bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Changes in relative histone abundance and heterochromatin in αA-crystallin and αB-crystallin knock-in mutant mouse lenses
Authors: Andley Usha P. , Naumann Brittney N. , Hamilton Paul D. , Bozeman Stephanie L.
Published: July 2020

Objective

Understanding the mechanisms of cataract formation is important for age-related and hereditary cataracts caused by mutations in lens protein genes. Lens proteins of the crystallin gene families α-, β-, and γ-crystallin are the most abundant proteins in the lens. Single point mutations in crystallin genes cause autosomal dominant cataracts in multigenerational families. Our previous proteomic and RNAseq studies identified genes and proteins altered in the early stages of cataract formation in mouse models. Histones H2A, H2B, and H4 increase in abundance in αA- and αB-crystallin mutant mouse lenses and in cultured cells expressing the mutant form of αA-crystallin linked with hereditary cataracts.

Results

In this study of histones in mutant lenses, we extracted histones from adult mouse lenses from cryaa-R49C and cryab-R120G mutant knock-in mice. We characterized the histones using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight (MALDI-TOF)-mass spectrometric analysis and gel electrophoresis and characterized the lens nucleus morphology using electron microscopy (EM). The relative abundance of histone H3 protein decreased in lenses from cryaa-R49C mutant mice and the relative abundance of histone H2 increased in these lenses. Electron microscopy of nuclei from cryaa-R49C-homozygous mutant mouse lenses revealed a pronounced alteration in the distribution of heterochromatin.
Use of adrenaline continuous infusion to treat hypotension during general anaesthesia in a cow and a calf
Authors: Gómez Fernández Laura , Niimura del Barrio María Chie , Loughran Claire
Published: July 2020

Background

Hypotension is one of the most common complications observed during inhalation anaesthesia in veterinary patients. Treatment of hypotension in cattle is more challenging than in other species, owing to the limited number of drugs licensed in food producing animals. The use of adrenaline as an infusion to support blood pressure has not been described previously in bovines.

Case presentation

A cow and a calf presented to University College Dublin Veterinary Hospital for bilateral mandibular fracture repair and bladder rupture repair respectively, developed severe anaesthetic related hypotension unresponsive to conventional treatments. In both cases an adrenaline infusion was started and slowly increased to effect, with infusion rates ranging from 0.01 to 0.25 μg/kg/min. Blood pressure increased as the adrenaline infusion rate increased, but clinically significant improvements in blood pressure were only observed with infusion rates exceeding 0.05 μg/kg/min. The side effect observed with adrenaline infusion was an increase in plasma lactate levels in both cases. Both animals were euthanised due to non-anaesthetic related complications.

Conclusions

Maintenance of normotension is important during bovine anaesthesia to prevent the development of post-anaesthetic complications. In the cases described here, adrenaline was effective as an additional treatment of anaesthetic related hypotension. Further research is required to establish the recommended infusion rates, cardiovascular effects and possible side effects of adrenaline infusion administration as a treatment for hypotension in bovines.
Improving aerial image transmission quality using trajectory-aided OLSR in flying ad hoc networks
Authors: Hou Chen , Xu Zhexin , Jia Wen-Kang , Cai Jianyong , Li Hui
Published: July 2020

UAVs have been widely used in various applications. Auto coordination of multiple UAVs through AI or mission planning software can provide significant improvements in many applications, including battlefield reconnaissance, topographical mapping, and search and rescue missions. Under such circumstances, the trajectory information is known for a set amount of time, and the system’s performance relies on the network between UAVs and their base. Here, a new protocol is proposed that takes the trajectory of UAVs as a known factor and uses it to improve optimized link state routing (OLSR). In this protocol,Q-learning is adopted to find the best route for the system. Additionally, a packet forwarding arrangement is described that addresses the common problem of deteriorating image quality often faced by UAVs. The simulation results show significant improvements over OLSR and GPSR under a sparsely distributed scenario, with the packet delivery ratio improved by over 30% and over 40 s reduction in the end-to-end delay.
Primary user emulation and jamming attack detection in cognitive radio via sparse coding
Authors: Furqan Haji M. , Aygül Mehmet A. , Nazzal Mahmoud , Arslan Hüseyin
Published: July 2020

Cognitive radio is an intelligent and adaptive radio that improves the utilization of the spectrum by its opportunistic sharing. However, it is inherently vulnerable to primary user emulation and jamming attacks that degrade the spectrum utilization. In this paper, an algorithm for the detection of primary user emulation and jamming attacks in cognitive radio is proposed. The proposed algorithm is based on the sparse coding of the compressed received signal over a channel-dependent dictionary. More specifically, the convergence patterns in sparse coding according to such a dictionary are used to distinguish between a spectrum hole, a legitimate primary user, and an emulator or a jammer. The process of decision-making is carried out as a machine learning-based classification operation. Extensive numerical experiments show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm in detecting the aforementioned attacks with high success rates. This is validated in terms of the confusion matrix quality metric. Besides, the proposed algorithm is shown to be superior to energy detection-based machine learning techniques in terms of receiver operating characteristics curves and the areas under these curves.
On a fractional p-q Laplacian equation with critical nonlinearity
Authors: Zhi Zhen , Yang Zuodong
Published: July 2020

