bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Social Relationships and Turnover: A Multidisciplinary Review and Integration
Authors: Jo Jinhwan , Ellingson Jill E.
Published: March 2019

Although there has been a notable increase in research on the effect of social relationships on turnover across different disciplines, including management, sociology, communication, applied psychology, corporate strategy, and economics over the past two decades, this stream of research has not been complied into a thorough and theoretically insightful review. In this article, we review and integrate the literature on social relationships and turnover by (a) defining social relationships broadly; (b) taking an interdisciplinary approach; (c) examining relational components embedded in turnover theories; (d) summarizing findings on the association between behavioral, structural, and psychological features of social relationships and turnover; (e) explaining how the findings can contribute to extant turnover theories; (f) discussing operationalizations of social relationships; (g) identifying limitations of prior research and theories; and (h) providing directions for future research. Our review charts what is known and unknown about the association between social relationships and turnover with the goal of laying out a path for moving forward.
Identity Fusion and the Use of Force: A Group-Psychological Explanation for Support of Military Interventions
Authors: Theys Marissa , Krueger James S. , Pedraza Francisco I.
Published: March 2019

Under what circumstances will the public support military intervention in other countries? Recent answers have focused on the importance of identity and attachment to one’s nation to explain variation in public support. We posit that some segments of the public are more willing than others to support military action even when there is perceived risk due to a psychological attachment to veterans. We distinguish kinship, geographic, and psychological forms of propinquity and argue that the psychological attachment of an individual to a group drives disparate attitudes about military force when their group is threatened. Using a unique national data set, we examine public attitudes across a range of hypothetical and actual military interventions and find that psychological attachment, measured using identity fusion, helps to explain the pattern of support across interventions. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of our findings on the use of force literature.
A Content Analysis of Personal Safety Apps: Are They Keeping Us Safe or Making Us More Vulnerable?
Authors: Maxwell L. , Sanders A. , Skues J. , Wise L.
Published: March 2019

Despite personal safety apps claiming to increase safety, few studies have examined the usefulness of such apps in reducing public stranger violence. A content analysis of personal safety apps available in the iTunes store and Google Play identified location-based services, personal alarms, crowd-sourced hot spot data, and geofencing as the most common features. The majority of apps offered interventions either at the time of the event or post-event, suggesting that they may reduce a user’s fear of crime but have limited usefulness in reducing vulnerability to victimization. Implications for users, app designers, and key stakeholders are discussed.
Prevalence of diabetes and diabetic macular edema in patients undergoing senile cataract surgery in Italy: The DIabetes and CATaract study
Authors: Panozzo Giacomo , Staurenghi Giovanni , Dalla Mura Giulia , Giannarelli Diana , Alessio Giovanni , Alongi Salvatore , Appolloni Romolo , Baldascino Antonio , Boscia Francesco , Caporossi Aldo , Cereda Matteo , D’Ugo Erminia , Fallico Matteo , Avitabile Teresio , Galan Alessandro , La Spina Carlo , Lo Giudice Giuseppe , Mastropasqua Leonardo , Palmisano Carmela , Panico Claudio , Parravano Maria Cristina , Penna Rachele , Pintore Pierpaolo , Vaiano Agostino , Reibaldi Michele , Rizzo Stanislao , Rossi Tommaso , Varano Monica , Virgili Gianni
Published: March 2019

Background:

The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence of diabetes and diabetic macular edema in patients undergoing senile cataract surgery in Italy.

Methods:

It is a prospective, multicenter, cross-sectional study. Thirteen ophthalmic units equally distributed across the Italian territory have been involved in the study. For a period of 3 months, all subjects undergoing phacoemulsification received an Optical Coherence Tompgraphy (OCT) scan and were screened for the anamnestic presence of diabetes. In addition, five selected units collected blood samples from all their patients to measure glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels and detect the presence of occult diabetes (HbA1c > 6.5%). In diabetic patients, levels of retinopathy were measured and diabetic macular edema was considered significant (clinically significant macular edema) when foveal thickness was above 30% of normal levels.

Results:

A total number of 3657 subjects have been screened. Among them, 20.4% were diabetics. Prevalence of diabetes was significantly higher in males (24.7%) than in females (17%). Levels of HbA1c were tested in a representative sample of 1216 consecutive subjects, and occult diabetes was diagnosed in 4.8% of cases. No significant differences were observed between age groups or different geographic areas. Among diabetic patients, diabetic macular edema of any kind was present in 27.5% (clinically significant macular edema (6.6%)). No significant differences were seen in the prevalence of diabetic macular edema between males and females or between age groups. Among the 745 diabetic patients, no signs of retinopathy were seen in 537 subjects (76.3%), while 101 patients (14.3%) had nonproliferative retinopathy, 13 (1.7%) had nontreated proliferative diabetic retinopathy, and 53 (7.5%) had laser-treated retinopathy. In the entire sample of 3657 subjects, a normal macula was present in 90.9% of cases, diabetic macular edema of any kind in 5.4%, and other maculopathies in 3.4%.

