bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Infusion of blood from mice displaying cerebral amyloidosis accelerates amyloid pathology in animal models of Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: Morales Rodrigo , Duran-Aniotz Claudia , Bravo-Alegria Javiera , Estrada Lisbell D. , Shahnawaz Mohammad , Hu Ping-Ping , Kramm Carlos , Morales-Scheihing Diego , Urayama Akihiko , Soto Claudio
Published: December 2020

Previous studies showed that injection of tissue extracts containing amyloid-β (Aβ) aggregates accelerate amyloid deposition in the brain of mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) through prion-like mechanisms. In this study, we evaluated whether brain amyloidosis could be accelerated by blood infusions, procedures that have been shown to transmit prion diseases in animals and humans. Young transgenic mice infused with whole blood or plasma from old animals with extensive Aβ deposition in their brains developed significantly higher levels brain amyloidosis and neuroinflammation compared to untreated animals or mice infused with wild type blood. Similarly, intra-venous injection of purified Aβ aggregates accelerated amyloid pathology, supporting the concept that Aβ seeds present in blood can reach the brain to promote neuropathological alterations in the brain of treated animals. However, an amyloid-enhancing effect of other factors present in the blood of donors cannot be discarded. Our results may help to understand the role of peripheral (amyloid-dependent or -independent) factors implicated in the development of AD and uncover new strategies for disease intervention.
Association between visitation restriction during the COVID-19 pandemic and delirium incidence among emergency admission patients: a single-center retrospective observational cohort study in Japan
Authors: Kandori Kenji , Okada Yohei , Ishii Wataru , Narumiya Hiromichi , Maebayashi Yoshiro , Iizuka Ryoji
Published: December 2020

Aim

This study aimed to identify the association between total visitation restriction because of the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the incidence of delirium for emergency inpatients.

Methods

This was a single-center, retrospective, observational cohort study conducted at a tertiary critical care center in urban Kyoto, Japan. Adult emergency patients hospitalized between January 1, 2019, and June 30, 2020, were recruited. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the authors’ hospital began restricted visitation on March 28, 2020. This study defined before visitation restriction as January 1, 2019, through March 31, 2020, and after visitation restriction as April 1, 2020, through June 30, 2020. We did not restrict emergency services, and there were no changes in the hospital’s routine, except for visitation restrictions. The primary outcome was the incidence of delirium. The adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) for delirium incidence was calculated to compare the before and after visitation restriction periods, and the logistic model was used to adjust for seven variables: age, sex, ward type on admission, primary diagnosis, ventilator management, general anesthesia surgery, and dementia.

Results

Study participants were 6264 patients, median age 74 years (56–83), and 3303 men (52.7%). The total delirium incidence in entire research period was 2.5% (158 of 6264 patients), comprising 1.8% (95/5251) before visitation restriction and 6.2% (63/1013) after visitation restriction. The AOR for delirium incidence was 3.79 (95% CI, 2.70–5.31) after visitation restriction versus before visitation restriction. Subgroup analysis showed no apparent interaction for delirium incidence.

Conclusion

Visitation restriction was associated with an increased incidence of delirium in emergency inpatients.
Correction to: Long-term survival after hepatectomy for metachronous liver metastasis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma: a case report
Authors: Tsutsumi Chikanori , Abe Toshiya , Shinkawa Tomohiko , Nishihara Kazuyoshi , Tamiya Sadafumi , Nakano Toru
Published: December 2020

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via the original article.
Lobectomy with bronchoplasty and pulmonary arterial angioplasty for lung cancer after correction of contralateral partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection
Authors: Fukumoto Koichi , Goto Madoka , Ichikawa Yasuhisa , Kawasumi Yuta , Uchiyama Mika , Maekawa Atsuo , Mori Shoichi
Published: December 2020

Background

There have been few reports on surgically treated primary lung cancer accompanied by contralateral partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection (PAPVC). In such cases, repair of the PAPVC might be necessary to avoid postoperative right-heart failure due to the increased flow of the left-to-right shunt.

Case presentation

We herein report a case of lung adenocarcinoma treated by left-upper lobectomy with bronchoplasty and pulmonary arterial angioplasty after induction chemoradiation therapy followed by surgical correction of the PAPVC in the right-upper lobe. The patient is alive without recurrence of lung cancer or any symptoms of heart failure 17 months after pulmonary resection.

Conclusion

When considering performing major pulmonary resection for lung tumor, thoracic surgeons should pay close attention to the presence of a PAPVC not only on the ipsilateral side of the lung tumor, but also the contralateral side, although it is a rare phenomenon.
Temporary spontaneous regression of male breast cancer: a case report
Authors: Katano Kaoru , Yoshimitsu Yutaka , Kyuno Takahiro , Haba Yusuke , Maeda Tsutomu , Kitamura Seiko
Published: December 2020

Background

Spontaneous regression (SR) of a malignant tumor is the partial or complete disappearance of primary or metastatic tumor tissue in the absence of treatment, which can be temporary or permanent. Here, we report an extremely rare case of male breast cancer that exhibited temporary SR followed by reappearance 8 months after tumor disappearance.

