bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Depression from preschool to adolescence – five faces of stability
Authors: Morken Ida Sund , Viddal Kristine Rensvik , Ranum Bror , Wichstrøm Lars
Published: November 2020

Background

The term ‘stability’ has different meanings, and its implications for the etiology, prevention, and treatment of depression vary accordingly. Here, we identify five types of stability in childhood depression, many undetermined due to a lack of research or inconsistent findings.

Methods

Children and parents (n = 1,042) drawn from two birth cohorts in Trondheim, Norway, were followed biennially from ages 4–14 years. Symptoms of major depressive disorder (MDD) and dysthymia were assessed with the Preschool Age Psychiatric Assessment (only parents) and the Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Assessment (age 8 onwards).

Results

(a) Stability of form: Most symptoms increased in frequency. The symptoms’ importance (according to factor loadings) was stable across childhood but increased from ages 12–14, indicating that MDD became more coherent. (b) Stability at the group level: The number of symptoms of dysthymia increased slightly until age 12, and the number of symptoms of MDD and dysthymia increased sharply between ages 12–14. (c) Stability relative to the group (i.e., ‘rank‐order’) was modest to moderate and increased from ages 12–14. (d) Stability relative to oneself (i.e., intraclass correlations) was stronger than stability relative to the group and increased from age 12–14. (e) Stability of within‐person changes: At all ages, decreases or increases in the number of symptoms forecasted similar changes two years later, but more strongly so between ages 12–14.

Conclusions

Across childhood, while most symptoms of MDD and dysthymia become more frequent, they are equally important. The transition to adolescence is a particularly vulnerable period: The depression construct becomes more coherent, stability increases, the level of depression increases, and such an increase predicts further escalation. Even so, intervention at any time during childhood may have lasting effects on reducing child and adolescent depression.
Heterogeneous distribution of Fusobacterium nucleatum in the progression of colorectal cancer
Authors: Yamamoto Shumpei , Kinugasa Hideaki , Hirai Mami , Terasawa Hiroyuki , Yasutomi Eriko , Oka Shohei , Ohmori Masayasu , Yamasaki Yasushi , Inokuchi Toshihiro , Harada Keita , Hiraoka Sakiko , Nouso Kazuhiro , Tanaka Takehiro , Teraishi Fuminori , Fujiwara Toshiyoshi , Okada Hiroyuki
Published: November 2020

Background and Aim

Fusobacterium nucleatum (Fn) is involved in colorectal cancer (CRC) growth and is a biomarker for patient prognosis and management. However, the ecology of Fn in CRC and the distribution of intratumoral Fn are unknown.

Methods

We evaluated Fn and the status of KRAS and BRAF in 200 colorectal neoplasms (118 adenomas and 82 cancers) and 149 matched adjacent normal mucosas. The differentiation status between “surface” and “deep” areas of cancer tissue and matched normal mucosa were analyzed in 46 surgical samples; the Ki‐67 index was also evaluated in these samples.

Results

Fusobacterium nucleatum presence in the tumor increased according to pathological stage (5.9% [adenoma] to 81.8% [stage III/IV]), while Fn presence in normal mucosa also increased (7.6% [adenoma] to 40.9% [stage III/IV]). The detection rates of Fn on the tumor surface and in deep areas were 45.7% and 32.6%, while that of normal mucosa were 26.1% and 23.9%, respectively. Stage III/IV tumors showed high Fn surface area expression (66.7%). Fn intratumoral heterogeneity (34.8%) was higher than that of KRAS (4.3%; P < 0.001) and BRAF (2.2%; P < 0.001). The Ki‐67 index in Fn‐positive cases was higher than that in negative cases (93.9% vs 89.0%; P = 0.01).

Conclusions

Fusobacterium nucleatum was strongly present in CRC superficial areas at stage III/IV. The presence of Fn in the deep areas of adjacent normal mucosa also increased. The intratumoral heterogeneity of Fn is important in the use of Fn as a biomarker, as Fn is associated with CRC proliferative capacity.
Family Structure and Inequalities in Parents' Financial Investments in Children
Authors: Hastings Orestes P. , Schneider Daniel
Published: November 2020

Objective

This study examines family structure differences in parents' financial investments in children.

Background

Family structure in the United States is undergoing important change and continued stratification with increases in single parenting and cohabiting unions. These transformations in family demography have important implications for social mobility as theory and empirical research suggest family structure plays an important role in shaping children's life chances, in part through the differential financial investments that parents make for their children's development.

Method

Drawing from the 2003–2018 Consumer Expenditure Surveys, this study examined differences by family structure in parental financial investments in children's childcare, schooling, and enrichment activities using data on 44,930 households in 123,862 household‐quarters. The study compared differences between married, cohabiting, and single parents, and it tested the extent to which disparities in economic resources account for associations between family structure and financial investments in children.

Results

Single and cohabiting parents made smaller financial investments in children than married parents. Income explained the entire difference for single parents but about 60% of the gap for cohabiting parents. These gaps in expenditures by family structure were smallest among Hispanic households and largest among highly educated households.