Conclusion:

In this large cohort study on patients undergoing cataract surgery, more than one-fourth were diabetics and more than one-fourth of these had diabetic macular edema. These high prevalences suggest the opportunity to plan an adequate preoperative assessment in all patients in order to reduce the risk of postoperative development or worsening of a sight-threatening complication such as chronic diabetic macular edema.
Trochanteric spurs and surface irregularities on plain radiography are not predictive of greater trochanteric pain syndrome
Authors: Barrett Matthew C , Robertson-Waters Eve E , Whitehouse Michael R , Blom Ashley W , Berstock James R
Published: March 2019

Purpose:

Surface irregularities of the greater trochanter have been described as a potential radiographic sign of greater trochanteric pain syndrome (GTPS). We report a diagnostic accuracy study to evaluate the clinical usefulness of trochanteric surface irregularities on plain radiographs in the diagnosis of GTPS.

Methods:

We retrospectively identified the anteroposterior pelvic radiographs of a consecutive group of 38 patients (representing a 27.5% series prevalence) diagnosed with GTPS (mean age 69.5 years ± 16.1 [standard deviation], 27 females, 11 males) based on clinical symptoms and a positive response to a local anaesthetic and steroid injection. A control group consisted of 100 patients (mean age 73 years ± 17.1 [standard deviation], 67 females, 33 males) with either hip osteoarthritis listed for hip arthroplasty ( n = 50), or with an intracapsular neck of femur fracture ( n = 50) both presenting between January and July 2017. Radiographs were cropped to blind observers to the presence of hip osteoarthritis or intracapsular fracture but included the trochanteric region. The radiograph sequence was randomised and separately presented to 3 orthopaedic surgeons to evaluate the presence of trochanteric surface irregularities.

Results:

The inter-observer correlation coefficient agreement was acceptable at 0.75 (95% CI, 0.60–0.84). Trochanteric surface irregularities including frank spurs protruding ⩾2 mm were associated with a 24.7% positive predictive value, 64.0% sensitivity, 25.7% specificity, 74.3% false-positive rate, 36.0% false-negative rate, and a 65.3% negative predictive value for clinical GTPS.

Conclusion:

Surface irregularities of the greater trochanter are not reliable radiographic indicators for the diagnosis of greater trochanteric pain syndrome.
Clinically Relevant Biomarker Discovery in High-Risk Recurrent Neuroblastoma
Authors: Utnes Peter , Løkke Cecilie , Flægstad Trond , Einvik Christer
Published: March 2019

Neuroblastoma is a pediatric cancer of the developing sympathetic nervous system. High-risk neuroblastoma patients typically undergo an initial remission in response to treatment, followed by recurrence of aggressive tumors that have become refractory to further treatment. The need for biomarkers that can select patients not responding well to therapy in an early phase is therefore needed. In this study, we used next generation sequencing technology to determine the expression profiles in high-risk neuroblastoma cell lines established before and after therapy. Using partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) with least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) and leave-one-out cross-validation, we identified a panel of 55 messenger RNAs and 17 long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) which were significantly altered in the expression between cell lines isolated from primary and recurrent tumors. From a neuroblastoma patient cohort, we found 20 of the 55 protein-coding genes to be differentially expressed in patients with unfavorable compared with favorable outcome. We further found a twofold increase or decrease in hazard ratios in these genes when comparing patients with unfavorable and favorable outcome. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) revealed that these genes were involved in proliferation, differentiation and regulated by Polycomb group (PcG) proteins. Of the 17 lncRNAs, 3 upregulated ( NEAT1, SH3BP5-AS1, NORAD) and 3 downregulated lncRNAs ( DUBR, MEG3, DHRS4-AS1) were also found to be differentially expressed in favorable compared with unfavorable outcome. Moreover, using expression profiles on both miRNAs and mRNAs in the same cohort of cell lines, we found 13 downregulated and 18 upregulated experimentally observed miRNA target genes targeted by miR-21, -424 and -30e, -29b, -138, -494, - 181a, -34a, -29b, respectively. The advantage of analyzing biomarkers in a clinically relevant neuroblastoma model system enables further studies on the effect of individual genes upon gene perturbation. In summary, this study identified several genes, which may aid in the prediction of response to therapy and tumor recurrence.
Management education from episteme to phronesis: The contribution of French didactic theory
Authors: Hahn Corinne , Vignon Christophe
Published: March 2019

In this article, we review some of the criticisms levelled at current management education provided by business schools and the recommendations made by critical management studies scholars. These authors generally recommend placing greater emphasis on phronesis, that is, the manager’s practical wisdom. We investigated this path and formulated a practical solution, rooted in the operational framework provided by French didactic theory. It takes the form of a specific pedagogical device, the aim of which is to foster closer connections between experience acquired in professional settings and theoretical knowledge derived from management sciences. We describe our theoretical framework and explain its potential contributions to management education, and then we present the implementing steps of our device. We illustrate these steps through the main elements of a process carried out by a group of students in a European business school. We present some of the observations we made over a 3-year period experimenting with this device. We conclude by outlining the axes that we consider essential in designing this type of device.
Verba volant, scripta manent? Intra-party politics, party conferences, and issue salience in France
Authors: Ceron Andrea , Greene Zachary
Published: March 2019