In this paper, we consider the existence of nontrivial solutions for a fractional p-q Laplacian equation with critical nonlinearity in a bounded domain. Our approach is based on variational methods and some analytical techniques.
$C^{*}$-Algebra valued fuzzy normed spaces with application of Hyers–Ulam stability of a random integral equation
Authors: Chaharpashlou R. , O’Regan Donal , Park Choonkil , Saadati Reza
Published: July 2020

In this paper, we consider $C^{*}$

C
∗

-algebra valued fuzzy normed spaces. We study the random integral equation $(\frac{1}{2c})\int _{x-cd}^{x+cd}u(\gamma ,\tau ,d_{0})\,d\tau =u( \gamma ,x,d)$
(

1

2
c

)

∫

x
−
c
d

x
+
c
d

u
(
γ
,
τ
,

d
0

)

d
τ
=
u
(
γ
,
x
,
d
)
which is related to the stochastic wave equation. In addition, using a $C^{*}$

C
∗

-algebra valued fuzzy controller function, we consider its $C^{*}$

C
∗

-algebra valued fuzzy Hyers–Ulam stability.
Abundant solitary wave solutions to an extended nonlinear Schrödinger’s equation with conformable derivative using an efficient integration method
Authors: Ghanbari Behzad , Nisar Kottakkaran Sooppy , Aldhaifallah Mujahed
Published: July 2020

The prevalence of the use of mathematical software has dramatically influenced the evolution of differential equations. The use of these useful tools leads to faster advances in the presentation of numerical and analytical methods. This paper retrieves several soliton solutions to the fractional perturbed Schrödinger’s equation with Kerr and parabolic law nonlinearity, and local conformable derivative. The method used in this article, called the generalized exponential rational function method, also relies heavily on the use of symbolic software such as Maple. The considered model has prominent applications in water optical metamaterials. The method retrieves several exponential, hyperbolic, and trigonometric function solutions to the model. The numerical evolution of the obtained solutions is also exhibited. The resulted wide range of solutions derived from the method proves its effectiveness in solving the model under investigation. It is also recommended to use the technique used in this article to solve similar problems.
On Hilfer generalized proportional fractional derivative
Authors: Ahmed Idris , Kumam Poom , Jarad Fahd , Borisut Piyachat , Jirakitpuwapat Wachirapong
Published: July 2020

Motivated by the Hilfer and the Hilfer–Katugampola fractional derivative, we introduce in this paper a new Hilfer generalized proportional fractional derivative, which unifies the Riemann–Liouville and Caputo generalized proportional fractional derivative. Some important properties of the proposed derivative are presented. Based on the proposed derivative, we consider a nonlinear fractional differential equation with nonlocal initial condition and show that this equation is equivalent to the Volterra integral equation. In addition, the existence and uniqueness of solutions are proven using fixed point theorems. Furthermore, we offer two examples to clarify the results.
Mechanisms affecting the implementation of a national antimicrobial stewardship programme; multi-professional perspectives explained using normalisation process theory
Authors: Currie Kay , Laidlaw Rebecca , Ness Valerie , Gozdzielewska Lucyna , Malcom William , Sneddon Jacqueline , Seaton Ronald Andrew , Flowers Paul
Published: July 2020

Background

Antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) describes activities concerned with safe-guarding antibiotics for the future, reducing drivers for the major global public health threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), whereby antibiotics are less effective in preventing and treating infections. Appropriate antibiotic prescribing is central to AMS. Whilst previous studies have explored the effectiveness of specific AMS interventions, largely from uni-professional perspectives, our literature search could not find any existing evidence evaluating the processes of implementing an integrated national AMS programme from multi-professional perspectives.

Methods

This study sought to explain mechanisms affecting the implementation of a national antimicrobial stewardship programme, from multi-professional perspectives. Data collection involved in-depth qualitative telephone interviews with 27 implementation lead clinicians from 14/15 Scottish Health Boards and 15 focus groups with doctors, nurses and clinical pharmacists (n = 72) from five Health Boards, purposively selected for reported prescribing variation. Data was first thematically analysed, barriers and enablers were then categorised, and Normalisation Process Theory (NPT) was used as an interpretive lens to explain mechanisms affecting the implementation process. Analysis addressed the NPT questions ‘which group of actors have which problems, in which domains, and what sort of problems impact on the normalisation of AMS into everyday hospital practice’.

Results

Results indicated that major barriers relate to organisational context and resource availability. AMS had coherence for implementation leads and prescribing doctors; less so for consultants and nurses who may not access training. Conflicting priorities made obtaining buy-in from some consultants difficult; limited role perceptions meant few nurses or clinical pharmacists engaged with AMS. Collective individual and team action to implement AMS could be constrained by lack of medical continuity and hierarchical relationships. Reflexive monitoring based on audit results was limited by the capacity of AMS Leads to provide direct feedback to practitioners.

