bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sleep Habits and Disorders among School Students in the Jazan Region, Saudi Arabia
Authors: Hakami Majed Ibrahim , Juraybi Ismail Abdullah , Jaafari Abdullah Ali , Al Ibrahim Ali Mohammed , Kariri Alhassan Mahdi , Kariri Ali Mahdi , Khawaji Basim Yahya , Wassly Almonther Hussain , Wali Siraj Omer , Alhejaili Faris Fahad , Jeraiby Mohammed
Published: October 2021

Sleep deprivation (failure to get enough sleep) is a public health issue that can negatively impact our body including cognitive function. Many studies have been done in Saudi Arabia to evaluate the impact of poor sleep and academic performance but almost all of them were done at university level. To investigate the relationship between sleep quality and general degree of academic achievement in school students. This is a cross-sectional, school-based study, conducted at Jazan Region, Saudi Arabia. A total of 957 participants (615 male and 342 female) were recruited from a state school. The study used a standardized, confidential, validated self-administered questionnaire to assess sleep quality and habits. By using Statistical Package for Social Studies (SPSS 22), achievement of the students was significantly related to the following parameters; laziness and fatigue after wake-up time and during school time, lack of concentration during school time, difficulty in complete tasks during school time and inability to maintain wakefulness during school time. Furthermore, students with poor academic degrees reported more significant incidence of sleeping at school, excessive daytime sleepiness, and other sleep related disorder than good academic degrees. Students with poor sleep quality have lower school grades.
Pengaruh Model Pembelajaran Kooperatif Tipe Teams Games Tournament (TGT) pada Pembelajaran Jarak Jauh terhadap Kemampuan Penalaran Matematis Siswa SMP Negeri 7 Jakarta
Authors: Hamidah Anisatul , Tri Murdiyanto  , Lukman El Hakim
Published: October 2021

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui apakah terdapat pengaruh model pembelajaran kooperatif tipe Teams Games Tournament (TGT) pada pembelajaran jarak jauh terhadap kemampuan penalaran matematis siswa SMP Negeri 7 Jakarta dan untuk mengetahui besar pengaruh signifikan dari penerapan model pembelajaran kooperatif tipe Teams Games Tournament (TGT) terhadap kemampuan penalaran matematis siswa di SMP Negeri 7 Jakarta. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah metode eksperimen semu. Instrumen penelitian yang digunakan adalah instrumen tes kemampuan penalaran matematis berupa 5 soal uraian yang telah dinyatakan valid dan reliabel. Populasi target penelitian adalah seluruh peserta didik SMP Negeri 7 Jakarta. Populasi terjangkau penelitian adalah siswa kelas VII SMP Negeri 7 Jakarta. Teknik pengambilan sampel menggunakan teknik simple random sampling untuk menentukan kelas eksperimen (model pembelajaran kooperatif tipe Teams Games Tournament) dan kelas kontrol (model pembelajaran konvensional). Berdasarkan uji prasyarat analisis data setelah perlakuan, data pada kedua kelas berdistribusi normal dan memiliki varians yang tidak homogen. Pengujian hipotesis statistik uji-t' pada taraf signifikansi a = 0,05, diperoleh thitung = 3,041 lebih tinggi dari nilai kritis = 1,686, maka H0 ditolak dan diperoleh kesimpulan bahwa rata-rata skor tes kemampuan penalaran matematis siswa kelas eksperimen lebih tinggi dari kelas kontrol. Besar pengaruh pada perhitungan Cohen’s Effect Size (ES), diperoleh ES = 0,684 dengan percent of Non Overlap sebesar 38,2%  yang dikategorikan medium. Hal ini menunjukkan bahwa terdapat pengaruh signifikan dari penerapan model pembelajaran kooperatif tipe Teams Games Tournament (TGT) pada pembelajaran jarak jauh terhadap kemampuan penalaran matematis siswa SMP Negeri 7 Jakarta.
Estimated Date of Delivery With Electronic Medical Records By A Hybrid GBDT-GRU Model
Authors: Wu Yina , Zhang Yichao , Zou Xu , Yuan Zhenming , Hu Wensheng , Lu Sha , Sun Xiaoyan , Wu Yingfei
Published: October 2021

An accurate estimated date of delivery (EDD) helps pregnant women make adequate preparations before delivery and avoid the panic of parturition. EDD is normally derived from some formulates or estimated by doctors based on last menstruation period and ultrasound examinations. The main aim of this study was to develop a hybrid model to improve the accuracy of EDD and promote the health and safety of pregnant women and fetuses. This study attempted to combine antenatal examinations and electronic medical records to develop a hybrid model based on Gradient Boosting Decision Tree and Gated Recurrent Unit (GBDT-GRU). Besides exploring the features that affect the EDD, GBDT-GRU model obtained the results by dynamic prediction of different stages. The mean square error (MSE) and coefficient of determination (R2) were used to compare the performance among the different prediction methods. In addition, we evaluated predictive performances of different prediction models by comparing the proportion of pregnant women under the error of different days. The clinical data were collected with 33,222 pregnancy examination records from 5537 Chinese pregnant women who have given birth. Experimental results showed that the hybrid GBDT-GRU model outperformed other prediction methods with coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.84, mean square error (MSE) of 41.73. We also found that the GBDT-GRU model had a smaller deviation by comparing the bias between the actual delivery date and the EDD under different methods. In comparison with other prediction methods, the GBDT-GRU model provided better performance results. The results of this study are helpful for the development of guidelines for clinical delivery treatments, as it can assist clinicians in making correct decisions during obstetric examinations.
Performance Determinants of Unsupervised Clustering Methods for Microbiome Data
Authors: Shi Yushu , Zhang Liangliang , Peterson Christine , Do Kim-Anh , Jenq Robert
Published: October 2021