Conclusion

This study shows that family structure is a source of familial inequalities in parental investments in children. Explanations for the lower levels of investment (compared with married parents) are different between single and cohabiting parents, which has implications for how to reduce these inequalities.
The Strength of Cross‐Language Interdependence for Listening Comprehension Proficiency in Turkish–Dutch Emergent Bilinguals: Testing Three Hypotheses
Authors: Sierens Sven , Van Gorp Koen , Slembrouck Stef , Van Avermaet Piet
Published: November 2020

This study aimed to test three competing hypotheses concerning the strength of the cross‐language relationship in listening comprehension proficiency in emergent bilinguals: Cummins's developmental linguistic interdependence hypothesis, Proctor, August, Snow, and Barr's interdependence continuum hypothesis, and Goodrich, Lonigan, Kleuver, and Farver's language independence hypothesis. We assessed 75 Turkish–Dutch bilingual children attending Dutch‐medium schools using a two‐wave design. This involved an assessment of sentence comprehension when the children were in preschool, followed by an assessment of their discourse comprehension in 1st grade. Correlational, multiple regression, and path analyses indicated significant positive and medium‐sized L1–L2 relationships between listening comprehension proficiency at the two points in time yet not over time. These findings were consistent with the developmental linguistic interdependence hypothesis for sentence comprehension and with the developmental linguistic interdependence and the language independence hypotheses for discourse comprehension. We advocate a multidimensional explanatory framework to explore the moderating role of type of skill in determining the strength of the cross‐language relationship.
A comparative protein profile of accessory glands of virgin and matedLeucinodes orbonalismales
Authors: Saraswathi Saraswathi , Bodampalli Sarvesh Chaitra , Kiran Tannavi , Ravindran Mamtha , Ramachandra Sowrabha , Rao Karthik V. , Doddamane Manjulakumari
Published: November 2020

Male accessory gland (MAG) secretory proteins affect female reproductive physiology and behaviour when they are delivered to the female at the time of mating along with sperm. In our study, proteomic approaches were used to identify MAG proteins ofLeucinodes orbonalis, a monophagous and destructive pest of brinjal. A set of 117 and 186 MAG spots were observed in virgin and mated males, respectively, using two‐dimensional gel electrophoresis (2D‐GE). Among the identified spots, 49 are unique to the virgin, whereas 118 are unique to mated MAGs, with 68 spots found to be common. The differentially expressed MAG proteins, 14 are up‐regulated, and 16 are down‐regulated in virgin after mating. We used matrix‐assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI)–mass spectrometry (MS) to identify the 13 unique proteins in the MAG of virginL. orbonalisand analysed the data of the Swiss‐Prot database using the Mascot search engine. The proteins were identified as proteolysis regulators, lipid transporters, olfactory proteins, metabolism‐related proteins, DNA‐binding proteins, and hexamerins. This is the first report on the gel‐based protein analysis ofL. orbonalisMAGs.
Emergency response with mobile geosocial sensing in the post‐app era
Authors: Yılankıran Feyzi Çelik , Guney Caner
Published: November 2020

Disaster and emergency management is inherently a spatial problem. In case of disaster, the use of real‐time location‐based social media posts within the spatial decision support processes has great potential so that resource distribution can be planned, damage areas can be determined, the amount of damage can be estimated, and evacuation and/or help routes can be defined. Crowdsourced data and collaborative platforms like OpenStreetMap and Twitter can be widely employed for near‐real‐time mapping to support emergency management. After a disaster occurs, the aim is to quickly assess and triage damage, injury, and loss of life, and respond with medicine, food, water, housing, and basic infrastructure. In the scope of the study, in a similar manner, a solution, called WITNER, is proposed, designed, and developed. The difference is that WITNER is a cloud‐native geo‐enabled solution. The value of WITNER lies in the fact that it acts only as a mediator in translating help requests posted on a social media platform into spatially readable form, while keeping original social media post requests intact and accessible. The main purpose of WITNER is to help more people and save more lives in case of emergency response, with the intention of preventing the same help request locations being concurrently targeted by multiple relief, search, and rescue efforts. Moreover, it reveals more viable and less costly help requests that might take less time for potential help providers to assist with.
HLA molecule expression on the surface of cells and microparticles in platelet concentrates
Authors: Pannetier Louise , Tamagne Marie , Bocquet Thibaut , Pirenne France , Ansart‐Pirenne Hélène , Vingert Benoît
Published: November 2020

Background

Platelet (PLT) transfusions are an essential treatment for bleeding disorders. However, immunologic complications can occur, including alloantibody production against Class I HLA molecules. The principal source of HLA molecules in PLT concentrates (PCs) is the PLTs themselves. However, extracellular microparticles (MPs) present in PCs may express HLA molecules.

Study Design and Methods

We used nanoscale flow cytometry to explore the expression of HLA‐A2, HLA‐B7, and HLA‐B57 on the surface of cells, PLT‐derived MPs (PMPs), lymphocyte‐derived MPs (LMPs), and monocyte‐derived MPs (MMPs) present in PCs. Expression was studied during 7 days of storage.

Results

Platelets were not the only source of HLA molecules in PCs. HLA molecules were present on PMPs, LMPs, and MMPs. The level of HLA Class I molecule expression varied between haplotypes and MPs of different origins and during storage.

