bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Determinants of individuals’ belief in fake news: A scoping review determinants of belief in fake news
Authors: Bryanov Kirill , Vziatysheva Victoria
Published: June 2021

Background

Proliferation of misinformation in digital news environments can harm society in a number of ways, but its dangers are most acute when citizens believe that false news is factually accurate. A recent wave of empirical research focuses on factors that explain why people fall for the so-called fake news. In this scoping review, we summarize the results of experimental studies that test different predictors of individuals’ belief in misinformation.

Methods

The review is based on a synthetic analysis of 26 scholarly articles. The authors developed and applied a search protocol to two academic databases, Scopus and Web of Science. The sample included experimental studies that test factors influencing users’ ability to recognize fake news, their likelihood to trust it or intention to engage with such content. Relying on scoping review methodology, the authors then collated and summarized the available evidence.

Results

The study identifies three broad groups of factors contributing to individuals’ belief in fake news. Firstly, message characteristics—such as belief consistency and presentation cues—can drive people’s belief in misinformation. Secondly, susceptibility to fake news can be determined by individual factors including people’s cognitive styles, predispositions, and differences in news and information literacy. Finally, accuracy-promoting interventions such as warnings or nudges priming individuals to think about information veracity can impact judgements about fake news credibility. Evidence suggests that inoculation-type interventions can be both scalable and effective. We note that study results could be partly driven by design choices such as selection of stimuli and outcome measurement.

Conclusions

We call for expanding the scope and diversifying designs of empirical investigations of people’s susceptibility to false information online. We recommend examining digital platforms beyond Facebook, using more diverse formats of stimulus material and adding a comparative angle to fake news research.
Sociodemographic characteristics, complications requiring hospital admission and causes of in-hospital death in patients with liver cirrhosis admitted at a district hospital in Ghana
Authors: Duah Amoako , Agyei-Nkansah Adwoa , Osei-Poku Foster , Duah Francisca , Addo Bright Peprah
Published: June 2021

Background

Chronic liver diseases including liver cirrhosis are a major cause of morbidity and mortality globally. Despite the high burden of liver cirrhosis in Ghana, data on this disease is lacking.

Objective

To determine the sociodemographic characteristics, reasons for admission, and in-hospital mortality of patients with cirrhosis of the liver seen at a district hospital in Ghana.

Methods

A prospective study was conducted involving one hundred and eighty-six (186) patients admitted on the medical wards in St. Dominic hospital with liver cirrhosis from 1st January 2018 to 24th June 2020. The patient’s demographic and clinical features were documented using a standardized questionnaire. Diagnostic biochemical and haematological tests as well as abdominal ultrasound scans were performed for all patients. They were followed up until death or discharge from hospital.

Results

One hundred and eighty-six patients (186) with a median age of 46 years were included in the study. HBV was the main etiology of liver cirrhosis (38.7%) followed closely by alcohol consumption (38.3%). In-hospital mortality was 41.3% and the most frequent cause of death was hepatic encephalopathy (68.4%). The following were associated with death; Jaundice, weight loss, elevated bilirubin, international normalized ratio (INR), creatinine, blood urea nitrogen(BUN), Child-Pugh score, model for end-stage liver disease sodium score (MELDNa), and low sodium. However, hepatic encephalopathy, MELDNa, INR and BUN were independent predictors of in-hospital mortality on logistic regression analysis.

Conclusions

In-hospital mortality in cirrhotic patients was high with the leading cause of death being hepatic encephalopathy. Timely diagnosis and adequate management of hepatic encephalopathy are necessary to prevent death from liver cirrhosis.
Plasticity of seven-transmembrane-helix receptor heteromers in human vascular smooth muscle cells
Authors: Albee Lauren J. , Gao Xianlong , Majetschak Matthias
Published: June 2021

Recently, we reported that the chemokine (C-X-C motif) receptor 4 (CXCR4) and atypical chemokine receptor 3 (ACKR3) heteromerize with α1A/B/D-adrenoceptors (ARs) and arginine vasopressin receptor 1A (AVPR1A) in recombinant systems and in rodent and human vascular smooth muscle cells (hVSMCs). In these studies, we observed that heteromerization between two receptor partners may depend on the presence and the expression levels of other partnering receptors. To test this hypothesis and to gain initial insight into the formation of these receptor heteromers in native cells, we utilized proximity ligation assays in hVSMCs to visualize receptor-receptor proximity and systematically studied how manipulation of the expression levels of individual protomers affect heteromerization patterns among other interacting receptor partners. We confirmed subtype-specific heteromerization between endogenously expressed α1A/B/D-ARs and detected that AVPR1A also heteromerizes with α1A/B/D-ARs. siRNA knockdown of CXCR4 and of ACKR3 resulted in a significant re-arrangement of the heteromerization patterns among α1-AR subtypes. Similarly, siRNA knockdown of AVPR1A significantly increased heteromerization signals for seven of the ten receptor pairs between CXCR4, ACKR3, and α1A/B/D-ARs. Our findings suggest plasticity of seven transmembrane helix (7TM) receptor heteromerization in native cells and could be explained by a supramolecular organization of these receptors within dynamic clusters in the plasma membrane. Because we previously observed that recombinant CXCR4, ACKR3, α1a-AR and AVPR1A form hetero-oligomeric complexes composed of 2–4 different protomers, which show signaling properties distinct from individual protomers, re-arrangements of receptor heteromerization patterns in native cells may contribute to the phenomenon of context-dependent GPCR signaling. Furthermore, these findings advise caution in the interpretation of functional consequences after 7TM receptor knockdown in experimental models. Alterations of the heteromerization patterns among other receptor partners may alter physiological and pathological responses, in particular in more complex systems, such as studies on the function of isolated organs or in in vivo experiments.
Dating first cases of COVID-19
Authors: Roberts David L. , Rossman Jeremy S. , Jarić Ivan
Published: June 2021

