bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Et Cetera/Etcetera/&c; or, the Aposiopetic Page
Authors: Maguire Laurie
Published: November 2020

Chapter 2 looks at the etcetera, a mark which today functions solely as an abbreviation, indicating the continuation of properties in a list. But in the early modern period that was only one of its several meanings. As a noun and a verb, early modern etcetera represents the body and bawdy (sexual parts and activities, or physical functions such as urination or defecation). As a punctuation mark, it is a forerunner of the punctuation mark which indicates silence or interruption—the em-dash. As a rhetorical term, it represents silence or the form of breaking off known rhetorically as aposiopesis. As an abbreviation at the ends of lists in stage directions, or lines in actors’ parts, it represents stage action, inviting continuation of dialogue or listed props. These four categories are linked in that etcetera directs the eye to a vacancy. We can see why it might be associated with aposiopesis, a rhetorical figure that is paradoxically about silence.
The Middle Route
Authors: Scott Dominic
Published: November 2020

As well as claiming that most people can never attain knowledge of the Forms, Socrates holds in that they cannot even form a belief in their existence. This would make them unable to follow the middle route, which requires a partial understanding of the Forms to define justice and defend its value. But this raises a problem: if most people are unable even to believe in Forms, how would they be able to follow Socrates’ defence of his proposal for philosopher-rulers, which apparently depends on assuming the existence of Forms? To solve this problem I argue that, when Socrates tries to persuade the many of his proposal for philosopher-rulers in Rep. V–VI, he deliberately abstains from making any reference to Forms, even though he does do this when defending the proposal for the benefit of Glaucon and Adeimantus.
The Role of Education
Authors: Scott Dominic
Published: November 2020

This chapter discusses the effects that education can have on a person’s receptiveness to argument. The main focus is upon two passages in the Republic about poetry and music. In book III, Socrates claims that exposure to beauty in the arts can prepare one to engage in rational argument. On the negative side, book X analyses the damage allegedly done by tragedy and comedy to the minds of the audience. Overall, I conclude that, although music and poetry have a significant effect on our susceptibility to argument, exposure to good art is not actually necessary for enabling one to follow the shorter route, and exposure to bad art does not necessarily disqualify one. At the end of the chapter I consider two further passages about the effects of education and upbringing, one about gymnastics in book III, the other about the use of dialectic on the young in book VII.
Further Exclusions
Authors: Scott Dominic
Published: November 2020

This chapter examines two more excluded groups, starting with the incontinent. As with the young, there is an apparent tension in the work, because in I 3 he states that argument will fail to benefit the incontinent (since they live by their feelings) and yet in VII 8 he says that, unlike intemperate people, they are open to persuasion, which I take to involve some sort of argument. I resolve the tension in the same way as the previous chapter, by distinguishing between analytical and rhetorical modes of argument. In the rest of the chapter I turn to Aristotle’s exclusion of the many even from rhetorical argument (X 9). I ask what justifies their exclusion and why Aristotle took a more severe line than Plato, who was still open to arguing with them in the Republic.
Interim Conclusions
Authors: Scott Dominic
Published: November 2020

In chapter 3, I argued that the Republic was cautiously optimistic about people’s susceptibility to reason, although I acknowledged the difficulty of excluding a more pessimistic interpretation. Here I revisit the issue in the light of chapters 4–6. I emphasize that nothing in his educational theory or in his moral psychology gives definitive support for the pessimistic view. I then give a stronger argument against such pessimism by looking at the passage where Socrates tried to persuade the many of the need for philosopher-rulers (book VI). Here he is cautiously optimistic that he can convince them of his proposal, even though they are initially hostile. My argument is that, if he can make headway with as controversial a proposal as philosopher-rulers, he would surely think he could make them amenable to his views about the value of justice.
Conclusion
Authors: Scott Dominic
Published: November 2020

Although the point of this book has been to develop a comparison between the Republic and the Nicomachean Ethics, at certain points I have also looked across to Aristotle’s Politics. In the conclusion, I extend my remit further by looking briefly at Plato’s Laws, which invites comparison on several themes relevant to this book. In the Laws, the idea of the legislator philosophizing with the citizens at large is a major theme. I give a review of some of the recent scholarship on the Laws to develop a comparison with the Republic on a principal question of this book: what sort of discourse is needed to persuade the many of the value of justice? I shall also argue that the Laws most probably influenced Aristotle’s approach to the use of moral argument in political contexts.
Enthusiasm
Authors: Scheer Monique
Published: November 2020

Enthusiasm seeks to contribute to a culturally and historically nuanced understanding of how emotions secure and ratify the truth of convictions. More than just pure affective intensity, enthusiasm is about something: a certainty, clarity, or truth. Neither as clearly negative as “fanaticism” nor as general as “passion,” “enthusiasm” specifically entails belief. For this reason, Enthusiasm takes its starting point in religion, the social arena in which the concept was first debated and to which the term still gestures. Empirically based in modern German Protestantism, where religious emotion is intensely cultivated but also subject to vigorous scrutiny, this book combines historical and ethnographic methods to show how enthusiasm has been negotiated and honed as a practice in Protestant denominations ranging from liberal to charismatic. The nexus of religion and emotion and how it relates to central concepts of modernity such as rationality, knowledge, interiority, and sincerity are key to understanding why moderns are so ambivalent about enthusiasm. Grounded in practice theory, Enthusiasm assumes that emotions are not an affective state we “have” but mind–body activations we “do,” having learned to perform them in culturally specific ways. This book shows that, when understood as an emotional practice, enthusiasm has different styles, inflected by historical traditions, social milieus, and knowledge (even ideologies) about emotions and how they work. Finally, Enthusiasm also provides insight into how this feeling works in secular humanism as well as in politics, and why it is so contested as a practice in any context.
Free to Follow the Feeling
Authors: Scheer Monique
Published: November 2020