Background: In microbiome data analysis, unsupervised clustering is often used to identify naturally occurring clusters, which can then be assessed for associations with characteristics of interest. In this work, we systematically compared beta diversity and clustering methods commonly used in microbiome analyses. We applied these to four published datasets where highly distinct microbiome profiles could be seen between sample groups, as well a clinical dataset with less clear separation between groups. Results: Although no single method outperformed the others consistently, we did identify key scenarios where certain methods can underperform. Specifically, the Bray Curtis (BC) metric resulted in poor clustering in a dataset where high-abundance OTUs were relatively rare. In contrast, the unweighted UniFrac (UU) metric clustered poorly on dataset with a high prevalence of low-abundance OTUs. To explore these hypotheses about BC and UU, we systematically modified properties of the poorly performing datasets and found that this approach resulted in improved BC and UU performance. Based on these observations, we rationally combined BC and UU to generate a novel metric. We tested its performance while varying the relative contributions of each metric and also compared it with another combined metric, the generalized UniFrac distance. The proposed metric showed high performance across all datasets. Conclusions Our systematic evaluation of clustering performance in these five datasets demonstrates that there is no existing clustering method that universally performs best across all datasets. We propose a combined metric of BC and UU that capitalizes on the complementary strengths of the two metrics.
Automated Feature Selection and Classification for High-Dimensional Biomedical Data
Authors: Beishuizen Tammo P.A. , Vanschoren Joaquin , Hilbers Peter A.J. , Bošnački Dragan
Published: October 2021

Background: Automated machine learning aims to automate the building of accurate predictive models, including the creation of complex data preprocessing pipelines. Although successful in many fields, they struggle to produce good results on biomedical datasets, especially given the high dimensionality of the data. Result: In this paper, we explore the automation of feature selection in these scenarios. We analyze which feature selection techniques are ideally included in an automated system, determine how to efficiently find the ones that best fit a given dataset, integrate this into an existing AutoML tool (TPOT), and evaluate it on four very different yet representative types of biomedical data: microarray, mass spectrometry, clinical and survey datasets. We focus on feature selection rather than latent feature generation since we often want to explain the model predictions in terms of the intrinsic features of the data. Conclusion: Our experiments show that for none of these datasets we need more than 200 features to accurately explain the output. Additional features did not increase the quality significantly. We also find that the automated machine learning results are significantly improved after adding additional feature selection methods and prior knowledge on how to select and tune them.
Increased NOX1 and DOUX2 Expression in the Colonic Mucosa of Patients with Chronic Functional Constipation
Authors: Wei Xiuqin , Kang Chunbo , Gao Lei , Zhang Mengqiao , Xue Mei , Ma Chao , Zheng Yufeng , Cao Lei , Chen Pan , Jiang Shujing , Chu Fong-Fong , Gao Qiang
Published: October 2021

Aim
To determine whether oxidative stress and inflammation are associated with constipation by examining the expression of the main producers of reactive oxygen species, NADPH oxidases, and pro-inflammatory cytokines in the colon of patients with chronic functional constipation.
Methods
The colonic biopsies were collected from 32 patients with chronic functional constipation and 30 healthy subjects who underwent colonoscopy. Colonic mucosal histology was observed. IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8 mRNA, and four members of NADPH oxidase (NOX1, NOX2, DOUX2 and NOX4) protein and mRNA were assessed by immunohistochemistry, western blotting and RT-PCR.
Results
The tissues from both patients and healthy subjects showed normal histological structure without increase of inflammatory cells. NOX1 protein and mRNA levels were significantly increased compared to controls (P<0.05). DOUX2 protein, but not mRNA, was increased by twofold compared to controls (P<0.05). The levels of NOX2 and NOX4 protein and mRNA demonstrated no significant difference between patients and control subjects. The levels of IL-1β and IL-6 mRNA were significantly higher in constipation patients (P<0.05), while IL-8 mRNA level was no different between the two groups.
Conclusion
NADPH oxidase and pro-inflammatory cytokine might be involved in the pathogeneses of chronic functional constipation.
Effect of Mechanical Ventilation Mode Type on Prioperative Blood Loss in Patients Undergoing Posterior Lumbar Inter body Fusion Surgery: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Salimian Manoochehr , Hajijafari Mohammad , Fakharian Esmaeil , Rahati Meghdad
Published: October 2021

Background

this study has examined modes of mechanical ventilation, pressure or volume-controlled ventilation (PCV or VCV) on intra- and post-operative surgical bleeding in posterior lumbar inter body fusion (PLIF) surgery
Methods

This research was a randomized, single-blinded, and parallel study, that 78 patients were selected. They mechanically ventilated using either PCV or VCV in PLIF surgery. In this regard, a permuted block randomization was used with a computer-generated list. After induction of anesthesia in supine position, the hemodynamic and respiratory parameters were measured
Results

