bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Landscape of Tumor Mutation Load, Mismatch Repair Deficiency, and PD-L1 Expression in a Large Patient Cohort of Gastrointestinal Cancers
Authors: Salem Mohamed E. , Puccini Alberto , Grothey Axel , Raghavan Derek , Goldberg Richard M. , Xiu Joanne , Korn W. Michael , Weinberg Benjamin A. , Hwang Jimmy J. , Shields Anthony F. , Marshall John L. , Philip Philip A. , Lenz Heinz-Josef
Published: March 2018

The efficacy of immunotherapy varies widely among different gastrointestinal cancers. Response to immune checkpoint inhibitors is shown to correlate with tumor mutation load (TML), mismatch repair deficiency (dMMR) status, and programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression. Herein, we quantify TML, dMMR, and PD-L1 expression and determine their interrelationship in gastrointestinal cancers. Here, a total of 4,125 tumors from 14 different gastrointestinal cancer sites were studied using validated assays. Next-generation sequencing was performed on genomic DNA isolated from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tumor specimens using the NextSeq platform. TML was calculated using only somatic nonsynonymous missense mutations sequenced with a 592-gene panel. Microsatellite instability (MSI) was assessed using direct analysis of altered known MSI loci in the target regions of the sequenced genes. PD-L1 expression was analyzed by IHC. Interestingly, right-sided colon and small-bowel adenocarcinomas had the highest prevalence of TML-high tumors (14.6% and 10.2%, respectively). Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors and gastrointestinal stromal tumors had the lowest rates of TML-high (1.3% and 0%, respectively). TML-high was strongly associated with MSI-H (P < 0.0001). However, all TML-high anal cancers (8.3%) were microsatellite stable (MSS). Higher PD-L1 expression was more likely to be seen in MSI compared with MSS tumors (20.6% vs. 7.8%, P < 0.0001).

Implications: TML-high rate varied widely among gastrointestinal cancers. Although MSI is conceivably the main driver for TML-high, other factors may be involved. Future clinical trials are needed to evaluate whether the integration of TML, MSI, and PD-L1 could better identify potential responders to immunotherapy. Mol Cancer Res; 16(5); 805–12. ©2018 AACR.
Cross-Talk between Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells and Mast Cells Mediates Tumor-Specific Immunosuppression in Prostate Cancer
Authors: Jachetti Elena , Cancila Valeria , Rigoni Alice , Bongiovanni Lucia , Cappetti Barbara , Belmonte Beatrice , Enriquez Claudia , Casalini Patrizia , Ostano Paola , Frossi Barbara , Sangaletti Sabina , Chiodoni Claudia , Chiorino Giovanna , Pucillo Carlo E. , Tripodo Claudio , Colombo Mario P.
Published: March 2018

Immunotherapy, including the use of checkpoint inhibitors, is a potent therapeutic approach for some cancers, but has limited success with prostate tumors, in which immune suppression is instigated by the tumor. The immunosuppressive capacity of mast cells, which promote adenocarcinoma development in the prostate, prompted our investigation on whether mast cells promote tolerance to SV40 Large-T antigen, the transforming oncogene in transgenic adenocarcinoma of the mouse prostate (TRAMP) mice. The incidence of adenocarcinoma was reduced in the offspring of a cross between TRAMP mice and mast cell–deficient KitWsh mice. TRAMP mice are tolerant to the SV40 Large T antigen, which is otherwise immunogenic in normal syngeneic B6 mice. Genetic ablation of mast cells in TRAMP mice restored their ability to mount a tumor-specific cytotoxic T-cell response. In KitWsh-TRAMP mice, the restored T-cell immunity correlated with the reduced activity of polymorphonuclear myeloid-derived suppressor cells (PMN-MDSC), along with their reduced expression of Arg1, Nos2, and Stat3. Having found that CD40L-expressing mast cells can interact in vivo with CD40-expressing PMN-MDSC, we then determined that only KitWsh-TRAMP mice reconstituted with mast cells expressing CD40L could restore PMN-MDSCs suppressive functions, T-cell unresponsiveness and adenocarcinoma development. Thus, mast cells have an immunoregulatory effect on PMN-MDSCs activity through CD40L-CD40 interaction, favoring immunosuppression and tumor onset. In prostate cancer patients, in silico analyses correlated poor clinical outcomes with high expression of genes related to mast cells and PMN-MDSCs. Cancer Immunol Res; 6(5); 552–65. ©2018 AACR.
Association of Liver Fibrosis With Cardiovascular Diseases in the General Population
Authors: Ostovaneh Mohammad R. , Ambale-Venkatesh Bharath , Fuji Tomoki , Bakhshi Hooman , Shah Ravi , Murthy Venkatesh L. , Tracy Russell P. , Guallar Eliseo , Wu Colin O. , Bluemke David A. , Lima João A.C.
Published: March 2018

Background—

The association of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) with liver fibrosis is poorly understood. We aim to assess the association of liver fibrosis by T1-mapping magnetic resonance imaging and CVD in MESA (Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis).