Chapter 3 argues for the materiality of emotional practice, even when emotion is conceived of as immaterial or “immediate” experience. Emotions are especially important mediators of experience for Protestants because they can be conceived of as immaterial. Drawing on ethnographic studies of mainline and Charismatic church communities, this chapter shows that styles of enthusiastic practice (Enlightened, Romantic) make a difference as to what emotions are taken seriously. Emotions count as evidence in different ways for each: “depth” indicates for mainstream, liberal Protestants a real emotion, one that is in the immaterial part of the self, whereas for the Charismatics, “intensity” provides evidence, i.e. the material force of bodily movements and sensations counts as real. Their “belief” is framed as “knowledge”: they are certain. Rather appalled at this claim, the liberal Protestants engage in an emotional practice of doubt, which they view as essential to maintaining personal autonomy, even as they subscribe to conviction. Doubt is, however, also a material practice, dependent on a specific way of doing enthusiasm.
State-Sponsored Terror, 1934–37
Authors: Barton Mary S.
Published: November 2020

Clandestinely supported by Italian and Hungarian authorities, Balkan terrorists assassinated King Alexander I of Yugoslavia and French Foreign Minister Jean Louis Barthou on October 9, 1934, in Marseilles, France. The brazen political murders caused a diplomatic crisis and prompted the League of Nations Conference for the International Repression of Terrorism, which produced two treaties in 1937: the Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of Terrorism and the Convention for the Creation of an International Criminal Court. The treaties defined terrorism in international law and included provisions to regulate arms trafficking and fraudulent passports. Only the British Government of India ratified the Terrorism treaty. Neither of the treaties had entered into force by the time of the September 1938 Munich Conference in which the Great Powers ceded the Czech Sudetenland to Adolph Hitler and placed the fate of peacetime Europe in the hands of the Führer.
W. V. Quine and David Lewis: Structural (Epistemological) Humility
Authors: Janssen-Lauret Frederique , MacBride Fraser
Published: November 2020

This chapter argues that W. V. Quine and D. K. Lewis, despite their differences and their different receptions, came to a common intellectual destination: epistemological structuralism. The chapter begins by providing an account of Quine’s epistemological structuralism as it came to its mature development in his final works, Pursuit of Truth (1990) and From Stimulus to Science (1995), and the chapter shows how this doctrine developed out of his earlier views on explication and the inscrutability of reference. It then turns to the correspondence between Quine and Lewis which sets the scene for Lewis’s adoption of structuralism vis-à-vis set theory in the Appendix to his Parts of Classes (1990). The chapter concludes, drawing further from Lewis’s correspondence, by arguing that Lewis proceeded from there to embrace in one of his own final papers, ‘Ramseyan Humility’ (2001), an encompassing form of epistemological structuralism, whilst discharging the doctrine of reference magnetism that had hitherto set Lewis apart from Quine.
The Economics of Government
Authors: Tanzi Vito
Published: November 2020

This book deals with practical or real life aspects of public finance. It focuses on the growth in the activities of governments, in a world that expects more than in the past from governments. The book focuses on the growing complexity in both the work of the private market and that of the public sector. It stresses that part of the growing complexity is due to the more ambitious role that governments tried to play today, while part is due to choices made by governments, so that complexity may be partly avoidable. This was important in the different pursuit of social welfare by different countries. Complexity has increased opportunities for abuses, for rent seeking, and for mistakes in policies. It may also have increased the attraction of populist policies that claim to offer magical or easy solutions to problems. A major conclusion of the book is that the objective of simplicity in laws and in policies should be given more importance by both economists and governments.
Britain and International Law in West Africa
Authors: Van Hulle Inge
Published: November 2020

Africa often remains neglected in studies that discuss the historical relationship between international law and imperialism during the nineteenth century. When it does feature, scholarly focus tends to be on the late nineteenth century and on the treaties concluded between European powers and African polities in which sovereignty and territory were ceded. Through a contextual historical analysis, Inge Van Hulle complicates this traditional narrative. By reviewing the use and creation of legal instruments that expanded or delineated the boundaries between British jurisdiction and African communities in West Africa, she highlights the practicality and flexibility of international legal discourse in imperial contexts. The chronological focus of the book is the period between the end of the eighteenth century and the 1880s which the author identifies as an important phase of legal experimentation which saw substantial deviations in the legal relationship between African polities and British imperial agents, not merely from traditional Euro-African normative patterns as they had existed during the Early Modern period, but also from inter-Western international law. By the 1880s the legal techniques that were fashioned in the language of international law in West Africa had largely developed their own substantive characteristics and which included apart from treaties of cession, also commercial treaties, the abolition of the slave trade, extraterritoriality and the use of force. During this period, legal ordering was not done in reference to adjudication before Western courts or the writings of Western learned lawyers, but in reference to what was deemed politically expedient and practically feasible by imperial agents for the preservation of social peace, commercial interaction and humanitarian agendas.
What is Normative Necessity?
Authors: Rosen Gideon
Published: November 2020

