bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Development of ferroelectric domains and topological defects in vacancy doped ceramics of h-LuMnO3
Authors: Baghizadeh A. , Vieira J. M. , Mirzadeh Vaghefi P. , Willinger M.-G. , Amaral V. S.
Published: July 2017

Self-doping of the h-LuMnxO3±δ (0.92 ≤ x ≤ 1.12) phase and changes in the sintering time are applied to investigate the formation and annihilation of antiphase ferroelectric (FE) domains in bulk ceramics. The increase in the annealing time in sintering results in growth of FE domains, which depends on the type of vacancy, 6-fold vortices with dimensions of the order of 20 μm being observed. Interference of planar defects of the lattice with the growth of topological defects shows breaking of 6-fold symmetry in the self-doped ceramics. The role of grain boundaries in the development of topological defects has been studied. Dominance of the atypical FE domain network in very defective h-LuMnxO3±δ lattices saturated with Mn vacancies (x < 1) was also identified in the current study. After a long annealing time, scattered closed-loops of nano-dimensions are often observed isolated inside large FE domains with opposite polarization. Restoring of the polarization after alternative poling with opposite electrical fields is observed in FE domains. Stress/strain in the lattice driven by either planar defects or chemical inhomogeneity results in FE polarization switching on the nanoscale and further formation of nano-vortices, with detailed investigation being carried out by electron microscopy. Pinning of FE domains to planar defects is explored in the present microscopy analysis, and nano-scale observation of lattices is used to explain features of the ferroelectricity revealed in Piezo Force Microscopy images of the ceramics.
Dynamics of nanometer- and submicrometer-sized particles in suspension probed by dynamic ultrasound scattering techniques
Authors: Kobayashi Keisuke , Norisuye Tomohisa , Sugita Kazuki , Nakanishi Hideyuki , Tran-Cong-Miyata Qui
Published: July 2017

The Dynamic ultraSound Scattering (DSS) technique, which is an acoustic analog of dynamic light scattering (DLS), has been developed to achieve particle sizing with a wide range of particle sizes from nanometers to micrometers. In the submicron regime, it was difficult to evaluate the particle size by DSS because of the competition between the Brownian and sedimentation motions as we addressed in the previous work [Igarashi et al., J. Appl. Phys. 115, 203506 (2014)]. We propose here a new function to evaluate the particle size in the submicron regime, and with 10% accuracy, the good agreement between DSS and Field-Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy results was confirmed. By improving the transducer, the recording system, as well as the analysis technique, the detectable particle size by the DSS technique now could be extended down to several tens of nanometers.
Performance evaluation of FESS in mitigating power and voltage fluctuations due to aerodynamic effects of wind turbine
Authors: Iranmanesh Sh. , Fadaeinedjad R. , Esmaeilian H.
Published: July 2017

This paper presents how a Flywheel Energy Storage System (FESS) can improve the power quality of the electric power delivered by a Fixed Speed Wind Turbine (FSWT). The aerodynamic and mechanical aspects of a wind turbine (WT) (i.e., wind shears, tower shadow, yaw error, and turbulence) generally affect the output power and voltage of the WT. This paper used a method to simulate the aerodynamic and mechanical aspects of a WT using TurbSim, AeroDyn, and FAST. Through this method, a comprehensive model was presented for a wind farm including FSWTs. In the study system, WTs are directly connected to the electrical grid, where a FESS is employed to improve the power quality. Owing to the fast response of the FESS, it has been implemented as an appropriate device for smoothing the output power fluctuations of WTs, and hence, it can mitigate the problems caused by WTs. All electrical parts of the WTs, FESS, controllers, and electrical grid are modeled by Simulink blocks, as explained in this paper. Moreover, the impact of turbulence and yaw error on the output power of WTs is observed, and the capability of a FESS in mitigating power and voltage fluctuations is assessed.
A Facile and Convenient Approach for the Synthesis of Novel Sesamol–Oxazine and Quinoline–Oxazine Hybrids
Authors: Khanna Garima , Saluja Pooja , Khurana Jitender M.
Published: July 2017

A series of functionalized sesamol–oxazine and quinoline–oxazine hybrids have been synthesized via one-pot reaction of sesamol/6-hydroxyquinoline, aromatic amines, and methanal. The structures of all the novel compounds were confirmed by spectral data. The structures of the synthesized hybrids were also confirmed by X-ray crystallographic studies. Mild reaction conditions, operational simplicity, short reaction times, simple workup, and high yields of products are salient features of this methodology.
Sequence intrinsic somatic mutation mechanisms contribute to affinity maturation of VRC01-class HIV-1 broadly neutralizing antibodies
Authors: Hwang Joyce K. , Wang Chong , Du Zhou , Meyers Robin M. , Kepler Thomas B. , Neuberg Donna , Kwong Peter D. , Mascola John R. , Joyce M. Gordon , Bonsignori Mattia , Haynes Barton F. , Yeap Leng-Siew , Alt Frederick W.
Published: July 2017