Intra-party groups influence parties’ policy priorities. However, scholars have yet to map the pathways with the greatest impact. We argue that party congresses serve as venues for decision-making, allowing speeches and motions to support differing priorities. Considering parties’ internal process, we propose that deliberations and alternate motions independently affect resulting policy statements. We examine this perspective focusing on meetings of the French Socialist Party. We use Structural Topic Models to analyze the issues included in 74 motions, 1439 speeches, and 9 manifestos from congresses held between 1969 and 2015 to evaluate whether factional motions or individual speeches better reflect the content of manifestos and to assess the internal agenda-setting process. Results suggest that motions better predict the content of parties’ manifestos. However, when focusing solely on majority faction, we find that both motions and speeches predict manifestos’ contents. This supports a theory of intra-party decision-making and factional dominance.
Relating mindfulness and executive function in children
Authors: Geronimi Elena M C , Arellano Brenda , Woodruff-Borden Janet
Published: March 2019

Despite the important role of cognitions in mindful awareness, research on the cognitive processes underlying mindfulness in young populations is scarce. This study explores the association between the core executive functions (i.e. inhibition, working memory, and shifting) and mindfulness within the same model in a sample of children. Seventy-two parent–child dyads participated in the study. Difficulties with executive functioning and child mindfulness level were assessed. Inhibition, working memory, and shifting were significantly correlated with mindfulness. Furthermore, moderate to good fit was found in a model testing the association between mindfulness and the latent executive function variable composed by the three executive functions, and individual executive functions demonstrated significant loadings in relation to the latent variable. In a model relating mindfulness to each individual executive function, mindfulness was uniquely associated with inhibition, working memory, and shifting. The application of current theoretical models of mindfulness to child populations and clinical implications are discussed.
Where to find accurate information on attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder? A study of scientific distortions among French websites, newspapers, and television programs
Authors: Ponnou Sébastien , Haliday Héloïse , Gonon François
Published: March 2019

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is the most frequent mental disorder among school-age children. This condition has given rise to a large mediatic coverage, which contributed to the shaping of the lay public’s perceptions. We therefore conducted two studies on the way attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder was portrayed in the TV programs and the lay-public press in France between 1995 and 2015, but the growing part played by the Internet required an additional study to analyze and compare the scientific material which is available to the French lay public depending on the source of information used. We studied the 50 first French websites dedicated to attention-deficit/hyperactivity as indexed by Google® search engine using a structured quantitative content analysis for the web. We illustrate our results with excerpts derived from the websites. The conceptions of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder available on the Internet are essentially biomedical and comprise an important level of scientific distortion. Findings concerning other mass media such as television programs and the press also demonstrate massive and systematic distortions caused by the role of experts and the pharmaceutical industry. Furthermore, the most consulted media present the highest level of scientific distortions.
‘The show of the people’ against the cultural elites: Populism, media and popular culture in Turkey
Authors: Özçetin Burak
Published: March 2019

This article explores the relationship between populism, media and popular culture in Turkey by focusing on a phenomenal historical television series, Diriliş: Ertuğrul, and the discursive spaces opened by the show. The author relies on a symptomatic analysis of populism which conceptualizes the term as an anti-status quo discourse that simplifies the political space by symbolically dividing the society between ‘the people’ and its other, more specifically ‘the elites’. Diriliş is promoted by the Justice and Development Party ( Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi) elite and pro-government media as ‘the show of the people’, and as a cultural artifact belonging to the people. The show has been embraced as an alternative to morally degenerate cultural products of alienated Westernist/Kemalist cultural elites. The Justice and Development Party elites used every opportunity to incorporate the series into its populist political program. The article focuses on a specific crisis moment, ‘The Golden Butterfly Awards 2016’, and the ensuing debates to show how media discourse can resonate with the populist political discourse of a political party.
Tactics of the ‘Ugly Australian’: Morality, masculinity, nationalism and governance amid a cheating controversy in sport
Authors: Wade Matthew
Published: March 2019

Cricket occupies an ambivalent place in the Australian cultural imaginary, caught between former colonial origins and current pluralist aspirations, and retaining conservative leanings that can veer into ‘ugly assimilationism’. Elite representatives are variably celebrated as national icons or uneasy sources of collective identity, given tendencies to become ‘Ugly Australians’. Within the Australian cricket team, this combustive mix of nationalism, moralism, masculinity and instrumental deviance coalesced into a win-at-all-costs ethos, culminating in brazen cheating and causing apparent diplomatic embarrassment. More significant, however, were underlying strategies of self-confessedly brutal degradation of opponents. Strategic aggression and humiliation were abetted by governing bodies that demanded success but neglected to uphold ethical standards. Moral hazards and regulatory gaps incentivized players to self-set ‘the line’ of acceptable conduct, enabling injurious tactics that included intimidation, emasculation, mockery and mass invective. A complementary argument discusses populist posturing and moral hypocrisy that were emergent during the cheating scandal, for more worthy grievances languished amid the ‘crisis in cricket’.
Who will intervene to save news comments? Deviance and social control in communities of news commenters
Authors: Watson Brendan R , Peng Zhao , Lewis Seth C
Published: March 2019