The mean bleeding was 431.281 ± 361.04cc in the PCV group and 465.26 ± 338.16 cc in the VCV group (p = 0.669). Moreover, blood transfusion rates in the PCV and VCV groups were 0.40 ± 0.74 and 0.43±78 0.78 pack cell (p = 0.836), respectively. Notably, surgeon satisfaction was more observed in the PCV group (82.1% vs. 74.4%, p = 0.548). In addition, the other variables were similar in these two groups.
Conclusions

The mean bleeding volume was higher in the VCV group compared to the PCV group; however, no significant difference was observed between these two groups. Hemoglobin levels in the patients included before and after surgery showed that the two groups were in a similar condition.
Evaluation of Pore Volume, Connectivity and Clogging of Previous Concrete Reactive Barrier in Treatment of Acid Mine Drainage
Authors: Ekolu Stephen O. , Solomon Fitsum , de Beer Frikkie , Bitandi Louisette , Kilula Rais N. , Maseko Khaya T. , Mahlangu Fatty G.
Published: October 2021

It has recently been shown that pervious concrete is a promising, effective technology as permeable reactive barrier for treatment of acid mine drainage (AMD). However, pore clogging also occurs simultaneously during AMD treatment. In the present study, mixtures of pervious concrete were made and used in a column experiment during which pore clogging occurred in the samples. Pore volume, connectivity and other parameters of pervious concrete were evaluated using five (5) different methods comprising the volumetric method (VM), linear – traverse method (LTM), image analysis (IA), falling head permeability test and X - ray micro - computed tomography. It was found that pervious concrete effectively removed from AMD, about 90 to 99% of various heavy metals including Al, Fe, Zn, Mn and Mg. Cr concentration significantly increased in the treated effluent, owing to leaching from cementitious materials used in mixtures. The VM and LTM gave statistically similar pore volume results, while IA’s values were 20 to 30% higher than those of the conventional methods. The falling head permeability test and IA were found to be effective in quantifying pore clogging effects. Pervious concrete exhibited high pore connectivity of 95.0 to 99.7%, which underlies its efficacious hydraulic conductivity.
Phthalate Exposure and Liver Function in US Adolescents: Analyses of NHANES 2007-2016
Authors: Xiang Shiting , Dong Jie , Li Xun , Li Liping , Li Chao
Published: October 2021

Background: Phthalates are non-persistent chemicals with endocrine-disrupting abilities widely used in a variety of consumer products. Evidence for the effects of phthalate exposure on liver function in adolescents is lacking. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between phthalate exposure and changes in liver function indicators.Methods: Data were analyzed from the combined 2007-2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Weighted linear regressions were used to explore the association between urinary phthalate metabolites and indicators of liver function. Bayesian kernel machine regressions (BKMR) were used to evaluate the joint effects of phthalate metabolite mixtures on indicators of liver function.Results: Weighted Linear regression models showed that MCOP and MiBP were negatively associated with TBIL (all P FDR < 0.05), MCPP was positively correlated with TBIL (P FDR < 0.05), ΣDEHP, MCOP, and MEP (all P FDR < 0.05) were negatively correlated with ALB, while MCPP was positively correlated with ALB (P FDR < 0.05), and MCOP was negatively correlated with TP (P FDR < 0.05). BKMR analysis showed phthalate metabolite mixtures had significant positive dose response relationships with ALT, AST, GGT, ALP and TBIL, and significant negative dose response relationships with ALB and TP.Conclusions: The implications of these results demonstrate that phthalate exposure may contribute to adverse effects on liver function indicators among U.S. adolescents.
Application of an Optimization/Simulation Model for the Real-time Flood Operation of River-Reservoir Systems with One and Two-Dimensional Unsteady Flow Modeling
Authors: Salih Hasan Albo , Mays Larry W. , Che Daniel
Published: October 2021

An application is presented of a new methodology for the real-time operation of flood control reservoir gate control operations of river-reservoir systems to minimize flooding. The methodology is based upon an optimization/simulation modeling approach that interfaces optimization with a one and/or two-dimensional unsteady flow simulation model (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers HEC-RAS). The approach also includes a model for short-term rainfall forecasting and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers HEC-HMS model for rainfall-runoff modeling. Both short term forecasted rainfall in addition to gaged streamflow data and/or NEXRAD (Next-Generation Radar) can be implemented in the modeling approach. The optimization solution methodology is based upon a genetic algorithm implemented through MATLAB. The application is based upon the May 2010 flood event on the Cumberland River system in the USA, during which releases from Old Hickory dam caused major flooding downstream area of Nashville, Tennessee area. One of the major features of the modeling effort and the application presented was to investigate the use of different unsteady flow modeling approaches available in the HEC-RAS) including one-dimensional (1D), two-dimensional (2D), and the combined (1D/2D) approach. One of the major results of the application was to investigate the use the different unsteady flow approaches in the modeling approach. The 2D unsteady flow modeling is based upon the diffusion wave approach was found to be superior for the application to the Cumberland River system
Association of Blood Lipids With Coronary Artery Plaque Among Saudi Patients Referred to Computed Tomography
Authors: Helali Sumaya Al , Hanif Muhammad , AlMajed Ahmad , AlShugair Nura , Belfageih Abdullah , Qahtani Hamad Al , Dulikan Sameer Al
Published: October 2021