Questions persist as to the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic. Evidence is building that its origin as a zoonotic spillover occurred prior to the officially accepted timing of early December, 2019. Here we provide novel methods to date the origin of COVID-19 cases. We show that six countries had exceptionally early cases, unlikely to represent part of their main case series. The model suggests a likely timing of the first case of COVID-19 in China as November 17 (95% CI October 4). Origination dates are discussed for the first five countries outside China and each continent. Results infer that SARS-CoV-2 emerged in China in early October to mid-November, and by January, had spread globally. This suggests an earlier and more rapid timeline of spread. Our study provides new approaches for estimating dates of the arrival of infectious diseases based on small samples that can be applied to many epidemiological situations.
The Pleiades are a cluster of fungal effectors that inhibit host defenses
Authors: Navarrete Fernando , Grujic Nenad , Stirnberg Alexandra , Saado Indira , Aleksza David , Gallei Michelle , Adi Hazem , Alcântara André , Khan Mamoona , Bindics Janos , Trujillo Marco , Djamei Armin
Published: June 2021

Biotrophic plant pathogens secrete effector proteins to manipulate the host physiology. Effectors suppress defenses and induce an environment favorable to disease development. Sequence-based prediction of effector function is impeded by their rapid evolution rate. In the maize pathogen Ustilago maydis, effector-coding genes frequently organize in clusters. Here we describe the functional characterization of the pleiades, a cluster of ten effector genes, by analyzing the micro- and macroscopic phenotype of the cluster deletion and expressing these proteins in planta. Deletion of the pleiades leads to strongly impaired virulence and accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in infected tissue. Eight of the Pleiades suppress the production of ROS upon perception of pathogen associated molecular patterns (PAMPs). Although functionally redundant, the Pleiades target different host components. The paralogs Taygeta1 and Merope1 suppress ROS production in either the cytoplasm or nucleus, respectively. Merope1 targets and promotes the auto-ubiquitination activity of RFI2, a conserved family of E3 ligases that regulates the production of PAMP-triggered ROS burst in plants.
Rapid, reliable, and reproducible cell fusion assay to quantify SARS-Cov-2 spike interaction with hACE2
Authors: Zhao Min , Su Pei-Yi , Castro Danielle A. , Tripler Therese N. , Hu Yingxia , Cook Matthew , Ko Albert I. , Farhadian Shelli F. , Israelow Benjamin , Dela Cruz Charles S. , Xiong Yong , Sutton Richard E. ,   the Yale IMPACT Research Team
Published: June 2021

COVID-19 is a global crisis of unimagined dimensions. Currently, Remedesivir is only fully licensed FDA therapeutic. A major target of the vaccine effort is the SARS-CoV-2 spike-hACE2 interaction, and assessment of efficacy relies on time consuming neutralization assay. Here, we developed a cell fusion assay based upon spike-hACE2 interaction. The system was tested by transient co-transfection of 293T cells, which demonstrated good correlation with standard spike pseudotyping for inhibition by sera and biologics. Then established stable cell lines were very well behaved and gave even better correlation with pseudotyping results, after a short, overnight co-incubation. Results with the stable cell fusion assay also correlated well with those of a live virus assay. In summary we have established a rapid, reliable, and reproducible cell fusion assay that will serve to complement the other neutralization assays currently in use, is easy to implement in most laboratories, and may serve as the basis for high throughput screens to identify inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 virus-cell binding and entry.
Interest in vegetatively propagated Norway spruce materials – a survey among Finnish forest owners and professionals
Authors: Tikkinen Mikko , Latvala Terhi , Aronen Tuija
Published: June 2021

Forests and forestry will encounter several changes of unknown magnitude within the coming decades. In the Nordic, long rotations complicate any anticipation to the upcoming changes. Tree breeding can contribute to coping with these changes. The time span of implementing breeding results in practice may be shortened through vegetative propagation. Introducing vegetative propagation to forest regeneration may phase several challenges before adopted by the industry, some of which are related to perceptions about new technology. Firstly, private forest owners are in a key role in implementing the technology in practice; although they do not represent the overall public, they are the decision makers in their own estates regarding forestry and forest regeneration. Secondly, the professionals related to the production of forest regeneration material and plants from forest species are in a key role when it comes to practically introducing the new technology to the forest owners. In this survey, perceptions of forest owners and professionals towards tree breeding and vegetative propagation were investigated. Additionally, the respondents were asked which traits they considered important to be improved by breeding, and their willingness to pay for these improved traits. The respondents valued the most: improved pest and pathogen resistance, improved resilience of forest in changing climate, and securing the speciesâ gene pool. Responses indicated that forest owners would be willing to pay more for the improved traits in forest regeneration material. The current novel study provides a foundation to concern public awareness regarding tree breeding and vegetative propagation in the future.
Analysis of safety of bioactive concentrate of small sea fish therapy in comorbid patients with osteoarthritis
Authors: Zimnitskaya O. V. , Petrova M. M. , Shesternya P. A.
Published: June 2021