Conclusion

Platelets or residual cells remaining after leukoreduction are not the only source of HLA Class I molecules in PCs, highlighting the contribution of MPs to alloimmunization mechanisms. These data may be relevant for the development of new transfusion guidelines.
Improved osseointegration using porcine xenograft compared to demineralized bone matrix for the treatment of critical defects in a small animal model
Authors: Jinnah Alexander H. , Whitlock Patrick , Willey Jeffrey S. , Danelson Kerry , Kerr Bethany A. , Hassan Omer A. , Emory Cynthia L. , Smith Thomas L. , Bracey Daniel N.
Published: November 2020

Background

Autograft (AG) is the gold standard bone graft due to biocompatibility, osteoconductivity, osteogenicity, and osteoinductivity. Alternatives include allografts and xenografts (XG).

Methods

We investigated the osseointegration and biocompatibility of a decellularized porcine XG within a critical defect animal model. We hypothesized that the XG will result in superior osseointegration compared to demineralized bone matrix (DBM) and equivalent immune response to AG. Critical defects were created in rat femurs and treated with XG, XG plus bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)‐2, DBM, or AG. Interleukin (IL)‐2 and IFN‐gamma levels (inflammatory markers) were measured from animal blood draws at 1 week and 1 month post‐operatively. At 1 month, samples underwent micro‐positron‐emission tomography (microPET) scans following 18‐NaF injection. At 16 weeks, femurs were retrieved and sent for micro‐computerized tomography (microCT) scans for blinded grading of osseointegration or were processed for histologic analysis with tartrate resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) and pentachrome.

Results

Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay testing demonstrated greater IL‐2 levels in the XG vs. AG 1 week post‐op; which normalized by 28 days post‐op. MicroPET scans showed increased uptake within the AG compared to all groups. XG and XG + BMP‐2 showed a trend toward increased uptake compared with DBM. MicroCT scans demonstrated increased osseointegration in XG and XG + BMP groups compared to DBM. Pentachrome staining demonstrated angiogenesis and endochondral bone formation. Furthermore, positive TRAP staining in samples from all groups indicated bone remodeling.

Conclusions

These data suggest that decellularized and oxidized porcine XG is biocompatible and at least equivalent to DBM in the treatment of a critical defect in a rat femur model.
The immune and circulatory systems are functionally integrated across insect evolution
Authors: Yan Yan , Hillyer Julián F.
Published: November 2020

Infection induces the migration of immune cells to the heart of insects.
The arches of chaos in the Solar System
Authors: Todorović Nataša , Wu Di , Rosengren Aaron J.
Published: November 2020

We have discovered an intricate ornamental structure of chaos that leads to very rapid transport for small Solar System bodies.
Comment on “Forest microclimate dynamics drive plant responses to warming”
Authors: Bertrand Romain , Aubret Fabien , Grenouillet Gaël , Ribéron Alexandre , Blanchet Simon
Published: November 2020

Zellweger
et al
. (Reports, 15 May 2020, p. 772) claimed that forest plant communities’ response to global warming is primarily controlled by microclimate dynamics. We show that community thermophilization is poorly explained by the underlying components of microclimate, and that global warming primarily controls the climatic lag of plant communities. Deconstructing the underlying components of microclimate provides insights for managers.
Protecting consumers from collusive prices due to AI
Authors: Calvano Emilio , Calzolari Giacomo , Denicolò Vincenzo , Harrington Joseph E. , Pastorello Sergio
Published: November 2020

Price-setting algorithms can lead to noncompetitive prices, but the law is ill equipped to stop it
Sequencing perturbed cortex development
Authors: Treutlein Barbara , Camp J. Gray
Published: November 2020

Single-cell genomics show promise for understanding neurodevelopmental disorders
Marine animal tracking with classical and emerging localization algorithms
Authors: Yoerger Dana R.
Published: November 2020

Localization algorithms applied to acoustic tags for tracking marine animals can also be used to localize marine robots.
Obesity induces gut microbiota alterations and augments acute graft-versus-host disease after allogeneic stem cell transplantation
Authors: Khuat Lam T. , Le Catherine T. , Pai Chien-Chun Steven , Shields-Cutler Robin R. , Holtan Shernan G. , Rashidi Armin , Parker Sarah L. , Knights Dan , Luna Jesus I. , Dunai Cordelia , Wang Ziming , Sturgill Ian R. , Stoffel Kevin M. , Merleev Alexander A. , More Shyam K. , Maverakis Emanual , Raybould Helen E. , Chen Mingyi , Canter Robert J. , Monjazeb Arta M. , Dave Maneesh , Ferrara James L. M. , Levine John E. , Longo Dan L. , Abedi Mehrdad , Blazar Bruce R. , Murphy William J.
Published: November 2020

Obesity and an altered gut microbiota are associated with worsened acute graft-versus-host disease outcomes in mice and humans.
Combination of metabolic intervention and T cell therapy enhances solid tumor immunotherapy
Authors: Hao Meixi , Hou Siyuan , Li Weishuo , Li Kaiming , Xue Lingjing , Hu Qifan , Zhu Lulu , Chen Yue , Sun Hongbin , Ju Caoyun , Zhang Can
Published: November 2020

A combination of metabolic reprogramming and T cell therapy via surface anchor-engineering results in improved efficacy of immunotherapy in solid tumors.
The metabolic foibles of triple negative breast cancer
Authors: Gallagher Emily J.
Published: November 2020

Metabolic profiling of triple-negative breast cancers may advance personalized therapies.
Modeling the impact of genetic heterogeneity on immunotherapy
Authors: Zervantonakis Ioannis
Published: November 2020