Methods and Results—

MESA enrolled 6814 participants free of clinical CVD at baseline (2000–2002). A subsample of participants underwent T1-mapping magnetic resonance imaging 10 years after the baseline (Y10 MESA exam, 2010–2012). Liver T1 maps were generated avoiding vessels and biliary ducts from which native T1 (n=2087) and extracellular volume fraction (ECV, n=1234) were determined. Higher ECV and native T1 were indicators of liver fibrosis. Linear regression analysis evaluated the cross-sectional relationship between liver native T1 and ECV at Y10 MESA exam with a history of CVD events (atrial fibrillation, heart failure, and coronary heart disease [CHD]). Of the 2087 participants (68.7±9.1 years; 46% females), 153 had prior CVD events (78 atrial fibrillation, 25 heart failure, and 78 CHD). History of CVD events was associated with 18.5 ms higher liver native T1 (
P
<0.001) and 1.4% greater ECV (
P
=0.06). Prior atrial fibrillation was related to higher liver native T1 (β=21.1;
P
=0.001) and greater ECV (β=2.2;
P
=0.02), whereas previous heart failure was associated with greater liver ECV (β=4.1;
P
=0.02). There was also a relationship of prior CHD with liver native T1 (β=13;
P
=0.05) and ECV (β=1.9;
P
=0.05), which was attenuated by adjustment for coronary artery calcium score (β=7.1 and 1.6;
P
=0.37 and 0.13, respectively).

Conclusions—

Liver fibrosis by T1-mapping magnetic resonance imaging is associated with history of heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and CHD in a multiethnic cohort. The association of liver fibrosis and CHD is at least in part mediated by atherosclerosis.
Hospital Readmission After Perioperative Acute Myocardial Infarction Associated With Noncardiac Surgery
Authors: Smilowitz Nathaniel R. , Beckman Joshua A. , Sherman Scott E. , Berger Jeffrey S.
Published: March 2018

Background:

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is a major cardiovascular complication of noncardiac surgery. We aimed to evaluate the frequency, causes, and outcomes of 30-day hospital readmission after perioperative AMI.

Methods:

Patients who were diagnosed with AMI during hospitalization for major noncardiac surgery were identified using the 2014 US Nationwide Readmission Database. Rates, causes, and costs of 30-day readmissions after noncardiac surgery with and without perioperative AMI were identified.

Results:

Among 3 807 357 hospitalizations for major noncardiac surgery, 8085 patients with perioperative AMI were identified. A total of 1135 patients (14.0%) with perioperative AMI died in-hospital during the index admission. Survivors of perioperative AMI were more likely to be readmitted within 30 days than surgical patients without perioperative AMI (19.1% versus 6.5%,
P
<0.001). The most common indications for 30-day rehospitalization were management of infectious complications (30.0%), cardiovascular complications (25.3%), and bleeding (10.4%). In-hospital mortality during hospital readmission in the first 30 days after perioperative AMI was 11.3%. At 6 months, the risk of death was 17.6% and ≥1 hospital readmission was 36.2%.

Conclusions:

Among patients undergoing noncardiac surgery who develop a perioperative MI, ≈1 in 3 suffer from in-hospital death or hospital readmission in the first 30 days after discharge. Strategies to improve outcomes of surgical patients early after perioperative AMI are warranted.
Genome Wide Association Study Identifies the
HMGCS2
Locus to be Associated With Chlorthalidone Induced Glucose Increase in Hypertensive Patients
Authors: Singh Sonal , McDonough Caitrin W. , Gong Yan , Alghamdi Wael A. , Arwood Meghan J. , Bargal Salma A. , Dumeny Leanne , Li Wen‐Yi , Mehanna Mai , Stockard Bradley , Yang Guang , de Oliveira Felipe A. , Fredette Natalie C. , Shahin Mohamed H. , Bailey Kent R. , Beitelshees Amber L. , Boerwinkle Eric , Chapman Arlene B. , Gums John G. , Turner Stephen T. , Cooper‐DeHoff Rhonda M. , Johnson Julie A.
Published: March 2018

Background

Thiazide and thiazide‐like diuretics are first‐line medications for treating uncomplicated hypertension. However, their use has been associated with adverse metabolic events, including hyperglycemia and incident diabetes mellitus, with incompletely understood mechanisms. Our goal was to identify genomic variants associated with thiazide‐like diuretic/chlorthalidone‐induced glucose change.

Methods and Results

Genome‐wide analysis of glucose change after treatment with chlorthalidone was performed by race among the white (n=175) and black (n=135) participants from the
PEAR
‐2 (Pharmacogenomic Evaluation of Antihypertensive Responses‐2). Single‐nucleotide polymorphisms with
P
<5×10
−8
were further prioritized using in silico analysis based on their expression quantitative trait loci function. Among blacks, an intronic single‐nucleotide polymorphism (rs9943291) in the

HMGCS
2

was associated with increase in glucose levels following chlorthalidone treatment (ß=12.5;
P
=4.17×10
−8
). G‐allele carriers of

HMGCS
2

had higher glucose levels (glucose change=+16.29 mg/dL) post chlorthalidone treatment compared with noncarriers of G allele (glucose change=+2.80 mg/dL). This association was successfully replicated in an independent replication cohort of hydrochlorothiazide‐treated participants from the
PEAR
study (ß=5.54;
P
=0.023). A meta‐analysis of the 2 studies was performed by race in Meta‐Analysis Helper, where this single‐nucleotide polymorphism, rs9943291, was genome‐wide significant with a meta‐analysis
P
value of 3.71×10
−8
.