BACKGROUND: Blood lipids are strong risk factor for the progression of atherosclerotic plaques. However, data on gender-specific associations are limited OBJECTIVES: To examine gender-specific associations of blood lipids with coronary plaque among in a large sample of asymptomatic Saudi patients. METHODS: Retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted among adult patients referred to (64 multidetector spiral) computed tomography (CT) for standard indications at the Prince Sultan Cardiac Centre (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) between July 2007 and December 2017. Those with pre-existing CAD were excluded. Plaques were determined based on post-test CT angiography and coronary calcification. RESULTS: A total 2421 patients (1498 males and 923 females) were included. The prevalence of any plaque was 36.6% with higher burden in males than females (41.3% versus 28.9%, p<0.001). Approximately 78.9% of all plaques were calcified. Blood lipids (mmol/L) were 4.75±1.14 for total cholesterol, 2.90±0.96 for LDL cholesterol, 1.20±0.36 for HDL cholesterol, and 1.64±1.09 for triglycerides. Males had significantly higher triglycerides and lower HDL cholesterol compared with females. In adjusted models in males and all patients, soft and/or calcified plaques were significantly associated with lower HDL cholesterol and higher triglycerides. In females, the only significant association was between soft plaques and higher triglycerides.CONCLUSIONS: Middle-aged patients without clinical CAD in Saudi Arabia have a high burden of plaques, specially calcified ones. The findings may impact the use of lipid lowering mediations, by underscoring the importance of assessing the risk of CAD in asymptomatic patients without clinical CAD even in case of lack of coronary calcification.
Mitotane Treatment Combined With Unilateral Adrenalectomy in a Patient With Primary Pigmented Nodular Adrenocortical Disease Caused by a Start Codon Mutation of PRKAR1A Gene
Authors: Liu Xuemeng , Guo Minghao , Han Bing , Xu Yue , Zhao Shuangxia , Xu Bin , Song Huaidong , Qiao Jie
Published: October 2021

Background: Primary pigmented nodular adrenocortical disease (PPNAD) is a rare cause of Cushing’s syndrome (CS). This study aimed to explore molecular basis and treatment strategy in a patient with PPNAD.Methods: Whole-exome sequencing (WES) was used to reveal the mutation of PRKAR1A gene, with immunohistochemistry (IHC) to observe the expression of mutant PRKAR1A. Low-dose Mitotane followed by unilateral adrenalectomy were performed to control hypercortisolism. Results: A case of 45-year-old female present with classical hypercortisolism as excessive weight gain, central obesity, and intractable hypertension. She experienced adrenal adenoma surgery 10 years ago with no improvement. Low dosage of Mitotane was used for 7 months to control the severe hypercortisolism. Then laparoscopic unilateral adrenalectomy was performed and pathological features supporting PPNAD. The germline mutation (c.1A>G) in the start codon of PRKAR1A (Protein Kinase cAMP-Dependent Type I Regulatory Subunit Alpha) gene was identified. Notably, the body weight and hypertension were improved obviously one year later even if she discontinued with the Mitotane treatment.Conclusion: Low-dose Mitotane followed by unilateral adrenalectomy showed satisfied treatment effect in this patient, which may be an alternative treatment for PPNAD patient instead of bilateral adrenalectomy.
Diagnostic Value of Bone Marrow Cell Morphology in Visceral Leishmaniasis-Associated Hemophagocytic Syndrome of Two Cases
Authors: SHI SHULAN , ZHAO HENG , MA MINGBIAO , LI XIAOJUAN , XU JI , ZHOU BENGJIANG , JIANG HONGCHAO
Published: October 2021

Background: Visceral leishmaniasis related-hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (VL-HLH) is a hemophagocytic syndrome caused by Leishmania infection. VL-HLH is rare, especially in nonendemic areas where the disease is severe, and mortality rates are high. The key to diagnosing VL-HLH is to find the pathogen; therefore, the Leishmania must be accurately identified for timely clinical treatment.Case presentationWe retrospectively analyzed the clinical data, laboratory examination results and bone marrow cell morphology of two children with VL-HLH diagnosed via bone marrow cell morphology between July 2017 and January 2021 at Kunming Children’s Hospital of Yunnan, China.Two cases suspected of having malignant tumors at other hospitals and who had undergone ineffective long-term treatment were transferred to Kunming Children’s Hospital. They had repeated fevers, pancytopenia, hepatosplenomegaly, hypertriglyceridemia, and hypofibrinogenemia over a long period and met the HLH-2004 standard. Their HLH genetic test results were negative, and primary HLH was excluded. Both children underwent chemotherapy as per the HLH-2004 chemotherapy regimen , but it was ineffective and accompanied by serious infections. We found Leishmania amastigotes in their bone marrow via morphological examination of their bone marrow cells, which showed hemophagocytic cells; thus, the children were diagnosed with VL-HLH. After being transferred to a specialty hospital for treatment, the condition was well-controlled. Conclusion: Morphological examination of the bone marrow cells played an important role in diagnosing VL-HLH. When clinically diagnosing secondary HLH, VL-HLH should be considered in addition to common pathogens, especially in patients for whom HLH-2004 chemotherapy regimens are ineffective. For infants and young children, bone marrow cytology examinations should be performed several times and as early as possible to find the pathogens to reduce potential misdiagnoses.
Special Genotypes of ABA Key Functional Genes NCEDs Members in the Glycyrrhizic Acid Synthesis Regulatory Network Promote Glycyrrhizic Acid Synthesis in Licorice
Authors: Li Ting , Xuan Feiyang , Shen Xiaoying , Jiang Dan , Ren Guangxi , Liu Chunsheng
Published: October 2021