Which bystanders will confront racist, misogynist, personal attacks in news comment sections? This article applies sociological concepts of deviance and social control to categorize efforts to moderate online news comments. Three dimensions of social control are theorized: affirming and sanctioning social control, formal and informal social control, and direct and indirect social control. Particular focus is on indirect informal social control (i.e. rating and reporting of news comments) in order to examine which users are likely to intervene to maintain social order. An analysis of secondary data from a survey of online news users found that demographics play an important role—younger, wealthier, White, males are most likely to report abusive comments. Trust in the news media and authoritarian personality traits also significantly predicted bystander intervention. Theoretical implications for the role of social control in enforcing social norms in news comment spaces and for professional comment moderation are discussed.
Wild camping and the weight of tourism
Authors: Rantala Outi , Varley Peter
Published: March 2019

Wild camping forms a specific social reality within which tourists often claim not to be tourists and within which the capitalist practices central to tourism are messy. Yet, wild camping exemplifies the core idea in tourism: engaging in time during which time is ‘free’. Here the concern is with the ways in which we ‘do’ going camping. We take material interaction with space, place and things as a starting point, via ethnomethodologically informed ethnography, in focusing upon the deployment of mundane, taken-for-granted assumptions, knowledge and practices. We find urban nomads engaged in the clearing, freedom and escape of the outdoors (the lightness), but anchored by the materialities of doing everyday life work, weighted with responsibilities towards nature, things and people.
Test4HepC: Promoting Hepatitis C Testing to Baby Boomers Using Social Media
Authors: Plant Aaron , Snow Emerald G. , Montoya Jorge A. , Young Sean , Javanbakht Marjan , Klausner Jeffrey D.
Published: March 2019

Individuals born between 1945 and 1965 (“baby boomers”) account for an estimated three quarters of all hepatitis C (HCV) infections in the United States. This article describes the evaluation of Test4HepC, a program that uses social media and a website to promote HCV testing to baby boomers in Los Angeles County, California. The first 16 months of Test4HepC were evaluated using an online survey (n = 302), qualitative interviews (n = 20), website and social media analytics, and records of free testing offered though the program. Test4HepC.org had 6,919 visitors; 48 individuals used the free testing offered. Within 1 month of visiting the website, 24.5% (74) of survey participants tested for HCV, 67.6% (50) received a negative HCV antibody test result, 2.7% (2) received a positive HCV antibody test result, and 25.7% (19) had not received their results as of taking the survey. Most of those not tested (60.5%) reported intention to test. In multivariable analysis, male sex and high perceived usefulness of the program website were associated with HCV testing. Qualitative interviews suggested that Test4HepC increased baby boomers’ HCV risk perception and encouraged testing. Social media is a promising strategy for promoting HCV testing to baby boomers. Expanding Test4HepC to other areas and prioritizing the highest risk baby boomers could enable many people with HCV to benefit from new treatments.
Comprehensive Analysis of Driver Genes in Personal Genomes of Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma
Authors: Li Jin , Guo Liping , Chai Li , Ai Zisheng
Published: March 2019

Aim:

To characterize personal driver genes in clear cell renal cell carcinoma independent of somatic mutation frequencies.

Methods:

Personal cancer driver genes were predicted by Integrated CAncer GEnome Score in 417 patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma using 26 786 somatic mutations from The Cancer Genome Atlas, followed by an integrated investigation on personal driver genes.

Results:

A total of 233 personal driver genes were determined by Integrated CAncer GEnome Score. The coexpression network analysis found 5 coexpressed modules. The blue module was significantly negatively correlated with all 5 clinical features, including cancer stage, lymph node metastasis, distant metastasis, age, and survival status (death). CTNNB1, TGFBR2, KDR, FLT1, and INSR were the hub genes in the blue module. The expression of 79 personal driver genes was significantly associated with clinical outcomes of patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma.

Conclusions:

The set of personal driver genes sheds insights into the tumorigenesis of clear cell renal cell carcinoma and paves the way for developing personalized medicine for clear cell renal cell carcinoma.
Motorized Jacquard technology for multilayer weaving damages study and reduction: Shed profile and close shed profile
Authors: Decrette Mathieu , Osselin Jean-François , Drean Jean-Yves
Published: March 2019

Materials used for composite reinforcements usually have high mechanical performances which are linked to a very sensitive and brittle behaviour to friction. The weaving process applied to delicate yarns, like glass, carbon and some other technical yarns, generate damages which tend to reduce the performances of the final composite. Shedding may be a major weaving stage for the generation of yarn damages. Based on a specific weaving pattern, it was observed that different shedding configurations could influence yarn damages at the shedding step. The specificity of the motorized Jacquard device is used to generate different movements and geometry configurations. A particular methodology needed to be set in order to confirm these observations and bring out a clear effect of shedding parameters on yarn damages. After damages have been identified and classified, some experiments will count the damage occurrences and evolutions in time according to shedding parameters. The aim of this research is first to show a clear effect of shedding on warp damaging thanks to the quantification of damages and then to set out an optimized configuration of shedding parameters which may reduce deterioration involved in high-density multilayer woven fabrics.
A Comparison of 6 Diagnostic Tests for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Using Latent Class Analysis
Authors: Wang William L. , Hanson Timothy , Fowler John R.
Published: March 2019