Conclusions

This study provides original evidence of barriers and enablers to the implementation of a national AMS programme, from multi-professional, multi-organisational perspectives. The use of a robust theoretical framework (NPT) added methodological rigour to the findings. Our results are of international significance to healthcare policy makers and practitioners seeking to strengthen the sustainable implementation of hospital AMS programmes in comparable contexts.
Clinical characteristics of four cancer patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection in Wuhan, China
Authors: Song Shi-Hui , Chen Tie-Long , Deng Li-Ping , Zhang Yong-Xi , Mo Ping-Zheng , Gao Shi-Cheng , Hu Wen-Jia , Xiong Yong , Ma Zhi-Yong
Published: July 2020

Background

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) led to the outbreak of pneumonia in Wuhan. The virus is highly infectious. Patients with cancer might be susceptible to the viral infection because of the immunosuppressive state cause by therapies on tumors.

Case presentation

We present the clinical features of four cancer patients who were infected with SARS-CoV-2 in late January of 2020 in our hospital. Cases 1 and 3 were diagnosed as mild and common type of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-2019) and survived from the viral infection. They acquired SARS-CoV-2 infection during their staying in hospital under radiotherapy and surgery of the tumors. Cases 2 and 4 suffered from severe type of COVID-19, and Case 2 was dead owning to the advanced age, uncontrolled chronic B cell lymphocytic leukemia and many other underlying diseases. The immunosuppressive state induced by liver transplantation and anti-rejection therapy might contribute to the severity of COVID-19 in Case 4, who suffered from hepatitis B related hepatocellular carcinoma. However, Case 4 was recovered from COVID-19 after a combination therapy against virus, bacteria and fungi, and also respiratory support. Nearly all patients showed a decrease in lymphocytes including total CD3+ T cells, B cells, and natural killer cells after infection of the virus.

Conclusions

The severity of COVID-19 might be influenced by immune system state and underlying diseases in cancer patients. And the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection in cancer patients is challenged by the immunosuppressive state of these patients under chemotherapy or surgery.
Emotion regulation strategies in bulimia nervosa: an experimental investigation of mindfulness, self-compassion, and cognitive restructuring
Authors: Hessler-Kaufmann Johannes Baltasar , Heese Julia , Berking Matthias , Voderholzer Ulrich , Diedrich Alice
Published: July 2020

Background

While improving emotion regulation (ER) is a central goal in the therapy of bulimia nervosa (BN), there is no experimental evidence on the efficacy of different ER strategies. (1) We hypothesized that mindfulness as well as self-compassion as contextual strategies and cognitive restructuring as classical cognitive behavioral strategy would outperform waiting in improving emotional and eating disorder related outcomes after an unpleasant mood induction. Further, we explored (2) whether contextual strategies outperformed cognitive restructuring and (3) whether comorbid mental disorders and previous treatment for BN influenced the efficacy of contextual ER strategies compared to cognitive restructuring.

Methods

Within their first 2 weeks of treatment, inpatients with BN were instructed to utilize mindfulness, self-compassion, and cognitive restructuring or to wait after a pre-induced sadness in a permuted repeated measures design. Patients further rated different emotional and cognitive outcomes on a visual analogue scale at baseline, and before and after each ER strategy. Multiple linear regression analyses were employed to compare (1) the active conditions to waiting, (2) the contextual strategies with cognitive restructuring, and (3) the latter analysis again, but separated according to comorbidity and previous treatment.

Results

Forty-eight female inpatients with BN (mean age = 26.44 years, SD = 6.64) completed the study. (1) Contextual ER strategies were more efficacious than waiting for eating disorder symptoms. Cognitive restructuring did not differ from waiting for any outcome. (2) Contextual strategies were more efficacious than cognitive restructuring for emotional outcomes. (3) Self-compassion was more efficacious than cognitive restructuring in patients with comorbid mental disorders and previous treatment in increasing control over the present feeling.

Conclusions

Contextual strategies, especially self-compassion, seem more efficacious than waiting and cognitive restructuring in improving short-term ER in patients with BN in an experimental setting.
Comparison of trace element chemistry in human bones interred in two private chapels attached to Franciscan friaries in Italy and Denmark: an investigation of social stratification in two medieval and post-medieval societies
Authors: Rasmussen Kaare Lund , Delbey Thomas , d’Imporzano Paolo , Skytte Lilian , Schiavone Simone , Torino Marielva , Tarp Peter , Thomsen Per Orla
Published: July 2020