A panel of genetically engineered mouse models recapitulates genotype-driven responses to immunotherapy and uncovers a driver of immunotherapy resistance in ovarian cancer.
Electron Donor Cytochrome
b
5
Is Required for Hyphal Tip Accumulation of Sterol-Rich Plasma Membrane Domains and Membrane Fluidity in Aspergillus fumigatus
Authors: Zhang Chi , Ren Yiran , Gao Lu , Gu Huiyu , Lu Ling
Published: November 2020

Investigating the knowledge of the growth regulation in the human opportunistic pathogen
Aspergillus fumigatus
is conducive to designing a new antifungal approach. The electron donor cytochrome
b
5
(CybE) plays a crucial role in maintaining the normal growth of
A. fumigatus
; however, the potential mechanism remains elusive.
Elucidating Essential Genes in Plant-Associated Pseudomonas protegens Pf-5 Using Transposon Insertion Sequencing
Authors: Fabian Belinda K. , Foster Christie , Asher Amy J. , Elbourne Liam D. H. , Cain Amy K. , Hassan Karl A. , Tetu Sasha G. , Paulsen Ian T.
Published: November 2020

Essential genes are those crucial for survival or normal growth rates in an organism. Essential gene sets have been identified in numerous bacterial pathogens but only a few plant-associated bacteria.
Benefits Derived from Full Laboratory Automation in Microbiology: a Tale of Four Laboratories
Authors: Culbreath Karissa , Piwonka Heather , Korver John , Noorbakhsh Mir
Published: November 2020

Automation in clinical microbiology is starting to become more commonplace and reportedly offers several advantages over the manual laboratory. Most studies have reported on the rapid turnaround times for culture results, including times for identification of pathogens and their respective antimicrobial susceptibilities, but few have studied the benefits from a laboratory efficiency point of view.
Evaluation of Molecular Serotyping Assays for Shigella flexneri Directly on Stool Samples
Authors: Liu Jie , Pholwat Suporn , Zhang Jixian , Taniuchi Mami , Haque Rashidul , Alam Masud , Ochieng John Benjamin , Jones Jennifer A. , Platts-Mills James A. , Tennant Sharon M. , Houpt Eric
Published: November 2020

Shigella flexneri
is prevalent worldwide and is the most common
Shigella
species in many countries. At least 19
S. flexneri
serotypes exist, and serotype information is important for epidemiologic and vaccine development purposes.
Comparison of the Quidel Sofia SARS FIA Test to the Hologic Aptima SARS-CoV-2 TMA Test for Diagnosis of COVID-19 in Symptomatic Outpatients
Authors: Beck Eric T. , Paar Wendy , Fojut Lara , Serwe Jordan , Jahnke Renee R.
Published: November 2020

The Quidel Sofia severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) fluorescent immunoassay (FIA) test (SOFIA) is a rapid antigen immunoassay for the detection of SARS coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) proteins from nasal or nasopharyngeal swab specimens. The purpose of this study was to compare the results of the SOFIA test to those of the Hologic Aptima SARS-CoV-2 TMA test (APTIMA TMA), a high-throughput molecular diagnostic test that uses transcription-mediated amplification (TMA) for the detection of SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid from upper respiratory tract specimens.
Accidental sulfur mustard exposure from explosive ordnance in a UK military service person
Authors: Prescott Tim
Published: November 2020

Chemical warfare presents a continuing threat to military personnel as a result of both direct hostile action and the indirect exposure to chemical weapons that remain as a legacy from previous conflicts. This paper will discuss the presentation and medical management of an indirect exposure to sulfur mustard in a UK military service person.
Beyond survival: the broader consequences of prehospital transport by police for penetrating trauma
Authors: Jacoby Sara F , Branas Charles C , Holena Daniel N , Kaufman Elinore J
Published: November 2020

Background

Time to definitive hemorrhage control is a primary driver of survival after penetrating injury. For these injuries, mortality outcomes after prehospital transport by police and emergency medical service (EMS) providers are comparable. In this study we identify patient and geographic predictors of police transport relative to EMS transport and describe perceptions of police transport elicited from key stakeholders.

Methods

This mixed methods study was conducted in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which has the highest rate of police transport nationally. Patient data were drawn from Pennsylvania’s trauma registry and geographic data from the US Census and American Community Survey. For all 7500 adults who presented to Philadelphia trauma centers with penetrating injuries, 2006–2015, we compared how individual and geospatial characteristics predicted the odds of police versus EMS transport. Concurrently, we conducted qualitative interviews with patients, police officers and trauma clinicians to describe their perceptions of police transport in practice.

Results

Patients who were Black (OR 1.50; 1.20–1.88) and Hispanic (OR 1.38; 1.05–1.82), injured by a firearm (OR 1.58; 1.19–2.10) and at night (OR 1.48; 1.30–1.69) and who presented with decreased levels of consciousness (OR 1.18; 1.02–1.37) had higher odds of police transport. Neighborhood characteristics predicting police transport included: percent of Black population (OR 1.18; 1.05–1.32), vacant housing (OR 1.40; 1.20–1.64) and fire stations (OR 1.32; 1.20–1.44). All stakeholders perceived speed as police transport’s primary advantage. For patients, disadvantages included pain and insecurity while in transport. Police identified occupational health risks. Clinicians identified occupational safety risks and the potential for police transport to complicate the workflow.

Conclusions

Police transport may improve prompt access to trauma care but should be implemented with consideration of the equity of access and broad stakeholder perspectives in efforts to improve outcomes, safety, and efficiency.