Background: Nerve conduction studies (NCS), ultrasonography (US), Carpal Tunnel Syndrome 6 (CTS-6), Wainner, Lo, and Kamath are clinical diagnostic tools that can be used to diagnose carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS). Latent class analysis (LCA) is a proven statistical technique that can be used to evaluate diagnostic tests in a lack of a reference standard. Given that there is no accepted reference standard, we elected to perform an LCA to evaluate the 6 clinical diagnostic tests. Methods: One hundred eighty-seven wrists were prospectively evaluated by a board-certified hand surgeon using US, the CTS-6, Wainner, Lo, and Kamath. The NCS were performed by an electrophysiologist according to the standards of the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine. The LCA was performed to evaluate individual performance and pairwise combinations of the tests. Results: The NCS demonstrated the highest estimated sensitivity of 97%, and the Wainner had the highest estimated specificity of 97%. Alternatively, the Lo had the lowest estimated sensitivity (36%), and NCS had the lowest estimated specificity (40%). When evaluating pairwise combinations, positive US and NCS demonstrated the highest overall sensitivity at 86%, and negative US and NCS had a specificity of 83%. Conclusions: There is no perfect clinical diagnostic test, with the 6 clinical diagnostic tests having differing sensitivities and specificities. Pairwise combinations of the test can be used to complement one another.
Brassica nigra and Curcuma longa Compounds Affecting Interactions Between Spodoptera exigua and Its Natural Enemies Cotesia flavipes and Podisus maculiventris
Authors: Tavares Wagner de Souza , Legaspi Jesusa Crisostomo , de Castro Ancidériton Antonio , Fouad Hany Ahmed , Haseeb Muhammad , Meagher Robert L. , Kanga Lambert H.B. , Zanuncio José Cola
Published: March 2019

The interaction Spodoptera exigua Hübner (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) × its natural enemies Cotesia flavipes Cameron (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) and Podisus maculiventris Say (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae) × botanical compounds with and without synergist is unknown; therefore, it was studied under controlled conditions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the direct mortality of P. maculiventris nymphs and adults and indirect by this predator feeding on S. exigua larvae treated after being exposed to parasitism by C. flavipes. Brassica nigra L. (Brassicales: Brassicaceae) and Curcuma longa L. (Zingiberales: Zingiberaceae) compounds, with and without lead (II) oxide (PbO), were tested as insecticides. The mortality of first and second instars P. maculiventris was high with turmeric essential oil by topical application. The PbO increased the predator mortality in combination with turmeric powder, crude essential oil, and ar-turmerone. This last derivative caused also the highest mortality of P. maculiventris nymphs when ingested through treated S. exigua larvae that were previously subjected to parasitism. Turmeric powder and its derivatives, with and without PbO, should not be used in areas with P. maculiventris due to the high mortality caused to this predator.
Clinicopathological and molecular differences in colorectal cancer according to location
Authors: Hsu Yu-Lun , Lin Chun-Chi , Jiang Jeng-Kai , Lin Hung-Hsin , Lan Yuan-Tzu , Wang Huann-Sheng , Yang Shung-Haur , Chen Wei-Shone , Lin Tzu-Chen , Lin Jen-Kou , Lin Pei-Ching , Chang Shih-Ching
Published: March 2019

Purpose:

The incidence, pathogenesis, molecular pathways, and outcomes of colorectal cancer vary depending on the location of the tumor. This study aimed to compare the difference in tumor characteristics and the outcome between right-sided colon cancer and left-sided colorectal cancer (LCRC).

Materials and methods:

A total of 1503 patients with colorectal cancer who underwent surgery at the Taipei Veterans General Hospital between 2000 and 2010 were enrolled in this study. Right-sided colon cancer was defined as cancers in the cecum, ascending colon, and transverse colon, while LCRC was defined as cancers in the splenic flexure colon, descending colon, sigmoid colon, and rectum. The endpoint was overall survival. The mutations were detected via polymerase chain reaction and MASS array. The prognostic value was determined using the log-rank test and the Cox regression analysis.

Results:

A total of 407 and 1096 cases were classified as right-sided colon cancer and LCRC, respectively. Compared to patients with LCRC, those with right-sided colon cancer had more mucinous type cancer (7.4% vs. 3.5%), poorly differentiated tumor (11.5% vs. 3.6%), and advanced tumor-node-metastasis stage. The risk for peritoneal tumor seeding was higher in the right-sided colon cancer group (12.8% vs. 5.7%). Overall survival was better in LCRC than in right-sided colon cancer ( P=0.036).

Conclusions:

In our study, right-sided colon cancer had a more advanced tumor stage, a higher risk of peritoneal metastasis, and a poorer outcome than LCRC. Moreover, right-sided colon cancer had more gene mutations in BRAF, KRAS, SMAD4, TGF-β, PIK3CA, PTEN, AKT1, and high microsatellite instability.
Prognostic roles of microRNA 143 and microRNA 145 in colorectal cancer: A meta-analysis
Authors: Li Chenyao , Yan Guoqiang , Yin Libin , Liu Tao , Li Chao , Wang Lei
Published: March 2019

Background:

A systematic analysis was conducted to clarify the relationship between miR-143/145 and the prognosis of colorectal cancer.