Case presentation

A 70-year-old man presented at our hospital with a primary complaint of pain and a lump in his left breast. Ultrasonography revealed a hypoechoic lesion measuring 12 mm × 10 mm × 8 mm. Fine-needle aspiration cytology revealed numerous necrotic and degenerated cells and few sheet-like clusters of atypical ductal epithelial cells. The atypical cells had mildly enlarged nuclei with nucleoli, were focally overlapped and formed tubular patterns. The cytological diagnosis indicated a suspicion of malignancy. Core needle biopsy (CNB) revealed necrotic and degenerated cells with microcalcification. The pathological diagnosis was indeterminate because there was no area of viable atypical cells. An excisional biopsy of the left breast lesion was scheduled one month later. However, it was difficult to detect the tumor during physical examination and ultrasonography performed 1 month after the patient’s first visit. The operation was canceled, and the patient received follow-up observation. After 8 months of follow-up, ultrasonography and computed tomography (CT) revealed reappearance of a 0.6-cm-diameter breast tumor in the same place. CNB was performed again and revealed invasive ductal carcinoma. A total mastectomy with sentinel lymph node biopsy was performed 13 months after the first tumor disappeared. Histopathological examination revealed invasive cribriform carcinoma without sentinel lymph node metastasis. The patient did not have any complications, and adjuvant therapy with tamoxifen was started. The patient was alive without recurrence 7 months after surgery.

Conclusions

Temporary SR followed by tumor reappearance can occur in breast cancer cases, and it is important to follow patients even if their breast tumor has seemingly disappeared. When breast tumors disappear without treatment, clinicians must be aware of the possibility of SR of cancer and should follow the patient for early detection of tumor reappearance.
Life-threatening rocuronium-induced anaphylactic shock without cutaneous manifestations successfully reversed with sugammadex: a case report
Authors: Takise Yoshiaki , Kato Jungo , Suhara Tomohiro , Yamada Takashige , Funakoshi Takeru , Takahashi Hayato , Amagai Masayuki , Morisaki Hiroshi
Published: December 2020

Background

Recognition of rocuronium-induced anaphylaxis is often challenging, owing to its diverse clinical manifestations. Regarding treatment, several reports have described the efficacy of sugammadex, while conflicting reports have also been published.

Case

A 71-year-old man was scheduled to undergo split-thickness skin grafting surgery on his hip. During the induction of general anesthesia, the patient developed profound circulatory collapse without any cutaneous manifestations, which required 40 min of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Later, the patient developed circulatory collapse again during the induction of anesthesia for tracheostomy surgery, which apparently coincided with the administration of rocuronium. Rocuronium-induced anaphylactic shock was suspected, and the administration of sugammadex resulted in swift recovery of hemodynamics. The basophil activation test revealed a positive reaction to rocuronium.

Conclusion

The possibility of rocuronium-induced anaphylaxis should be considered when the circulatory collapse coincides with rocuronium administration, even though cutaneous manifestation is absent. Sugammadex can be a treatment option in such atypical cases.
Efficacy of flurbiprofen axetil for preventing postanesthetic shivering in patients undergoing gynecologic laparotomy surgeries
Authors: Kotera Atsushi
Published: December 2020

Background

Postanesthetic shivering is an unpleasant adverse event in surgical patients. A nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug has been reported to be useful in preventing postanesthetic shivering in several previous studies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of flurbiprofen axetil being a prodrug of a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug for preventing postanesthetic shivering in patients undergoing gynecologic laparotomy surgeries.

Method

This study is a retrospective observational study. I collected data from patients undergoing gynecologic laparotomy surgeries performed between October 1, 2019, and September 30, 2020, at Kumamoto City Hospital. All the patients were managed with general anesthesia with or without epidural analgesia. The administration of intravenous 50 mg flurbiprofen axetil for postoperative pain control at the end of the surgery was left to the individual anesthesiologist. The patients were divided into two groups: those who had received intravenous flurbiprofen axetil (flurbiprofen group) and those who had not received intravenous flurbiprofen axetil (non-flurbiprofen group), and I compared the frequency of postanesthetic shivering between the two groups. Additionally, the factors presumably associated with postanesthetic shivering were collected from the medical charts. Intergroup differences were assessed with the χ2 test with Yates’ correlation for continuity category variables. The Student’s t test was used to test for differences in continuous variables. Furthermore, a multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to elucidate the relationship between the administration of flurbiprofen axetil and the incidence of PAS.

Results

I retrospectively examined the cases of 141 patients aged 49 ± 13 (range 21-84) years old. The overall postanesthetic shivering rate was 21.3% (30 of the 141 patients). The frequency of postanesthetic shivering in the flurbiprofen group (n = 31) was 6.5%, which was significantly lower than that in the non-flurbiprofen group (n = 110), 25.5% (p value = 0.022). A multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that administration of flurbiprofen axetil was independently associated with a reduced incidence of postanesthetic shivering (odds ratio 0.12; 95% confidence interval, 0.02-0.66, p value = 0.015).