Significance

B lymphocytes produce antibodies that provide protection from infections. Such antibodies evolve from precursors via pathogen-driven affinity maturation. Affinity maturation involves introduction of somatic hypermutations (SHMs) into antibody genes followed by selection of B lymphocytes producing antibodies that better neutralize the pathogen. Some HIV-1–infected humans develop broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) that recognize diverse HIV-1 strains. VRC01 is a potent bnAb that binds a crucial portion of HIV-1. Development of vaccine strategies to elicit VRC01-class antibodies is difficult due to the high SHM levels associated with their maturation. We report contributions of sequence-intrinsic mechanisms to the SHM patterns of a VRC01-class bnAb and its precursors in mice. Our findings provide insights into roles of antibody gene sequences in guiding bnAb maturation.
Latin to Ancient Italian motion constructions
Authors: Mosca Monica
Published: July 2017

Cognitive linguists traditionally view the evolution of motion constructions from Latin to Italian as a typological change from an S-framed to a V-framed language. Empirical data from some Late Latin travel reports and the Early Italian texts made available by the Opera del Vocabolario Italiano (OVI) show, instead, that the observed linguistic changes naturally follow from a rearrangement of the balance between the elements involved since Classical Latin (verb prefixes, prepositions, cases). Each motion schema has evolved according to idiosyncratic lines, thus yielding the present variety of motion expressions. It is, therefore, more appropriate to view this evolution as a restructuring of a single linguistic type, characterized by the variety of constructions and the instability of many of them.
On the reception of translations
Authors: Rojo Ana , Cifuentes-Férez Paula
Published: July 2017

Three experiments are designed to test the effects that the loss of manner information may have on the translation of crime accounts. The first two experiments hypothesize that losing Manner in the Spanish translation of an English crime description will elicit a less severe judgment of the offense than that elicited by a translation that reproduces a higher degree of manner information. Results reveal significant differences between the two versions except for those cases that involve an extremely high degree of violence. The third experiment shifts the focus from reception to the product and process of translation, investigating what professional interpreters do when requested to interpret a crime account. General results from the three experiments suggest that manner information influences the audience’s judgments on the degree of criminal violence involved.
The Spoken BNC2014
Authors: Love Robbie , Dembry Claire , Hardie Andrew , Brezina Vaclav , McEnery Tony
Published: July 2017

This paper introduces the Spoken British National Corpus 2014, an 11.5-million-word corpus of orthographically transcribed conversations among L1 speakers of British English from across the UK, recorded in the years 2012–2016. After showing that a survey of the recent history of corpora of spoken British English justifies the compilation of this new corpus, we describe the main stages of the Spoken BNC2014’s creation: design, data and metadata collection, transcription, XML encoding, and annotation. In doing so we aim to (i) encourage users of the corpus to approach the data with sensitivity to the many methodological issues we identified and attempted to overcome while compiling the Spoken BNC2014, and (ii) inform (future) compilers of spoken corpora of the innovations we implemented to attempt to make the construction of corpora representing spontaneous speech in informal contexts more tractable, both logistically and practically, than in the past.
Do women (still) use more intensifiers than men?
Authors: Fuchs Robert
Published: July 2017

This study investigates how age, gender, social class and dialect influence how frequently speakers of British English use intensifiers (e.g. very) in private conversations and whether this has changed over the last two decades. With data drawn from over 600 speakers and 4M words included in the Spoken British National Corpus (1994 and 2014 Sample), it is the most comprehensive study of intensifier usage to date, taking into account 111 intensifier variants. Results show that, in most age groups and social classes, men use intensifiers less frequently than women, and gender differences have diminished to a very limited extent, notably for the middle class. Moreover, intensification rate has increased across the board over time. This could be due to a shift towards a stereotypically more feminine communicative style as the perception of gender roles has changed, a process by which the middle class might have been particularly affected.
A diachronic corpus-based study into the effects of age and gender on the usage patterns of verb-forming suffixation in spoken British English
Authors: Laws Jacqueline , Ryder Chris , Jaworska Sylvia
Published: July 2017

The aim of this paper is to ascertain the degree to which lexical diversity, density and creativity in everyday spoken British English have changed over a 20-year period, as a function of age and gender. Usage patterns of four verb-forming suffixes, -ate, -en, -ify and -ize, were compared in contemporary speech from the Spoken British National Corpus 2014 Sample (Spoken BNC2014S) with its 20-year old counterpart, the BNC1994’s demographically-sampled component (the Spoken BNC1994DS). Frequency comparisons revealed that verb suffixation is denser in the Spoken BNC2014S than in the Spoken BNC1994DS, with the exception of the -en suffix, the use of which has decreased, particularly among female and younger speakers in general. Male speakers and speakers in the 35–59 age range showed the greatest type diversity; there is evidence that this peak is occurring earlier in the more recent corpus. Contrary to expectations, female rather than male speakers produced the largest number of neologisms and rare forms.
Auditory word recognition across the lifespan
Authors: Blumenfeld Henrike K. , Schroeder Scott R. , Bobb Susan C. , Freeman Max R. , Marian Viorica
Published: July 2017