This chapter explores Fine’s suggestion that the ethical facts supervene on the natural facts, not as a matter of metaphysical necessity, but rather as a matter of normative necessity. The first part develops an argument against the metaphysical supervenience of the ethical, the main premises of which are ethical non-naturalism and Fine’s essentialist analysis of metaphysical necessity. The second part defends an analysis of normative necessity according to which P is normatively necessary iff P would have been the case no matter how the non-normative facts had been. The last part argues that the basic principles of ethics as the non-naturalist conceives them are indeed normatively necessary in this sense.
Designing Radicalism: The Popular Front, Modernist Aesthetics, and the Problem of Patronage
Authors: Clark Shannan
Published: November 2020

Chapter 4 turns to efforts to transform the material and visual cultures of consumer capitalism during the 1930s and early 1940s. One of the most important of these endeavors was the Design Laboratory, which opened in 1935 in New York City as the country’s first comprehensive school of modernist design. Initiated under the auspices of the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Art Project, the Laboratory attracted left-leaning faculty and students who disapproved of the streamlined style that typified much of the material culture of consumer capitalism at the time. In contrast, they developed a functionalist modernism that reflected their social-democratic ideals of utility, affordability, and sustainability. White-collar unions in New York as well as Consumers Union promoted this aesthetic of social consumerism as well. Public patronage for cultural initiatives like the Design Laboratory proved unreliable, however, especially as the federal government turned its attention from the Great Depression to the Second World War.
New York’s White-Collar Unions during Wartime and Reconversion
Authors: Clark Shannan
Published: November 2020

Chapter 5 refocuses the narrative on the experiences of white-collar workers employed within New York’s culture industries between 1941 and 1947. As economic conditions improved rapidly with the mobilization for war, the chronic underemployment and precariousness of work during the Depression gave way to the tightest labor market of the twentieth century. Wartime conditions facilitated union organizing even as they restricted unionists’ range of permissible collective action, leading white-collar unionists to support the social consumerism of the Office of Price Administration. The resurgence of unionism occurred within the context of a seismic shift toward a more equal distribution of income and wealth in the United States, which only intensified the political polarization of white-collar workers. In addition, this chapter also highlights the continued vibrancy of Popular Front labor feminism during the 1940s and women’s profound influence on the surge in white-collar organizing.
Epilogue: New York’s Culture Industries in the Twilight of Fordism
Authors: Clark Shannan
Published: November 2020

The book’s epilogue surveys how the economic dislocations of the 1970s and 1980s resulted in substantial long-term changes for both America’s culture of consumer capitalism and for those who labored in New York to produce it. Inflation and unemployment hobbled the economy, heralding a new age of rising inequality. This crisis in mass purchasing power coincided with the fracturing of the mass market for consumer goods that advertisers and the media had conjured into existence since the turn of the twentieth century. In addition, urban decline, financialization, and an increased hostility to unions by employers and the government added to the difficulties and challenges that culture workers in New York’s television, newspaper, advertising, and book publishing sectors encountered during this transitional phase in the history of consumer capitalism and the history of white-collar labor.
Does Use of Atoxigenic Biocontrol Products to Mitigate Aflatoxin in Maize Increase Fumonisin Content in Grains?
Authors: Ortega-Beltran Alejandro , Agbetiameh Daniel , Atehnkeng Joseph , Falade Titilayo D. O. , Bandyopadhyay Ranajit
Published: November 2020

In the tropics and subtropics, maize (Zea mays) and other crops are frequently contaminated with aflatoxins by Aspergillus flavus. Treatment of crops with atoxigenic isolates of A. flavus formulated into biocontrol products can significantly reduce aflatoxin contamination. Treated crops contain up to 100% fewer aflatoxins compared with untreated crops. However, there is the notion that protecting crops from aflatoxin contamination may result in increased accumulation of other toxins, particularly fumonisins produced by a few Fusarium species. The objective of this study was to determine if treatment of maize with aflatoxin biocontrol products increased fumonisin concentration and fumonisin-producing fungi in grains. Over 200 maize samples from fields treated with atoxigenic biocontrol products in Nigeria and Ghana were examined for fumonisin content and contrasted with maize from untreated fields. Apart from low aflatoxin levels, most treated maize also harbored fumonisin levels considered safe by the European Union (<1 part per million; ppm). Most untreated maize also harbored equally low fumonisin levels but contained higher aflatoxin levels. In addition, during one year, we detected considerably lower Fusarium spp. densities in treated maize than in untreated maize. Our results do not support the hypothesis that treating crops with atoxigenic isolates of A. flavus used in biocontrol formulations results in higher grain fumonisin levels.