Conclusions

My result suggests that intraoperative 50 mg flurbiprofen axetil administration for postoperative pain control is useful to prevent postanesthetic shivering in patients undergoing gynecologic laparotomy surgeries.
Dietary modifications achieved successful resolution of symptoms of gastroparesis diagnosed by demonstrating gastric food retention after overnight fasting in diabetic dialysis patients: two case reports with literature review
Authors: Eguchi Eriko
Published: December 2020

Background

Gastroparesis is frequently overlooked and difficult to treat. The diagnosis of gastroparesis requires standard upper gastrointestinal endoscopy to exclude gastric outlet obstruction and objective evidence demonstrating delayed gastric emptying. However, none of the internationally recommended methods for measuring gastric emptying including scintigraphy are covered by the Japanese health insurance system. Limitations in the diagnosis might be related to the disease being overlooked in Japan. Meanwhile, presence of retained food in the stomach after overnight fasting without obstruction is classically known to be suggestive of gastroparesis. Some recent reports have considered gastric food retention after an overnight fasting equivalent to delayed gastric emptying.

Case presentation

Two diabetic dialysis patients presented with nausea, vomiting, and oral feeding intolerance in the absence of mechanical obstruction. Abdominal computed tomography, upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, and ultrasonography demonstrated gastric food retention after overnight fasting. The findings led to the diagnosis of gastroparesis. Appropriate dietary modifications alone successfully relieved the symptoms despite persistent delayed gastric emptying.

Conclusions

Demonstrating retained food residue after fasting for sufficient duration might be a diagnostic alternative. Dietary modifications alone provided significant clinical benefits. Possible approaches for the diagnosis and treatment of gastroparesis in Japan should be investigated.
Urgent need hybrid production - what COVID-19 can teach us about dislocated production through 3d-printing and the maker scene
Authors: Hartig Sascha , Duda Sven , Hildebrandt Lennart
Published: December 2020

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to large-scale shutdowns in society. This resulted in global supply bottlenecks for medical protective equipment. The so-called Maker Movement recognized this emerging problem early on and, with the help of additive manufacturing (AM), began developing and manufacturing half masks or face shields as personal protective equipment (PPE). This knowledge has been made available in many places in form of open source product data, so that products could be adapted and improved, saving development time.

Methods

This production and innovation potential has been taken up and professionalized by the authors of this article. By means of a proof-of-principle we provide an overview of the possibility and successful unique introduction of a so-called professional “hybrid production” in a micro factory using 3D-printing at the place of greatest demand in a hospital by medical personnel to produce their own PPE. Furthermore the learning process and future benefits of on site 3D-printing are described.

Results

Our proof-of-principle successfully showed that the allocation of 3D-printing capabilities in the hospital infrastructure is possible. With assistance of the engineers, responsible for product design and development, the medical staff was able to produce PPE by means of AM. However, due to legal uncertainties and high material and production costs the usability is severely limited.

Conclusions

The practical research showed that a complete implementation of the concept and the short-term establishment of a 3D-printing factory for the autonomous supply of a hospital with PPE was not feasible without further efforts. Nevertheless, it has enabled the medical staff to use AM technologies for future research approaches.
Characterization of symbiotic and associated bacteria from entomopathogenic nematode Heterorhabditis sp. (nematode: Heterorhabditidae) isolated from India
Authors: Pervez Rashid , Lone Showkat Ahmad , Pattnaik Sasmita
Published: December 2020

Background

Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) harboring symbiotic bacteria are one of the safest alternatives to the chemical insecticides for the control of various insect pests. Infective juveniles of EPNs locate a target insect, enter through the openings, and reach the hemocoel, where they release the symbiotic bacteria and the target gets killed by the virulence factors of the bacteria. Photorhabdus with Heterorhabditis spp. are well documented; little is known about the associated bacteria.

Main body

In this study, we explored the presence of symbiotic and associated bacteria from Heterorhabditis sp. (IISR-EPN 09) and characterized by phenotypic, biochemical, and molecular approaches. Six bacterial isolates, belonging to four different genera, were recovered and identified as follows: Photorhabdus luminescens, one each strain of Providencia vermicola, Pseudomonas entomophila, Alcaligenes aquatilis, and two strains of Alcaligenes faecalis based on the phenotypic, biochemical criteria and the sequencing of 16S rRNA gene.