BackgroundThe glycyrrhizic acid biosynthesis pathway does not exist in isolation, but is connected with the biosynthesis pathways of other secondary metabolites in licorice and finally forms a network. Our previous study found that exogenous spraying of appropriate concentration of abscisic acid (ABA) could increase the content of glycyrrhizic acid (GA) in licorice. However, the mechanism of action remains unknown. We aim to understand the molecular mechanism of ABA promoting the synthesis of GA in licorice and find the molecular marker for the high content of GA germplasm material.MethodsWe analyzed the expression of the key gene of β-AS for GA synthesis after applying ABA, the key functional genes NCED1, NCED3 and NCED4 in the process of ABA synthesis were overexpression, and analyzed the relationship between the SNP polymorphism of the NCED1, NCED3, NCED4 and the content of the GA and ABA in 13 different provenances of licorice with the grey correlation analysis. ResultsThe appropriate concentration of ABA treatment could increase the content of the GA through improving the expression of β-AS. There were significant differences in the content of ABA and GA among the 13 provenances, and the 3 members of the NCEDs family of different provenances had abundant SNP variation sites. Grey correlation and overexpression of NCEDs function both showed that the effect of promoting the synthesis of ABA and GA: NCED1 437 bp G type > NCED3 966 bp G type > NCED4 845 bp A type. All of the above indicated that NCEDs gene variation was the reason for the diversity of GA and ABA content. When selecting high GA germplasm, more priority should be given to NCED1 gene 437 bp G type, NCED3 gene 966 bp G type and NCED4 gene 845 bp A type. ConclusionThis study provides a basis for the selection of excellent GA content germplasm of licorice, and provide some reference for producing a high quality cultivated licorice.
A Clinical Randomized Controlled Trial: Moxibustion at Laogong Interval With Panax Notoginseng Promoted the Maturation of Arteriovenous Fistulae
Authors: Chen Yurou , Xu Lin , Huang Di , Chen Dongping , Wu Feng , Wang Luobing , Zhou Jie , Lan Tianying , Qin Xuehua , Ye Chaoyang
Published: October 2021

Background: We aim to study the clinical effect of moxibustion at Laogong interval with Panax notoginseng on the short-term maturation and long-term patency of arteriovenous fistula. Methods: Seventy-four pre-dialysis uremic patients who received radial artery-cephalic vein fistula creations were enrolled in this study and randomly assigned to the control group and experimental group. After arteriovenous fistula creations, the control group underwent handgrip exercise, and the experimental group received moxibustion at Laogong acupoint interval with Panax notoginseng. Patients were treated for 12 weeks and followed up for 24 weeks at the following time points: before creations and 2, 4, 8, 12, 24 weeks after creations. The diameter of anastomosis, the diameter of draining-veins, the blood flow of draining-veins, the diameter of arteria brachialis, and the blood flow of arteria brachialis evaluated the maturation and patency of arteriovenous fistula. ELISA determined serum levels of ET and NO levels.Results: The maturity rate in the experimental group was significantly higher than that in the control group at 4 weeks after arteriovenous fistula creations (P =0.048). The diameter of anastomosis, the diameter of draining veins, and the blood flow of draining veins increased in both groups during the whole 24 weeks. The diameter and blood flow of arteria brachialis ascended in both groups during the previous 12 weeks. Compared with the control group, moxibustion at Laogong interval with Panax notoginseng significantly improved the value of the diameter of draining-veins (P =0.016), the blood flow of draining-veins (P = 0.015), the diameter of arteria brachialis (P < 0.001), and the blood flow of arteria brachialis (P =0. 012) at 2 weeks, and enhanced the blood flow of draining-veins (P =0.029) and arteria brachialis (P < 0.001) at 12 weeks. Serum levels of ET were significantly lower (P =0.047), and serum levels of NO were markedly higher (P < 0.001) in the experimental group than that in the control group at 2 weeks after creations. Conclusion: Moxibustion at Laogong interval with Panax notoginseng was non-invasive and promoted the maturation of arteriovenous fistula at 4 weeks after creations. However, its long-term beneficial effect on patency after creations was not significant.Trial registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, No.ChiCTR1900024042. Registered, http://www.chictr.org.cn/index.aspx.
Network Pharmacology Prediction and Molecular Docking-Based Strategy to Discover the Potential Pharmacological Mechanism of Wen-yu-jin Against Pulmonary Fibrosis in Mouse Model
Authors: wang lu , Zhu Wenxiang , Sun Rui , Liu Jing , Ma Qihong , Zhang Binbin , Shi Yuanyuan
Published: October 2021

