroecological differences.
Racial, Ethnic, and Sex Disparities in Nail Psoriasis Clinical Trials: A Systematic Review
Authors: Ricardo Jose W. , Qiu Yuqing , Lipner Shari R.
Published: January 2022

Introduction: Nail psoriasis (NP) disproportionally affects quality of life in females versus males. Demographics of NP research cohorts are not well characterized. In this systematic review, we characterize the representation of racial/ethnic groups and women in NP randomized clinical trials (RCTs). Methods: A systematic search of MEDLINE was performed; RCTs of NP pharmacologic treatments or cutaneous psoriasis/psoriatic arthritis with the number of NP patients described were included. Results: Overall, 45 RCTs were analyzed, with 91.1% reporting sex, and 67.9% of participants were men. 7/41 (17%) studies reporting sex included ≥45% female participants. Of 45 RCTs, 35.6% reported race and/or ethnicity. Of the 22 studies with ≥1 US-based site, 13 (59%) reported race/ethnicity; 3 out of 23 (13%) studies with <1 US-based site reported these data. Enrollment of nonwhite participants was significantly lower than representation within the US census (13.4% vs. 39.9%; p < 0.001). Treatment type, route of administration, location with ≥1 US-based site, funding, and journal type were significantly associated with race/ethnicity reporting (p < 0.05 all comparisons). Discussion/Conclusion: Reporting of racial/ethnic demographics is lacking in NP RCTs. Women and racial/ethnic minorities remain underrepresented in NP research. There is a need for increased reporting and diversification of NP clinical trial participants.
Retropubic TFS Minisling for Postprostatectomy Male Incontinence: First Report
Authors: Muctar Sidi , Ende David , Petros Peter
Published: January 2022

Hypothesis: A structurally sound puboprostatic ligament (PPL), like the pubourethral ligament in the female, is the core structure for control of stress urinary incontinence (SUI) in males. Methods: The hypothesis was tested at several levels. Twelve transperineal ultrasound examinations were performed to confirm reflex directional closure vectors around the PPL, with digital support for the PPL rectally and cadaveric testing with a tissue fixation system (TFS) minisling, and finally, 22 cases of postprostatectomy incontinence were addressed only with retropubic insertion of a 7-mm TFS sling between the bladder neck and perineal membrane to reinforce the PPL. Results: On ultrasound testing, 3 urethral closure muscles were confirmed to act reflexively around the PPL to close the urethra distally and at the bladder neck. A finger was inserted rectally, pressed against the symphysis only on one side of the urethra at the origin of the PPL that controlled urine loss on coughing. The mean pre-op pad loss was 3.8 pads at 9 months; the mean post-op loss was 0.7 pads; 13/22 (59%) patients were 100% improved; 7/22 (31%) improved >50% but <100%; 2/22 (9.1%) improved <50%. Conclusions: The 7-mm-wide TFS minisling is the first retropubic minisling for postprostatectomy urinary incontinence. It differs significantly from transobturator male operations surgically and in modus operandi. As in the female, reconstruction of the PPL alone was sufficient to cure/improve SUI, suggesting that preservation of the PPL is of critical importance during retropubic radical prostatectomy.
Clinical Utility of a Biomarker to Detect Contrast-Induced Acute Kidney Injury during Percutaneous Cardiovascular Procedures
Authors: Peabody John , Paculdo David , Valdenor Czarlota , McCullough Peter A. , Noiri Eisei , Sugaya Takeshi , Dahlen Jeffrey R.
Published: January 2022

Introduction: Contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) is a major clinical complication of percutaneous cardiovascular procedures requiring iodinated contrast. Despite its relative frequency, practicing physicians are unlikely to identify or treat this condition. Methods: In a 2-round clinical trial of simulated patients, we examined the clinical utility of a urine-based assay that measures liver-type fatty acid-binding protein (L-FABP), a novel marker of CI-AKI. We sought to determine if interventional cardiologists’ ability to diagnose and treat potential CI-AKI improved using the biomarker assay for 3 different patient types: pre-procedure, peri-procedure, and post-procedure patients. Results: 154 participating cardiologists were randomly divided into either control or intervention. At baseline, we found no difference in the demographics or how they identified and treated potential complications of AKI, with both groups providing less than half the necessary care to their patients (46.4% for control vs. 47.6% for intervention, p = 0.250). The introduction of L-FABP into patient care resulted in a statistically significant improvement of 4.6% (p = 0.001). Compared to controls, physicians receiving L-FABP results were 2.9 times more likely to correctly identify their patients’ risk for AKI (95% CI 2.1–4.0) and were more than twice as likely to treat for AKI by providing volume expansion and withholding nephrotoxic medications. We found the greatest clinical utility in the pre-procedure and peri-procedure settings but limited value in the post-procedure setting. Conclusion: This study suggests L-FABP as a clinical marker for assessing the risk of potential CI-AKI, has clinical utility, and can lead to more accurate diagnosis and treatment.
Effects of Dose Titration on Dipyridamole-Induced Headache: A Randomized, Double-Blind Clinical Trial
Authors: Kang Min Kyoung , Cha Jae-Kwan , Chang Dae-il , Kim Hyun Young , Chung Jong-Won , Jung Keun-Hwa , Hong Keun-Sik , Chang Jun Young , Rha Joung-Ho , Park Jong-Moo , Kim Byung-Kun , Lee Soo Joo , Park Man-Seok , Lee Kyung-Yul , Shin Dong-Ick , Yoon Byung-Woo
Published: January 2022