Conclusion

P. luminescens is symbiotically associated with Heterorhabditis sp. (IISR-EPN 09), whereas P. vermicola, P. entomophila, A. aquatilis, and A. faecalis are the associated bacteria. Further studies are needed to determine the exact role of the bacterial associates with the Heterorhabditis sp.
Determinants of fire intensity in working landscapes of an African savanna
Authors: Laris Paul , Jacobs Rebecca , Koné Moussa , Dembélé Fadiala , Rodrigue Christine M.
Published: December 2020

Background

An often cited rule of savanna fire ecology is that early dry-season fires burn less intensely than late dry-season ones; however, few studies base their experimental design on the practices of fire managers in working landscapes. The objective of this research was to study the factors influencing fireline intensity, combustion, and patchiness for a West African savanna under common vegetation and land management practices. We conducted 97 experimental fires by selecting burn plots and seasonal timing (early,n= 33; middle,n= 44; or late,n= 20) based on local practices in a typical working landscape. We collected data for biomass consumed, grass type, scorch height, speed of fire front, visual efficiency (patchiness), fire type, and ambient air conditions. We used multiple regression analysis to determine the key factors affecting fire intensity.

Results

Mean intensity was lowest for the middle season fires and highest for the late season fires. Minimum fire intensity increased over the fire season except for a sharp drop mid season, while maximum intensity progressively decreased. Seasonal values were highly variable. Fire intensity was moderately positively correlated with scorch height and more modestly correlated with visual efficiency, but only marginally correlated with combustion completeness. Average combustion completeness increased weakly as the dry season progressed. Intensity of back-fires was determined primarily by seasonal timing and the associated ambient humidity and wind and, to a lesser extent, grass characteristics. Head-fire intensity was only feebly responsive to wind speed.

Conclusions

We found that, at the peak time of West African savanna burning, the intensity of fires decreased. Fire behaviors in working West African landscapes were more dependent on fire type and wind than seasonality. Finally, we found that fire intensity values were lower than those reported elsewhere due to the more representative conditions of the fire setting (under lower afternoon winds) and fuel loads (lower biomass on working landscapes). Future research should focus on the ecological impacts of fires set under such conditions on growth and death rates of savanna trees.
Machine-learning-based data recovery and its contribution to seismic acquisition: Simultaneous application of deblending, trace reconstruction, and low-frequency extrapolation
Authors: Nakayama Shotaro , Blacquière Gerrit
Published: December 2020

Acquisition of incomplete data, i.e., blended, sparsely sampled, and narrowband data, allows for cost-effective and efficient field seismic operations. This strategy becomes technically acceptable, provided that a satisfactory recovery of the complete data, i.e., deblended, well-sampled, and broadband data, is attainable. Hence, we explore a machine-learning approach that simultaneously performs suppression of blending noise, reconstruction of missing traces, and extrapolation of low frequencies. We have applied a deep convolutional neural network in the framework of supervised learning in which we train a network using pairs of incomplete-complete data sets. Incomplete data, which are never used for training and use different subsurface properties and acquisition scenarios, are subsequently fed into the trained network to predict complete data. We develop matrix representations indicating the contributions of different acquisition strategies to reducing the field operational effort. We also determine that the simultaneous implementation of source blending, sparse geometry, and band limitation leads to a significant data compression where the size of the incomplete data in the frequency-space domain is much smaller than the size of the complete data. This reduction is indicative of survey cost and duration that our acquisition strategy can save. Synthetic and field data examples demonstrate the applicability of the proposed approach. Despite the reduced amount of information available in the incomplete data, the results obtained from the numerical and field data cases clearly show that the machine-learning scheme effectively performs deblending, trace reconstruction, and low-frequency extrapolation in a simultaneous fashion. It is noteworthy that no discernible difference in prediction errors between extrapolated frequencies and preexisting frequencies is observed. The approach potentially allows seismic data to be acquired in a significantly compressed manner while subsequently recovering data of satisfactory quality.
Pattern of psychiatric in-patient admissions in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
Authors: Abdel Aziz Karim , Aly El-Gabry Dina , Al-Sabousi Mouza , Al-Hassani Ghanem , Ragheb Moataz M. , Elhassan Elamin Mohamed , Abdel-Maksoud Mohamed , Stip Emmanuel , Al-Aidroos Aidroos , Al-Shehhi Tareq , Arnone Danilo
Published: December 2020

An understanding of the current state of mental health services in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from a clinical perspective is an important step in advising government and stakeholders on addressing the mental health needs of the fast-growing population. We conducted a retrospective study of data on all patients admitted to a regional psychiatric in-patient unit between June 2012 and May 2015. More Emiratis (UAE nationals) were admitted compared with expatriates. Emiratis were diagnosed more frequently with substance use disorders and expatriates with stress-related conditions. Psychotic and bipolar disorders were the most common causes for admission and had the longest in-patient stays; advancing age was associated with longer duration of in-patient stay.
Blood as fuel: the metabolic cost of pedestrian locomotion in Rhodnius prolixus
Authors: Leis Miguel , Lazzari Claudio R.
Published: December 2020