Recent research suggests that bilingual experience reconfigures linguistic and nonlinguistic cognitive processes. We examined the relationship between linguistic competition resolution and nonlinguistic cognitive control in younger and older adults who were either bilingual or monolingual. Participants heard words in English and identified the referent among four pictures while eye-movements were recorded. Target pictures (e.g., cab) appeared with a phonological competitor picture (e.g., cat) and two filler pictures. After each eye-tracking trial, priming probes assessed residual activation and inhibition of target and competitor words. When accounting for processing speed, results revealed that age-related changes in activation and inhibition are smaller in bilinguals than in monolinguals. Moreover, younger and older bilinguals, but not monolinguals, recruited similar inhibition mechanisms during word identification and during a nonlinguistic Stroop task. Results suggest that, during lexical access, bilinguals show more consistent competition resolution and recruitment of cognitive control across the lifespan than monolinguals.
Fictionalism about musical works
Authors: Killin Anton
Published: July 2017

The debate concerning the ontological status of musical works is perhaps the most animated debate in contemporary analytic philosophy of music. In my view, progress requires a piecemeal approach. So in this article I hone in on one particular musical work concept – that of the classical Western art musical work; that is, the work concept that regulates classical art-musical practice. I defend a fictionalist analysis – a strategy recently suggested by Andrew Kania as potentially fruitful – and I develop a version of such an analysis in line with a broad commitment to philosophical naturalism.
A quick guide to effective grassroots advocacy for scientists
Authors: Jones-Jamtgaard Kellyann N. , Lee Connie M.
Published: July 2017

The current political climate in the United States has mobilized scientists to become more cognizant of the need to advocate for sustainable science funding from the federal government and for acceptance of evidence-based policy making that relies on the best available scientific data. Many scientists, however, do not learn about science policy or how to advocate in Washington, D.C., or at the local level as part of their scientific training. Here we explain why science advocacy is important and provide steps on how to get involved by communicating with elected officials and engaging in the local community.
Utilitarianism: A Very Short Introduction
Authors: de Lazari-Radek Katarzyna , Singer Peter
Published: July 2017

Utilitarianism: A Very Short Introduction describes the nature, varieties, and justifications of utilitarianism, from its origins to arguments that draw on current research in neuroscience. Utilitarianism remains as influential—and controversial—as it was when Mill drew on it to argue for equality for women. It is often rejected because it seems to clash with widely accepted moral views. Could utilitarianism justify torture? Is only pleasure or happiness of intrinsic value? This VSI presents the strengths of utilitarian ethics and its challenge to our thinking on such issues as global poverty, speciesism, climate change, reducing the risk of human extinction, and end-of-life decisions for terminally ill patients.
Origins
Authors: Lazari‐Radek Katarzyna de , Singer Peter
Published: July 2017

The core precept of utilitarianism—that we should make the world the best place we can—is so simple and attractive that it is not surprising that thinkers in different times and places have come to it independently. ‘Origins’ outlines utilitarian thinking as far back as Mozi, a Chinese philosopher who lived 490–403 bc. In Europe, the idea that we should take the general good as the criterion for right action became popular in the eighteenth century. Jeremy Bentham (1748–1832) was the founding father of utilitarianism. His work was supported by the philosophers John Stuart Mill and Henry Sidgwick.
Utilitarianism in action
Authors: Lazari‐Radek Katarzyna de , Singer Peter
Published: July 2017

In practice, utilitarians put more emphasis on reducing suffering than on increasing happiness. One reason for this is practical: it is easier to provide basic necessities for those who are suffering than it is to make people happier. ‘Utilitarianism in action’ considers how utilitarianism is applied today using examples from end-of-life decisions for terminally ill patients; speciesism; and meeting basic needs. It describes effective altruism, perhaps the clearest example of how utilitarianism today is making a difference to how people act and the amount of good they do. It concludes with the international movement to make ‘Gross National Happiness’ the key measure of how well a society is doing.
World Literature
Authors: Park Sowon , Habjan Jernej
Published: July 2017

As a global academic branch of studies, world literature emerged around the turn of the millennium, though thinking about literature with reference to “world,” however defined, can be traced back to at least two hundred years earlier. The underlying factors for the emergence of world literature studies are many. The end of the Cold War and the rise of non-Western economies, the advent of a global literary marketplace, and the proliferation of digital platforms are seen as some of its preconditions. In general terms, the expansion of world literature can be seen to reflect the rapid integration of the world into a single market. As a field of inquiry, world literature continues to grow in response to the problems encountered by teachers, students, and readers in their daily contact with literature from around the world. Historically, a prevalent way of thinking about world literature in the Western literary tradition was as the selection of masterpieces from around the world. This serviceable notion was, however, shown to fall below its own theoretical requirement and to be clearly in need of revision, since the “world,” in practice, referred to the “First World,” and world literature had simply been another name for the classics from the five major European states—Britain, France, Germany, Spain, and Italy—and from Russia and the United States. The urgent need to acknowledge and validate occluded regions of the non-Western world as unique literary and historical spaces that contribute to the whole has necessitated an altogether different framework for theorizing concepts such as language, nation, and masterpieces. In its current form, world literature studies aspires to overcome some of the problems that have arisen from the methods and procedures of traditional nation-based literary studies, as well as to address unresolved tensions within comparative literary studies, which have sometimes implicitly equated world literature with European literature. In this it overlaps with critiques of cultural imperialism and Eurocentrism raised by postcolonial studies. Where it differs markedly is in its thinking about the global system of literary production, dissemination, and evaluation beyond Europe and its former colonies, and in its focus on the methodological issues that emerge from the barely manageable inundation of literary texts now made available by digital multimedia platforms. In this effort, world literature studies is often joined by other recently established disciplines, especially globalization studies, translation studies, cosmopolitanism studies, and transnationalism studies.
Chinese Economic Policy
Authors: Yueh Linda
Published: July 2017