Background
Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a devastating lung disease. The two drugs approved by the FDA, pirfenidone and nintedanib, can only delay the progression of the disease but cannot cure the disease. These drugs also present adverse effects. Wen-yu-jin (WYJ) obtained from steamed roots of Curcuma wenyujin showed a variety of pharmacological activities. In this study we investigated whether WYJ present anti-lung fibrosis effects.
Methods
Ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography combined with linear ion trap-orbital tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-LTQ-orbital trap) was used to identify chemical composition of WYJ. PF-related and WYJ-related targets were obtained from public databases. Network pharmacological was performed to acquire potential targets and major signaling pathways. The binding activity of composition with core targets was predicted by molecular docking. Based on the predicted results, the anti-lung fibrosis effect of WYJ was verified in vivo and in vitro experiments.
Results
23 major compositions of WYJ were identified based on UHPLC-LTQ-Orbitrap. According to the results of network pharmacology, MAPK signaling pathway might play an important role in WYJ against lung fibrosis and STAT3 also could be the potential therapeutic targets. Molecular docking results indicated that most of the compositions have good binding activities with core targets. In vivo and in vitro experiments showed that WYJ alleviated process of fibrosis by inhibiting MAPK signaling pathway and the levels of phosphorylated STAT3 (p-STAT3).
Conclusion
According to the results of network pharmacology and molecular docking, in vivo and in vitro experiments further verified potential targets and molecular mechanism of WYJ against lung fibrosis. Our study provided a novel approach to explain the pharmacological basis of other herbs.
Revealing the Therapeutic Targets and Mechanism of Baicalin for Anti-chronic Gastritis Through TMT Proteomic Approach
Authors: Ji Wanli , Huo Yan , Zhang Yu , Wang Xinhong , Zhang Yifan
Published: October 2021

BackgroundBaicalin (BCL) is a natural compound with beneficial activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory. To investigate the therapeutic action of baicalin treatment in ethanol-induced chronic gastritis. Here, we investigated the proteome changes in the gastric tissue to elucidate the therapeutic targets of baicalin in chronic gastritis by TMT-based quantitative proteomics.ResultsUsing TMT-based quantitative proteomics, a total of the 4,452 proteins were identified and quantified in the gastric antrum tissue of Sprague–Dawley rats. Of these, 107 differentially expressed proteins, including 44 up-regulated and 63 down-regulated proteins, were uncovered in the baicalin-treated group as compared with the untreated group with ethanol-induced gastritis. Furthermore, the expression of TPM2, GIMAP4, and Mpc1 was validated using Western Blot. Baicalin could decrease the production of interleukin (IL)-2, IL-8 and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), while increase the expression of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2). Notably, protein-protein interaction network analysis revealed the widespread interactions mediated by baicalin.ConclusionsWe investigated the effects and potential mechanism of baicalin in chronic gastritis. Proteomic technology was used to explore baicalin-affected proteins and some signaling pathways. The results may provide important insights into the discovery of potential target proteins for the treatment of chronic gastritis.
Impacts of eosinophil percentage on prognosis acute type A aortic dissection patients
Authors: Shao Yue , Ye Liu , Shi Hao-ming , Wang Xin-mei , Luo Jun , Liu Lu , Wu Qing-chen
Published: October 2021

Background
Eosinophils are pro-inflammatory cells involved in thrombosis and have been proposed as a prognosis marker in acute ischemic stroke and ST-elevation myocardial Infarction. Here, we sought to clarify the prognostic value of eosinophil percentage (EOS%) in patients with acute type A aortic dissection (AAAD).
Methods
We examined 183 consecutive AAAD patients. Based on the optimum cut-off value of EOS% determined by X-tile software, patients were classified into the low EOS% (EOS%≤0.1) and high EOS% groups (EOS%>0.1). We performed multivariate regression analysis and Kaplan-Meier (KM) survival curves to assess the association between EOS% and mortality. Eosinophil accumulation in aortic dissection intraluminal thrombus was confirmed using hematoxylin–eosin (H&E) staining. An external cohort from Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV was performed to validate the results.
Results
Relative to surviving patients, those who died during hospitalization had significantly lower EOS% (p=0.001) but significantly higher WBC (p=0.002) and neutrophil (p=0.001) counts. Multivariate regression analysis identified EOS% as an independent predictor of in-hospital and 1-year mortality. KM curves revealed that 1-year cumulative mortality was significantly higher in the low EOS% group, although it was mainly attributed to the higher 30-day mortality. H&E staining revealed massive infiltration of eosinophils in all 20 thrombus specimens. The external validation confirmed that relative to survivors, patients with in-hospital (p=0.010) had significantly lower EOS%. Moreover, multivariate regression analyses identified that decreased EOS% was independently significantly associated with in-hospital mortality.
Conclusions
Low EOS% is significantly related to increased mortality rates in AAAD patients.
Polygonum Barbatum Extract Reduces Colorectal Cancer Cell Proliferation, Migration, Invasion, and Epithelial-mesenchymal Transition via Regulation of the YAP and β-catenin Pathways
Authors: Chang Pi-Kai , Yen I-Chuan , Tsai Wei-Cheng , Lee Shih-Yu
Published: October 2021

BackgroundColorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer worldwide, but the development of novel therapeutics for CRC remains a challenge. Polygonum barbatum has anticancer potential, but its mechanism of action requires further investigation. This study was designed to investigate the inhibitory effect of Polygonum barbatum on human CRC cells. The HPLC fingerprints of the Polygonum barbatum extract (PBE) and quercetin standard were determined using analytical RP-HPLC and evaluations were completed using the human colon cancer cell line HCT-116 (KRASG13D mutation) and HT-29 cells. After treatment with PBE, cell viability, colony formation, migration, invasion, and apoptosis were analyzed using CCK-8, colony formation, wound healing, Transwell invasion, and flow cytometry assays, respectively. RNA-sequencing, western blotting, and co-immunoprecipitation were also used to analyze changes in the whole-transcriptome of these cells and identify possible mechanisms of action for PBE in CRC cells. ResultsPBE significantly reduced CRC cell growth, migration, and invasion, and Gene Ontology analysis showed that the genes responsible for extracellular matrix organization, cell motility, and cell growth were suppressed by PBE. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment analysis of the differentially expressed genes revealed that PBE treatment exerted a significant effect on the extracellular matrix interaction and focal adhesion pathways. Consistently, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition markers, including N-cadherin, vimentin, SLUG, and SNAIL, were also all shown to be regulated by PBE. These effects were associated with blockade of the Yes-associated protein and the GSK3β/β-catenin axis.Conclusion﻿Polygonum barbatum extract exerts a significant inhibitory effect on CRC cells and may be potentially applicable in clinical trials.
Evidence-Related Requirements in Swedish Public Sector Procurement of Health and Welfare Technologies – A Systematic Review
Authors: Richardson Matt X. , Stridsberg Sara Landerdahl , Wamala-Andersson Sarah
Published: October 2021

BackgroundHealth and welfare technologies (HWT) are becoming increasingly employed in the Nordic countries, and in Sweden in particular. The amount of HWT public procurement is likely increasing at a similar rate, but requirements for evidence of effectiveness placed on bidders during this process may be lacking. Method This study investigated the use of evidence as a requirement in public sector tendering process of HWT, and how it affected bidder attributes and procurement outcomes. A novel type of systematic review and content analysis of requests for tenders for HWT announced prior to June 2021 was therefore conducted in Swedish public procurement databases.ResultNinety requests for tenders for 11 types of HWT met the inclusion criteria for review, accounting for potential contracts worth 246 to 296 million EUR. Criteria requiring evidence for effectiveness were used in 16 requests for tenders, accounting for 183 million EUR in potential contracts. Eight of the requests referred to an established independent standard to confirm such evidence, such as CE standard of conformity, MDR and/or MDD. This prevalence appears to cut across all types of procuring organisations and all types of HWT. The use of any evidence criteria, or lack thereof, does not appear to affect the outcomes of the tendering process. Conclusion Criteria requiring evidence for effectiveness are used in less than a fifth of all public procurements of health- and welfare technologies in Sweden, and less than 10 % refer to some form of independent standard as confirmation of such evidence. The procurement process therefore risks creating a legacy of sub-optimal technologies in health- and social care services. More prevalent and specific requirements for evidence and its continual generation in the procurement process are highly recommended. Recommendations for decision makers, procurement managers, and developers are made.
A Retrospective Longitudinal Cohort Study of The Clinical Burden in Myasthenia Gravis
Authors: Harris Linda , Graham Sophie , MacLachlan Sharon , Exuzides Alex , Jacob Saiju
Published: October 2021

Background

Patients with generalized myasthenia gravis (MG) often experience debilitating exacerbations, with the possibility of life-threatening respiratory crises requiring hospitalization. Long-term longitudinal studies are needed to understand the burden of MG, including in patients whose disease is refractory to conventional treatment.
Methods

A retrospective, longitudinal, cohort study was conducted of patients in England aged ≥18 years with treatment-refractory or non-refractory MG, using data recorded during 1997–2016 in the Clinical Practice Research Datalink and the Hospital Episode Statistics databases. A control cohort of patients without MG, matched to the patients in the treatment-refractory MG cohort, was also identified. Outcome measures included myasthenic crises, MG exacerbations, MG-related hospitalizations, comorbidities, and all-cause mortality. Descriptive statistics were calculated for the overall MG population. For continuous variables, between-cohort comparisons were made using t tests for normally distributed data and Mann–Whitney U tests for non-normally distributed data. For categorical data, the comparisons were made by chi-squared tests. Differences in clinical outcomes between cohorts were modeled using negative binomial regression.
Results

A total of 1149 patients with MG were included. Overall, 18.4% of patients experienced myasthenic crises, 24.6% experienced exacerbations, and 38.6% underwent MG-related hospitalizations. Most of these events occurred within 2–3 years of diagnosis. Patients with MG refractory to conventional treatment (n=66) experienced more exacerbations and MG-related hospitalizations than patients with non-refractory disease (n=1083). Patients with refractory MG experienced a higher frequency of renal disease and hypertension compared with patients with non-refractory MG, and with matched patients without MG. They were also more likely to have diabetes and congestive heart failure than the matched controls. Rates of all-cause mortality during the follow-up period did not differ between patients with refractory MG and non-refractory MG.
Conclusions

These results show that conventional treatments for MG are not adequately managing patients’ symptoms and that patients with refractory MG are more likely to experience certain comorbidities than those with non-refractory MG or matched controls without MG. Future research should focus on the impact of newer targeted therapies on long-term clinical outcomes and comorbid conditions.
A Promising New Predictive Factor for Detecting Bowel Resection in Childhood Intussusception: Lymphocyte-C Reactive Protein Ratio
Authors: Chen Bailin Chenilin , Cao Jian , Yan Chengwei , Zheng Chao , Chen Jingyu , Guo Chunbao
Published: October 2021