Level of evidence

Epidemiological study, level III.
The effect of the amount, distribution, and end anchorage conditions of bond beam reinforcement on the behaviour of concrete masonry shear walls
Authors: Rizaee Samira , Lissel Shelley , Shrive Nigel G.
Published: November 2020

The behaviour of squat shape partially grouted concrete masonry shear walls with fixed-end boundary conditions subjected to constant average axial stress and cyclic lateral loading was investigated. Two replicas were tested of each combination of horizontal reinforcement ratio (0.12%, 0.06%, and 0.03%) and four end anchorage conditions (straight, 90°, 180°, and shear studs). The behaviour of the walls was compared in terms of strength, ductility, stiffness, and dissipated energy. While the effect of horizontal bar size was greater than that of end anchorage, neither improved end anchorage nor smaller bar size increased yielding at critical locations on the rebars. The highest course of the wall should be reinforced and grouted, as that improves performance of the walls. In addition, the amount of horizontal reinforcement did not significantly affect the strength of the shear walls, therefore changes to the shear design equations in the Canadian Standard are recommended.
A stochastic convolution integral inequality
Authors: Makasu Cloud
Published: November 2020

We prove a stochastic Gronwall lemma of the convolution type. Our results extend that of Scheutzow [A stochastic Gronwall lemma, Infin. Dimens. Anal. Quantum Probab. Relat. Top. 16 (2013) 1350019], and the related results established in the non-convolution case. The proofs of the present results are essentially based on the Métivier–Pellaumail inequality for semimartingales.
Personalized Retrieval in the Medical Domain: A NoSQL Solution Based on Ontology Building
Authors: Besbes Ghada , Ben Abdallah Ben Lamine Sana , Baazaoui-Zghal Hajer
Published: November 2020

Managing medical information in a Big Data context is a challenging task since searching for relevant information in a large volume of data needs advanced treatments. Medical data is a special type of data because it comes from different sources and in different formats and encapsulates medical knowledge. Personalized retrieval is necessary when it comes to medical data management. In fact, the patient’s medical record needs to be taken into account in order to offer relevant documents since it contains his/her medical history. The proposed approach offers an ontology building process based on the patient’s medical record. The built ontology is then used for personalized information retrieval as well as user similarity computation. The approach is composed of three layers: (1) Data layer, (2) Treatment layer and (3) Semantic layer and offers three treatments: (1) Ontology building, (2) Query reformulation and (3) User similarity computation. An application supporting all three layers has been implemented and it allowed an experimental evaluation of the proposal. The results show an improvement in the relevancy of returned medical documents.
Deep learning algorithms to segment and quantify the choroidal thickness and vasculature in swept-source optical coherence tomography images
Authors: Zheng Gu , Jiang Yanfeng , Shi Ce , Miao Hanpei , Yu Xiangle , Wang Yiyi , Chen Sisi , Lin Zhiyang , Wang Weicheng , Lu Fan , Shen Meixiao
Published: November 2020

Accurate segmentation of choroidal thickness (CT) and vasculature is important to better analyze and understand the choroid-related ocular diseases. In this paper, we proposed and implemented a novel and practical method based on the deep learning algorithms, residual U-Net, to segment and quantify the CT and vasculature automatically. With limited training data and validation data, the residual U-Net was capable of identifying the choroidal boundaries as precise as the manual segmentation compared with an experienced operator. Then, the trained deep learning algorithms was applied to 217 images and six choroidal relevant parameters were extracted, we found high intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) of more than 0.964 between manual and automatic segmentation methods. The automatic method also achieved great reproducibility with ICC greater than 0.913, indicating good consistency of the automatic segmentation method. Our results suggested the deep learning algorithms can accurately and efficiently segment choroid boundaries, which will be helpful to quantify the CT and vasculature.
The Invisible COVID-19 Small Business Risks
Authors: Tam Tracy , Rao Asha , Hall Joanne
Published: November 2020

COVID-19 forced small businesses globally to move their presence online to survive. Cyber-criminals have swiftly taken advantage of the chaos wrought by this move. Due to factors ranging from small businesses’ inexperience with technology to a global cyber-security skill shortage, policy-based solutions by governments are needed to help ensure that this vital sector in global economies does not fall victim to cyber-criminals. We propose and discuss three measures that governments can take to build up small business cyber-security resilience.
Estimating the Fatality Burden of SARS-CoV2
Authors: Smyth Barry
Published: November 2020

As the world struggles with the SARS-CoV2 pandemic, public health officials and governments continue to refine the key metrics that are used to capture and compare the state of the pandemic and the effects of responses within and between countries and regions. This work presents a novel fatality metric, the
COVID-19 burden
, which normalises SARS-CoV2 fatalities with respect to historical mortality rates over the same period of time. We argue that this measure provides an improved basis for comparing fatality rates between countries, and we present an analysis of this measure across 174 countries, using data up to November 15, 2020, to better understand the impact of the virus in different countries and regions.
Routing into parallel collision channels
Authors: Datar Mandar , Altman Eitan , Ferrat Ghilas
Published: November 2020