China’s economic policy has been transformed during the reform period that began in 1979 when the world’s most populous nation adopted market-oriented reforms. As compared with the centrally planned period from 1949 to 1978 when economic policy was dictated by the plan that promulgated the targets of the command economy, economic policy is now dictated by a variety of instruments that would be familiar in most countries. These include monetary and fiscal policy, financial regulation, growth policies, and reforms of the exchange rate. But, as with all reforms in China, the transition from central planning to a market economy is gradual and makes for a complex set of policies that govern an economy that still has a segment of state-ownership and controls on its external sector, including a currency that is still yet to be fully convertible and tradable. Most of the major policies have been geared toward economic growth. And China has been remarkably successful in transitioning from central planning while also contending with the challenges of economic development. The initial impetus for adopting market-oriented reforms in the late 1970s was to address the inefficiencies of central planning and introduce incentives to produce more efficiently. These included the gradual but eventual privatization of many of the state-owned enterprises and the promotion of the nonstate sector, especially private industries in rural areas as well as urban locales. These reforms also changed the labor market in providing incentives to foster innovation. They included not only economic, but also legal and institutional reforms to help raise growth. After three decades of rapid development, China has lifted itself from being one of the poorest countries in the world to its second-largest economy, one that has achieved middle-income status. But, to overcome the so-called middle-income country trap, in which countries begin to slow down considerably after reaching upper-middle-income level, China will need to adopt further reforms to raise productivity in trying to join the ranks of rich countries. It is a feat that only a dozen or so countries have managed in the post–World War II period. China’s growth has been aided by integration into the global economy, so reforms of its external sector have played a significant role in its policy regime.
International Efforts to Control War
Authors: Kauffman Jesse
Published: July 2017

While informal restraints on organized violence have existed in many times and places, the formal attempt to regulate, contain, and otherwise manage war by states is a modern affair. Beginning in the 19th century, against a backdrop of a rapid and exponential increase in the destructive power of weaponry, governments, acting out of a mix of interests, came together to formalize and codify the rules governing the circumstances under which a state might legitimately go to war, as well as, once at war, the means and methods that might be employed in the fighting. (These are the two broad areas into which the laws and customs of war are generally sorted: jus ad bellum, or the legitimate reasons for war, and jus in bello, just behavior in war, though it is a matter of some dispute how discrete these categories can and should be). Drawing on a centuries-old Christian “just war” tradition, the 19th-century pioneers of international regulation of war created a legal foundation that endures to this day. Over time, the belief that war could be controlled and limited evolved into a hope that it could perhaps be eliminated from the world altogether. Over the course of the first half of the 20th century, these beliefs and practices would be sorely tested, and perhaps shattered, by the horrific violence of the world wars. Nonetheless, the destruction of the war years demonstrated to contemporaries the urgent need to continue the work of those early pioneers. The principles, institutions, and interests driving international attempts to control war after 1945 were in many respects quite different from those that had crystallized in the 19th century. The hopes and fears of those earlier times, however, continued to haunt the 20th century, magnified by the enormity of the destructive power possessed by states in the atomic age. Though many different cultures have produced their own laws and customs of war, the focus of this article is on “the West,” generally meaning Europe and the United States. This is because, for the period under discussion, it was the Western just war tradition that informed the behavior and ideas of those intellectuals and politicians who, acting with and through Western governments, created the modern legal-political structure that underpins international attempts to restrain war to this day.
Los Angeles and Cinema
Authors: Trafton John
Published: July 2017

This article discusses the history of cinema in Los Angeles and the complex relationship that American film has had with its host city throughout film history. First, General Overviews considers the essential texts on Los Angeles and Southern California history. Although many of these works are not part of the literature on cinema and media studies, they nevertheless provide a critical starting point for scholars studying the role of Los Angeles on film. The Mission Legend examines the mythical allure of the region that enticed film pioneers to leave the East Coast for the land of sunshine. Edendale features texts on the early studios of the 1910s. Weimar on the Pacific is on the contributions that Austrian and German émigrés made to the cultural landscape, including crucial theorists and German-Austrian filmmakers who fled to the United States. Los Angeles Modernist Architecture discusses another group of German-Austrian immigrants—modernist architects who constructed homes that would later become iconic film locations. Film noir has had an enduring relationship with the City of Angels, and Noir focuses on Los Angeles as a noir character in its own right. Los Angeles and New Hollywood reviews depictions of Los Angeles in films from the late 1970s to the early 1980s, including those by American filmmakers and European tourist filmmakers with their own take on Los Angeles: Michelangelo Antonioni, John Boorman, Jacques Deray, and Wim Wenders, to name a few. Los Angeles Disaster Cinema has remained consistent in Hollywood cinema over the last forty years, and as such, a scholarly focus on this aspect of Los Angeles Cinema is featured. Los Angeles and African American Cinema discusses texts on the L.A. Rebellion School, which invigorated a neorealist cinema about the Los Angeles African American experience, as well as studies on the L.A. “hood films” that emerged during the early 1990s. Los Angeles and Chicano Cinema offers a series of texts for scholars looking to engage with this field. The music industry has also played a crucial role in L.A. history, but the Los Angeles Punk movement of the late 1970s and early 1980s also energized a punk aesthetic in cinema that emerged from films like Repo Man. Toward the end of the twentieth century, many auteur filmmakers, heavily influenced by New Hollywood cinema, created portraits of Los Angeles, and Los Angeles Auteur Filmmakers provides some key texts on these filmmakers. Lastly, this article features a section on Documentary Films, because there are so many nonfiction films that will serve scholars of Los Angeles Cinema well in their research.
Biodiversity Patterns in Agricultural Systems
Authors: Firbanks Les , Biffi Sofia
Published: July 2017