Individuals buried in two 17th–18th Century private chapels, each attached to a Franciscan Friary—one in Italy the other in Denmark—have been studied and sampled for trace element analysis. This selection of individuals allows a comparison of the trace element inventory of members of noble families against friars and townspeople, as well as a comparison between two very similar situations in Denmark and Italy. The relevance of this study is to see if and how differences in social status, and therefore likely differences in dietary habits, are reflected in the trace element chemistry of the bones. Samples of cortical and trabecular tissues have been procured from a long bone, preferentially the femur. The samples have been thoroughly decontaminated. 87 samples from 69 individuals have been analysed for Ca, Mn, Fe, Cu, Sr, Ba, and Pb by ICP-MS and Hg by CV-AAS. Sex and age at death have been established by anthropological analysis for all members of the two noble families. We find systematic differences between the noble family members and the friars (or townspeople) in both Italy and Denmark. The noble families are in both cases low in Sr and Ba compared to the friars and townspeople, which is interpreted as a dietary signal resulting from higher meat consumption than in the comparative groups. Lead concentrations are found to be higher in the noble family members than in the comparative groups, and the Pb concentration seems to increase with age in the Italian noble family, where both young and middle-aged individuals were investigated. Mercury concentrations are higher in some of the Italian noble family members compared to friars and townspeople; whereas in Denmark it seems that Hg was equally available to the noble family members and the friars alike. This is the first comprehensive and comparative study of post-medieval noble families in Denmark and Italy. The results show that there are distinct similarities in the trace element distribution patterns in the noble family members irrespective of country, which is tentatively suggested to be due to their higher social status.
Preliminary geological evidence for multiple tremors in Kwoi, Central Nigeria
Authors: Goki Nathaniel Goter , Onwuka Solomon Anayo , Oleka Adama Baba , Iyakwari Shekwoyandu , Tanko Ishak Yau , Kana Aisha Abubakar , Umbugadu Allu Augustine , Usman Halima Osu
Published: July 2020

Preliminary field assessment of the geological evidence for the September 2016 multiple tremors was felt as far as 10 km in Nok and Chori villages in the north and northwest of Kwoi respectively. This involved systematic studies of the crack pattern and intensity on buildings, rocks and hanging walls of slopes around the area with the highest shock. The structural mapping was complemented by composite images of SPOT 5, supplementary subsurface investigations utilized aeromagnetic data, seismic data, and Digital Terrain Model (DTM) for the area. Results show that the major evidence that proved a possible link to the area of highest impact is the tremor triggered displacement of a 4 by 3 m diameter rock boulder situated about a kilometre from the Kwoi town, some 3 km from the nearest epicentre that fell through a cumulative distance of 25 m, splitting the fresh granite boulder into two and creating a high impact scar on its path. Seismic vibrations that shook the residents of Kwoi and environs (with epicentres located along a NE-SW linear traverse and remotely coinciding with buried fractures) appear to have been generated and propagated laterally from the rocks along a northwest-southeast profile. Despite the non-homogenous strengths of the impacted buildings, the near-consistency of the E-W striking walls being the most fractured gives a remote connection with the major 345° to 015° fracture patterns on the granitic plutons that shields Kwoi town to the north. Additionally, the intensity of the fractures and collapse in the buildings increased south-westwards from the perceived area of highest impact. A possible tectonic origin related to stress build up in the rocks of the area for the tremors can be insinuated thereby foreclosing the theory of a non-tectonic origin being considered in some quarters including the recent Mpape Abuja tremor of 2018. All these epicentres plot along an extrapolated trend that coincides with the Chain Fracture Zone of the North Atlantic.
Real-time ultrasound-guided external intracerebral hemorrhage drain placement
Authors: Feng Cong , Huang Sai , Chen Li , Zhou Xuan , Wang Li-Li , Lv Fa-Qin , Li Tan-Shi
Published: July 2020

We report a new minimally invasive technique utilizing interventional ultrasound for precise external intracerebral hemorrhage drain (EICHD) placement in pigs.
Foundation News
Authors: Burk Katie
Published: July 2020

Lectures are generally used to teach new knowledge and skills, promote reflection, and stimulate further work and learning. Some advantages of lectures are that they are straightforward, efficient, and can be recorded and recycled. As evidenced by more than 5300 attendees in more than 29 countries during 2019, the SEG Distinguished Lecture, Honorary Lecture, and Virtual Near Surface Global Lecture programs are considered to be some of the most effective outreach programs for the Society.
Automating event location monitoring for induced seismicity
Authors: Willacy Christopher , Blokland Jan-Willem , van Dedem Ewoud
Published: July 2020

Permanent reservoir monitoring is important for cases of induced seismicity in which there may be a risk to people or to the environment. In such cases, accurately locating microearthquakes and assessing their hazard level can help keep production at safe levels. The process can benefit greatly from the use of automation. With the shift toward full-waveform microearthquake location algorithms and workflows, greater accuracy and information can be retrieved compared to that offered by traditional traveltime estimation techniques, but the complexity of these workflows and run-time costs can be higher. Results are presented from an automatic elastic event location and moment tensor inversion workflow that has been highly parallelized on clustered computer hardware. Run times that previously took up to several days to complete using a manually intensive execution of the workflow now can be achieved in approximately 1 hour. Some 180 events recorded at the Groningen gas field and ranging in magnitude from 0.1 to 3.4 MW (ML) have been located and analyzed with the automatic workflow. The results indicate equivalent location accuracy when compared to the manually intensive workflow execution. However, larger errors are noted in the depth positions of some events and in the range and nature of the focal mechanism, as derived from moment tensor inversion. High grading of the manual and automatic results has been performed and used to study the geomechanical behavior of the microearthquakes in the Groningen region, which exhibit mainly dip-slip, double-couple motion, in areas of previous production activity.
The affective neuroscience of socioeconomic status: implications for mental health
Authors: Hao Yu , Farah Martha J.
Published: July 2020