[Formula: see text] Copyright © 2021 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY 4.0 International license .
Genotyping Dickeya dianthicola Causing Potato Blackleg and Soft Rot Outbreak Associated With Inoculum Geography in the United States
Authors: Ge Tongling , Jiang He , Johnson Steven B. , Larkin Robert P. , Charkowski Amy O. , Secor Gary , Hao Jianjun
Published: November 2020

An outbreak of blackleg and soft rot of potato, caused primarily by the bacterial pathogen Dickeya dianthicola, has resulted in significant economic losses in the northeastern United States since 2015. The spread of this seedborne disease is highly associated with seed distribution; therefore, the pathogen likely spread with seed tubers. To describe the blackleg epidemic and track inoculum origins, a total of 1,183 potato samples were collected from 11 states associated with blackleg outbreak from 2015 to 2019. Of these samples, 39.8% tested positive for D. dianthicola. Seventeen isolates of D. dianthicola were recovered from these samples and the genetic diversity of these isolates was examined. Fingerprinting with BOX-A1R-based repetitive extragenic palindromic PCR and phylogenetic analysis based on sequences of the 16S rRNA and gapA genes indicated that D. dianthicola isolates were divided into three genotypes, denoted types I, II, and III. Ninety-five percent of samples from Maine were type I. Type II was found in Maine only in 2015 and 2018. Type II was present throughout the 5 years in some states at a lower percentage than type I. Type III was found in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Massachusetts, but not in Maine. Therefore, type I appears to be associated with Maine, but type II appeared to be distributed throughout the northeastern United States. The type II and rarer type III strains were closer to the D. dianthicola type strain isolated from the United Kingdom. This work provides evidence that the outbreak of blackleg of potato in the northeastern United States was caused by multiple strains of D. dianthicola. The geographic origins of these strains remain unknown.
Genetic Structure and Asymmetric Migration of Wheat Stripe Rust Pathogen in Western Epidemic Areas of China
Authors: Liang Junmin , Liu Xiufeng , Tsui Clement K. M. , Ma Zhanhong , Luo Yong
Published: November 2020

Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici causes severe global epidemics of wheat stripe rust primarily by airborne urediniospores. Understanding long-distance migration patterns of P. striiformis f. sp. tritici is critical for disease forecasting and management. Although the western epidemic areas in China have been considered as the source of inoculum spread eastward across the country, migration pathways among different populations within the western epidemic areas are poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the population genetics of 200 P. striiformis f. sp. tritici isolates from western epidemic areas using amplified fragment length polymorphism and simple sequence repeat markers. A coalescent approach was also used to calculate the migration rates among populations. Data analyses with both marker systems indicated high genetic diversity in each regional population. The Mantel test revealed significant positive correlation between genetic and geographic distances. Both discriminant analysis of principal components and STRUCTURE analysis supported moderate population structure shaped by seasonality and geography. The calculated migration rates indicated the presence of asymmetric migration between major populations in western epidemic areas, with greater migration rates from high elevation, oversummering areas to low elevation, overwintering areas. Sichuan Basin, one of the low elevation, overwintering areas, sampled in both fall and spring, was inferred as a recipient in fall but a donor in spring. Migration among P. striiformis f. sp. tritici populations may be partly attributable to terrace farming and prevailing wind direction in different seasons. Our study provides a better understanding of fine-scale population structure and the interregional migration pattern of P. striiformis f. sp. tritici in northwestern China and will inform future rust management.
The Impact of COVID-19 on Service Provision for Emergency Department Patients Post-Opioid Overdose: A Field Report
Authors: Collins Alexandra B. , Beaudoin Francesca L. , Samuels Elizabeth A. , Wightman Rachel , Baird Janette
Published: November 2020

Background:

To minimize the spread of COVID-19, health and ancillary care providers altered service delivery patterns. These changes included an increase in reliance on telemedicine modalities, a reduction in services or hours of operation, and prohibiting guests and nonessential personnel from healthcare settings. We describe a rapid environmental assessment with senior emergency department (ED) practitioners in Rhode Island to understand how COVID-related procedural changes impact the provision of post-overdose care in ED.

Methods:

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 senior healthcare practitioners in EDs across Rhode Island from June to July 2020. Interviews were part of a larger, ongoing study examining the implementation and effectiveness of post-opioid overdose care in EDs and sought to understand how COVID-19 had impacted the provision of services for people who use drugs (PWUD).

Results:

COVID-related policy changes challenged the provision of services to PWUD in the ED, and extended challenges in connecting people with OUD to services in the community. Specifically, challenges included transitions to telehealth modalities, required COVID tests for treatment services, and gaps in community resources.

Conclusions:

This study underscores opportunities to improve the delivery of services amid overlapping public health crises for PWUD, including bolstering the use of telemedicine in EDs and across the care continuum.
Utility of biomarkers in traumatic brain injury: a narrative review
Authors: Mendoza Daniel A. , López Karen D. , Echeverri Raúl A. , Pastor Laura , Rueda Steven , Fernández Laura L. , Mantilla Daniela S. , Díaz María F. , Ramírez María C. , Barragán Diana C. , Rubiano Andrés M.
Published: November 2020

Introduction: With the evolution of diagnostic techniques in traumatic brain injury (TBI), the study of neurological injury has made progress based on the concepts of primary and secondary injury, leading to the era of proteomics to understand the complex molecular events involved in the process.

Objectives: This narrative review is intended to discuss the state of the art of the most frequently used biomarkers in TBI, their clinical utility, and the implications for therapeutic decisionmaking protocols.