Biodiversity is declining at a global scale due to large and small scale processes associated with agricultural practices. Agriculture involves transforming natural habitats into systems designed to promote certain species for our consumption. The scale of this transformation is huge; it is estimated that 25 percent of potential net primary production is currently appropriated for human use, a figure that could nearly double by 2050. Inevitably, this appropriation reduces the amount of energy available for all other taxa, with inevitable consequences for biodiversity. These consequences are not uniform or random, however, because agricultural systems involve the reconfiguration of habitats and landscape elements, creating niches that allow some non-cropped species to survive, and even thrive in agricultural systems, depending on the traits they possess. Agricultural landscapes can be very biodiverse, and of high social and cultural value, especially where there has been continuity of management over long periods of time and the managed landscape presents natural habitat patches. The matrix of natural, semi-natural, and managed landscape plays a major role in supporting biodiversity by creating a complex spatial pattern of ecosystems and habitats. In many parts of the world this management continuity is under threat from land abandonment on the one hand and intensification on the other; both may cause biodiversity loss. However, it is being increasingly recognized that some non-cropped taxa perform valuable benefits to agricultural production, giving rise to the idea that agricultural landscapes may be redesigned to enhance such ecosystem services. The outcomes of such redesign may therefore still be biodiverse, but different to what is found now.
Taxation and Latinos
Authors: Martinez Leo P. , Kuehl Sophie
Published: July 2017

While this article deals with the intersection of Latinos and taxation, there is a dearth of scholarly work that deals with this intersection. This shortage is all the more surprising given that Latinos will likely constitute the largest plurality in the United States within the next fifty years. Indeed, according to the 2020 US Census, the Latino population in the United States was estimated to be on the order of 62 million and Latinos accounted for 51 percent of the nation’s total population growth over the preceding decade. While a lack of attention may explain this phenomenon, the absence of a definition for who comprises the Latino population poses a significant problem. Beginning with the establishment of the relevant ethnography, this bibliography addresses the many aspects of the Internal Revenue Code that operate to the disadvantage of Latinos. These areas range from code provisions that are seemingly neutral, such as the tax benefits associated with home ownership and education, to those code provisions that are aimed at dealing with income inequality, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit.
Iron deficiency anemia in pregnant women
Authors: Khuu Gahmeng , Dika Cheryl
Published: July 2017

Screening for iron deficiency anemia (IDA) in all pregnant women is recommended. IDA is a prevalent cause of nutritional deficiency anemia, and oral iron is the first line of treatment. Other treatments include parenteral iron or blood transfusion(s). Untreated IDA in pregnancy can result in complications for the mother and fetus.
Comparison of Outcomes Between Combined Transepithelial Photorefractive Keratectomy With and Without Accelerated Corneal Collagen Cross-Linking: A 1-Year Study
Authors: Lee Hun , Yong Kang David Sung , Ha Byoung Jin , Choi Jin Young , Kim Eung Kweon , Seo Kyoung Yul , Kim Tae-im
Published: July 2017

Purpose:

To investigate the effects of combined transepithelial photorefractive keratectomy (tPRK) and accelerated corneal collagen cross-linking (CXL) on visual acuity and refractive outcomes.

Methods:

The medical records of 89 eyes (89 patients) undergoing combined tPRK and CXL (tPRK-CXL group) or tPRK alone (tPRK group) were retrospectively analyzed. Uncorrected distance visual acuity (UDVA), corrected distance visual acuity, and manifest refraction spherical equivalent (MRSE) were evaluated preoperatively and 2 weeks, 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after surgery.

Results:

At 2 weeks after surgery, the tPRK-CXL group had better UDVA than the tPRK group (0.97 ± 0.22 vs. 0.85 ± 0.22, P = 0.015). At 2 weeks and 1 month after surgery, the tPRK-CXL group had a significantly lower spherical error than the tPRK group (0.24 vs. 0.63 D, P = 0.017, for 2 weeks and 0.43 vs. 0.57 D, P = 0.019, for 1 month). At 12 months after surgery, the tPRK-CXL group had a lower spherical error and MRSE than the tPRK group (0.30 vs. 0.44 D, P < 0.001, for the spherical error and 0.17 vs. 0.31 D, P < 0.001, for the MRSE). Both groups had comparable predictability, efficacy, and safety indices at 12 months after surgery.