We review basic science research on neural mechanisms underlying emotional processing in individuals of differing socioeconomic status (SES). We summarise SES differences in response to positive and negative stimuli in limbic and cortical regions associated with emotion and emotion regulation. We discuss the possible relevance of neuroscience to understanding the link between mental health and SES. We hope to provide insights into future neuroscience research on the etiology and pathophysiology of mental disorders relating to SES.
What do psychiatrists think about primary mental health competencies among family doctors? A WPA–WONCA global survey
Authors: Ng R.M.K. , Chan T.F. , Herrman H. , Dowrick C.
Published: July 2020

People with common mental disorders often seek medical attention from their family doctors. Thus, it is essential for family doctors to possess primary mental health knowledge. The aim of this study was to understand whether psychiatrists endorse the primary mental health competencies identified by the World Organization of Family Doctors and whether they agree that family doctors are demonstrating these competencies. A questionnaire was constructed based on 32 core competencies. Presidents of all World Psychiatric Association member societies were invited to complete the questionnaire or to forward it to local experts. According to the respondents, these competencies are considered relevant yet not sufficiently possessed by typical primary care doctors. Proposals are made to bridge this assumed competency gap.
Montessori intervention for individuals with dementia: feasibility study of a culturally adapted psychosocial intervention in Pakistan (MIRACLE)
Authors: Chaudhry Nasim , Tofique Sehrish , Husain Nusrat , Couture Debbie , Glasgow Paula , Husain Meher , Kiran Tayyeba , Memon Rakhshi , Minhas Shela , Qureshi Afshan , Shuber Florene , Leroi Iracema
Published: July 2020

Background

Globally, nearly two-thirds of people with dementia reside in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), yet research on how to support people with dementia in LMIC settings is sparse, particularly regarding the management of behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia. Understanding how best to manage these symptoms of dementia with non-specialist approaches in LMICs is critical. One such approach is a non-pharmacological intervention based on the Montessori method.

Aims

To evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a culturally adapted, group-based Montessori intervention for care home residents with dementia and their study partners, who were paid care workers in Pakistan.

Method

This was a two-stage study: a cultural adaptation of the Montessori intervention and a single-arm, open-label, feasibility and acceptability study of 12 participant dyads. Feasibility and tolerability of the intervention and study procedures were determined through the recruitment rate, adherence to the protocol and acceptance of the intervention. Qualitative interviews were undertaken with the study partners. A pre–post exploratory analysis of ratings of behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia, functional ability and quality of life were also conducted.

Results

The recruitment and retention rates of people with dementia were acceptable, and the intervention was well tolerated by participant dyads. Findings show a reduction in agitation levels and improvement in mood and interest for the activities.

Conclusions

Feasibility studies of low-cost, easy-to-deliver and culturally adapted interventions are essential in laying the groundwork for subsequent definitive effectiveness and/or implementation trials for dementia in LMICs, where awareness and resources for dementia are limited.
Individualized Therapy for Hypothyroidism: Is T4 Enough for Everyone?
Authors: Ettleson Matthew D , Bianco Antonio C
Published: July 2020

Context

It is well recognized that some hypothyroid patients on levothyroxine (LT4) remain symptomatic, but why patients are susceptible to this condition, why symptoms persist, and what is the role of combination therapy with LT4 and liothyronine (LT3), are questions that remain unclear. Here we explore evidence of abnormal thyroid hormone (TH) metabolism in LT4-treated patients, and offer a rationale for why some patients perceive LT4 therapy as a failure.

Evidence Acquisition

This review is based on a collection of primary and review literature gathered from a PubMed search of “hypothyroidism,” “levothyroxine,” “liothyronine,” and “desiccated thyroid extract,” among other keywords. PubMed searches were supplemented by Google Scholar and the authors’ prior knowledge of the subject.

Evidence Synthesis

In most LT4-treated patients, normalization of serum thyrotropin levels results in decreased serum T3/T4 ratio, with relatively lower serum T3 levels; in at least 15% of the cases, serum T3 levels are below normal. These changes can lead to a reduction in TH action, which would explain the slower rate of metabolism and elevated serum cholesterol levels. A small percentage of patients might also experience persistent symptoms of hypothyroidism, with impaired cognition and tiredness. We propose that such patients carry a key clinical factor, for example, specific genetic and/or immunologic makeup, that is well compensated while the thyroid function is normal but might become apparent when compounded with relatively lower serum T3 levels.