Materials and methods: In order to fulfill the objective of this paper, a literature review was conducted of the most important databases.

Results: Several biomarkers have been studied as prognostic factors in patients with TBI. Learning about their sensitivity and specificity in neurological injury, and its post-trauma evolution over time, has been the goal of various papers in the past few years.

Conclusion: Breakthroughs in the study of protein degradation make it necessary to broaden the spectrumand knowledge of new diagnostic methods in TBI. Further studies are needed to define the role of biomarkers and to promote protocols integrating specific values.
How Can Physical Therapists Engage the Social Ecology of Health to Mitigate Service Disruptions in a Post-COVID World?
Authors: Davenport Todd E. , Rundell Sean D.
Published: November 2020

The role for physical therapists related to addressing the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis is still crystallizing in acute and post-acute settings. It is not too early to begin learning from the recent unprecedented disruptions in physical therapists' ability to provide care related to public health orders for infection control. Emerging evidence suggests that disruptions to health services, such as COVID infections and outcomes, are associated with various population characteristics. These observations suggest the importance of multilevel strategies for physical therapists to mitigate future service disruptions. The purpose of this perspective is to propose a set of practice, research, and advocacy imperatives using the social–ecological model of health. The viewpoint describes the model and then applies it to COVID-related health service disruptions. The perspective then culminates in a specific set of practice, research, and policy recommendations that can be applied to the current experience with COVID-19 and also potential future sources of service disruption, such as future epidemics and climate change.
Face-to-Face Versus Telephonic Extended Glasgow Outcome Score Testing After Traumatic Brain Injury
Authors: Bossers Sebastiaan M. , van der Naalt Joukje , Jacobs Bram , Schwarte Lothar A. , Verheul Robert , Schober Patrick
Published: November 2020

Objective:

The Extended Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS-E) is used for objective assessment of functional outcome in traumatic brain injury (TBI). In situations where face-to-face contact is not feasible, telephonic assessment of the GOS-E might be desirable. The aim of this study is to assess the level of agreement between face-to-face and telephonic assessment of the GOS-E.

Setting:

Multicenter study in 2 Dutch University Medical Centers. Inclusion was performed in the outpatient clinic (face-to-face assessment, by experienced neurologist), followed by assessment via telephone of the GOS-E after ±2 weeks (by trained researcher).

Participants:

Patients ±6 months after TBI.

Design:

Prospective validation study.

Main Measures:

Interrater agreement of the GOS-E was assessed with Cohen's weighted κ.

Results:

From May 2014 until March 2018, 50 patients were enrolled; 54% were male (mean age 49.1 years). Median time between trauma and in-person GOS-E examination was 158 days and median time between face-to-face and telephonic GOS-E was 15 days. The quadratic weighted κ was 0.79. Sensitivity analysis revealed a quadratic weighted κ of 0.77, 0.78, and 0.70 for moderate-severe, complicated mild, and uncomplicated mild TBI, respectively.

Conclusion:

No disagreements of more than 1 point on the GOS-E were observed, with the κ value representing good or substantial agreement. Assessment of the GOS-E via telephone is a valid alternative to the face-to-face interview when in-person contact is not feasible.
Age-Related Changes in the Association Between Traumatic Brain Injury and Dementia in Older Men and Women
Authors: Jacob Louis , Azouvi Philippe , Kostev Karel
Published: November 2020

Objective:

To investigate age-related changes in the association between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and dementia in older men and women separately.

Setting:

A total of 243 general practices in the UK.

Participants:

This study included 4760 patients who received a first TBI diagnosis between 1995 and 2010 (index date), and 4760 patients without TBI who were matched to those with TBI by age, sex, index year, Charlson Comorbidity Index, alcohol dependence, and physician (index date: a randomly selected visit date).

Design:

Retrospective cohort study.

Main measures:

Incidence of dementia in the decade following index date.

Results:

Within 10 years of index date, 8.8% of men with TBI and 4.8% of those without TBI were diagnosed with dementia, while the respective figures were 9.0% and 6.7% in women (P values < .01). There was a significant association between TBI and dementia in men (hazard ratio [HR] = 2.29, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.64-3.19) and in women (HR = 1.33, 95% CI: 1.07-1.64). Furthermore, the association between TBI and dementia was significant in men aged 60 to 70 (HR = 2.51, 95% CI: 1.27-4.96) and 71 to 80 years (HR = 3.00, 95% CI: 1.82-4.93), whereas the relationship was only significant and potentially unreliable in women aged 81 to 90 years (HR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.03-2.14).

Conclusions:

The age-related relationship between TBI and dementia differed between men and women. More research of a prospective nature and including behavioral data is needed to better understand these differences.
Impact of Adherence (Compliance) to Oral Acyclovir Prophylaxis in the Recurrence of Herpetic Keratitis: Long-Term Results From a Pediatric Cohort
Authors: Luccarelli Saverio V. , Lucentini Stefano , Martellucci Cecilia Acuti , Marelli Luca , Sacchi Matteo , Nucci Paolo
Published: November 2020

Purpose:

To evaluate the long-term role of adherence to oral acyclovir prophylaxis in reducing the risk for recurrent herpes simplex virus keratitis (HSK) in children.