We study a Medium Access game modeled as a splittable atomic routing game in a parallel link topology. Each player has to decide how to split her traffic among the links. We take the expected loss probability of a player as her cost and consider various loss scenarios: 1) the M/M/1/1 queue in which an arrival that finds another packet in service is lost, 2) Losses occur as in 1, except that if arrival occurs when another packet is served, then both are lost. We furthermore assume that the packet in service is aborted if there was a collision. 3) Like 2, but the packet in service is not aborted. We study the existence and uniqueness of equilibrium under these three types of losses.
A mean field analysis of a stochastic model for reservation in car-sharing systems
Authors: Fricker Christine , Mohamed Hanene , Bourdais Cedric
Published: November 2020

Over the past decade, vehicle-sharing systems have appeared as a new answer to mobility challenges, like reducing congestion, pollution or travel time for numerous cities.
TB/GI/1 queues with arrival traffic envelopes
Authors: Kesidis George , Konstantopoulos Takis
Published: November 2020

Consider a queueing system where the job service times are not known upon arrival; e.g., a transmission server of a wireless channel where packet transmission times are random, or a virtual machine handling a stream of tasks whose execution times are not perfectly predictable. We give bounds on the tail of the workload distribution of a partially regulated, single-server queue whose arrival processes are arbitrarily distributed stationary random point processes on the integers that satisfy token-bucket constraints expressed via an arbitrary concave function f, and whose job service times are independent with a common distribution.
Optimal Delay-Cost Scheduling Control in Fluid Models of General nxn Input-Queued Switches
Authors: Lu Yingdong , Squillante Mark S. , Suk Tonghoon
Published: November 2020

Input-queued switch (IQS) architectures are widely used in modern computer/communication networks. The optimal scheduling control of these high-speed, low-latency networks is critical for our understanding of fundamental design and performance issues related to internet routers, cloud computing data centers, and high-performance computing. A large and rich literature exists around optimal scheduling in these systems. This includes the extensive study of IQSs as an important mathematical model for a general class of optimal scheduling control problems of broad interest.
ACM SIGMETRICS International Workshop on Distributed Cloud Computing (DCC)
Authors: Araldo Andrea , Brandic Ivona , Schmid Stefan
Published: November 2020

The International Workshop on Distributed Cloud Computing (DCC) is an interdisciplinary forum on distributed systems, algorithms as well as networking and cloud computing. DCC 2020 was co-located with SIGMETRICS 2020, in the week of June 8-12, 2020. The selected topic of DCC 2020 was Machine Learning in distributed environments.
Dynamic not isometric training blunts osteo-renal disease and improves the sclerostin/FGF23/Klotho axis in maintenance hemodialysis patients: a randomized clinical trial
Authors: Neves Rodrigo V. P. , Corrêa Hugo L. , Deus Lysleine A. , Reis Andrea L. , Souza Michel K. , Simões Herbert G. , Navalta James W. , Moraes Milton R. , Prestes Jonato , Rosa Thiago S.
Published: November 2020

This study shows, for the first time, the effect of dynamic and isometric resistance training on bone mineral density in hemodialysis patients, providing a new understanding of the possible participation of the sclerostin/FGF23/Klotho axis, vitD, PTH, and calcium × phosphate product in this process. However, isometric resistance training may not be sufficient to induce these benefits. Therefore, this study supports the potential therapeutic role of dynamic resistance training counteracting chronic kidney disease-mineral and bone disorder.
Sedum sarmentosum Total Flavonoids Alleviate Schistosomiasis‐Induced Liver Fibrosis by Altering TGF‐β1 and Smad7 Expression
Authors: Yang Peng-chun , Bai Wei-zhe , Wang Jing , Yan Cai-hua , Huang Wei-feng , Jiang Shi-zhu
Published: November 2020

Objectives. Schistosomiasis is a parasitic disease that affects over 142 million people worldwide. The main causes of death of schistosomiasis include liver granuloma and secondary hepatic cirrhosis resulting from severe fibrosis. Despite intensive research, controlling liver fibrosis associated with schistosomiasis remains challenging. Sedum sarmentosum total flavonoid (SSTF) is a promising agent to reduce liver fibrosis with an unknown mechanism. Thus, the objectives of this study are to validate its effect on the liver fibrosis caused by schistosomiasis and to explore the underlying molecular mechanism. Methods. Sixty male Sprague‐Dawley rats were randomly divided into six groups: one group of normal control and five groups of liver fibrosis induced by schistosomiasis japonica with or without SSTF or colchicine treatment, the latter serving as the positive control. Liver tissues from each animal were harvested to observe the degree and grade of hepatic fibrosis. We also measured the expression of transforming growth factor‐beta 1 (TGF‐β1) and Smad7 using RT‐qPCR, Western blot, and immunohistochemistry. Results. Compared with the untreated model group, groups treated with SSTF at all three tested doses had significantly reduced hepatic fibrosis (P < 0.05). Each dose of SSTF also significantly reduced TGF‐β1 protein expression and mRNA levels in the liver tissues (P < 0.05). In contrast, the middle and high doses of SSTF significantly increased Smad7 protein expression and mRNA levels (P < 0.05). Immunohistochemistry showed that each dose of SSTF reduced TGF‐β1 protein expression (P < 0.05). Conclusion. Our results demonstrated that SSTF alleviated schistosomiasis japonica‐induced hepatic fibrosis by inhibiting the TGF‐β1/Smad7 pathway.
Based on Network Pharmacology to Explore the Molecular Targets and Mechanisms of Gegen Qinlian Decoction for the Treatment of Ulcerative Colitis
Authors: Wei Meiqi , Li He , Li Qifang , Qiao Yi , Ma Qun , Xie Ruining , Wang Rong , Liu Yuan , Wei Chao , Li Bingbing , Zheng Canlei , Sun Bing , Yu Bin
Published: November 2020