Conclusions

After excluding other explanations, physicians should openly discuss and consider therapy with LT4 and LT3 with those hypothyroid patients who have persistent symptoms or metabolic abnormalities despite normalization of serum thyrotropin level. New clinical trials focused on symptomatic patients, genetic makeup, and comorbidities, with the statistical power to identify differences between monotherapy and combination therapy, are needed.
Regulation of Thyroid-disrupting Chemicals to Protect the Developing Brain
Authors: Gilbert Mary E , O’Shaughnessy Katherine L , Axelstad Marta
Published: July 2020

Synthetic chemicals with endocrine disrupting properties are pervasive in the environment and are present in the bodies of humans and wildlife. As thyroid hormones (THs) control normal brain development, and maternal hypothyroxinemia is associated with neurological impairments in children, chemicals that interfere with TH signaling are of considerable concern for children’s health. However, identifying thyroid-disrupting chemicals (TDCs) in vivo is largely based on measuring serum tetraiodothyronine in rats, which may be inadequate to assess TDCs with disparate mechanisms of action and insufficient to evaluate the potential neurotoxicity of TDCs. In this review 2 neurodevelopmental processes that are dependent on TH action are highlighted, neuronal migration and maturation of gamma amino butyric acid-ergic interneurons. We discuss how interruption of these processes by TDCs may contribute to abnormal brain circuitry following developmental TH insufficiency. Finally, we identify issues in evaluating the developmental neurotoxicity of TDCs and the strengths and limitations of current approaches designed to regulate them. It is clear that an enhanced understanding of how THs affect brain development will lead to refined toxicity testing, reducing uncertainty and improving our ability to protect children’s health.
The Cliffhangers
Authors: Hillenbrand Margaret
Published: July 2020

Over the last couple of decades, workers in China’s vast and poorly regulated construction industry have increasingly turned to suicidal performance as a radical means of securing wage arrears. These so-called suicide shows have drawn attention as expressions of escalating labor unrest in China, and thus have mostly been read through a political science prism. But these displays, precisely in their dramatic dimension, also open themselves up to a culturalist, even aesthetic analysis: they braid together mixed threads, from the Chinese tradition of suicide as righteous remonstrance to present-day forms of creatively embodied protest in the era of Occupy. At the same time, though, these workers have also fashioned an aesthetic intervention that is very much of their own devising. This article draws on an empirical base of two dozen suicide shows posted on video-sharing sites to argue that these performances force a visual rupture in the narcotically identikit Chinese cityscape, as the nation’s new poor, so often invisible to their social others on the street, climb to the highest urban summits and command extreme attention. Once there, they turn the rooftop into a site of performance that acts out the excruciating distinction between those who belong within the polis and the dispossessed: those who are cast out from the circle of humanity and are thus excluded from all avenues to legal and economic redress when they are wronged. As such, “cliffhanging” in China exemplifies what I call the fractious form, in which a tense encounter between different class actors under the regime of precarity becomes the genesis for a volatile cultural practice.
A Family Romance
Authors: Zamperini Paola
Published: July 2020

This article focuses on Eileen Chang's “Xinjing” to map and understand the ways in which the author depicts different types of emotional, erotic, sexual, and psychological flows and exchanges among parents, children, and their partners and spouses. “Xinjing” is here read in conversation with a wide array of other sources, first and foremost the middle and late Qing literary heritage that so greatly occupied and influenced Chang's own literary universe and pursuits, as well as the westernized literary milieu in which she lived and operated in 1940s Shanghai.
Pleasure and Sin
Authors: Tu Hang
Published: July 2020

This article offers a reconstruction of the intellectual dialogue between Kantian aesthetician Li Zehou 李澤厚 (1930–) and humanist literary critic Liu Zaifu 劉再復 (1941–). By comparing Li's ruminations on “cultures of pleasure” (legan wenhua 樂感文化) and Liu's treatises on “literatures of sin” (zuigan wenxue 罪感文學), the author shows how religious ethics became a crucial medium for them to reflect on the theologico-political aspects of Chinese revolutionary culture. In particular, Li's cultures of pleasure were grounded in the May Fourth aesthetic discourse that highlighted the inculcation of secular humanity as an alternative to religious transcendence. Meanwhile, Liu underscored the transcendence of literatures of sin to stimulate an inner morality through which to excise all secular political commands from human interiority. Whereas Li prioritized a realistic ethical and psychological noumenon in Confucian aesthetics to refute the romantic and sublime figure of the proletarian subject, Liu's espousal of religious transcendence provided Chinese writers with a spiritual dimension to actualize literature's breakaway from the tutelage of the revolutionary state. Their reflections on this-worldly pleasure and otherworldly sin have merged in exorcising the myth of Mao's revolutionary utopia.
The impact of persistent colonization by Vibrio fischeri on the metabolome of the host squid Euprymna scolopes
Authors: Koch Eric J. , Moriano-Gutierrez Silvia , Ruby Edward G. , McFall-Ngai Margaret , Liebeke Manuel
Published: July 2020

Associations between animals and microbes affect not only the immediate tissues where they occur, but also the entire host. Metabolomics, the study of small biomolecules generated during metabolic processes, provides a window into how mutualistic interactions shape host biochemistry. The Hawaiian bobtail squid, Euprymna scolopes, is amenable to metabolomic studies of symbiosis because the host can be reared with or without its species-specific symbiont, Vibrio fischeri. In addition, unlike many invertebrates, the host squid has a closed circulatory system. This feature allows a direct sampling of the refined collection of metabolites circulating through the body, a focused approach that has been highly successful with mammals. Here, we show that rearing E. scolopes without its natural symbiont significantly affected one quarter of the more than 100 hemolymph metabolites defined by gas chromatography mass-spectrometry analysis. Further, as in mammals, which harbor complex consortia of bacterial symbionts, the metabolite signature oscillated on symbiont-driven daily rhythms and was dependent on the sex of the host. Thus, our results provide evidence that the population of even a single symbiont species can influence host hemolymph biochemistry as a function of symbiotic state, host sex, and circadian rhythm.
Fluctuating environments during early development can limit adult phenotypic flexibility: Insights from an amphibious fish
Authors: Rossi Giulia S. , Cochrane Paige V. , Wright Patricia A.
Published: July 2020