Materials and methods:

We searched four databases: PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library. We extracted and estimated the hazard ratios for survival outcomes, which compared low and high expression levels of miR-143/145 in colorectal cancer patients in the available studies. Each individual hazard ratio was used to calculate the pooled hazard ratio.

Results:

A total of 17 articles including 5128 patients were ultimately included. The results showed that there was no significant difference between low expression and high expression of miR-143 in the overall survival of colon cancer patients. However, low expression of miR-143 was significantly associated with high event-free survival (hazard ratio (HR) 0.6; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.40, 0.88). Low expression of miR-145 was associated with poor prognosis of patients (HR 1.92; 95% CI 1.45, 2.54); those with low expression of miR-145 were at 1.92-fold higher risk for short-term overall survival than those with high expression of miR-145. MiR-145 was an unfavorable factor for the prognosis of colorectal cancer. There were no significant differences between low expression of miR-145 and high expression of miR-143 in event-free survival.

Conclusion:

miR-143 and miR-145 have promising prognostic value for colorectal cancer. Low expression of miR-143 can predict high event-free survival, and low expression of miR-145 can predict poor overall survival.
Correlation between PNPLA3 rs738409 polymorphism and hepatocellular carcinoma: a meta-analysis of 10,330 subjects
Authors: Huang Zongsheng , Guo Xianwen , Zhang Guo , Liang Liexin , Nong Bing
Published: March 2019

Purpose:

The correlation between patatin-like phospholipase domain-containing protein 3 ( PNPLA3) rs738409 polymorphism and hepatocellular carcinoma was investigated by several pilot studies, but the results of these studies were controversial. Therefore, we performed this study to better assess the relationship between PNPLA3 rs738409 polymorphism and the likelihood of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Methods:

Eligible studies were searched in PubMed, Medline, EMBASE, and Web of Science. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to assess the relationship between PNPLA3 rs738409 polymorphism and hepatocellular carcinoma.

Results:

A total of 17 studies with 10,330 participants were analyzed. A significant association with the likelihood of hepatocellular carcinoma was detected for the PNPLA3 rs738409 polymorphism in dominant ( P = 0.0001; OR 0.66; 95% CI 0.53, 0.82), recessive ( P < 0.0001; OR 2.32; 95% CI 1.76, 3.06) and allele ( P < 0.0001; OR 0.64; 95% CI 0.53, 0.77) comparisons. Further subgroup analyses revealed that the PNPLA3 rs738409 polymorphism was significantly associated with the likelihood of hepatocellular carcinoma in Caucasians (dominant model: P < 0.0001, OR 0.57, 95% CI 0.45, 0.71; recessive model: P < 0.0001, OR 2.74, 95% CI 2.02, 3.71; allele model: P < 0.0001, OR 0.56, 95% CI 0.46, 0.67). However, no positive results were detected in Asians.

Conclusions:

Our findings indicated that the PNPLA3 rs738409 polymorphism may serve as a potential biological marker of hepatocellular carcinoma in Caucasians.
Associated measurement of fucosylated levels of AFP, DCP, and GPC3 for early diagnosis in hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Wu Min , Liu Zhaobo , Zhang Aiying , Li Ning
Published: March 2019

Background:

Hepatocellular carcinoma is a serious health problem worldwide, especially in Asian countries, such as China. However, there are difficulties in diagnosing and treating hepatocellular carcinoma. The alteration of fucosylated proteins was closely associated with carcinogenesis. This study is designed to evaluate the early diagnostic value of associated detection of fucosylated alpha-fetoprotein (fuc-AFP), fucosylated des-γ-carboxy prothrombin (fuc-DCP), and fucosylated glypican 3 (fuc-GPC3) in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Methods:

All serum specimens collected from patients were diagnosed by complete clinicopathological examination and then subjected to the associated detection of fuc-AFP, fuc-DCP, and fuc-GPC3 by protein microarray. Canonical discriminant analysis was adopted to discriminate between the hepatocellular carcinoma group and the benign liver disease group.

Results:

A total of 51 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and 47 patients in the benign liver disease group were included in this study. Fuc-AFP, fuc-DCP, and fuc-GPC3 were significantly higher in the hepatocellular carcinoma group than in the benign liver disease group. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of canonical discriminant analysis classification were 80.4%, 97.9%, and 88.8%, respectively.

Conclusions:

Fuc-AFP, fuc-DCP, and fuc-GPC3 are effective and useful tumor biomarkers. Associated measurement of these biomarkers with canonical discriminant analysis classification is a promising method for the early diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma.
β-Arrestin-1 expression and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in laryngeal carcinoma
Authors: Marioni Gino , Nicolè Lorenzo , Cappellesso Rocco , Marchese-Ragona Rosario , Fasanaro Elena , Di Carlo Roberto , La Torre Fabio Biagio , Nardello Ennio , Sanavia Tiziana , Ottaviano Giancarlo , Fassina Ambrogio
Published: March 2019

Aim:

The novel primary end-point of the present study was to ascertain β-arrestin-1 expression in a cohort of consecutive patients with laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) with information available on their cigarette-smoking habits. A secondary end-point was to conduct a preliminary clinical and pathological investigation into the possible role of β-arrestin-1 in the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), identified by testing for E-cadherin, Zeb1, and Zeb2 expression, in the setting of LSCC.