Methods:

A retrospective cohort study was performed including all pediatric patients 16 years or younger) with their first HSK diagnosis and treatment at our center. Children were started on a standardized oral acyclovir prophylactic regimen after the acute phase. Adherence to prophylaxis was assessed monthly through parent interviews. The possible association between any recurrence (not only the first) and exposure to acyclovir prophylaxis was evaluated using random-effects multivariate logistic regression.

Results:

A total of 20 eyes of 17 patients (8 boys and 9 girls) were included. The mean follow-up time was 3.5 years. Adherence to acyclovir prophylaxis was registered in 100% of patients with no recurrences and in 36.4% of patients with 1 or more recurrences (P = 0.035). All other tested variables (time of follow-up, sex, age, infectious diseases, underlying hematological diseases, eye, and HSK type) did not differ between the 2 groups. The multivariate model confirmed the lower risk for recurrence in patients who were compliant to therapy (adjusted odds ratio 0.04, 95% confidence intervals 0.00–0.42, P = 0.008). No adverse effects were recorded during follow-up.

Conclusions:

Oral acyclovir prophylaxis is a safe and an effective medical treatment for recurrent HSK and its long-term efficacy is associated with compliance to the therapy.
Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibitors and Angiotensin Receptor Blockers and Mortality Among COVID-19 Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Kashour Tarek , Bin Abdulhak Aref A. , Tlayjeh Haytham , Hassett Leslie C. , Noman Anas , Mohsen Ala , Al-Mallah Mouaz H. , Tleyjeh Imad M.
Published: November 2020

Background:

Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) are known to increase the expression of angiotensin converting enzyme 2 receptor, which has been shown to be the receptor for the acute severe respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

Areas of Uncertainty:

Based on these observations, speculations raised the concerns that ACEIs/ARBs users would be more susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 infection and would be at higher risk for severe COVID-19 disease and death. Therefore, we systematically reviewed the literature and performed a meta-analysis of the association between prior use of ACEIs and ARBs and mortality due to COVID-19 disease.

Data Sources:

A comprehensive search of several databases from November 2019 to June 18, 2020 was conducted. The databases included Ovid MEDLINE(R) and Epub Ahead of Print, In-Process and Other Non-Indexed Citations and Daily, Ovid Embase, Ovid Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Ovid Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Web of Science, and Scopus. Medrxiv.org was also searched for unpublished data.

Therapeutic Advances:

Nine studies with a total of 18,833 patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 met our eligibility criteria. Prior use of ACEIs and/or ARBs was associated with reduced mortality among SARS-CoV-2-infected patients, with a pooled adjusted relative risk (aRR) from 6 studies of 0.63, 95% confidence interval (CI) (0.42–0.94) (I2 = 65%). Three studies reported separately on ACEIs or ARBs and their association with survival among SARS-CoV-2-infected patients, with a pooled adjusted relative risk of 0.78, 95% CI (0.58–1.04) (I2 = 0%) and 0.97, 95% CI (0.73–1.30) (I2 = 0%) respectively. The results of sensitivity analyses were consistent with the main analysis.

Conclusion:

Our meta-analysis suggests that use of ACEIs/ARBs is associated with a decreased risk of death among SARS-CoV-2-infected patients. This finding provides a reassurance to the public not to stop prescribed ACEIs/ARBs because of fear of severe COVID-19.
The Treatment Strategy for Skull Base Reconstruction for Anterior Cranial Fossa Intra- and Extracranial Tumors
Authors: He Jianqing , Lu Jin , Zhang Feng , Chen Junhui , Wang Yuhai , Zhang Qingyun
Published: November 2020

Anterior cranial fossa intra- and extracranial tumors arise from the anterior cranial fossa and invade the orbit and nose. Anterior cranial fossa tumor resection and skull base reconstruction are challenging for neurosurgeons due to the complex anatomy, leakage of cerebrospinal fluid, and critical neurovasculature involvement. The authors report a case series of cranio-orbital communicating tumors and cranionasal-orbital communicating tumors. All patients underwent a modified Derome approach or transfrontal basal approach, and all tumor resections were satisfactory. Skull base reconstruction for small defects (<1.5 cm) can be performed with autogenous fascia, muscle, and fat. Large defects (≥1.5 cm) require autogenous fascia, muscle, and fat combined with osseous reconstruction (autogenous bone, titanium mesh, and polyetheretherketone). The techniques and treatments were successful, and only 1 patient experienced mild cerebrospinal fluid leak but no intracranial infection, pneumocrania or intracranial hemorrhage. Additionally, long-term follow-up demonstrated that the outcomes remain favorable. According to a literature review, this technique might be an alternative strategy for treating anterior cranial fossa intra- and extracranial tumors, and better skull base reconstruction can prevent many postoperative complications.
Outcomes of 350 Robotic-assisted Esophagectomies at a High-volume Cancer Center
Authors: Pointer David T. , Saeed Sabrina , Naffouje Samer A. , Mehta Rutika , Hoffe Sarah E. , Dineen Sean P. , Fleming Jason B. , Fontaine Jacques P. , Pimiento Jose M.
Published: November 2020

Objective:

To evaluate perioperative and oncologic outcomes in our RAMIE cohort and compare outcomes with contemporary OE controls.