Conclusions:

Combined tPRK and accelerated CXL demonstrated comparable predictability, efficacy, and safety compared with tPRK alone. Combined tPRK and CXL provides better UDVA in the early postoperative period and better refractive outcomes at 12 months postoperatively in terms of spherical error and MRSE.
On Post-Truth, Fake News, and Trust
Authors: Rowe Sylvia B. , Alexander Nick
Published: July 2017

The evolution of health, nutrition, and other science communication in an increasingly digital environment has been well reported in recent years. More immediately, it has been suggested that the world has entered a “post-truth” era in which nutrition and other communicators face growing challenges in delivering balanced, accurate, and credible information. Public trust in and understanding of the public health/science community may be at stake. In the present article, the authors analyze the nature of the modern communication era and its evolving challenges with an eye toward identifying useful ways of delivering credible information that can compete with possible “fake news”: misinformation, disinformation, opinion masquerading as fact, and other nontruthful communications. Clearly, combating the intentional misleading of today's health, nutrition, and science information consumer will require bold and innovative strategies.
Red Meat and Health
Authors: O’Connor Lauren E. , Campbell Wayne W.
Published: July 2017

Consumption of red meat in the United States has progressively declined over the past 35 years. This occurred in conjunction with public recommendations to reduce red meat intake, based mainly on associations between higher red meat intake and increased chronic disease risk. This narrative review presents and discusses results from both observational cohort studies that focus on cardiometabolic disease development and mortality and randomized controlled trials that focus on cardiometabolic disease risk factors. This review will also address the potential effect of categorizations of red meat and processed meats on our understanding of cardiometabolic health implications of consuming red meat.
The Baltodano Breast Reduction Score: A Nationwide, Multi-Institutional, Validated Approach to Reducing Surgical-Site Morbidity
Authors: Baltodano Pablo A. , Reinhardt Myrna Eliann , Ata Ashar , Simjee Usamah F. , Roth Malcolm Z. , Patel Ashit
Published: July 2017

Background:

Breast reduction remains associated with significantly higher rates of overall morbidity, superficial surgical-site infections, and wound disruptions. The authors developed a validated risk model to identify patients at higher risk for postoperative surgical-site morbidity after breast reduction.

Methods:

A retrospective review was performed of all women undergoing breast reduction from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program 2005 to 2012 data. Surgical-site morbidity included surgical-site infection and wound disruption events. Stepwise multivariable logistic regression identified risk factors associated with surgical-site morbidity. The model was validated using bootstrap replications (n = 100) and the Hosmer-Lemeshow test, and converted into the Baltodano breast reduction score, a clinical risk tool predictive of surgical-site morbidity.

Results:

The authors identified 7068 breast reductions. Rate of 30-day surgical-site morbidity was 3.98 percent. Independent risk factors included resident participation (OR, 1.5; 95 percent CI, 1.1 to 2.0; p = 0.004), body mass index (for every 5-unit increase: OR, 1.3; 95 percent CI, 1.1 to 1.4; p < 0.001), smoking (OR, 1.6; 95 percent CI, 1.1 to 2.4; p = 0.014), steroid use (OR, 3.5; 95 percent CI, 1.4 to 8.4; p = 0.006), and operation in the third quarter of the year (OR, 1.5; 95 percent CI, 1.1 to 1.9; p = 0.014). The factors were integrated into the Baltodano score, ranging from 0 to 16. The predicted probability of surgical-site morbidity associated with each risk score was estimated. Predicted and observed risks of surgical-site morbidity were highly comparable.

Conclusions:

The authors present the Baltodano breast reduction score, a validated risk-stratification tool for predicting 30-day surgical-site morbidity following breast reduction using data that are readily available to the clinician. This may allow targeted screening and intervention in high-risk patients, better counseling, selective resident participation, and ultimately a decrease in overall health care costs.

CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:

Risk, III.
Transversus Abdominis Plane Blocks with Single-Dose Liposomal Bupivacaine in Conjunction with a Nonnarcotic Pain Regimen Help Reduce Length of Stay following Abdominally Based Microsurgical Breast Reconstruction
Authors: Jablonka Eric M. , Lamelas Andreas M. , Kim Julie N. , Molina Bianca , Molina Nathan , Okwali Michelle , Samson William , Sultan Mark R. , Dayan Joseph H. , Smith Mark L.
Published: July 2017

Background:

Side effects associated with use of postoperative narcotics for pain control can delay recovery after abdominally based microsurgical breast reconstruction. The authors evaluated a nonnarcotic pain control regimen in conjunction with bilateral transversus abdominis plane blocks on facilitating early hospital discharge.

Methods:

A retrospective analysis was performed of consecutive patients who underwent breast reconstruction using abdominally based free flaps, with or without being included in a nonnarcotic protocol using intraoperative transversus abdominis plane blockade. During this period, the use of locoregional analgesia evolved from none (control), to continuous bupivacaine infusion transversus abdominis plane and catheters, to single-dose transversus abdominis plane blockade with liposomal bupivacaine solution. Demographic factors, length of stay, inpatient opioid consumption, and complications were reported for all three groups.