The article discusses the safety issues of a bioactive concentrate of small sea fish (BCSSF, Alflutop®) in the treatment of osteoarthritis (OA). The data of original studies, which were published during 2001–2021 years, from eLIBRARY, PubMed and Web of Science databases were analyzed. The selection of studies was carried out according to the following criteria: diagnosis of OA or nonspecific back pain; follow-up duration ≥1 month; intramuscular or intra-articular route of BCSSF administration; ≥30 study participants; availability of information about adverse events.

The accumulated data confirm the safety of BCSSF, including in patients with high comorbidity. The drug has no significant effect on serum levels of glycemia, electrolytes and protein metabolism. These results indicate the possibility of widespread use of this drug in the treatment of OA of peripheral joints and spine in patients with comorbid diseases.
Comprehensive approach to the choice of therapy in patients with osteoarthritis at the first visit to the doctor. Expert consensus (literature review and resolution)
Authors: Lila A. M. , Tkacheva O. N. , Yakhno N. N. , Naumov A. V. , Alekseeva L. I. , Kotovskaya Yu. V. , Putilina M. V. , Kukushkin M. L. , Kochish A. Yu. , Taskina E. A. , Abuzarova G. R.
Published: June 2021

Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common pathology of the musculoskeletal system and is a serious medical and social problem. OA is of particular importance in elderly and senile people due to the high frequency of comorbid pathology. Pain relief is a priority in the formation of individual therapeutic programs for patients with OA, starting from their first request for medical assistance. At the same time, due to the ambiguity of existing clinical recommendations, most experts note a number of difficulties in prescribing treatment for patients with OA.

The article presents a consensus position of experts regarding a complex approach to the choice of therapy in patients with OA at the initial visit to the doctor. The article discusses: current clinical guidelines for the management of patients with OA; most common problems in the management of patients with OA in real clinical practice; goals of treatment strategies for OA taking into account the risk factors for its progression; an algorithm of pain relief during initial treatment in patients with OA; prevention of OA exacerbations with the use of basic structure-modifying drugs; recommendations for the choice of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

According to experts, a rational approach to the treatment of OA is based on the combined use of non-drug and pharmacological methods with constant monitoring of therapy regimens and side effects. These recommendations can be considered disease-modifying strategies that in many cases allow improving functional status and achieving long-term remission in patients with OA.
Sexual dysfunction in women with rheumatic diseases
Authors: Teplyakova O. V. , Morozova A. A. , Popov A. A.
Published: June 2021

Objective: to assess sexual function in female patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and fibromyalgia (FM) and to identify the main risk factors of sexual dysfunction (SD).

Patients and methods. 60 patients with FM (mean age 44.2±10.1 years) – Group 1; 69 patients with RA (mean age 45.0±9.6 years) – Group 2; and 100 healthy women controls (mean age 45.1±11.8 years) – Group 3 were enrolled in the study. Medical history, severity of pain at rest and during movement by visual analog scale (VAS), and anxiety and depression symptoms by hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS) were assessed. Sexual function was evaluated by «Female Sexual Function index (FSFI)».

Results and discussion. The overall sexual function score in Group 1 (12.7±9.0) was almost twice lower than in the control group (23.55±8.24, p<0.001) and in Group 2 (20.9±11, p<0.001). There was no difference between RA patients group and control group, where the average score for each of the scales was above 3 (with the exception of the «desire» scale). In FM patients all scales were below 3 points, which indicated significant SD, score on the «orgasm» scale was the lowest (1.8±0.9), and score on «absence of sexual pain» scale was the highest (2.6±1.8). SD in patients with FM was significantly driven by affective disorders presenting with anxiety and depression. Inflammatory activity and severity of pain by VAS were strongly associated with SD in RA group. The divorced person status was associated with the development of SD, regardless of nosological diagnosis.

Conclusion. RA and FM have a negative impact on women's sexual function. The inflammatory disease activity is the main driver of SD in RA patients while affective disorders promote SD in FM patients.
Significance of asymptomatic hyperuricemia in ankylosing spondylitis
Authors: Balabanova R. M. , Ilyinykh E. V. , Podryadnova M. V. , Glukhova S. I. , Urumova M. M.
Published: June 2021

Over the past decades, there has been an increase in the incidence of asymptomatic hyperuricemia (AHU), which includes an increased level (>360 μmol/L) of uric acid (UA) in the blood serum of patients with no clinical manifestations of gout. AHU is reported in various rheumatic diseases, mainly in osteoarthritis, in which AHU is one of the manifestations of the metabolic syndrome. There is relationship between AHU and pulmonary hypertension in systemic sclerosis, arterial hypertension (AH) in men with seronegative rheumatoid arthritis, extensive cutaneous psoriasis and metabolic disorders in psoriatic arthritis. There are almost no data on AHU in ankylosing spondylitis (AS), which served objective for this work.