The interaction between developmental plasticity and the capacity for reversible acclimation (phenotypic flexibility) is poorly understood, particularly in organisms exposed to fluctuating environments. We used an amphibious killifish (Kryptolebias marmoratus) to test the hypotheses that organisms reared in fluctuating environments (i) will make no developmental changes to suit any one environment because fixing traits to suit one environment could be maladaptive for another, and (ii) will be highly phenotypically flexible as adults because their early life experiences predict high environmental variability in the future. We reared fish under constant (water) or fluctuating (water-air) environments until adulthood and assessed a suite of traits along the oxygen (O2) cascade (e.g., neuroepithelial cell density and size, cutaneous capillarity, gill morphology, ventricle size, red muscle morphometrics, terrestrial locomotor performance). To evaluate the capacity for phenotypic flexibility, a subset of adult fish from each rearing condition were then air-exposed for 14 days before the same traits were measured. In support of the developmental plasticity hypothesis, traits involved with O2 sensing and uptake were largely unaffected by water-air fluctuations during early life, but we found marked developmental changes in traits related to O2 transport, utilization, and locomotor performance. In contrast, we found no evidence supporting the phenotypic flexibility hypothesis. Adult fish from both rearing conditions exhibited the same degree of phenotypic flexibility in various O2 sensing- and uptake-related traits. In other cases, water-air fluctuations attenuated adult phenotypic flexibility despite the fact that phenotypic flexibility is hypothesized to be favoured when environments fluctuate. Overall, we conclude that exposure to environmental fluctuations during development in K. marmoratus can dramatically alter the constitutive adult phenotype, as well as diminish the scope for phenotypic flexibility in later life.
Can T2 blackout effect be a marker of iron accumulation in brains of multiple sclerosis patients?
Authors: Erbay Mehmet Fatih , Kamışlı Özden , Karatoprak Nur Betül
Published: July 2020

Objective :

T2 blackout (TBO) effect, which is a common finding in the brains of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and older population that are imaged for other reasons on diffusion weighted imagings (DWI) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) map show the existence of paramagnetic materials in the tissue. Because iron is known to accumulate in especially deep gray matter (DGM) structures in MS brains, we aimed to investigate the relationship between TBO and clinico-radiological parameters that may be iron-related in MS.

Methods:

We retrospectively reviewed the latest MR images of MS patients on 3 Tesla MR scanner between 2018 and 2019. TBO existence and severity on DWI–ADC was assessed by two radiologists and its correlation with several outcomes of MS was investigated.

Results:

No significant relationship was found between TBO and gender, subtype of MS whereas TBO was positively correlated with parameters such as black-hole lesions, cortical atrophy, duration of disease, age and extended disability status scale (EDSS) score.

Conclusions:

TBO shows correlation with the conditions which were revealed to be associated with iron accumulation in the brain of MS patients in the literature. Therefore, we concluded that TBO and its severity in DGM may represent iron accumulation in MS brains.

Advances in knowledge:

TBO effect as a frequent imaging finding in daily practice may be used as predictor of the disease course of MS due to possible effects of iron accumulation in brain and thereby may be useful in modifying treatment strategies.
Unusual lesion in the splenium of the corpus callosum and coronavirus infectious disease-19
Authors: Agarwal Nivedita , Martini Rosella , Pedrotti Giovanni , Della Sala Sabino Walter
Published: July 2020

Coronavirus infectious diseases (COVID-19) is an emerging infectious disease that has taken a strong grip on the entire global community. The diagnosis per se is straightforward; however, the disease seems to affect multiple organs. Cytokine-storm, increased thromboembolic state, deranged overall homeostasis and aggressive medical treatment can cause a variety of lesions in the central nervous system. Interpretation of brain imaging findings will require a thorough understanding of the clinical status of the patient and treatment being offered, keeping in mind the several ways in which the viral pathogen, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 may interact with brain tissue. We present differential diagnosis of a MRI identified solitary lesion in the splenium of the corpus callosum, in a COVID-19 positive patient with altered mental status.
Rational use of SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction tests within institutions caring for the vulnerable
Authors: Yates Tom A. , Cooke Graham S. , MacPherson Peter
Published: July 2020