Methods:

The expression of β-arrestin-1, E-cadherin, zeb1, and zeb2 was ascertained in 20 consecutive LSCCs.

Results:

Statistical analysis showed no significant associations between β-arrestin-1 and EMT (based on the expression of E-cadherin, Zeb1, and Zeb2). The combined effect of nicotine and β-arrestin-1 was significantly associated with a shorter disease-free survival ( P=0.01) in our series of LSCC. This latter result was also confirmed in an independent, publicly available LSCC cohort ( P=0.047).

Conclusions:

Further investigations on larger series (ideally in prospective settings) are needed before we can consider closer follow-up protocols and/or more aggressive treatments for patients with LSCC and a combination of nicotine exposure and β-arrestin-1 positivity in tumor cells at the time of their diagnosis. Further studies on how β-arrestin functions in cancer via different signaling pathways might reveal potential targets for the treatment of even advanced laryngeal malignancies.
Clinicopathological and prognostic significance of metastasis-associated in colon cancer-1 in gastric cancer: A meta-analysis
Authors: Jin Yan , Zhou Kun , Zhao Wenjing , Han Rongbo , Huo Xinying , Yang Fen , Chen Jinfei
Published: March 2019

Background:

The gene metastasis-associated in colon cancer-1 (MACC1) has been reported to be overexpressed in diverse human malignancies, and an increasing amount of evidence suggests that its overexpression is associated with the development and progression of many human tumors. However, the prognostic and clinicopathological value of MACC1 in gastric cancer remains inconclusive. Therefore, we conducted this meta-analysis to investigate the effect of positive MACC1 expression on clinicopathological features and survival outcomes in gastric cancer.

Methods:

Medline, Web of Science, and EMBASE databases were searched for relevant articles published up to 10 April 2018. The correlation of MACC1 expression levels with overall survival and clinicopathological features was analyzed.

Results:

In this meta-analysis, nine studies with a total of 2103 gastric cancer patients were included. Our results showed that high expression of MACC1 was significantly related to a poor overall survival. Moreover, our meta-analysis showed that MACC1 overexpression was significantly linked to distant metastasis and vascular invasion. There were no significant correlations between positive MACC1 expression and gender, localization, tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage, tumor extent (T stage) and lymph node involvement (N stage)

Conclusions:

MACC1 expression levels can serve as a novel prognostic factor in gastric cancer patients.
Expression of long intergenic non-coding RNA, regulator of reprogramming, and its prognostic value in patients with glioblastoma
Authors: Toraih Eman A. , El-Wazir Aya , Hussein Mohammad H. , Khashana Moataz S. , Matter Amgad , Fawzy Manal S. , Hosny Somaya
Published: March 2019

Background:

Long intergenic non-coding RNA, regulator of reprogramming ( LINC-ROR) is a newly identified cytoplasmic long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), which has been found to be dysregulated in different cancers. The present work aimed to quantify LINC-ROR expression profile and assess the tumor proteins p53 and caspase 3 expressions in glioblastoma tissue specimens compared to non-cancer tissues, and to correlate these expression levels with the available clinicopathological and survival data.

Methods:

LINC-ROR relative expression in 57 glioblastoma cancer tissues and 10 non-cancer tissues was quantified by real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). In addition, methylation-specific PCR of O-6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase ( MGMT) promoter and immunohistochemical expression of apoptosis related proteins: p53 and caspase 3 were performed.

Results:

The up-regulation of LINC-ROR was encountered in 89.5% of patients. The higher expression of LINC-ROR was associated with poor disease progression-free and overall survival as well as a younger age of patients ( P=0.036). p53 protein was expressed only in glioblastoma but not in non-cancer tissues while caspase 3 was weakly expressed in most non-cancer tissues and in varying degrees in glioblastoma (24% weak, 30% moderate, and 16% strong expression). The Kaplan–Meier survival plot illustrated poor survival in glioblastoma patients with over-expressed LINC-ROR ( P=0.010) and down-regulated p53 ( P=0.002). Multivariate analysis showed that glioblastoma patients were clustered into two distinct groups based on LINC-ROR expression profile, p53 staining levels and patients’ overall survival.