HMGCS
2

, a part of the
HMG
‐CoA synthase family, is important for ketogenesis and cholesterol synthesis pathways that are essential in glucose homeostasis.

Conclusions

These results suggest that

HMGCS
2

is a promising candidate gene involved in chlorthalidone and Hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ)‐induced glucose change. This may provide insights into the mechanisms involved in thiazide‐induced hyperglycemia that may ultimately facilitate personalized approaches to antihypertensive selection for hypertension treatment.

Clinical Trial Registration

URL
:
http://www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifiers:
NCT
00246519 and
NCT
01203852.
Acute Myocardial Infarction Mortality During Dates of National Interventional Cardiology Meetings
Authors: Jena Anupam B. , Olenski Andrew , Blumenthal Daniel M. , Yeh Robert W. , Goldman Dana P. , Romley John
Published: March 2018

Background

Previous research has found that patients with acute cardiovascular conditions treated in teaching hospitals have lower 30‐day mortality during dates of national cardiology meetings.

Methods and Results

We analyzed 30‐day mortality among Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized with acute myocardial infarction (overall, ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction, and non–ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction) from January 1, 2007, to November 31, 2012, in major teaching hospitals during dates of a major annual interventional cardiology meeting (Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics) compared with identical nonmeeting days in the ±5 weeks. Treatment differences were assessed. We used a database of US physicians to compare interventional cardiologists who practiced and did not practice during meeting dates (“stayers” and “attendees,” respectively) in terms of demographic characteristics and clinical and research productivity. Unadjusted and adjusted 30‐day mortality rates were lower among patients admitted during meeting versus nonmeeting dates (unadjusted, 15.3% [482/3153] versus 16.7% [5208/31 556] [
P
=0.04]; adjusted, 15.4% versus 16.7%; difference −1.3% [95% confidence interval, −2.7% to −0.1%] [
P
=0.05]). Rates of interventional cardiologist involvement were similar between dates (59.5% versus 59.8% of hospitalizations;
P
=0.88), as were percutaneous coronary intervention rates (30.2% versus 29.1%;
P
=0.20). Mortality reductions were largest among patients with non–ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction not receiving percutaneous coronary intervention (16.9% versus 19.5% adjusted 30‐day mortality;
P
=0.008). Compared with stayers, attendees were of similar age and sex, but had greater publications (18.9 versus 6.3;
P
<0.001), probability of National Institutes of Health funding (5.3% versus 0.4%;
P
<0.001), and clinical trial leadership (10.3% versus 3.9%;
P
<0.001), and they performed more percutaneous coronary interventions annually (85.6 versus 63.3;
P
<0.001).

Conclusions

Hospitalization with acute myocardial infarction during Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics meeting dates was associated with lower 30‐day mortality, predominantly among patients with non–ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction who were medically managed.
New species, taxonomy, phylogeny, and distribution of the tropical tribe Bothriomirini (Insecta: Heteroptera: Miridae: Cylapinae)
Authors: Namyatova Anna A. , Contos Peter , Cassis Gerasimos
Published: March 2018

Bothriomirini is a small tropical mirid tribe that has not been comprehensively revised nor has monophyly of the tribe and included genera been tested. This paper presents a systematic review of Bothrioimrini. Bothriomirella ater
gen. nov. sp. nov., Bothriomiris lorenzatoae
sp. nov., Dashymenia javanensis
sp. nov.
, Dashymenia jaydeni
sp. nov. are described as new to science. A phylogenetic analysis of Bothriomirini based on morphological data is performed. The diagnoses of the tribe and most of its genera are discussed. Bakeriola crassicornis Poppius, Bothriomiris lugubris Poppius, Bothriomiris ornatus Bergroth, Dashymeniella tibialis Poppius and Leprocapsus scutellaris Poppius are redescribed. Female genitalia of Bothrimirini are discussed for the first time. This study supports the monophyly of the tribe and most genera and documents remarkable heterogeneity of the female genitalia. New locality data and a discussion of the distribution of Bothriomirini in relation to major biomes and climatic zones are provided.
The international mediation of power-sharing settlements
Authors: McCulloch Allison , McEvoy Joanne
Published: March 2018

Power sharing is largely accepted among scholars and policy-makers as a potentially effective mechanism for building peace in the aftermath of violent ethnic conflicts and self-determination disputes. Although the operation of power sharing may be prone to ongoing challenges and even political crises arising from the legacy of the conflict, international actors continue to promote power-sharing arrangements to manage self-determination and other ethnopolitical conflicts. This article investigates the normative and instrumental reasons why third-party mediators (on behalf of international organizations and/or states) turn to power-sharing strategies during peace negotiations. It considers the reasons why third-party mediators promote power sharing when its maintenance is likely to depend on their ongoing commitment and governance involvement. We argue that mediators draw from four different perspectives in their support of power-sharing settlements: international law, regional and internal security, democracy and minority rights, and a technical approach where mediators focus on the mechanics of power-sharing designs. The article draws on in-depth semi-structured interviews with officials from the United Nations and the European Union working for the organizations’ respective mediation units as well as documentary analysis of official mediation documents.
Dalla letteratura al diritto e ritorno: il concetto di nobiltà da Dante a Tasso passando per Bartolo
Authors: Di Fonzo Claudia
Published: March 2018