Active searching for vertebrate blood is a necessary activity for haematophagous insects, and it can be assumed that this search should also be costly in terms of energetic expenditure. Either if it is by swimming, walking, running or flying, active movement requires energy, increasing metabolic rates relative to resting situations. We analysed the respiratory pattern and the energetic cost of pedestrian locomotion in the blood-sucking bug Rhodnius prolixus using flow-through respirometry, by measuring carbon dioxide emission and water loss before, during and after walking. We observed an increase of up to 1.7-fold in the metabolic rate during walking as compared to resting in male R. prolixus and 1.5-fold in females, as well as a change in their respiratory pattern. The last switched from cyclic during resting to continuous, when the insects started to walk, remaining this condition unchanged during locomotion and for several minutes after stopping. Walking induced a significant loss of weight in both, males and females. This can be explained by the increase in both, the metabolic rate and the water loss during walking. These data constitute the first metabolic measures of active hematophagous insects and provide the first insights on the energetic expenditure associated to the active search for blood in this group.
Hyperspectral system trade-offs for illumination, hardware and analysis methods: a case study of seed mix ingredient discrimination
Authors: Blanch-Pérez del Notario Carolina , López-Molina Carlos , Lambrechts Andy , Saeys Wouter
Published: December 2020

The discrimination power of a hyperspectral imaging system for image segmentation or object detection is determined by the illumination, the camera spatial–spectral resolution, and both the pre-processing and analysis methods used for image processing. In this study, we methodically reviewed the alternatives for each of those factors for a case study from the food industry to provide guidance in the construction and configuration of hyperspectral imaging systems in the visible near infrared range for food quality inspection. We investigated both halogen- and LED-based illuminations and considered cameras with different spatial–spectral resolution trade-offs. At the level of the data analysis, we evaluated the impact of binning, median filtering and bilateral filtering as pre- or post-processing and compared pixel-based classifiers with convolutional neural networks for a challenging application in the food industry, namely ingredient identification in a flour–seed mix. Starting from a basic configuration and by modifying the combination of system aspects we were able to increase the mean accuracy by at least 25 %. In addition, different trade-offs in performance-complexity were identified for different combinations of system parameters, allowing adaptation to diverse application requirements.
The formation of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI): An empirical study
Authors: Ingstad Sandberg Kristin , Andresen Steinar , Gopinathan Unni , Hustad Hembre Berit Sofie
Published: December 2020

Background:The formation of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) sheds light on how conditions for global collaboration are created and sustained. This is a multi-stakeholder initiative whose objective is to be a global financing and coordination mechanism that supports the development of vaccines against epidemic infectious disease.

Methods:The paper reports from an empirical study that documented and analysed CEPI’s formation from idea in mid-2015 to its formal launch in January 2017, using a qualitative approach and analytical perspectives from international relations and the governance of socio-technical systems to explain decisions and outcomes.

Results:The accomplishment of forming CEPI in only 15 months was possible due to a substantial operational capacity among founding partners for groundwork and coordinating parallel processes, multiple individuals in leadership roles as well the flexibility offered by an interim phase. Findings also suggest that key alignments needed to be found between diverging positions on collective action for technology development, revealing the complexity and dynamics of interests among actors. The study further identifies key institutional conditions that interests clustered around, which CEPI needed manage in order to become operational.

Conclusions:The study concludes that while successful in developing a new nexus between global public health, vaccine innovation and pandemic response, CEPI was in 2017 still in the process of defining the nature of its authority within that landscape. Finally, the CEPI formation process bears significance for the global coordinated response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in 2020. As features of the CEPI formation represent persistent challenges in global health collaboration, the study offers both a backdrop and lessons learned.
APPLICATION OF NUMERICAL MODELING METHODS FOR SAFETY ASSESSMENT AT PUBLIC FACILITIES
Authors: Zvyaginceva Alla , Sazonova Svetlana , Kul'neva V.
Published: December 2020

The assessment of safe evacuation of people in case of fires at social facilities in the service sector was carried out on the basis of numerical modeling methods. The time of safe evacuation of people from the object is regulated on the basis of a basic mathematical model for monitoring fire hazards for a specific social object. The dependences of temperature on the duration of the fire, partial density of O2, optical density of smoke, partial density of CO2 and CO, partial density of HCl on the duration of the fire were established with the implementation of the Fogard software package using a simplified analytical model of human flow. On the basis of the developed mathematical model of the development of a fire, design solutions are proposed that provide a secure dispatch of the population from the facility.
Evaluating Board Candidates: A Threat-Contingency Model of Shareholder Dissent Against Female Director Candidates
Authors: Mitra Arjun , Post Corinne , Sauerwald Steve
Published: December 2020