Institutions such as hospitals and nursing or long-stay residential homes accommodate individuals at considerable risk of mortality should they acquire SARS-CoV-2 infection. In these settings, polymerase chain reaction tests play a central role in infection prevention and control. Here, we argue that both false negative and false positive tests are possible and that careful consideration of the prior probability of infection and of test characteristics are needed to prevent harm. We outline evidence suggesting that regular systematic testing of asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic individuals could play an important role in reducing transmission of SARS-CoV-2 within institutions. We discuss how such a programme might be organised, arguing that frequent testing and rapid reporting of results are particularly important. We highlight studies demonstrating that polymerase chain reaction testing of pooled samples can be undertaken with acceptable loss of sensitivity, and advocate such an approach where test capacity is limited. We provide an approach to calculating the most efficient pool size. Given the current limitations of tests for SARS-CoV-2 infection, physical distancing and meticulous infection prevention and control will remain essential in institutions caring for vulnerable people.
Editors’ Preface
Authors: Talvet Jüri , Talviste Katre
Published: July 2020

Editors’ Preface
Some Comments on the Changes, Contradictions and Connections of Literary Theories in Lithuania
Authors: Jurgutienė Aušra
Published: July 2020

The paper presents a brief history of literary theories that have been used in Lithuania for the last century (1918–2018). Certain general patterns of development are visible in Lithuanian literary studies: movements from positivist (M. Biržiška) to anti-positivist (V. Mykolaitis-Putinas) history and from Marxist history (K. Korsakas) to postmodern New Historicism. The mid-20th century marked the first applications of modern literary theories (first in exile, later among those who stayed in occupied Lithuania). A. J. Greimas became an eminent theoretician in exile, having established a world-famous school of semiotics in Paris. A large number of Lithuanian scholars worked in this field in Lithuania and abroad (J. Ambrazevičius-Brazaitis, Rimvydas Šilbajoris, Vytautas Kavolis, Bronius Vaškelis, Violeta Kelertienė, Ilona Gražytė-Maziliauskienė, Viktorija Skrupskelytė, Tomas Venclova, Vanda Zaborskaitė, Kęstutis Nastopka, Albertas Zalatorius, Vytautas Kubilius, Viktorija Daujotytė, Irena Kostkevičiūtė), but except for the Greimas Paris School of Semiotics, which created its own field, literary theories had mostly a practical and educational impact on interpretations of Lithuanian disciplines.

After the restoration of Lithuanian independence in 1990, the renewal of literary theory reached its peak that lasted for about two decades. The J. Greimas Semiotics Studies and Research Centre (now the A. J. Greimas Centre for Semiotics and Literary Theory) was established at Vilnius University in 1992, books written by A. J. Greimas were translated into Lithuanian and the publishing of academic journals “Semiotika” and “Baltos lankos” started. The so-called second wave of postmodern theories (intertextuality, narratology, feminism, postcolonialism, sociology, anthropology, new historicism deconstruc tion, reader response) has attracted the attention of literary scholars, bringing discussions about literature back to the fields of history, culture and politics (Nijolė Keršytė, Paulius Subačius, Irina Melnikova, Marijus Šidlauskas, Birutė Meržvinskaitė, Eugenijus Ališanka). Theories have updated the concepts and vocabulary of literary studies and reading strategies and helped literary scholars integrate themselves into international research more successfully. Along with the hermeneutics of trust, the hermeneutics of suspicion – questioning and complicating interpretations and identities of all texts, was taking an increasingly important place in Lithuanian literary research. Nevertheless, at this time the strengthened position of post-theoretical criticism cannot be anti-theoretical, ignoring the entire heritage of the 20th century.
Littératures migrantes: concept d’un champ littéraire excentrique
Authors: Bédard-Goulet Sara
Published: July 2020

Abstract. Migrant Literatures: Concept from an Excentric Literary Field. This article focuses on the concept of migrant literatures as it was developed by literary studies in Quebec at the beginning of the 1980s. It examines the conditions that led to the emergence of the notion, such as the historical evolution, immigration policies and linguistic specificity, and compares it with the situation in France, where such a concept was not considered by literary theory until recently and still meets with a certain resistance to multiculturalism. Hybridity is a key term to define migrant literatures, a term that emerged alongside postmodernism, and contributes to reconsidering the traditional boundaries of national literatures, often based on a uniform vision of history and a territorial perspective of space. On a literary level, the emergence of migrant literatures can be attributed to the tendency, in Quebec literature, towards exile, as it represents itself in an excentric perspective. As such, it fosters a close relationship with alterity and welcomes multiple identities. Quebec literature has also been described as adventureless, mostly representing an idyll sheltered from the outer world. This paper suggests that this also can promote a fertile ground for migrant writers, whether they need a refuge from a difficult experience or can offer the adventure missing from the general trend of works.
Twenty Years of Literature at University. An Insider’s Perspective
Authors: Niinre Anneli
Published: July 2020

Taking the Estonian philology BA curriculum as an example, the article analyses the changes in literature courses in 1998 and 2018 at Tallinn University (former Tallinn Pedagogical University). The year 1998 marks the beginning of my student life, the year 2018 marks the last full year as a lecturer. The 20-year period shoes vividly the changes that have taken place in the Estonian educational system. The overview is based on Estonian literature and world literature courses included in the Estonian philology BA curriculum. The article gives an overview of the periods, topics, themes, authors, theories and methods discussed in literature courses. The emphasis is on the changes that have taken place.