Background. Gegen Qinlian (GGQL) decoction is a common Chinese herbal compound for the treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC). In this study, we aimed to identify its molecular target and the mechanism involved in UC treatment by network pharmacology and molecular docking. Material and Methods. The active ingredients of Puerariae, Scutellariae, Coptis, and Glycyrrhiza were screened using the TCMSP platform with drug‐like properties (DL) ≥ 0.18 and oral availability (OB) ≥ 30%. To find the intersection genes and construct the TCM compound‐disease regulatory network, the molecular targets were determined in the UniProt database and then compared with the UC disease differential genes with P value < 0.005 and ∣log2 (fold change) | >1 obtained in the GEO database. The intersection genes were subjected to protein‐protein interaction (PPI) construction and Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis. After screening the key active ingredients and target genes, the AutoDock software was used for molecular docking, and the best binding target was selected for molecular docking to verify the binding activity. Results. A total of 146 active compounds were screened, and quercetin, kaempferol, wogonin, and stigmasterol were identified as the active ingredients with the highest associated targets, and NOS2, PPARG, and MMP1 were the targets associated with the maximum number of active ingredients. Through topological analysis, 32 strongly associated proteins were found, of which EGFR, PPARG, ESR1, HSP90AA1, MYC, HSPA5, AR, AKT1, and RELA were predicted targets of the traditional Chinese medicine, and PPARG was also an intersection gene. It was speculated that these targets were the key to the use of GGQL in UC treatment. GO enrichment results showed significant enrichment of biological processes, such as oxygen levels, leukocyte migration, collagen metabolic processes, and nutritional coping. KEGG enrichment showed that genes were particularly enriched in the IL‐17 signaling pathway, AGE‐RAGE signaling pathway, toll‐like receptor signaling pathway, tumor necrosis factor signaling pathway, transcriptional deregulation in cancer, and other pathways. Molecular docking results showed that key components in GGQL had good potential to bind to the target genes MMP3, IL1B, NOS2, HMOX1, PPARG, and PLAU. Conclusion. GGQL may play a role in the treatment of ulcerative colitis by anti‐inflammation, antioxidation, and inhibition of cancer gene transcription.
Mannitol Enhances the Antinociceptive Effects of Diphenhydramine as an Alternative Local Anesthetic
Authors: Son Jo-Young , Lim Jae-Seong , Park Jae-Hyung , Park Jae-Hyeong , Kim Myeong-Shin , Park Jung-Ho , Oh Jun-suk , Yoon Hyun-Wu , Ju Jin-Sook , Ahn Dong-Kuk
Published: November 2020

Mannitol has recently been reported to be effective in enhancing the antinociceptive efficacy of lidocaine. No single study to date, however, has compared diphenhydramine with and without mannitol for nociceptive processing as an alternative local anesthetic. In this study, we examined the antinociceptive efficacy enhancements of diphenhydramine when combined with mannitol. Male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 230–260 g were used in a hot plate test to evaluate the antinociceptive effects of diphenhydramine. All chemicals were dissolved in isotonic normal saline and administered subcutaneously into the plantar surface of the right hind paw at 10 min before the hot plate test. A subcutaneous injection of 0.5% or 1% diphenhydramine produced significant inhibition of the withdrawal latency time compared with the vehicle treatment. Antinociceptive effects appeared 10 min after the diphenhydramine injections and persisted for over 30 min. The antinociceptive effects of 1% diphenhydramine were not statistically different from those of 1% lidocaine. Although a subcutaneous injection of a 0.5 M mannitol solution alone did not affect the withdrawal latency time, 1% diphenhydramine with 0.5 M mannitol significantly enhanced antinociception. A subcutaneous injection of 1% diphenhydramine with epinephrine (1 : 100,000) solution did not increase the antinociceptive effect of the diphenhydramine. These results suggest that diphenhydramine with mannitol can be used as an alternative local anesthetic.
Prevalence and Factors Associated with Early Sexual Initiation among College Students in Southwest Ethiopia
Authors: Yosef Tewodros , Nigussie Tadesse , Getachew Dawit , Tesfaye Melkamsew
Published: November 2020

Background. Early age at first sexual practice is a public health issue and now common around the world especially in the developing countries. The development of effective strategies to reduce the adverse consequences of early sexual initiation becomes real when sufficient data is available. Therefore, this study is aimed at assessing the prevalence and factors associated to early sexual initiation among college students in southwest Ethiopia. Methods. A cross‐sectional study was conducted among 453 college students in southwest Ethiopia from April to May 2018. A two‐stage stratified sampling technique was used to select the study participants. The data were collected using structured pretested self‐administered questionnaire. The collected data were entered using Epi‐Data version 4.2.0.0 and analyzed using SPSS version 20. Logistic regression models were fitted to assess the effect of independent variables on the outcome variable. Significance was declared at p < 0.05 in the multivariable logistic regression analysis. Results. The proportion of early sexual initiation among college students was 17.9%, 95% CI (14.4%‐24.4%). The mean age of sexual intercourse was 17.6 (±2 SD) years. Nearly three‐fourths (73.4%) of the respondent’s reason for early sexual intercourse was falling in love. More than half (62.2%) of the respondents used a condom for their first sexual intercourse. The factors associated with early sexual initiation were being female (AOR = 2.09and 95% CI [1.17‐2.35]), chewing khat (AOR = 7.05 and 95% CI [3.81‐13.1]), exposed to pornographic materials at age < 18 years (AOR = 3.57 and 95% CI [1.94‐6.89]), and poor knowledge of sexually transmitted diseases (AOR = 8.69 and 95% CI [3.52‐21.5]). Conclusion. The prevalence of early sexual initiation among college students was alarmingly high. This may be associated with a huge burden of poor sexual and reproductive health. Therefore, creating awareness of the factors and related negative sexual and reproductive health effect of early sexual initiation for young peoples through the use of mass media (television and radio), school teachers, and parents plays a paramount importance.
Numerical Investigation of Flow Field and Energy Loss in a Centrifugal Pump as Turbine
Authors: Li Jingze , Meng Dongrong , Qiao Xun
Published: November 2020