Given the growing corporate social responsibility (CSR) pressures to increase board gender diversity and the scrutiny afforded to firms that fail to appoint female directors, one may expect shareholders to vote with greater support for women (than for men) nominated to boards. However, diversity management research suggests that pressures to improve female representation in organizations and in leadership roles may also backfire. We propose a threat-contingency model of shareholder dissent against female director candidates to explain when shareholders will be more or less likely to dissent against female (relative to male) directors. Specifically, we advance CSR legitimacy threats and agency threats as conditions contextualizing shareholder dissent against female director candidates. Using a sample of 50,202 director elections at 1,104 public firms from 2003 to 2015, we find that female directors receive less dissent from shareholders; further, low female board representation intensifies this leniency as CSR legitimacy threats become more salient. However, when firm-related agency threats occur (e.g., firm underperformance and media controversies), shareholders’ leniency toward female director candidates dissipates, and when directors themselves present agency threats (e.g., director attendance problems and nonindependence), shareholders evaluate female directors more harshly than male directors. Underlining the relevance of our theory, our supplementary analyses show that shareholder dissent increases the probability of director turnover. These findings contribute to theory and research on women on boards, firm responses to institutional pressures, and shareholder dissent.
How Local Industry R&D Shapes Academic Research: Evidence from the Agricultural Biotechnology Revolution
Authors: Sohn Eunhee
Published: December 2020

This paper investigates how industry research and development (R&D) may shape the rate and direction of research at geographically proximate universities and explores the mechanisms leading to such geographical localization of industry influence. Endogeneity concerns related to the selection of industry location were addressed by using the unique setting of the agricultural biotechnology revolution of the 1980s. The emergence of plant biotechnology spurred the entry of nonbiotechnology agribusiness incumbents into genetic engineering, creating a quasi-natural experiment for universities located near the company R&D headquarters. Relative to the control universities identified by coarsened exact matching, the universities within a 50-mile radius of the incumbent R&D headquarters show an approximate 28.5% increase in industry-relevant research output after the company’s entry into agricultural biotechnology R&D. The effect of industry R&D is stronger for research on major cash crops. Additional analysis suggests that local university-industry coauthorships, which proxy for local industry funding, may be a leading mechanism behind the effect. Overall, the results highlight the roles of R&D-intensive anchor tenants in the geography of academic knowledge production. The findings are relevant for regional policymakers and managers considering strategic placements of corporate R&D locations.
Enabling Technologies and the Role of Private Firms: A Machine Learning Matching Analysis
Authors: Rathje Jason M. , Katila Riitta
Published: December 2020

Investments in enabling technologies—including the fifth-generation technology standard for broadband cellular networks (5G), artificial intelligence (AI), and light detection and ranging (LIDAR) technology—are important strategic decisions for firms. This paper asks how inventions that private firms developed with (versus without) public-sector partners differ in their enabling technology trajectory. Using a novel method of machine learning matching, we compare patented technologies generated from more than 30,000 public–private relationships with comparable technologies invented by private firms alone during a 21-year period. To measure the enabling potential of a technology, we introduce a new enabling technology index. The findings show that private-firm relationships with the public sector—in particular cooperative agreements and grants with mission agencies (National Aeronautics and Space Administration and Department of Defense)—are likely starting points for enabling technology trajectories. We thus put a spotlight on organizational arrangements that combine the breadth of exploration (agreements, grants) with deep exploitation in a particular domain (mission agency). A key contribution is a better understanding of the types of private-firm efforts that are associated with enabling technologies. We also challenge the common assumption that enabling technologies have their origins only in public-sector projects and show how private firms are involved. Our significant contribution is to show how private firms can change evolution of ecosystems through technology development.
Potential of Candida glabrata from ragi as a bioethanol producer using selected carbohydrate substrates
Authors: Vincent Micky , Johnny Queentety , Awang Adeni Dayang Salwani , Suhaili Nurashikin
Published: December 2020

Abstract. Vincent M, Johnny Q, Adeni DSA, Suhaili N. 2020. Potential of Candida glabrata from ragi as a bioethanol producer using selected carbohydrate substrates. Nusantara Bioscience 12: 1-10. The flexibility and efficiency of fermenting microorganisms to convert substrates to ethanol are important factors in achieving high bioethanol yields during ethanolic fermentation. In this study, Candida glabrata, a common yeast found in fermented food, was evaluated in terms of its capability to produce ethanol using different types of carbohydrates, which included simple saccharides (glucose, maltose, sucrose), polysaccharides (starch and cellulose) and complex carbohydrates (total sago effluent, TSE). Our results indicated that C. glabrata was able to efficiently produce ethanol from glucose at 79.84% TEY (Theoretical Ethanol Yield). The ethanol production from sucrose was low, which was only 6.44% TEY, while no ethanol was produced from maltose. Meanwhile, for complex carbohydrate substrates such as starch and cellulose, ethanol was produced only when supplementary enzymes were introduced. Simultaneous Saccharification and Fermentation (SSF) of starch dosed with amylases resulted in an ethanol yield of 55.08% TEY, whilst SSF of cellulose dosed with cellulases yielded a TEY of 31.41%. When SSF was performed on TSE dosed with amylases and cellulases, the highest ethanol production was recorded within 24 h, with a yield of 23.36% TEY. Lactic acid and acetic acid were found to be at minimal levels throughout the fermentation period, indicating an efficient ethanol conversion. A notable increase in C. glabrata biomass was observed in cultures fed with glucose, starch (with supplementary amylases), and TSE (with supplementary amylases and cellulases). The current study indicates that C. glabrata can be used for bioethanol production from glucose, polysaccharides, and complex starchy lignocellulosic substrates such as TSE via SSF.
DEVELOPMENT OF MOTION SYSTEMS FOR FLIGHT SIMULATORS
Authors:   Department of Simulator Studies and Aeromedical Training, Military Institute of Aviation Medicine, Lewkowicz Rafał , Kowaleczko Grzegorz ,   Department of Aviation, Military University of Aviation
Published: December 2020