Background: The most critical concern for management of childhood intussusception is the bowel resection due to the intestinal ischemia and necrocis. It is of great importance for early prediction of this problem. We investigate the value of various combinations of inflammatory factors to predict the intestinal necrocis and resection.Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of pediatric patients with intussusception, which undergone surgical management. During the research period, 47 patients undergone intestinal resection due to intestinal necrocis and 68 patients without intestinal resection were enrolled. We evaluated the diagnostic values of various combination of inflammatory markers from preoperative period laboratory analyses using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) method.Results: In the current cohort, 115 patients were operated for intussusception, among them, 47 patients (40.9%) undergone intestinal resections. In patients with intestinal resections, neutrophil count(p=0.013), CRP(p=0.002), platelet–lymphocyte ratio(PLR, p=0.008), NLR(neutrophil–lymphocyte ratio, p=0.026), and LCR(lymphocyte–CRP ratio, p<0.001) values were significantly higher than those in the patients without any resections. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis results showed that the combination of lymphocytic count along with C-reactive protein levels (LCR) demonstrated the highest correlation with intestinal resection due to intussusception compared with other parameters in patients, with sensitivity of 0.82(0.73–0.86) and specifficity of 0.80(0.57–0.94) for the diagnosis of strangulation. Conclusion: The preoperative LCR level is a useful marker to predict the need for intestinal resection due to intestinal necrosis in patients with intussusception.
Transurethral Incision of the Bladder Neck with Additional Procedure Resumes Spontaneous Voiding in Female Voiding Dysfunction – A Long-term Follow-up
Authors: Ong Hueih Ling , Kuo Hann-Chorng
Published: October 2021

Introductions: To evaluate the long-term effectiveness of transurethral incision of the bladder neck (TUI-BN) with or without additional procedure for female voiding dysfunction.Methods: Women with voiding difficulty and underwent TUI-BN in recent 12 years were included. All patients underwent videourodynamics study (VUDS) at baseline and after TUI-BN. Successful outcome was defined as having a voiding efficiency (VE) by ≥50% after treatment. Patients with insufficient improvement were opt for repeated TUI-BN, urethral onabotulinumtoxinA injection or transurethral external sphincter incision (TUI-ES). The current voiding status, surgical complications were evaluated.Results: A total of 102 women with VUDS evidence of a narrow bladder neck during voiding were enrolled. The long-term success rate of the first TUI-BN was 29.4% (30/102) and increased to 66.7% (34/51) after combining TUI-BN and additional procedure. The overall long-term success rates were 74.6% in detrusor underactivity (DU), 52.0% in detrusor overactivity and low contractility, 50.0% in bladder neck obstruction (p=0.022). Spontaneous voiding was achieved in 66 (64.7%) patients, de novo urinary incontinence in 21 (20.6%), and vesicovaginal fistula in 4 (3.9%), all were repaired.Conclusions: TUI-BN alone or in combination with additional procedure was safe, effective and durable. Patients with DU benefit most in resuming spontaneous voiding.
Parameters in complete blood cell count and coagulation function test predict in pediatric critical illness：A retrospective study
Authors: Hang Hang , Zhao Wu , Guo Qixiu
Published: October 2021

Background. The complete blood cell count is associated with the prognosis of critically ill children. Pediatric critical illness score (PCIS) is often used to evaluate the criticality of pediatric critical illness. We aimed to determine most parameters in the complete blood cell count (CBC) and coagulation function test of patients who were admitted to PICU in our hospital and compare those parameters of critically ill and non-critically ill children grouped by PCIS and whether CBC can identify and assess the severity of illness in critically ill children. Methods. We performed a retrospective study of pediatric intensive care population who took both blood routine examination and coagulation function test within 24 hours of admission in PICU of The First Affiliated Hospital of Bengbu Medical College, from April 2015 to December 2019. Data collected include patient demographics and clinical data. Statistical analysis including Mann-Whitney U Test, binary logistic regression and so on. Results. The parameters in the complete blood cell count and coagulation function test showed a significant difference between critical illness and non-critical illness in this study. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that RDWSD and PT prolongation are associated with PCIs (p<0.001, p=0.006, respectively). We created a nomogram for pediatric critical illness by using these risk factors. The area under of ROC curve (AUC) of pediatric critical illness for the combination of RDWSD and PT prolongation was 0.664(95%confidence interval 0.609-0.720). The nomogram had a bootstrapped-concordance index of 0.58. Conclusion. RDWSD and PT prolongation are reliable indicators for predicting pediatric critical illness.
Research on Forecast of Global COVID-19 Development Trend
Authors: Cheng Yunyun , Bai Yanping , Xu Ting , Cheng Rong , Hu Hongping
Published: October 2021

The rapid spread of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-2019) has seriously threatened people’s health and brought huge challenges to the medical systems of many countries. So it is necessary to predict the epidemic trend scientifically and accurately. In this paper, the development trend prediction of the global daily cumulative confirmed case, based on data from February 2, 2020 to August 14, 2021 using linear regression and nonlinear regression methods, which are auto regressive integrated moving average (ARIMA), wavelet neural network (WNN), support vector machine (SVM), recurrent neural network (RNN) and long short-term memory (LSTM). Mean Absolute Error (MAE), Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) and Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) were used to evaluate the prediction accuracy of the five models. The experimental results showed that the LSTM used in this study is more accurate for predicting the development trend of global cumulative confirmed cases. And its three evaluation indexes were 0.0936%, 0.1123%, and 0.0962% respectively, which were the smallest compared with the other four models. The LSTM model was used to predict the global cumulative confirmed cases in the next five days. The prediction results showed that the global cumulative confirmed cases will rise steadily and exceed 205 million. Therefore, the health departments of various countries should take appropriate prevention and control measures in advance.