Results:

One hundred twenty-eight consecutive patients (182 flaps) were identified. Forty patients (62 flaps) were in the infusion–liposomal bupivacaine group, 48 (66 flaps) were in the single-dose blockade–catheter group, and 40 (54 flaps) were in the control group. The infusion–liposomal bupivacaine patients had a significantly shorter hospital stay compared with the single-dose blockade–catheter group (2.65 ± 0.66 versus 3.52 ± 0.92 days; p < 0.0001) and the control group (2.65 ± 0.66 versus 4.05 ± 1.26 days; p < 0.0001). There was no significant difference in flap loss or major complications among groups.

Conclusions:

When used as part of a nonnarcotic postoperative pain regimen, transversus abdominis plane blocks performed with single injections of liposomal bupivacaine help facilitate early hospital discharge after abdominally based microsurgical breast reconstruction. A trend toward consistent discharge by postoperative day 2 was seen. This could result in significant cost savings for health care systems.

CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:

Therapeutic, III.
Head Orthosis Therapy in Positional Plagiocephaly: Influence of Age and Severity of Asymmetry on Effect and Duration of Therapy
Authors: Kunz Felix , Schweitzer Tilmann , Kunz Jessica , Waßmuth Nina , Stellzig-Eisenhauer Angelika , Böhm Hartmut , Meyer-Marcotty Philipp , Linz Christian
Published: July 2017

Background:

Only a few studies investigating the optimal time point at which to start orthotic treatment for deformational plagiocephaly take into account the severity of skull asymmetry. The present study performs a three-dimensional analysis of the effects of age and severity of asymmetry on the final outcome.

Methods:

A total of 144 patients with deformational plagiocephaly treated by molding orthosis were examined and divided into three age groups (group I, <24 weeks; group II, ≥24 to <32 weeks; and group III, ≥32 weeks) and two severity levels (mild to moderate, 30-degree cranial vault asymmetry ≥3 mm to ≤12 mm; and moderate to severe, 30-degree cranial vault asymmetry >12 mm). The extent of the reduction of asymmetry was analyzed using three-dimensional stereophotogrammetry.

Results:

Therapy with molding orthosis led to a significant reduction in asymmetry in all defined age groups. Efficacy of reduction decreased with increasing age. Successful treatment (cranial vault asymmetry index <3.5 percent) was achieved in 83, 69, and 40 percent of patients with mild to moderate asymmetry in groups I, II, and III, respectively; and in 50, 30, and 7 percent of patients with moderate to severe asymmetry in groups I, II, and III, respectively. The average duration of treatment increased from 18.6 weeks to 25.3 weeks (age groups I and III).

Conclusion:

Age at the beginning of treatment and severity of asymmetry have a definite impact on the duration and effectiveness of molding orthosis therapy.

CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:

Risk, II.
Thy1 (CD90) Expression Is Elevated in Radiation-Induced Periprosthetic Capsular Contracture: Implication for Novel Therapeutics
Authors: Hansen Trevor C. , Woeller Collynn F. , Lacy Shannon H. , Koltz Peter F. , Langstein Howard N. , Phipps Richard P.
Published: July 2017

Background:

Capsular contracture is a devastating complication of postmastectomy implant-based breast reconstruction. Unfortunately, capsular contracture rates are drastically increased by targeted radiotherapy, a standard postmastectomy treatment. Thy1 (also called CD90) is important in myofibroblast differentiation and scar tissue formation. However, the impact of radiotherapy on Thy1 expression and the role of Thy1 in capsular contracture are unknown.

Methods:

The authors analyzed Thy1 expression in primary human capsular tissue and primary fibroblast explants by real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction, Western blotting, and immunohistochemistry. Thy1 was depleted using RNA interference to determine whether Thy1 expression was essential for the myofibroblast phenotype in capsular fibroblasts. Furthermore, human capsular fibroblasts were treated with a new antiscarring compound, salinomycin, to determine whether Thy1 expression and myofibroblast formation were blocked by salinomycin.

Results:

In this article, the authors show that radiation therapy significantly increased Thy1 mRNA and protein expression in periimplant scar tissue. Capsular fibroblasts explanted from scar tissue retained the ability to make the myofibroblast-produced scar-forming components collagen I and α-smooth muscle actin. Depletion of Thy1 decreased the fibrotic morphology of capsular fibroblasts and significantly decreased α-smooth muscle actin and collagen levels. Furthermore, the authors show for the first time that salinomycin decreased Thy1 expression and prevented myofibroblast formation in capsular fibroblasts.

Conclusions:

These data reveal that ionizing radiation-induced Thy1 overexpression may contribute to increased capsular contracture severity, and fibroblast scar production can be ameliorated through targeting Thy1 expression. Importantly, the authors’ new results show promise for the antiscarring ability of salinomycin in radiation-induced capsular contracture.

CLINCAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:

Therapeutic, V.
Comparison of Hepatitis B Virus Infection in HIV-Infected and HIV-Uninfected Participants Enrolled in a Multinational Clinical Trial: HPTN 052
Authors: Greer Amy E. , Ou San-San , Wilson Ethan , Piwowar-Manning Estelle , Forman Michael S. , McCauley Marybeth , Gamble Theresa , Ruangyuttikarn Cholticha , Hosseinipour Mina C. , Kumarasamy Nagalingeswaran , Nyirenda Mulinda , Grinsztejn Beatriz , Pilotto Jose Henrique , Kosashunhanan Natthapol , Gonçalves de Melo Marineide , Makhema Joseph , Akelo Victor , Panchia Ravindre , Badal-Faesen Sharlaa , Chen Ying Q. , Cohen Myron S. , Eshleman Susan H. , Thio Chloe L. , Valsamakis Alexandra
Published: July 2017

Objective:

Data comparing hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in HIV-infected [HIV(+)], and HIV-uninfected [HIV(−)] individuals recruited into the same study are limited. HBV infection status and chronic hepatitis B (cHB) were characterized in a multinational clinical trial: HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN 052).

Method:

HBV infection status at enrollment was compared between HIV(+) (N = 1241) and HIV(−) (N = 1232) from 7 HBV-endemic countries. Hepatitis B e antigen and plasma HBV DNA were determined in cHB. Median CD4, median plasma HIV RNA, and prevalence of transaminase elevation were compared in HIV(+) with and without cHB. Significance was assessed with χ2, Fisher exact, and median tests.

Results:

Among all participants, 33.6% had HBV exposure without cHB (8.9% isolated HBV core antibody, “HBcAb”; 24.7% HBcAb and anti-HB surface antibody positive, “recovered”), 4.3% had cHB, 8.9% were vaccinated, and 53.5% were uninfected. Data were similar among HIV(+) and HIV(−) except for isolated HBcAb, which was more prevalent in HIV(+) than HIV(−) [10.1% vs. 7.7%, P = 0.046]. Median HBV DNA trended higher in HIV(+) than in HIV(−). In HIV(+) with cHB versus those without cHB, transaminase elevations were more prevalent (alanine aminotransferase ≤ grade 2, 12% vs. 5.2%, P = 0.037; aspartate aminotransferase ≤ grade 2, 26% vs. 6.0%, P < 0.001), CD4 trended lower, and HIV RNA was similar.

Conclusions:

HBV infection status did not differ by HIV infection status. HIV co-infection was associated with isolated HBcAb and a trend of increased HBV DNA. In HIV, cHB was associated with mild transaminase elevations and a trend toward lower CD4.
In vitro activity of bedaquiline against rapidly growing nontuberculous mycobacteria
Authors: Aguilar-Ayala Diana A. , Cnockaert Margo , André Emmanuel , Andries Koen , Gonzalez-Y-Merchand Jorge A. , Vandamme Peter , Palomino Juan Carlos , Martin Anandi
Published: July 2017

Bedaquiline (BDQ) has been proven to be effective in the treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. We hypothesized that BDQ could be a potential agent to treat nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) infection. The objective of this study was to evaluate the in vitro activity of BDQ against rapidly growing mycobacteria by assessing the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) against 18 NTM strains. For MIC determination we performed the resazurin microtitre assay broth dilution, and for the MBC the c.f.u. was determined. BDQ exhibited a strong inhibitory effect against most NTM tested; however, for some NTM strains the MBC was significantly higher than the MIC. A new finding is that Mycobacterium flavescens has a mutation in the gene atpE associated with natural resistance to BDQ. These preliminary promising results demonstrate that BDQ could be potentially useful for the treatment of NTM.
Inferring cell state by quantitative motility analysis reveals a dynamic state system and broken detailed balance
Authors: Kimmel Jacob C. , Chang Amy Y. , Brack Andrew S. , Marshall Wallace F.
Published: July 2017

Cell populations display heterogeneous phenotypic states at multiple scales. Similar to molecular features commonly used to explore cell heterogeneity, cell behavior is a rich phenotypic space that may allow for identification of relevant cell states. Inference of cell state from cell behavior across a time course may enable the investigation of dynamics of transitions between heterogeneous cell states, a task difficult to perform with destructive molecular observations. Cell motility is one such easily observed cell behavior with known biomedical relevance. To investigate cell heterogeneity through the lens of cell behavior, we developed Heteromotility, a software tool to extract quantitative motility features from timelapse cell images. In mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs), myoblasts, and muscle stem cells (MuSCs), Heteromotility analysis identifies multiple motility phenotypes within the population. In all three systems, the motility state identity of individual cells is dynamic. Quantification of state transitions reveals that MuSCs undergoing activation transition through progressive motility states toward the myoblast phenotype. By probability flux analysis, we find that this MuSC motility state system breaks detailed balance, while the MEF and myoblast systems do not. Our data indicate that the system regulating cell behavior can be decomposed into a set of attractor states which depend on the identity of the cell, together with a set of transitions between states governed by inputs from signaling pathways such as oncogenes and growth factors. Within one state, equilibrium formalisms can capture variation in behavior, while switching between states violates equilibrium conditions and would require an external driving force. These results support a conceptual view of the cell as a non-deterministic state automaton, responding to inputs from signaling pathways and generating outputs in the form of observable motile behaviors.