Abstract: Despite the ongoing disputes about the need to use motion systems in flight simulators, the development of this component of simulators has been ongoing since the beginning of aviation. The aim of the article is to discuss the importance of the motion system in the simulation of motion stimuli affecting the aircraft pilot. Selected motion systems of flight simulators and reasons for using these systems are described. The benefits of the use of motion stimuli in flight simulators are discussed and possible directions of development of the motion system are presented.
Multi-scale retinal vessel segmentation using encoder-decoder network with squeeze-and-excitation connection and atrous spatial pyramid pooling
Authors: Xie Huiying , Tang Chen , Zhang Wei , Shen Yuxin , Lei Zhengkun
Published: December 2020

The segmentation of blood vessels in retinal images is crucial to the diagnosis of many diseases. We propose a deep learning method for vessel segmentation based on an encoder-decoder network combined with squeeze-and-excitation connection and atrous spatial pyramid pooling. In our implementation, the atrous spatial pyramid pooling allows the network to capture features at multiple scales, and the high-level semantic information is combined with low-level features through the encoder-decoder architecture to generate segmentations. Meanwhile, the squeeze-and-excitation connections in the proposed network can adaptively recalibrate features according to the relationship between different channels of features. The proposed network can achieve precise segmentation of retinal vessels without hand-crafted features or specific post-processing. The performance of our model is evaluated in terms of visual effects and quantitative evaluation metrics on two publicly available datasets of retinal images, the Digital Retinal Images for Vessel Extraction and Structured Analysis of the Retina datasets, with comparison to 12 representative methods. Furthermore, the proposed network is applied to vessel segmentation on local retinal images, which demonstrates promising application prospect in medical practices.
Polarized light scattering measurements as a means to characterize particle size and composition of natural assemblages of marine particles: erratum
Authors: Koestner Daniel , Stramski Dariusz , Reynolds Rick A.
Published: December 2020

This erratum serves to correct an inadvertent error made during the
presentation of results involving the mislabeling of the orientation
of linear polarization perpendicular as parallel and vice versa in
Appl. Opt.
59, 8314 (2020)APOPAI0003-693510.1364/AO.396709.
Dual-polarization programmable metasurface modulator for near-field information encoding and transmission
Authors: Chen Lei , Ma Qian , Nie Qian Fan , Hong Qiao Ru , Cui Hao Yang , Ruan Ying , Cui Tie Jun
Published: December 2020

Controlling the polarization state of electromagnetic waves is an important topic in microwaves due to the enormous application potential in radar technology and mobile communications. Here, we propose a programmable metasurface based on single-pole double-throw switches to realize multifunctional polarization conversions. A structure of the double-sided metallic pattern is adopted in the metasurface, in which a novel double-pole double-throw hub is achieved to guide the energy direction. Such a mechanism successfully induces multiple transmission channels into the metasurface structure for functional design. By controlling the states of the switches with a field programmable gate array, the x- and y-polarizations of the incident waves can be efficiently modulated into linear co- and cross-polarizations of transmitted waves, suggesting a higher degree of freedom on wave manipulations. The proposed metasurface can be developed as a near-field information encoder to transmit binary coding sequence according to the energy distribution. Character transmissions are realized by programming binary ASCII codes on the transmitted fields. Nine supercells on the metasurface can encode 9-bit binary information in one frame of near-field imaging, which can be switched in real time with high speed. We envision that this work will develop digital coding applications to control the polarization information.
Absence of nuclear receptors LXRs impairs immune response to androgen deprivation and leads to prostate neoplasia
Authors: Bousset Laura , Septier Amandine , Bunay Julio , Voisin Allison , Guiton Rachel , Damon-Soubeyrant Christelle , Renaud Yoan , De Haze Angélique , Sapin Vincent , Fogli Anne , Rambur Amandine , De Joussineau Cyrille , Kocer Ayhan , Trousson Amalia , Henry-Berger Joëlle , Höring Marcus , Liebisch Gerhard , Matysik Silke , Lobaccaro Jean-Marc A. , Morel Laurent , Baron Silvère
Published: December 2020