Il tema di questo contributo è il rapporto tra diritto e letteratura a partire dalla questione della nobiltà che Dante affronta nella canzone Le dolci rime d’amor ch’io solia (“che è questa nobilitade di che tanta gente erroneamente parla” Cv IV XX 1), per giungere alla repetitio sulla l(ex) si ut proponitis, C. De dignitatibus del grande giurista Bartolo da Sassoferrato e tornare così alla letteratura con Torquato Tasso e Il Forno overo de la nobiltà.
Developing Listening Fluency through Supported Extensive Listening Practice
Authors: Chang Anna , Millett Sonia , Renandya Willy Ardian
Published: March 2018

Although second language listening has become a rather active area of research in the past ten years, some topics such as listening fluency development and extensive listening (EL) have not received much attention. The purpose of the present study is to examine the levels of listening support that might be needed to facilitate L2 learners’ listening fluency development. Sixty-nine EFL college students completed a full intervention through one of the three modes: (1) listening only (LO), (2) reading only (RO), and (3) reading while listening plus listening only (RLL). Ten level-1, 10 level-2 and 8 level-3 (audio) graded readers were used as the study materials within three 13-week periods. Listening tests were given before the intervention (pre-test) and after they finished each level of the texts (post-tests 1, 2 and 3). The research questions addressed effect sizes of the scores’ changes from the pre-test to each of the post-tests in each group on their comprehension of practised and unpractised texts. The results show that in comprehending the practised texts, the LO and RLL groups could comprehend the more complicated texts at faster speech rates and also maintain higher levels of comprehension. When listening to the unpractised texts, the RLL group could do as well as they did on the practised texts, but the LO group could process the more difficult texts at faster speech rates without decreasing their comprehension levels. As predicted, the RO group performed poorly on the tests. Pedagogical implications for facilitating the effectiveness of extensive listening practice are discussed.
Re-imagined post-colonial geographies: Graduate students explore spaces of resistance in the wake of Ferguson
Authors: Dache-Gerbino Amalia , Aguayo David , Griffin Marquise , Hairston Sarah L , Hamilton Christal , Krause Christopher , Lane-Bonds Dena , Sweeney Heather
Published: March 2018

Using Harvey’s (2012) Spaces of Capital: Towards a Critical Geography and Sharp’s (2009) Geographies of Postcolonialism as theoretical approaches and Gordon’s (2008) Mapping Decline: St. Louis and the Fate of the American City as historical context, a graduate-level critical geography of urban higher education class conducts field observations of St. Louis’ uneven geographies, centering Ferguson as a point of departure. Our use of critical geography and postcolonialism within education are critiques of U.S. capital accumulation in urban spaces and frame how we analyzed our observations and geographic information systems data. Specifically, we use the subaltern space of Canfield Apartments, where Michael Brown was executed on 9 August 2014 by a Ferguson Police Department officer as the central location. Through field notes of each student’s site visits, bus-riding experience, and GIS data, we aim to provide mixed-method results on spaces of resistance and public transportation access, parts of uneven geographic developments contributing to discourses of U.S. college accessibility in St. Louis.
Resisting neoliberalism? Movements against austerity and for democracy in Cairo, Athens and London
Authors: Ishkanian Armine , Glasius Marlies
Published: March 2018

Drawing on interviews conducted with activists from Athens, Cairo and London in 2013, we examine activists’ understandings of, critiques of and concerns around neoliberal policies. We demonstrate that activists often imply, and sometimes explicitly formulate, a fundamental incompatibility between the current economic system and their conceptions of democracy, but also that ‘anti-neoliberal’ is a very inadequate label for describing their political positions and practices. We demonstrate how activists developed deeply interlinked critiques of both the political system and the economic policies that emanated from it. We maintain that at least as important as their discourses were their practices. We analyse how solidarity and self-help practices were perceived as political interventions, rather than acts of charity, through which activists confronted the state with its failure to provide basic services.
Discipline, debt and coercive commodification: Post-crisis neoliberalism and the welfare state in Ireland, the UK and the USA
Authors: Dukelow Fiona , Kennett Patricia
Published: March 2018

Ireland, the UK and the USA are heterogeneous examples of liberal worlds of welfare capitalism yet all three countries were deeply implicated in the 2008 global financial crisis. Examining these three countries together provides the opportunity to further develop an international comparative political economy of instability in the context of the globalised and financialised dimensions of Anglo-liberal capitalism and disciplinary governance. Our analysis is guided by the concept of disciplinary neoliberalism (Gill, 1995) through which we explore: (i) the dynamics that have shaped the impacts of and responses to the Great Recession; (ii) the ways in which state-market relations, shaped by differentiated accommodations to market imperative or market discipline, have been used as disciplinary tools and how these have interacted with existing social divisions and iii) the implications for shaping conditions for resistance. We suggest that the neoliberal pathways of each country, whilst not uniform, mark a ‘step-change’ and acceleration in the operation of disciplinary neoliberalism, and is particularly evident in what we identify as the coercive commodification of social policy.
If telecare is the answer, what was the question? Storylines, tensions and the unintended consequences of technology-supported care
Authors: Lynch Jennifer K. , Glasby Jon , Robinson Suzanne
Published: March 2018