Objective: to assess the association of AHU with AS duration and activity and the presence of comorbid diseases.

Patients and methods. A retrospective analysis of 48 medical histories of patients with diagnosed AS, who were treated in V.A. Nasonova Research Institute of Rheumatology from 2015 to 2019 years, whose serum UA level was >360 μmol/L.

Results and discussion. More than half of patients with AS and AHU were overweight, 21% were obese. AH was diagnosed in 43.7% of patients. Stage II–III chronic kidney disease was detected in 16.7% of patients, urolithiasis – in 18.8%. 4 (8.3%) patients had diabetes mellitus. The serum UA level in patients with AS was 422.0 ± 61.6 μmol/L. In patients with AS, an association between AHU and age, duration and disease activity was noted. There was no statistically significant rela- tionship between HG and blood glucose, cholesterol, creatinine levels, body mass index. Correlation analysis revealed a statistically significant relationship between the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and the age of patients (r=-0.54, p<0.001), the duration of the disease (r=-0.40, p<0.05), cholesterol level (r=-0.48, p=0.01), UA level (r=-0.45, p=0.03) and blood pressure (r=-0.54, p<0.001). There was no association between disease activity and GFR (p>0.05).

Conclusion. In AS, an association between an increased level of UA in the blood serum and the duration and activity of the disease, and patient's age, was established.
Progression of axial spondyloarthritis
Authors: Erdes Sh. F. , Korotaeva T. V.
Published: June 2021

The spectrum of bone lesions in axial spondyloarthritis is of great interest. With inflammation and mechanical influence concurrence in the background, both tissue gain and tissue loss in a particular bone area can occur simultaneously. Moreover, if vertebral bone mass loss, perhaps, can be easily explained by chronic systemic inflammation, the reason of its gain, observed in axial spondyloarthritis remains a mystery. It is unclear whether it is a consequence of enhanced recovery processes after injury, adaptation to altered mechanical stress, response to inflammatory cells activation or cytokines, produced by them, or changes in Wnt signaling pathways (for example). Whether these factors act individually or collectively is also unclear.
The use of an interleukin 1 inhibitor in a patient with atypical course of periodic fever
Authors: Eliseev M. S. , Zhelyabina O. V. , Novikova A. M. , Chikina M. N. , Kurbanmagomedov M. K. , Urumova M. M. , Nikolaeva E. V. , Salugina S. O. , Fedorov E. S. , Nasonov E. L. , Lila A. M.
Published: June 2021

The article presents a case of periodic fever (PF) in a 35-year-old patient, who did not have hereditary and proven genetic factors of the disease, which was characterized by an atypical course with variable in duration and frequency severe abdominal pain and febrile fever attacks, increased acute phase reactants and ineffectiveness of colchicine intake. Differential diagnosis with a wide range of febrile conditions was performed. Daily subcutaneous therapy of interleukin 1 inhibitor (iIL1) at a dose of 100 mg was used as a diagnostic marker to confirm the diagnosis of PF. As a result of the therapy, a rapid (within a few hours after injection) relief of the current attack of the disease, normalization of serum CRP levels, and further complete control over the disease (no relapses) were achieved. Our observation shows that a positive response to iIL1 therapy can serve as a diagnostic marker of PF.
Validation of a Russian version of the Berg Balance Scale
Authors: Suponeva N. A. , Yusupova D. G. , Zimin A. A. , Zaitsev A. B. , Yatsko K. A. , Melchenko D. A. , Rimkevichus A. A. , Zhirova E. S. , Taratukhina A. S. , Rizvanova A. S. , Gatina G. A. , Kalinkina M. E. , Piradov M. A. , Berg K.
Published: June 2021

Objective: linguistic and cultural adaptation of the original version of Berg Balance Scale (BBS) and assessment its psychometric properties.

Patients and methods. The staff of the Validation Center of International Scales and Questionnaires of the Research Center of Neurology received consent from Katherine Berg to validate the BSS in Russia. We carried out the linguocultural ratification during the validation study and prepared a Russian version of the scale. To assess the psychometric properties of the scale (reliability, validity, and sensitivity), we evaluated 55 patients (30 females and 25 males) aged 22–88 years with different neurological disorders (vascular and demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system, peripheral neuropathy, and movement disorders). We analyzed the differences of the total BBS score and the number of patients with high and low risk of falls at the end of rehabilitation compared to baseline to assess the dynamics of changes.

Results and discussion. We successfully performed the translation and linguocultural adaptation of the BBS. The scale represents a high level of validity (expert score: 8.6 out of 10 points), reliability (Pearson's correlation coefficient r=0.98, р<0.0001; Cronbach's alpha α=0.94 р<0.001; Cohen's kappa κ=0.71, p<0.0001) and sensitivity (р<0.0001). After a two-week rehabilitation course, the risk of falls significantly decreased (χ2 =4.42; р=0.035); however, the level of independence of movement did not change significantly (F=0.94; р=0.636).