Purpose: The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of gradual dipyridamole titration and the incidence of dipyridamole-induced headache in patients with ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA). Methods: A randomized, double-blind, double-placebo, parallel group, phase 4 clinical trial (KCT0005457) was conducted between July 1, 2019, and February 25, 2020, at 15 medical centers in South Korea. The study included patients aged >19 years diagnosed with a noncardioembolic ischemic stroke or TIA within the previous 3 weeks. The participants were randomized 1:1:1 to receive Adinox® (aspirin 25 mg/dipyridamole 200 mg) and aspirin (100 mg) once daily for the first 2 weeks followed by Adinox® twice daily for 2 weeks (titration group), Adinox® twice daily for 4 weeks (standard group), and aspirin 100 mg once daily for 4 weeks (control group). The primary endpoint was incidence of headache over 4 weeks. The key secondary endpoint was mean cumulative headache. Results: Ninety-six patients were randomized into the titration (n = 31), standard (n = 32), and control (n = 33) groups. The titration and standard groups (74.1% vs. 74.2%, respectively) showed no difference in the primary endpoint. However, the mean cumulated headache was significantly lower in the titration group than in the standard group (0.31 ± 0.46 vs. 0.58 ± 0.51, p = 0.023). Further, adverse drug reactions were more common in the standard group than in the titration group (28.1% vs. 9.7%, respectively, p = 0.054), although not significantly different. Conclusion: The titration strategy was effective in lowering the incidence of cumulative dipyridamole-induced headache.
Borrelia Ocular Infection: A Case Report and a Systematic Review of Published Cases
Authors: Lindström Björn E. , Skogman Barbro H. , Lindström Annika K. , Tallstedt Leif , Nilsson Kenneth
Published: January 2022

Introduction: Lyme borreliosis can cause many diverse manifestations, also ocular disease where the diagnosis of ocular borreliosis is challenging. The primary aim was to report on the evidence of Borrelia spirochetes in the ocular tissue in presumed ocular borreliosis. Methods: A systematic review of pathological eye conditions was performed where Borrelia has been suspected in relevant ocular tissue, together with a case report of diagnosed uveitis with polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-confirmed Borrelia afzelii in the vitreous. The evidence for clinical and laboratory diagnosis was evaluated systematically. As a secondary aim, the treatment of ocular Borrelia infection was also evaluated for confirmed cases. Results: Thirteen includable studies were found, and after the removal of case duplicates, eleven unique cases were extracted. Apart from the present case report, 4 other cases reported strong evidence for the detection of B. spirochetes in ocular tissue. Four cases presented reasonable evidence for assumed detected Borrelia, while three additional cases showed only weak diagnostic credibility that Borrelia was detected. Conclusion: This systematic review, including all reported cases and our case report, supports evidence of ocular infection of Borrelia species. Furthermore, in case of suspicion of infection and seronegativity, it is justified to look for Borrelia in eye tissue samples. In addition, microscopy without using PCR is not sufficient to confirm the diagnosis of borreliosis on ocular tissue. In the articles studied, there was no unambiguous recommendation of treatment.
Is There a Prechordal Region and an Acroterminal Domain in Amphioxus?
Authors: Ferran José Luis , Irimia Manuel , Puelles Luis
Published: January 2022