Telecare – services employing technology to monitor people’s movement, medication and home environment at a distance – has emerged as a key component of global social care and health policies. The relationship between policies about telecare and the experiences and aspirations of service users has been under-interrogated. This article draws on findings from an organisational case study involving people living with complex conditions using various telecare devices and employs Hajer’s (1995) concept of argumentative discourse analysis to identify two key storylines arguing that telecare improves people’s quality of life and promotes independence. While these storylines point to seemingly logical and incontestable objectives, uncritical policy and practice fails to recognise and prioritise the aspirations of service users, leading to unintended consequences that can deepen people’s isolation and minimise organisational benefits.
Pushing the limits of urban research: Urbanization, pipelines and counter-colonial politics
Authors: Kipfer Stefan
Published: March 2018

This article confronts debates about extended and concentrated urbanization with Indigenous claims to time and space. It does so in part by discussing the degree to which notions of extended and concentrated urbanization allow us to understand the dynamics of pipeline politics in Canada, notably Indigenous claims leveled at infrastructure projects. It argues that Lefebvre-inspired research is both promising and insufficient in this regard. Their promises can only be realized provided one considers urban research as mediation (between everyday life and the social order), contextualize urbanization as a product of non-linear histories through which ‘city’ and ‘non-city’ are transformed or reinstituted as socio-spatial forms, and take seriously imaginaries that may not only contest but also refuse the expansion of the urban field. Meeting these conditions is not possible without resorting to other, non-Lefebvrean approaches that help us understand the settler-colonial aspects of Canadian urban history and grasp the inter-national dimensions of Indigenous politics. Finally, opening up Lefebvre scholarship to considerations of settler colonialism is impossible without the distinct relational theories of time and space that inform radical Indigenous theories (and some pipeline struggles). Indigenous claims in or against urbanization thus represent a limit case of urban research.
Negotiating states of water: Producing illegibility, bureaucratic arbitrariness, and distributive injustices in Delhi
Authors: Truelove Yaffa
Published: March 2018

State quantifications of Delhi’s water supply proclaim some of the highest levels of access in urban South Asia. However, accompanying such representations are a number of discrepancies and ambiguities, suggesting an appearance of legibility is produced in the absence of data and key calculations. This paper examines the co-production of both knowledge and ignorance with regard to the city’s water, showing how their entanglement serves to powerfully shape both urban biopolitics and diffuse modalities of state power. First, I demonstrate that the appearance of legibility is maintained through fragmented measurement and bureaucratic practices that build material ambiguity into the system. Secondly, I examine the political, discursive and material effects of such illegibility, which include outcomes that are both arbitrary in nature (inadvertently allotting more water to one area versus another) and well as more deliberate (attributing blame for water wastage and loss to the very populations and urban spaces most excluded from the grid). Rather than a lack of intelligibility diminishing the powers of the state, the material ambiguity of Delhi’s waters furthers an everyday water politics of diffuse state power by which water is politicized at the local level while larger (infra)structural fixes are left off the table.
Planetary urbanization and totality
Authors: Goonewardena Kanishka
Published: March 2018

This paper begins with the accusation of “totalization” that has been directed at Neil Brenner and Christian Schmid’s concept of “planetary urbanization.” In so doing, it first critiques the meanings typically attributed to “totality” and “totalization” by Brenner and Schmid as well as their critics, and then explicates the concepts of totality and totalization developed in the tradition of Hegelian Marxism, especially in the works of Georg Lukács, Jean-Paul Sartre, Henri Lefebvre, and Fredric Jameson. Following a review of some influential invocations of Hegelian or Marxist conceptions of totality in anti-colonial and socialist–feminist politics, the paper concludes by arguing that participants in the contentious planetary urbanization debate can best address their substantive concerns by working through instead of disavowing the concept of totality—especially the version of it proposed by Lefebvre, involving state and capital, “the urban” and the everyday.
Venovenous extracorporeal life support in patients with HIV infection and Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia
Authors: Capatos Gerry , Burke Christopher R. , Ogino Mark T. , Lorusso Roberto R. , Brogan Thomas V. , McMullan D. Michael , Dalton Heidi J.
Published: March 2018

Aim:

As experience with extracorporeal life support (ECLS) increases, indications for its use have expanded to diverse patient populations, including those with HIV infection. Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PJP) is a particularly devastating complication of HIV infections. The objective of this study was to review ECLS use in HIV-positive patients, with particular emphasis on those with concomitant PJP infection.

Methods:

All patients were treated by the same ECLS team, consisting of an ECLS specialist intensivist, cardiothoracic surgeon and allied medical professionals at three healthcare institutions. The same ECLS protocol was utilized for all patients during the study period. A retrospective review was performed for all HIV-positive patients placed on ECLS from May 2011 to October 2014. Demographic, clinical, ECLS and complication data were reviewed to identify risk factors for death.