Conclusion. The Russian version of the BBS was officially adapted based on the results of the accomplished validation study and is recommended for use both in routine clinical practice and in clinical trials by neurologists and rehabilitologists. The scale is available for downloading by QR code and on the website of Validation Center of International Scales and Questionnaires of the Research Center of Neurology.
Depression treatment in women and men with bipolar affective disorder: a comparative study
Authors: Tyuvina N. A. , Stolyarova A. E. , Balabanova V. V. , Bunkova K. M. , Efremova E. N.
Published: June 2021

Objective: to compare depression treatment efficacy with and without antidepressants (ADs) in men and women with bipolar affective disorder (BAD).

Patients and methods. We enrolled 100 patients with BAD (F31.3–F31.5 according to ICD-10), including 50 women aged 33.0 [23.0; 50.2] years and 50 men aged 37.5 [29.5; 47.2] years using prospective and retrospective methods. Various antidepressants, normothymics, antipsychotics combinations were used to treat depression. We performed a comparative analysis of treatment efficacy with and without antidepressants in men and women subgroups. Clinical assessment at the baseline and the end of 1, 2, 4, 6-th week of therapy (or at discharge) included a specially developed clinical examination chart and the following psychometric scales: Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), Clinical Global Impression – Severity of illness (CGI-S), Clinical Global Impression – Improvement (CGI-I).

Results and discussion. Women tended to have a slower improvement in the condition compared to men. Maximum reduction in MADRS score and a CGI-I, CGI-S higher frequency of clinical improvement and remission was observed in men and women who did not receive antidepressants than patients who did not receive antidepressants. When BAD type was included in the analysis, in patients treated with antidepressants, transient symptoms of the opposite pole occurred in 24.7% of patients of both sexes with bipolar affective I disorder (BAD I) and in 16.8% with bipolar affective II disorder (BAD II). There were no significant gender differences in patients with BAD I, while women predominated in BAD II group (22.5% compared to 7.8% men). No significant treatment-emergent affective switch was observed with tricyclic antidepressants and selective serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors in both groups (21; 16.7; 16.7% in men and 28; 21.8; 12.5% in women, respectively). The assessment of intermission revealed that women were significantly more likely to have shorter periods between phases (42% compared to 22% in men). In addition, women were significantly more likely to have shorter periods between phases (42% compared to 22% in men) when the intermission duration was included in the analysis. In some patients with severe depression and infective first-line therapy (anticonvulsants and atypical antipsychotics), antidepressants prescription can increase treatment effectiveness. However, several factors should be considered, such as BAD type and variant, depression severity, treatment-emergent affective switch in history, and gender.

Conclusion. A decision about antidepressants' dosage and treatment duration requires a dynamic follow-up of the patient in order to discontinue the antidepressants as fast as possible and decrease the risk of treatment-emergent affective switch and shortening of remission period.
Oxcarbazepine as the initial monotherapy of focal epilepsy in adolescents and adults
Authors: Pushkar T. N. , Azhigova A. M. , Vlasov P. N. , Kozhokaru A. B.
Published: June 2021

Oxcarbazepine (OXC) is an antiepileptic drug (AED) used in children and adults as initial and adjunctive therapy for focal epilepsy (FE). It has been used in Russia since 2007; however, only a few studies have been published on its use in Russian patients to date.

Objective: to assess the effectiveness and tolerability of OXC as initial therapy for FE in adults and adolescents, as well as to study epileptiform activity index (EAI) changes during treatment and its relationship with treatment effectiveness and tolerability.

Patients and methods. We evaluated treatment effectiveness and tolerability and EAI in 89 adults with newly diagnosed FE aged 15–75 years for 12 months. Patients were divided into three subgroups according to the OXC treatment regimen. Side Effects of Anti-Epileptic Drugs (SIDAED) scale was used to assess treatment tolerability. Retention rate and seizure frequency changes were used to evaluate treatment effectiveness. EAI changes were assessed with video electroencephalography monitoring (4–24 h) during each visit (baseline, after 1, 3, 6, and 12 months).

Results and discussion. The retention rate in patients on OXC monotherapy after 12 months was 71.9%, almost one-half of them (46.1%) achieved sustained remission. More than half of patients (52.9%) were prescribed 1200 mg/day of OXC, 12.3% – <1200 mg/day, and only in 6.7% of patients the dose exceeded 1200 mg/day. Side effects were observed in 9% of the cases. A 2.54-fold reduction in mean EAI index was observed during follow-up representing treatment effectiveness.