Centrifugal pumps as turbine (PAT) are widely used in petrochemical and water conservancy industries. The research on the internal flow field and energy loss of PAT is of great significance to improve the performance and efficiency of PAT. In this paper, experimental and numerical simulation methods are used to study the energy loss and flow field. The results show that the numerical simulation method can accurately simulate the internal flow field of PAT. And the entropy generation theory is applied to visualize the internal energy loss of PAT through the comparison of total pressure loss and entropy generation. The highest energy loss among PAT components is the guide vane. The loss in the guide vane is mainly caused by the flow separation caused by the wake of the guide vane and the asymmetric structure of the volute. The losses in the impeller are mainly due to flow separation and wake. Besides, the unsteady simulation results show that rotor-stator interaction has a great influence on the gap between the impeller and the guide vane. The research results provide a reference for the design of the PAT. This study is beneficial to studying the dynamic and static interference and PAT vibration to improve the stability of the PAT.
A Microcosmic Syndrome Differentiation Model for Metabolic Syndrome with Multilabel Learning
Authors: Xia Shujie , Zhang Jia , Du Guodong , Li Shaozi , Vong Chi Teng , Yang Zhaoyang , Xin Jiliang , Zhu Long , Gao Bizhen , Li Candong
Published: November 2020

Background. Metabolic syndrome (MS) is a complex multisystem disease. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is effective in preventing and treating MS. Syndrome differentiation is the basis of TCM treatment, which is composed of location and/or nature syndrome elements. At present, there are still some problems for objective and comprehensive syndrome differentiation in MS. This study mainly proposes a solution to two problems. Firstly, TCM syndromes are concurrent, that is, multiple TCM syndromes may develop in the same patient. Secondly, there is a lack of holistic exploration of the relationship between microscopic indexes, and TCM syndromes. In regard to these two problems, multilabel learning (MLL) method in machine learning can be used to solve them, and a microcosmic syndrome differentiation model can also be built innovatively, which can provide a foundation for the establishment of the next model of multidimensional syndrome differentiation in MS. Methods. The standardization scale of TCM four diagnostic information for MS was designed, which was used to obtain the results of TCM diagnosis. The model of microcosmic syndrome differentiation was constructed based on 39 physicochemical indexes by MLL techniques, called ML‐kNN. Firstly, the multilabel learning method was compared with three commonly used single learning algorithms. Then, the results from ML‐kNN were compared between physicochemical indexes and TCM information. Finally, the influence of the parameter k on the diagnostic model was investigated and the best k value was chosen for TCM diagnosis. Results. A total of 698 cases were collected for the modeling of the microcosmic diagnosis of MS. The comprehensive performance of the ML‐kNN model worked obviously better than the others, where the average precision of diagnosis was 71.4%. The results from ML‐kNN based on physicochemical indexes were similar to the results based on TCM information. On the other hand, the k value had less influence on the prediction results from ML‐kNN. Conclusions. In the present study, the microcosmic syndrome differentiation model of MS with MLL techniques was good at predicting syndrome elements and could be used to solve the diagnosis problems of multiple labels. Besides, it was suggested that there was a complex correlation between TCM syndrome elements and physicochemical indexes, which worth future investigation to promote the development of objective differentiation of MS.
Técnica mínimamente invasiva en paciente con multimorbilidad crónica y hernia inguinal complicada: reporte de caso
Authors: Palacios Huatuco Rene Manuel , Pantoja Pachajoa Diana , Liaño Julián , Mandojana Facundo , Doniquian Alejandro
Published: November 2020

El paciente con multimorbilidad crónica forma parte de una población que se ha incrementado en los últimos años. La hernia inguinal incarcerada representa una emergencia. El abordaje transabdominal preperitoneal (TAPP) presenta ventajas para evaluar el contenido de la hernia. Se presenta el caso de un hombre de 77 años con múltiples comorbilidades y cirugías abdominales previas, que se presentó con cuadro de oclusión intestinal. En tomografía computada: asa de intestino delgado incarcerada en región inguinal. Se observó asas intestinales dilatadas con cambio de calibre en región inguinal izquierda. Se retiró asa intestinal atascada en hernia directa. Se disecó defecto herniario y se colocó malla de 10 x 15 cm en espacio preperitoneal. La técnica TAPP es eficaz y segura para la reparación de hernias complicadas en pacientes con multimorbilidad crónica, en manos de cirujanos experimentados.