Results:

A total of 22 HIV-positive patients received ECLS therapy during the study period. All patients were supported with venovenous ECLS and overall survival to hospital discharge was 68%. Survival amongst the PJP positive cohort was 60%. Non-survivors were more likely to require inotropic medications on ECLS (100% non-survivors vs. 46.7% survivors, p=0.022) and had a longer total duration of ECLS (13 days non-survivors vs. 7 days survivors, p=0.011). No difference was observed between PJP-positive and PJP-negative patients with regard to demographic data, complication rates or survival.

Conclusion:

ECLS is a viable treatment option in carefully selected HIV-positive patients, including those with severe disease as manifested by PJP infection.
Implementation of Fee-Free Maternal Health-Care Policy in Ghana: Perspectives of Users of Antenatal and Delivery Care Services From Public Health-Care Facilities in Accra
Authors: Anafi Patricia , Mprah Wisdom K. , Jackson Allen M. , Jacobson Janelle J. , Torres Christopher M. , Crow Brent M. , O’Rourke Kathleen M.
Published: March 2018

In 2008, the government of Ghana implemented a national user fee maternal care exemption policy through the National Health Insurance Scheme to improve financial access to maternal health services and reduce maternal as well as perinatal deaths. Although evidence shows that there has been some success with this initiative, there are still issues relating to cost of care to beneficiaries of the initiative. A qualitative study, comprising 12 focus group discussions and 6 interviews, was conducted with 90 women in six selected urban neighborhoods in Accra, Ghana, to examine users’ perspectives regarding the implementation of this policy initiative. Findings showed that direct cost of delivery care services was entirely free, but costs related to antenatal care services and indirect costs related to delivery care still limit the use of hospital-based midwifery and obstetric care. There was also misunderstanding about the initiative due to misinformation created by the government through the media.We recommend that issues related to both direct and indirect costs of antenatal and delivery care provided in public health-care facilities must be addressed to eliminate some of the lingering barriers relating to cost hindering the smooth operation and sustainability of the maternal care fee exemption policy.
The retroneural approach: an alternative technique for lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injections
Authors: Ignjatovic Stefan , Omidi Reza , Kubik-Huch Rahel A , Anderson Suzanne , Ahlhelm Frank J
Published: March 2018

Background

Compared with other available injection techniques for lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injections (LTFESIs), the traditionally performed subpedicular approach is associated with a higher risk of spinal cord infarction, a rare but catastrophic complication.

Purpose

To assess the short-term efficacy of the retroneural approach for computed tomography (CT)-guided LTFESIs with respect to different needle-tip positions.

Material and Methods

This retrospective analysis included 238 patients receiving 286 CT-guided LTFESIs from January 2013 to January 2016. Short-term outcomes in terms of pain relief were assessed using the visual analogue scale (VAS) at baseline and 30 min after. The needle-tip location was categorized as extraforaminal, junctional, or foraminal relative to the neural foramen. Additionally, the distance from the needle tip to the nerve root was measured.

Results

A mean pain reduction of 3.22 points (±2.17 points) on the VAS was achieved. The needle-tip location was extraforaminal in 48% (136/286), junctional in 42% (120/286), and foraminal in 10% (28/286) of the cases. The mean distance from the needle tip to the nerve root was 3.83 mm (±3.37 mm). There was no significant correlation between pain relief and needle-tip position in relation to the neural foramen. Therapy success was not dependent on the distance between the needle tip and the nerve root. No major complications were observed.

Conclusion

In our population treated with LTFESIs, the retroneural approach was shown to be an effective technique, with no significant differences in pain relief following different needle-tip positions.
Negative Effects of Makeup Use on Perceptions of Leadership Ability Across Two Ethnicities
Authors: James Esther A. , Jenkins Shauny , Watkins Christopher D.
Published: March 2018

Cosmetics alter social perceptions, and prior work suggests that cosmetic use may aid female intrasexual competition, making women appear more dominant to other women but more prestigious to other men. It is unclear whether these findings reflect general improvements in perceptions of traits related to women’s dominance or if they are specific to mating contexts only. Here, across two ethnicities, we examined effects of cosmetics used for a social night out on perceptions of women’s leadership ability, a trait that denotes competence/high status outside of mating contexts. Participants of African and Caucasian ethnicity judged faces for leadership ability where half of the trials differed in ethnicity (own- vs. other-ethnicity face pairs) and the subtlety of the color manipulation (50% vs. 100%). Regardless of the participant’s sex or ethnicity, makeup used for a social night out had a negative effect on perceptions of women’s leadership ability. Our findings suggest that, in prior work, women are afforded traits related to dominance, as makeup enhances perceptions of traits that are important for successful female mating competition but not other components of social dominance such as leadership.
Cultural stereotyping of emotional responses to music genre
Authors: Susino Marco , Schubert Emery
Published: March 2018