Conclusion. OXC, as the initial AED for FE, has demonstrated high treatment effectiveness and tolerability. In addition, total EAI 2.5-fold reduction allows its usage as an additional quantitative marker of OXC treatment effectiveness.
Pathogenesis, evaluation and pathogenetic therapy of diabetic polyneuropathy
Authors: Strokov I. A. , Oganov V. V.
Published: June 2021

The increase in the number and life expectancy of patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) worldwide determines the high prevalence of late complications of diabetes, including diabetic polyneuropathy (DPN), the most common type of polyneuropathy. Oxidative stress is considered the main reason for the cellular pathology development in diabetes mellitus, which determines the use of antioxidants for the DPN treatment. Alpha-lipoic acid (ALA), a natural fat-soluble antioxidant, is the most effective drug for reducing DPN symptoms. Furthermore, the symptom-modifying effect of ALA has been shown in numerous randomized controlled trials. The article discusses the possible disease-modifying effect of ALA.
Una verdadera comunicación a partir del arte: La recuperación de la belleza y del símbolo, según la concepción de Marko Ivan Rupnik
Authors: Ruiz de Loizaga Martín María
Published: June 2021

Marko Ivan Rupnik subraya que el arte debería hacer percibir lo verdadero y el bien como belleza. La interrelación entre belleza, bien y verdad implica una serie de consecuencias, como la coincidencia de la belleza con la plenitud del ser. Además, la belleza no se puede separar de la comunicación. Esta apertura hacia el otro está relacionada con la recuperación del símbolo. Rupnik destaca que la verdadera obra de arte presenta una concepción simbólica. En ella, la forma está unida al contenido, de modo que la contemplación de la obra puede permitir llegar al conocimiento integral. Los conceptos de belleza y de símbolo que defiende Rupnik están influidos por autores orientales de los siglos XIX y XX. Su estudio nos ayuda a entender los mosaicos que Rupnik realiza como director del Centro Aletti de un modo más completo.
Prawne instrumenty zarządzania ryzykiem w rolnictwie w nowej Wspólnej Polityce Rolnej
Authors: Lipińska Izabela
Published: June 2021

Przedmiotem artykułu są zagadnienia związane z realizacją nowej Wspólnej Polityki Rolnej w zakresie zarządzania ryzykiem w rolnictwie. Jego celem jest udzielenie odpowiedzi na pytanie czy zaproponowane na poziomie unijnym regulacje pozwalają na wdrażanie niezbędnych instrumentów prawnych oraz czy instrumenty te służą wspieraniu producentów rolnych, i tym samym mogą przyczyniać się do ich ochrony w aspekcie przyjętych priorytetów WPR. Przeprowadzone badania pozwalają na pozytywną ocenę zaproponowanych rozwiązań prawnych. Ustalony unijny model wdrażania WPR, który jest zorientowany na wyniki i pomocniczość, może przyczynić się do upowszechnienia poszczególnych prawnych instrumentów zarządzania ryzykiem. Zaproponowane w Polsce rozwiązania prawne odpowiadają założeniom WPR. Wydaje się jednak, że nadal ubezpieczenia jako podstawowy instrument zarządzania będą stosowane w niewielkim zakresie. Brak regulacji prawnych dotyczących tworzenia funduszy wzajemnych jest nadal słabością podejścia do rodzimego modelu zarządzania ryzykiem.
Mandatory food information in case of short food supply chains and local food systems in EU and US legislation: a comparative study
Authors: Kapała Anna , Lattanzi Pamela
Published: June 2021

The study aims to identify what food information is required for the sale of food by farmers in short food supply chains (SFSCs) in EU law in accordance with Regulation (EU) 1169/2011 and legislation of selected Member States (Poland, Italy and France), which are allowed to adopt national measures in some issues. A comparison with US law serves as a benchmark for drawing conclusions, in particular, whether the requirements are appropriate and proportionate for SFSCs. The Regulation takes into account these alternative sales channels, as Art. 44 only requires information on allergens when offering unpackaged food for sale to final consumers or mass caterers, or when foodstuffs are packaged in the sales room at the consumer's request or packaged for direct sale. However, Member States have adopted national measures imposing an obligation to provide, in writing, more information on food in the direct sale, such as the ingredients list, but not the nutrition declaration. The US legislature is more restrictive, as it requires not only ingredient lists but also nutritional information for nearly all packaged and unpackaged food products, except for agricultural raw materials. The multitude of obligations imposed at various legislative levels is undoubtedly a challenge for farmers involved in SFSC, who are not prepared on a par with professional food companies to implement them.
The underlying factors of foreign language reading anxiety: Their effects on strategy use and orientation toward reading
Authors: Kim Hyang Il
Published: June 2021

Both positive and negative emotions have been the focus of a wealth of language learning research in recent years. This can mostly be attributed to the established links between an individual’s psychological responses, existing and emerging from learning, the learning processes they engage in, and the outcomes they achieve. A look at advanced research on language anxiety, a negative emotion that appears to be strongly involved in learning, has shown that specific information about reading anxiety is comparatively insufficient. This study, therefore, examines the underlying factors of reading anxiety in Korean university students, using the Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale. Subsequently, it explores how these anxiety factors are related to strategy use (i.e., metacognitive, cognitive, and support strategies) and orientation toward reading, which demonstrates a reader’s active involvement while reading. Three sub-factors of reading anxiety were found: anxiety experienced during the process of reading English, confidence in reading, and anxiety when reading English characters. Interestingly, confidence or positive emotion was found to be a far more powerful positive contributor to Korean EFL university readers’ use of metacognitive strategies and the degree of orientation to reading than was anxiety experienced while reading. Pedagogical implications are discussed.
High school EFL students’ beliefs about oral corrective feedback: The role of gender, motivation and extraversion
Authors: Ha Xuan Van , Murray Jill C. , Riazi A. Mehdi
Published: June 2021