This essay re-examines the singular case of the supposedly unique rostrally elongated notochord described classically in amphioxus. We start from our previous observations in hpf 21 larvae [Albuixech-Crespo et al.: PLoS Biol. 2017;15(4):e2001573] indicating that the brain vesicle has rostrally a rather standard hypothalamic molecular configuration. This correlates with the notochord across a possible rostromedian acroterminal hypothalamic domain. The notochord shows some molecular differences that specifically characterize its pre-acroterminal extension beyond its normal rostral end under the mamillary region. We explored an alternative interpretation that the putative extension of this notochord actually represents a variant form of the prechordal plate in amphioxus, some of whose cells would adopt the notochordal typology, but would lack notochordal patterning properties, and might have some (but not all) prechordal ones instead. We survey in detail the classic and recent literature on gastrulation, prechordal plate, and notochord formation in amphioxus, compare the observed patterns with those of some other vertebrates of interest, and re-examine the literature on differential gene expression patterns in this rostralmost area of the head. We noted that previous literature failed to identify the amphioxus prechordal primordia at appropriate stages. Under this interpretation, a consistent picture can be drawn for cephalochordates, tunicates, and vertebrates. Moreover, there is little evidence for an intrinsic capacity of the early notochord to grow rostralwards (it normally elongates caudalwards). Altogether, we conclude that the hypothesis of a prechordal nature of the elongated amphioxus notochord is consistent with the evidence presented.
The Multiple Contexts of Brain Scaling: Phenotypic Integration in Brain and Behavioral Evolution
Authors: Finlay Barbara L.
Published: January 2022

Understanding the adaptive functions of increasing brain size have occupied scientists for decades.  Here, taking the general perspective of the Extended Evolutionary Synthesis, the question of how brains change in size will be considered in two developmental frameworks. The first framework will consider the particular developmental mechanisms that control and generate brain mass, concentrating on neurogenesis in a comparative vertebrate context. The consequences of limited adult neurogenesis in mammals, and the dominating role of duration of neurogenesis for mammalian evolution will be discussed for the particular case of the teleost versus mammalian retina, and for paths of brain evolution more generally. The second framework examines brain mass in terms of life history, particularly the features of life history that correlate highly, if imperfectly, with brain mass, including duration of development to adolescence, duration of parental care, body and range size, and longevity. This covariation will be examined in light of current work on genetic causes and consequences of covariation in craniofacial bone groupings. The eventual development of a multivariate structure for understanding brain evolution which specifically integrates formerly separate layers of analysis is the ultimate goal.
Representaciones sociales sobre la migración haitiana en la escuela chilena
Authors: Campos-Bustos Juana Lorena Lorena
Published: January 2022

(analítico)Se parte de la siguiente pregunta: ¿cómo representan las y los escolares chilenos de educación básica de una escuela pública de Santiago a sus compañeras y compañeros migrantes haitianos? Se utiliza un enfoque cuantitativo que recurre a la encuesta como instrumento fundamental de estudio. Las variables examinadas son el género y el nivel escolar según la edad del estudiantado, dando como resultado, por un lado, que las estudiantes de género femenino y quienes cursan de 1º a 4º año básico tienden a representar socialmente al estudiantado haitiano de modo positivo y, por otro lado, que los estudiantes de género masculino y quienes cursan de 5º a 8º año básico tienden a generar representaciones prejuiciosas y desestimadas de las y los migrantes.
Palabras clave:  Representaciones sociales, migrante, educación intercultural, infancia.
What’s in a Seal?
Authors: Liebrenz Boris
Published: January 2022

It was only during the Ottoman period, beginning in 1517, that seals gained popularity in the Arab world as a means to document people’s interactions with books. Some seals came alone while others accompanied handwritten notes. Some spelled out their purpose clearly through formulations such as “min kutub”, “hāḏā mā waqafa” or the like; others contained only pious formulae and a name. But even the latter are generally assumed to denote ownership or endowment. In this article, I present the example of a seal that belonged to a judge in early Ottoman Egypt. I will argue that the seal did not denote ownership of the books on which it is found, and I will attempt to show that it was used by its owner in the process of an inventory of Cairo’s endowed libraries. I will also discuss what this insight could mean for interpreting the history of books and collections through seals.
Sociogeographic correlates of typological variation in northwestern Bantu gender systems
Authors: Verkerk Annemarie , Di Garbo Francesca
Published: January 2022

This paper investigates the sociolinguistic factors that impact the typology and evolution of grammatical gender systems in northwestern Bantu, the most diverse area of the Bantu-speaking world. We base our analyses on a typological classification of 179 northwestern Bantu languages, focusing on various instances of semantic agreement and their role in the erosion of gender marking. In addition, we conduct in-depth analyses of the sociolinguistics and population history of the 17 languages of the sample with the most eroded gender systems. The sociohistorical factors identified to explain these highly eroded systems are then translated into a set of explanatory variables, which we use to conduct extensive quantitative analyses on the 179 language sample. These variables are population size, longitude, latitude, relationship with the Central African rainforest, and border with Ubangi/Central Sudanic languages. All these measures are relevant, with population size and bordering with Ubangi/Central Sudanic being the most robust factors in accounting for the distribution of gender restructuring. We conclude that fine-tuned variable design tailored to language and area-specific ecologies is crucial to the advancement of quantitative sociolinguistic typology.