Summary of Background Data:

RAMIE has emerged as an alternative to traditional open or laparoscopic approaches. Described in all esophagectomy techniques, rapid adoption has been attributed to both enhanced visualization and technical dexterity.

Methods:

We retrospectively reviewed patients who underwent RAMIE for malignancy. Patient characteristics, perioperative outcomes, and survival were evaluated. For perioperative and oncologic outcome comparison, contemporary OE controls were propensity-score matched from NSQIP and NCDB databases.

Results:

We identified 350 patients who underwent RAMIE between 2010 and 2019. Median body mass index was 27.4, 32% demonstrated a Charlson Comorbidity Index >4. Nodal disease was identified in 50% of patients and 74% received neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy. Mean operative time and blood loss were 425 minutes and 232 mL, respectively. Anastomotic leak occurred in 16% of patients, 2% required reoperation. Median LOS was 9 days, and 30-day mortality was 3%. A median of 21 nodes were dissected with 96% achieving an R0 resection. Median survival was 67.4 months. 222 RAMIE were matched 1:1 to the NSQIP OE control. RAMIE demonstrated decreased LOS (9 vs 10 days, P = 0.010) and reoperative rates (2.3 vs 12.2%, P = 0.001), longer operative time (427 vs 311 minutes, P = 0.001), and increased rate of pulmonary embolism (5.4% vs 0.9%, P = 0.007) in comparison to NSQIP cohort. There was no difference in leak rate or mortality. Three hundred forty-three RAMIE were matched to OE cohort from NCDB with no difference in median overall survival (63 vs 53 months; P = 0.130).

Conclusion:

In this largest reported institutional series, we demonstrate that RAMIE can be performed safely with excellent oncologic outcomes and decreased hospital stay when compared to the open approach.
Alfalfa leaf curl virus is efficiently acquired by its aphid vector Aphis craccivora but inefficiently transmitted
Authors: Ryckebusch Faustine , Peterschmitt Michel , Granier Martine , Sauvion Nicolas
Published: November 2020

Alfalfa leaf curl virus (ALCV) is the first geminivirus for which aphid transmission was reported. Transmission by Aphis craccivora was determined previously to be highly specific and circulative. Using various complementary techniques, the transmission journey of ALCV was monitored from its uptake from infected plant tissues up to the head of its vector. ALCV was shown to be restricted to phloem tissues using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and electropenetrography (EPG) monitoring of virus acquisition. Furthermore, the virus is heterogeneously distributed in phloem tissues, as revealed by FISH and quantitative PCR of viral DNA acquired by EPG-monitored aphids. Despite the efficient ingestion of viral DNA, about 106 viral DNA copies per insect in a 15 h feeding period on ALCV-infected plants, the individual maximum transmission rate was 12 %. Transmission success was related to a critical viral accumulation, around 1.6×107 viral DNA copies per insect, a threshold that generally needed more than 48 h to be reached. Moreover, whereas the amount of acquired virus did not decrease over time in the whole aphid body, it declined in the haemolymph and heads. ALCV was not detected in progenies of viruliferous aphids and did not affect aphid fitness. Compared to geminiviruses transmitted by whiteflies or leafhoppers, or to luteoviruses transmitted by aphids, the transmission efficiency of ALCV by A. craccivora is low. This result is discussed in relation to the aphid vector of this geminivirus and the agroecological features of alfalfa, a hardy perennial host plant.
Tobamoviruses of two new species trigger resistance in pepper plants harbouring functional L alleles
Authors: Vélez-Olmedo Jefferson B. , Fribourg Cesar E. , Melo Fernando L. , Nagata Tatsuya , de Oliveira Athos S. , Resende Renato O.
Published: November 2020

Tobamoviruses are often referred to as the most notorious viral pathogens of pepper crops. These viruses are not transmitted by invertebrate vectors, but rather by physical contact and seeds. In this study, pepper plants displaying mild mottle and mosaic symptoms were sampled in four different regions of Peru. Upon double-antibody sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA) tests, seven samples cross-reacted weakly with antibodies against pepper mild mottle virus (PMMoV), suggesting the presence of tobamoviruses. When employing RT-PCR, conserved primers amplified cDNA fragments of viruses from two putative new tobamovirus species in the samples. The complete genome of two representative isolates were, therefore, sequenced and analysed in silico. These viruses, which were tentatively named yellow pepper mild mottle virus (YPMMoV) and chilli pepper mild mottle virus (CPMMoV), shared highest nucleotide genome sequence identities of 83 and 85 % with bell pepper mottle virus (BpeMV), respectively. Mechanical inoculation of indicator plants with YPMMoV and CPMMoV isolates did not show any obvious differences in host ranges. These viruses were also inoculated mechanically on pepper plants harbouring different resistance L alleles to determine their pathotypes. Pepper plants carrying unfunctional L alleles (L
0) to tobamoviruses were infected by all isolates and presented differential symptomatology for YPMMoV and CPMMoV. On the other hand, pepper plants carrying L
1, L
2, L
3 and L
4 alleles were resistant to all isolates, indicating that these viruses belong to pathotype P0.
Changes in quality characteristics of ‘Makgeolli’ prepared by independent two-step fermentation during storage
Authors: Kim Hyun-Soo , Choi Jeong Sil , Yu Seok Hun , Kim Myung Kon , Lim Bora , Jeong Seok Tae
Published: November 2020