Chronic inflammation is now a well-known precursor for cancer development. Infectious prostatitis are the most common causes of prostate inflammation, but emerging evidence points the role of metabolic disorders as a potential source of cancer-related inflammation. Although the widely used treatment for prostate cancer based on androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) effectively decreases tumor size, it also causes profound alterations in immune tumor microenvironment within the prostate. Here, we demonstrate that prostates of a mouse model invalidated for nuclear receptors liver X receptors (LXRs), crucial lipid metabolism and inflammation integrators, respond in an unexpected way to androgen deprivation. Indeed, we observed profound alterations in immune cells composition, which was associated with chronic inflammation of the prostate. This was explained by the recruitment of phagocytosis-deficient macrophages leading to aberrant hyporesponse to castration. This phenotypic alteration was sufficient to allow prostatic neoplasia. Altogether, these data suggest that ADT and inflammation resulting from metabolic alterations interact to promote aberrant proliferation of epithelial prostate cells and development of neoplasia. This raises the question of the benefit of ADT for patients with metabolic disorders.
Population pharmacokinetics of ivermectin for the treatment of scabies in Indigenous Australian children
Authors: Gwee Amanda , Duffull Stephen , Zhu Xiao , Tong Steven Y. C. , Cranswick Noel , McWhinney Brett , Ungerer Jacobus , Francis Joshua , Steer Andrew C.
Published: December 2020

Ivermectin is a broad-spectrum antiparasitic agent used for the treatment and control of neglected tropical diseases. In Australia, ivermectin is primarily used for scabies and is licensed in children aged ≥5 years weighing >15 kg. However, young children, aged <5 years, are particularly vulnerable to scabies and its secondary complications. Therefore, this study aimed to determine an appropriate ivermectin dose for children aged 2 to 4 years and weighing ≤15 kg. We conducted a prospective, pharmacokinetic study of ivermectin in Indigenous Australian children aged between 5 and 15 years and weighing >15 kg. Doses of 200 μg/kg rounded to the nearest whole or half 3 mg tablet were given to children with scabies and ivermectin concentrations determined at two time points after dosing. A population pharmacokinetic model was developed using non-linear mixed effects modelling. A separate covariate database of children aged 2 to 4 years and weighing <15 kg was used to generate 1000 virtual patients and simulate the dose required to achieve equivalent drug exposure in young children as those aged ≥5 years. Overall, 26 children who had 48 ivermectin concentrations determined were included, 11 (42%) were male, the median age was 10.9 years and median body weight 37.6 kg. The final model was a two-compartment model with first-order absorption and linear elimination. For simulated children aged 2 to 4 years, a dose of 3 mg in children weighing 10–15 kg produced similar drug exposures to those >5 years. The median simulated area under the concentration-time curve was 976 μg∙h/L. Using modelling, we have identified a dosing strategy for ivermectin in children aged 2 to 4 years and weighing less than 15 kg that can be prospectively evaluated for safety and efficacy.
Molecular detection of SARS-CoV-2 using a reagent-free approach
Authors: Calvez Ronan , Taylor Andrew , Calvo-Bado Leonides , Fraser Donald , Fink Colin G.
Published: December 2020

Shortage of reagents and consumables required for the extraction and molecular detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in respiratory samples has led many laboratories to investigate alternative approaches for sample preparation. Many groups recently presented results using heat processing method of respiratory samples prior to RT-qPCR as an economical method enabling an extremely fast streamlining of the processes at virtually no cost. Here, we present our results using this method and highlight some major pitfalls that diagnostics laboratories should be aware of before proceeding with this methodology. We first investigated various treatments using different temperatures, incubation times and sample volumes to optimise the heat treatment conditions. Although the initial data confirmed results published elsewhere, further investigations revealed unexpected inhibitory properties of some commonly used universal transport media (UTMs) on some commercially available RT-qPCR mixes, leading to a risk of reporting false-negative results. This emphasises the critical importance of a thorough validation process to determine the most suitable reagents to use depending on the sample types to be tested. In conclusion, a heat processing method is effective with very consistent Ct values and a sensitivity of 96.2% when compared to a conventional RNA extraction method. It is also critical to include an internal control to check each sample for potential inhibition.
The farther the better: Investigating how distance from human self affects the propensity of a peptide to be presented on cell surface by MHC class I molecules, the case of Trypanosoma cruzi
Authors: Vergni Davide , Gaudio Rosanna , Santoni Daniele
Published: December 2020

More than twenty years ago the reverse vaccinology paradigm came to light trying to design new vaccines based on the analysis of genomic information in order to select those pathogen peptides able to trigger an immune response. In this context, focusing on the proteome of Trypanosoma cruzi, we investigated the link between the probabilities for pathogen peptides to be presented on a cell surface and their distance from human self. We found a reasonable but, as far as we know, undiscovered property: the farther the distance between a peptide and the human-self the higher the probability for that peptide to be presented on a cell surface. We also found that the most distant peptides from human self bind, on average, a broader collection of HLAs than expected, implying a potential immunological role in a large portion of individuals. Finally, introducing a novel quantitative indicator for a peptide to measure its potential immunological role, we proposed a pool of peptides that could be potential epitopes and that can be suitable for experimental testing. The software to compute peptide classes according to the distance from human self is free available at http://www.iasi.cnr.it/~dsantoni/nullomers.