This study investigated whether emotional responses to a music genre could be predicted by stereotypes of the culture with which the music genre is associated. A two-part study was conducted. Participants listened to music samples from eight distinct genres: Fado, Koto, Heavy Metal, Hip Hop, Pop, Samba, Bolero, and Western Classical. They also described their spontaneous associations with the music and their spontaneous associations with the music’s related cultures: Portuguese, Japanese, Heavy Metal, Hip Hop, Pop, Brazilian, Cuban, and Western culture, respectively. Results indicated that a small number of specific emotions reported for a music genre were the same as stereotypical emotional associations of the corresponding culture. These include peace and calm for Koto music and Japanese culture, and anger and aggression for Heavy Metal music and culture. We explain these results through the stereotype theory of emotion in music (STEM), where an emotion filter is activated that simplifies the assessment process for a music genre that is not very familiar to the listener. Listeners familiar with a genre reported fewer stereotyped emotions than less familiar listeners. The study suggests that stereotyping competes with the psychoacoustic cues in the expression of emotion.
Understanding industrial robot programming by aid of a virtual reality environment
Authors: Manou Evgenia , Vosniakos George-Christopher , Matsas Elias
Published: March 2018

This paper reports on the construction of a virtual environment on top of a commercially available authoring platform that simulates an industrial robotic arm in pick-and-place movement scenarios. The user interface constructed follows in functionality the well-known teach pendants but exploits just a normal PC keyboard. However, both forward and inverse kinematics is served allowing the user to command movements in either the joint or the tool coordinate system. Perception pertaining to picking and placing movements and in particular the subtle docking positions was enhanced by adding so-called perceptual aids consisting of auxiliary objects with collision detection capabilities. The application was put to test by a group of practitioner-trainees who reported favourably, using a structured questionnaire, on its merits in enhancing their understanding of the robot’s capabilities, its kinematics, as well as the task performance strategy. Thus, confidence is increased regarding the ability of Virtual Reality – based platforms to contribute to successful training regarding programming and manipulation of industrial equipment.
Structuring a research infrastructure: A study of the rise and fall of a large-scale distributed biobank facility
Authors: Larsson Anthony , Savage Carl , Brommels Mats , Mattsson Pauline
Published: March 2018

This study analyses the perceived key interests, importance, influences and participation of different actors in harmonizing the processes and mechanisms of a distributed research infrastructure. It investigates the EU-funded initiative, BioBanking and Molecular Resource Infrastructure in Sweden (BBMRI.se), which seeks to harmonize the biobanking standards. The study interviews multiple actors involved throughout the development process. Their responses are analysed via a framework based on the IIED Stakeholder Power Analysis Tool. The BBMRI.se formation was facilitated by two parallel processes, with domestic and European/foreign origin, with leading scientists becoming ‘National Champions’. The respondents joined the organization under the premise that it would be a collaborative endeavour, but they were disappointed to learn the deliberative elements were more prevalent. In conclusion, the resulting autonomous structure caused disarray, while also fuelling interpersonal differences, ultimately leading to the closure of the infrastructure. Hence, it is necessary to clearly identify potential collaborative and deliberative elements already at the outset while also securing wider forms of communication between the participating actors, when establishing distributed research infrastructures. Moreover, while prior literature suggests that research infrastructures counteracts fragmentation, these results illustrate that this is not the case for this distributed research infrastructure.
The Global Governance of Paid Domestic Work: Comparing the Impact of ILO Convention No. 189 in Ecuador and India
Authors: Marchetti Sabrina
Published: March 2018

This article looks at the gradual development of a ‘global governance of paid domestic work’ by assessing the impact of the ILO Convention n. 189 on campaigns for domestic workers’ rights in different countries. Here I compare the case of Ecuador and India as two contrasting examples of the ways in which state and non-state organizations have positioned themselves around the issue, revealing how the context-dependent character of domestic workers’ rights can ultimately condition the mobilisation of different actors in each context. On the basis of the theory of ‘strategic fields of action’, I also define the promulgation of C189 as an ‘exogenous change’ that has differing impacts on the relevant social actors in two countries. As I will show, these national differences give shape to a very different modality in campaigns for domestic workers’ rights, resulting in different roles, purposes and scope of action for key social actors.
Taking children’s humor seriously: A study of humor in children diagnosed with obesity and the medicalization of body weight
Authors: Ersfjord Ellen Margrete Iveland
Published: March 2018

Within the social studies of children and childhood, children’s humor is an under-explored area. In this article, I explore the use of humor by children diagnosed with severe obesity while attending long-term rehabilitation together with their families. In the children’s use of humor, I found a transition from the use of “fat jokes” to “biopedagogical humor,” which involved jokes about instructions related to food and physical activity as conveyed by members of the rehabilitation team. I interpret their humor as signifying how they were affected by the biopedagogical messages involved in treatment and how they started self-monitoring their food intake and physical activity. I claim that their humor also can point to a process of medicalization of their condition, where their understanding of themselves as “fat” was replaced by “I suffer from obesity.”
The rise of New Confucianism and the return of spirituality to politics in mainland China
Authors: Deng Jun , Smith Craig A.
Published: March 2018