This study investigated changes in the quality of the Korean sparkling rice wine, ‘Makgeolli’ prepared by independent two-step fermentation and stored at 10, 15, and 25°C for 91 days. The contents of total acid, volatile acid, and amino acidity increased as the storage period and temperature increased. The total acid content was 0.14% on day 0, and 0.33%, 0.35% and 0.40% at 91 days of storage at 10°C, 15°C, and 25°C, respectively. The pH was 3.86 on day 0 of storage and tended to decrease at all temperatures over the storage period, but the soluble solid and alcohol content did not significantly differ. Color significantly differed when stored at 15°C and 25°C (p<0.05), but not at 10°C. Consequently, the quality of ‘Makgeolli’ was altered during storage for 91 days, and the change was more rapid at higher storage temperatures.
Physicochemical characteristics of black garlic from
‘Hongsan’ variety
Authors: Kang Min Jung , Kang Jae Ran , Shin Jung Hye
Published: November 2020

The present study aimed to confirm the quality characteristics of black garlic
aged from ‘Hongsan’ variety developed by the National Institute of
Horticultural and Herbal Science and the ‘Namdo’ variety
cultivated mainly in Namhae-gun. The total phenolic compounds of aged Hongsan
and Namdo garlic increased 1.3- and 1.7-fold, respectively, and total
flavonoid contents increased 8.6- and 11.2-flod, respectively. The
content of pyruvate and thiosulfinate decreased with aging in both garlic
varieties. The S-allyl cysteine (SAC) contents of Hongsan and Namdo garlic were
maximal on day 6 and 2 of aging, respectively, before decreasing. The abundance
of γ-glutamyl S-allyl cysteine
(γ-GSAC) was -2.2-fold higher in fresh Hongsan, than
fresh Namdo garlic, and increased to -6-fold after aging. The moisture, pH,
acidity, reducing sugar, total sugar, pyruvate, and thiosulfinate contents of
aged black garlic did not significantly differ between the two garlic varieties,
but the total phenolic compounds and total flavonoids were higher in aged Namdo
garlic, whereas hardness, SAC, and γ-GSAC contents were
higher in aged Hongsan garlic. The contents of fresh garlic are assumed to be
responsible for these difference between the two varieties of aged black
garlic.
Changes in active compounds and biological activities during
fermentation of soy-powder milk by the mixtures of probiotics lactic acid
bacteria
Authors: Hwang Chung Eun , Cho Du Yong , Lee Jin Hwan , Lee Dong Hee , Cho Kye Man
Published: November 2020

This study evaluated changes in γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), isoflavones,
and antioxidant activities during fermentation of soy-powder milk (SPM) by
Lactobacillus brevis WCP02 and Lactobacillus
plantarum P1201 starters. The levels of glutamic acid (GA) were
significantly increased during first 24 h of SPM (100.38 → 290.13 mg/100
g) then decreased after 72 h of SPM to 177.91 mg/100 g. The GABA contents
obviously increased from 32.05 mg/100 g to 76.22 mg/100 g between 0 and 72 h of
SPM. Levels of isoflavone-glycosides, including daidzin, glycitin, and genistin,
significantly decreased (746.23 → 24.04 μg/g, 183.52 →
76.00 μg/g, and 980.72 → 10.08 μg/g, respectively), as
levels of isoflavone aglycones, such as daidzein, glycitein, and genistein,
significantly increased (52.03 → 577.01 μg/g, 12.95 → 66.48
μg/g, and 38.62 → 462.42 μg/g, respectively) during
fermentation of SPM. The antioxidant activity and inhibitory effect on digestive
enzyme (1 mg/mL) also considerably increased during fermentation of SPM: DPPH
(30.23 → 88.50%), ABTS (59.71 → 74.54%), and
hydroxyl (65.51 → 76.10%) radical scavenging activities and
pancreatic lipase (8.00 → 34.53%) and α-glucosidase
inhibition (12.38 → 45.38%) activities.
Determination of protein extraction and trypsin hydrolysis
conditions for producing hydrolysates with antioxidant activity from perilla
seed meal
Authors: Kim Ja Min , Yoon Kyung Young
Published: November 2020

Perilla seed meal (PSM) is an agricultural by-product that contains a lot of
functional substances and protein, and is thus a functional food material. This
study aimed to determine the optimal conditions of protein extraction and
enzymatic hydrolysis required to produce hydrolysate with antioxidant activity
from PSM. We determined the optimal conditions required to extract proteins from
PSM by measuring the browning degree and protein content of extracts obtained at
pH 5 and of precipitates at pH 3. The protein yield and content were high
(67.3% and 109.2 mg/g, respectively), and the browning degree was low
(1.00) after extraction at pH 10 and precipitation at pH 4. We hydrolyzed PSM
protein with trypsin at various concentrations for different periods to
establish the optimal hydrolysis conditions needed to produce PSM protein
hydrolysates with antioxidant activity. The antioxidant activity was maximal in
hydrolysates obtained by incubation for 3 h with 25 units of trypsin. Therefore,
the optimal conditions required to extract protein from PSM comprised extraction
at pH 10, precipitation at pH 4, and enzymatic hydrolysis with 25 units of
trypsin for 3 h.