Conclusions:

LINC-ROR up-regulation may have a role in glioblastoma tumorigenesis and could be a potential prognostic marker for this fatal disease.
Global citizenship education: The case of Equipo Pueblo’s Citizen Diplomacy Program in Mexico
Authors: Alejo Antonio
Published: March 2019

Globalization processes create the need to rethink how citizens participate in complex and interdependent societies. The purpose of this article is to understand how education-related non-governmental organizations in Americas are becoming increasingly transnational in a globalized world through the experience of Mexican non-governmental organization Equipo Pueblo. Following this purpose, I seek to contribute to the study of international education facing non-governmental organizations through activism involved in citizenship education. I argue that non-governmental organizations are potential agents for ordinary citizens to promote non-formal education by participation on global public arenas becoming an important non-formal learning experience beyond schools, which allows those citizens to acquire the necessary skills for effective participation in globalized policy processes. To give empirical evidence to my research, I analyze Equipo Pueblo’s Citizen Diplomacy Program and its influence repertoire that enable citizens’ participation in public spaces, as example of non-formal citizenship education in the context of global politics.
Hostage authorship and dirty hands: A reply to Tang
Authors: Bülow William , Helgesson Gert
Published: March 2019

In a recent paper published in this journal, we discussed a phenomenon that we referred to as ‘hostage authorship’. By this we meant a practice where an undeserving person X is included as author on a research paper as the result of a hostage-like situation, where the researchers of the article cannot proceed with their work unless conditions raised by X are fulfilled, including providing an authorship position on the paper. We proposed that this sort of situation occasionally resembles the ‘problem of dirty hands’ discussed in political science and political philosophy, and that researchers may sometimes be required to ‘get their hands dirty’ by accepting the request of X. Bor Luen Tang has raised a number of critical remarks to our account. In this paper we address his criticism and defend our original account.
Self-related shapes can hold the eyes
Authors: Dalmaso Mario , Castelli Luigi , Galfano Giovanni
Published: March 2019

Increasing evidence suggests that individuals are highly sensitive to self-related stimuli. Here, we report two experiments conducted to assess whether two schematic stimuli, arbitrarily associated with either the self or a stranger, can shape attention holding in an oculomotor task. In both experiments, participants first completed a manual matching task in which they were asked to associate the self and a stranger with two shapes (triangle vs. square). Then, in an oculomotor task, they were asked to perform a saccade from the centre of the screen towards a peripheral target while either the triangle or the square were centrally presented. In Experiment 1, saccades had to be performed on each trial—irrespective of the central shape—while in Experiment 2, saccades had to be performed only when the central shape was associated with either the self or the stranger, depending on block instruction. Participants were slower to initiate a saccade away from the central shape when this was associated with the self rather than with the stranger, but this pattern of results emerged only in Experiment 2. Overall, these data suggest that stimuli associated with the self through episodic learning can hold attention when the self/other distinction is a task-relevant dimension.
Test based safety-critical software reliability estimation using Bayesian method and flow network structure
Authors: Yang Yaguang
Published: March 2019

System safety is closely related to system reliability. Safety requirements many times are translated to reliability requirements. Nowadays, software systems exist in many engineering systems. However, there is no consensus method for software reliability estimation. On the contrary, there is an increasing interest in estimating the software reliability due to concerns for safety-critical systems. In this article, we try to close the gap by proposing a systematic and probabilistic method to estimate the software reliability based on software test data.
Influence of habitat composition on nestling body condition and breeding success in European Pied Flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca)
Authors: Glądalski Michał , Cyżewska Iwona , Bańbura Mirosława , Kaliński Adam , Markowski Marcin , Skwarska Joanna , Wawrzyniak Jarosław , Bańbura Jerzy
Published: March 2019

The vegetation structure surrounding nest sites is a crucial component of habitat quality and may have large effects on avian breeding performance. Habitat quality reflects the extent to which the environmental characteristics of an area correspond to the preferred habitat characteristics of the species. The concentration of haemoglobin is considered a simple biochemical indicator of nestling body condition. We present results concerning the effects of variation in habitat characteristics on the concentration of haemoglobin in the blood of 14-day-old nestlings and breeding success of European Pied Flycatchers ( Ficedula hypoleuca) in a mature mixed deciduous forest in central Poland. The haemoglobin concentration of nestlings was higher when there were more native oaks and deciduous, native trees on the territory. Breeding success was reduced by the number of alien oak (the Red Oak, Quercus rubra) and other alien deciduous trees, but increased by the number of native oaks in the territory. This study was conducted on only one site so further research is needed to examine the broader applicability of our results. Our data support the idea that haemoglobin concentration may serve as a simple indicator of body condition in nestlings and is useful in field ecophysiology studies of European Pied Flycatchers.
Insulin-Based Infusion System: Advancing the Development
Authors: Hashemi Nasseh , Valk Tim , Houlind Kim , Ejskjaer Niels
Published: March 2019

Background:

Deviations in glucose control in critical care have been shown to increase mortality and morbidity. However, optimal glucose control through present technologies has shown to be a challenge. The insulin balanced infusion system (IBIS) is a new and emerging technology.

Methods:

The closed loop system was tested in a stress trial to evaluate glucose stability in response to various conditions in nonrandomized people with type 1 diabetes mellitus (n=12). The prototype used in this trial was based on intermittent capillary measurements.

Results:

Induced stresses in the study using unpredicted stimuli of intravenous or oral glucose and intravenous insulin boluses, was contained with glucose remaining in target 43.8% of the time. Mean increase in glucose concentration after glucose load was 17.4 mg/dl; after insulin bolus, no hypoglycemia (blood glucose less than 70 mg/dl) occurred.

Conclusion:

The use of IBIS proved safe and feasible under a wide range of conditions. The sensing and stress response of the IBIS demonstrated noticeable features.