This study employed an explanatory sequential mixed-methods research design to examine the beliefs of Vietnamese EFL students concerning oral corrective feedback (CF) and the role of some individual differences in these beliefs. The data consisted of questionnaires completed by 250 Vietnamese high school students and follow-up interviews with 15 of them. Exploratory factor analysis revealed six latent factors underlying students’ beliefs about CF, namely, (1) output-prompting CF and eliciting recasts, (2) desire for CF, (3) non-verbal cues, (4) important errors, (5) input-providing CF, and (6) less important errors. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis of the interviews showed that students were positive about CF. They liked both input-providing CF and output-prompting CF for all error types. Metalinguistic feedback was the most strongly preferred, while clarification request was the least preferred. Further statistical analyses revealed some interesting relationships between students’ beliefs about CF and their gender, English learning motivation, and self-rated introversion/extraversion. Females were more positive about CF than males, and extraverted females were more positive about input-providing CF than introverted females. Also, students learning English for exams were more positive about CF than those learning English for communication. Pedagogical implications for effective feedback provision in EFL contexts are discussed.
Can Unconditional In-Kind Transfers Keep Children Out of Work and in School? Evidence from Indonesia
Authors: Jayawardana Danusha , Baryshnikova Nadezhda V. , Pham Ngoc Thien Anh
Published: June 2021

Child labour is a global issue which creates a need for evidence-based interventions such as cash and in-kind transfers. However, there is limited evidence about the effect of in-kind transfers on child labour, impeding policy development. We address this gap by examining the impacts of an unconditional in-kind transfer, a nation-wide subsidised rice program, on child labour and schooling using longitudinal household survey data from Indonesia. To identify the causal effect, we use coarsened exact matching with difference-in-differences estimator. The results indicate that the program is effective in decreasing the probability of working for boys though it does not have a significant impact on the probability of schooling. However, as an unconditional in-kind transfer, its ability to decrease child work for boys, especially of those who are both working and attending school, provides an important policy implication on how a food subsidy program can indirectly influence child wellbeing.
Cash-Management in Times of Covid-19
Authors: Alvarez Fernando , Argente David
Published: June 2021

The incidence of COVID-19 has systematically decreased households’ use of cash as means of payment as well as the average size and frequency of cash withdrawals. We argue that the structure of Baumol–Tobin type inventory theoretical models and their extensions can be used to separate the confounding factors, such as the desired level of consumption and the choice of the fraction of consumption paid in cash, from the cash management behavior, i.e. the size and frequency of cash withdrawals. Using this insight we argue that the observed cash management is consistent with COVID-19 increasing the fixed cost of withdrawing cash. We use detailed data on ATM cash disbursements in Argentina, Chile, and the US to estimate how much the pandemic has changed the transaction cost of using cash. This estimation shows that if the intensity of the virus doubles in a county, cash transaction cost increases by approximately 2%. The results from Argentina, Chile, and the US are remarkably similar and robust to several forms of measurement error and endogeneity.
Putting the argument back into argument structure constructions
Authors: Romain Laurence
Published: June 2021

This paper shows that low-level generalisations in argument structure constructions are crucial to understanding the concept of alternation: low-level generalisations inform and constrain more schematic generalisations and thus constructional meaning. On the basis of an analysis of the causative alternation in English, and more specifically of the theme (i.e., the entity undergoing the event denoted by the verb), I show that each construction has its own schematic meaning. This analysis is conducted on a dataset composed of 11,554 instances of the intransitive non-causative construction and the transitive causative construction. The identification of lower-level generalisations feeds into the idea that language acquisition is organic and abstractions are formed only gradually (if at all) from exposure to input. So far, most of the literature on argument structure constructions has focused on the verb itself, and thus fails to capture these generalisations. I make up for this deficit through an in-depth analysis of the causative alternation.
Synthesis of zeolite from fly ash and its adsorption of phosphorus in wastewater
Authors: Zhang Kecheng , Van Dyk Lizelle , He Dongsheng , Deng Jie , Liu Shuang , Zhao Hengqin
Published: June 2021

Using synthetic zeolite from fly ash to treat high concentration phosphorus wastewater does not only improve the utilization of fly ash as solid waste but also reduce the environmental pressure caused by eutrophication. A synthetic zeolite was prepared from coal fly ash by one-step hydrothermal synthesis and applied for phosphorus adsorption from industrial wastewater (∼8,000 mg-P/L), and its adsorption characteristics and performance were studied. The results indicated that the product was a well-crystallized Na-P1 zeolite with typical morphology of plate- and rod-shaped crystals. Compared with the original fly ash, the specific surface area and average pore volume of the synthetic zeolite were nine and six times larger than the fly ash, reaching 43.817 m2/g and 0.122 cm3/g. The results from phosphorus adsorption onto the synthetic zeolite showed that the synthetic zeolite had good phosphorus adsorption properties. The adsorption process highly conformed to the pseudo-second-order kinetic model with the regression coefficient R
2 of 0.998. Phosphorus adsorption on the synthetic zeolite was fitted to the Langmuir monolayer adsorption model, and the regression coefficient R
2 was 0.989. The maximum phosphorus adsorption capacity was 84.4 mg-P/g-zeolite.
Microwave absorption properties of Zn-doped barium ferrite (BaFe12-x
Zn
x
O19) decorated reduced graphene oxide
Authors: Niasar Mojtaba Moslehi , Molaei Mohammad Jafar , Aghaei Alireza
Published: June 2021