In the past two decades, the revival of New Confucianism in mainland China has accelerated and become a crucial component of the intellectual public sphere. New Confucians have appeared alongside the larger groups of liberals and the New Left, often developing in dialogue or contrast with these intellectual neighbours. As part of the series of research dialogues on mapping the intellectual public sphere in China, this article examines recent discourse from New Confucian intellectuals, particularly dialogue with liberals and the New Left, to highlight the major debates and leading figures that define the cultural nationalist movement of Mainland New Confucianism. We show that, despite the immense difficulty of finding power as a minority voice in contemporary China, an integration of the religious and political dimensions of Confucianism in mainstream Chinese social, political, and intellectual culture remains the primary ideal that fuels and unites these intellectuals in the 2010s.
Advanced slip ratio for ensuring numerical stability of low-speed driving simulation. Part I: Longitudinal slip ratio
Authors: Jung Samuel , Kim Tae-Yun , Yoo Wan-Suk
Published: March 2018

The slip ratio, which is the ratio of the slip speed to the driving speed, is an essential input in tire models for vehicle-driving analysis. At a driving speed of zero, because the denominator of the slip ratio is zero, singularity is crucial for stable numerical analysis for examining the low-speed dynamic behavior of vehicles. A lagged slip ratio is widely adopted in most commercial software to prevent such failures, but this causes oscillation and requires a tuning parameter. Moreover, it increases the computational complexity because differential equations are employed to define the slip. To overcome this, researchers proposed a modified slip ratio without a differential equation; however, a tuning parameter was still required. Herein, we propose an advanced slip-ratio calculation method that allows stable simulation without the use of a differential equation or tuning parameter in the explicit integration. The accuracy and stability of the proposed slip ratio were verified against other methods via braking simulation. The proposed method showed very stable results compared to conventional methods and did not fail even with explicit integration. Furthermore, in the case of implicit integration, it prevented step-size reduction.
Empirical research on the relationship between natural gas consumption and economic growth in the Northeast Asia
Authors: Zhi-Guo Li , Cheng Han , Dong-Ming Wei
Published: March 2018

The Northeast Asia, as one of the most rapidly development regions, has a large amount of energy consumption. Therefore, it is very significant to study the relationship between natural gas consumption and economic growth in the Northeast Asia. This paper builds Panel Data Model to study the relationship between natural gas consumption and economic growth in China, Japan, and Korea from 1991 to 2015, on the basis of analyzing the impact mechanism that natural gas has on economic growth. This paper finds that the Japan’s elasticity coefficient of natural gas consumption is the highest, whereas Korea’s is the lowest, and China’s is in the middle of these two countries, because of countries’ different development level and energy consumption mode. Moreover, the results of Granger causality relationship test show that there is only one-way Granger causality relationship between natural gas consumption and economic growth of China, but no causal relationship is found for Japan and Korea.
A case of refractory lupus nephritis complicated by psoriasis vulgaris that was controlled with secukinumab
Authors: Satoh Y , Nakano K , Yoshinari H , Nakayamada S , Iwata S , Kubo S , Miyagawa I , Yoshikawa M , Miyazaki Y , Saito K , Tanaka Y
Published: March 2018

It has been reported that T helper 17 cells are involved in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus, but there is no report on interleukin-17-targeted therapy. We report a case of a 62-year-old female who presented with psoriasis vulgaris and refractory lupus nephritis. Because her conditions were resistant to conventional treatment, and flow cytometry confirmed the proliferation of activated T helper 17 cells in peripheral blood, and examination of a renal biopsy tissue sample confirmed infiltration of numerous interleukin-17-positive lymphocytes to the renal interstitium, administration of the anti-interleukin-17A antibody secukinumab was initiated. After starting secukinumab the clinical and biological features were improved.
White matter lesions and brain atrophy in systemic lupus erythematosus patients: correlation to cognitive dysfunction in a cohort of systemic lupus erythematosus patients using different definition models for neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus
Authors: Cannerfelt B , Nystedt J , Jönsen A , Lätt J , van Westen D , Lilja A , Bengtsson A , Nilsson P , Mårtensson J , Sundgren P C
Published: March 2018

Aim

The aim of this study was to evaluate the extent of white matter lesions, atrophy of the hippocampus and corpus callosum, and their correlation with cognitive dysfunction (CD), in patients diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Methods

Seventy SLE patients and 25 healthy individuals (HIs) were included in the study. To evaluate the different SLE and neuropsychiatric SLE (NPSLE) definition schemes, patients were grouped both according to the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) definition, as well as the more stringent ACR-Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics definition. Patients and HIs underwent a 3 Tesla brain MRI and a standardized neuropsychological test. MRI data were evaluated for number and volume of white matter lesions and atrophy of the hippocampus and corpus callosum. Differences between groups and subgroups were evaluated for significance. Number and volume of white matter lesions and atrophy of the hippocampus and corpus callosum were correlated to cognitive dysfunction.

Results

The total volume of white matter lesions was significantly larger in SLE patients compared to HIs ( p = 0.004). However, no significant differences were seen between the different SLE subgroups. Atrophy of the bilateral hippocampus was significantly more pronounced in patients with NPSLE compared to those with non-NPSLE (right: p = 0.010; left p = 0.023). Significant negative correlations between cognitive test scores on verbal memory and number and volume of white matter lesions were present.

Conclusion

SLE patients have a significantly larger volume of white matter lesions on MRI compared to HIs and the degree of white matter lesion volume correlates to cognitive dysfunction, specifically to verbal memory. No significant differences in the number or volume of white matter lesions were identified between subgroups of SLE patients regardless of the definition model used.