Reduced graphene oxide has attracted great interest for application as microwave absorbing materials during recent years. Barium ferrite (BaFe12O19) is also a hard magnetic material with microwave absorbing properties. In this research, Zn-doped barium ferrite/reduced graphene oxide nanocomposites were synthesized and their magnetic and microwave absorption properties were studied. Phase analysis, particle morphology, magnetic properties, and microwave absorption properties were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, vibrating sample magnetometry, and vector network analysis, respectively. Electron microscopy images showed that reduced graphene oxide nanosheets are decorated with barium ferrite nanoparticles. Zn-doping in the reduced graphene oxide/BaFe12-x
Zn
x
O19 (x = 0.0, 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6) nanocomposites caused an increase in the saturation magnetization from 30.76 to 32.69 emu g–1 for Zn = 0.4. Maximum reflection loss was increased from –7.39 dB to –13.50 dB by Zn doping for x = 0.4 in the nanocomposite consisting of 10 wt.% of reduced graphene oxide/BaZn0.4Fe11.6O19. The microwave absorption characteristics are discussed based on the permittivity and permeability values of the nanocomposites.
Lying vs. misleading: The adverbial account
Authors: García-Carpintero Manuel
Published: June 2021

We intuitively make a distinction betweenlyingandmisleading. As several philosophers have pointed out, on the account of this distinction favored here – theadverbialaccount, as I’ll call it – it provides evidence on the theoretical notion ofwhat is saidand the related theoretical distinction between semantics and pragmatics. For, on that account, the distinction tracks whether or not the content and the assertoric force with which it is presented are semantically conveyed. On an alternative (assertoric)commitmentaccount, the difference between lying and misleading is predicated instead on the strength of assertoric commitment. One lies when one presents with full assertoric commitment what one believes to be false; one merely misleads when one presents it with short-of-full assertoric commitment, by merely hinting or otherwise implying it. Here I’ll present the debate confronting the two accounts, and I’ll provide support for the adverbial account and its methodological application.
Exemplarity, Exegesis, & Ethnography: Abraham in Pseudo-Hegesippus as a Test Case for Biblical Reception in Christian Late Antiquity
Authors: Bay Carson
Published: June 2021

Exemplarity, ethnography, and exegesis are three forms of cultural practice well known to the ancient Mediterranean world. The use of role models, the ‘writing’ of peoples, and the interpretation of authoritative writings (i.e. “Scriptures”) were ways in which many authors of Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian antiquity situated themselves and others within history. Here I argue that the biblical patriarch Abraham, as received within the late antique Christian text called Pseudo-Hegesippus (On the Destruction of Jerusalem), provides a quintessential example of these scribal-rhetorical habits in action. The upshot of this study is that key figures like Abraham were integral tools for doing the things that certain interested ancient writers were trying to do, and as such these figures constitute appropriate, even necessary, objects of research for those seeking to understanding ancient Mediterranean texts, authors, and readers.
The Scientific Weltanschauung: (Anti-)Naturalism in Dilthey, Jaspers and Analytic Philosophy
Authors: Spiegel Thomas J.
Published: June 2021

Different forms of methodological and ontological naturalism constitute the current near-orthodoxy in analytic philosophy. Many prominent figures have called naturalism a (scientific) image (Sellars, W. 1962. “Philosophy and the Scientific Image of Man.” In Wilfrid Sellars, Science, Perception, Reality, 1–40. Ridgeview Publishing), a Weltanschauung (Loewer, B. 2001. “From Physics to Physicalism.” In Physicalism and its Discontents, edited by C. Gillett, and B. Loewer. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; Stoljar, D. 2010. Physicalism. Routledge), or even a “philosophical ideology” (Kim, J. 2003. “The American Origins of Philosophical Naturalism.” Journal of Philosophical Research 28: 83–98). This suggests that naturalism is indeed something over-and-above an ordinary philosophical thesis (e.g. in contrast to the justified true belief-theory of knowledge). However, these thinkers fail to tease out the host of implications this idea – naturalism being a worldview – presents. This paper draws on (somewhat underappreciated) remarks of Dilthey and Jaspers on the concept of worldviews (Weltanschauung, Weltbild) in order to demonstrate that naturalism as a worldview is a presuppositional background assumption which is left untouched by arguments against naturalism as a thesis. The concluding plea is (in order to make dialectical progress) to re-organize the existing debate on naturalism in a way that treats naturalism not as a first-order philosophical claim, but rather shifts its focus on naturalism’s status as a worldview.