bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Choice and Variety-Seeking of E-liquids and Flavor Categories by New Zealand Smokers Using an Electronic Cigarette: A Longitudinal Study
Authors: Blank Mei-Ling , Hoek Janet
Published: December 2020

Background

Little is currently known about how e-liquid flavor use evolves among electronic cigarette users. We describe patterns of e-liquid and flavor category use, and variety-seeking, among New Zealand adult smokers attempting to transition from smoking to e-cigarettes.

Methods

Data were collected in 2018–19, using a longitudinal design comprising up to five in-depth interviews over a 12–20 week period. Participants (n = 32) were current smokers aged ≥18 years, who were not currently using an e-cigarette once a week or more often, and were willing to use an e-cigarette in an attempt to stop smoking. We purchased participants a starter e-cigarette of their choice; they supplied their own e-liquids throughout the study. We extracted e-liquid use data from the verbatim interview transcripts, categorized these into flavor categories, and then explored these data for the whole sample, and by flavor category purchased at intake.

Results

Most participants (n = 12) selected a tobacco flavored e-liquid at intake; fruit (n = 7), mint/menthol (n = 6), and dessert/sweets and non-alcoholic beverage (both n = 5) were also popular. Most participants were still using their initially chosen flavor category at study exit, however, many described variety-seeking behaviors, which typically occurred during the first 12 weeks of enrolment.

Conclusion

Most participants did not follow a straightforward e-liquid or flavor category pathway. Evidence of a variety-seeking continuum, typically occurring within the first 12 weeks, suggests possible opportunities at specialist e-cigarette stores to couple e-liquid purchasing occasions with cessation advice.

Implications

Variety-seeking behavior was common and typically reported within the first 12 weeks of participants' e-cigarette-assisted attempt to transition away from smoking. Policies allowing diverse e-liquid flavors at specialist stores only could support users' variety-seeking and potentially create opportunities to couple e-liquid purchasing occasions with cessation advice during the first months of a transition attempt.
Developing a Social Media Intervention to Connect Alaska Native People Who Smoke with Resources and Support to Quit Smoking: The Connecting Alaska Native Quit Study
Authors: Merculieff Zoe T , Koller Kathryn R , Sinicrope Pamela S , Hughes Christine A , Bock Martha J , Decker Paul A , Resnicow Kenneth , Flanagan Christie A , Meade Crystal D , McConnell Clara R , Prochaska Judith J , Thomas Timothy K , Patten Christi A
Published: December 2020

Background

Face-to-face tobacco cessation has had limited reach and efficacy in Alaska Native (AN) communities. We describe our two-phased approach to develop content for Connecting Alaska Native People to Quit Smoking, a Facebook group intervention to reduce barriers to evidence-based smoking cessation treatment for AN people in Alaska.

Methods

Phase 1 included semi-structured telephone interviews with 30 AN people who smoke and ten stakeholders. They provided feedback on existing content from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Tips campaign and AN digital stories. Phase 2 included an online survey with a new group of 40 AN smokers who provided feedback on existing content via a measure of perceived effectiveness and cultural relevance.

Results

Phase I results revealed participants evaluated content based upon story strength, relevance to AN culture, emotional appeal, relatability to AN people, and favorite video. No single posting was rated highly across all themes. All perceived effectiveness (PE) and cultural relevance median scores fell between 3.5 and 4.4 (range 1–5). PE scores varied across participant demographic groups.

Conclusions

Content embodying characteristics perceived to be most appealing, effective, and culturally relevant were selected for the private Facebook group content library with refinements made to incorporate images of AN people engaged in AN activities. PE scores indicate a need for a wide variety of content that moderators could pull from when conducting the intervention.

Implications

Social media content targeting specific population sectors, such as American Indian/AN people for tobacco cessation needs to be culturally tailored. Our approach provides a model others can follow to determine what is appealing, relevant, and effective messaging.

Clinical Trial Registration

NCT 03645941.
A Brief Psychological Intervention for Chronic Pain in Primary Care: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Miller-Matero Lisa R , Hecht Leah M , Miller Mary Kate , Autio Kirsti , Pester Bethany D , Tobin Erin T , Patel Shivali , Braciszewski Jordan M , Maye Melissa , Ahmedani Brian K
Published: December 2020

Objective

Although evidence-based psychological interventions improve chronic pain, many patients do not engage in behavioral health services. Offering a brief intervention in a medical setting may provide benefits to patients with chronic pain. The purpose of this study was to examine preliminary outcomes of a brief psychological intervention for chronic pain delivered in primary care.

Design

Pilot randomized controlled trial.

Setting

Primary care clinic.

Subjects

Sixty participants with chronic pain were randomized to a 5-session psychological intervention or treatment-as-usual control group.

Methods

Participants completed pre- and post-intervention measures assessing pain severity, pain interference, pain catastrophizing, depression, and anxiety.

Results

Most participants (76.7%) randomized to the intervention completed all sessions. Compared to the control group, those in the intervention had decreases in pain severity (P = .048), pain catastrophizing (P = .04), and depression (P = .01) from pre- to post-intervention. Within the intervention group, there was a significant improvement in pain interference scores (P = 0.02). Within the intervention group, effect sizes were medium to large for changes in pain severity, pain interference, pain catastrophizing, and depression scores. There were no significant changes in anxiety scores.

Conclusion

Results suggest that delivery of a brief psychological intervention for chronic pain in primary care appears to offer improvements in pain severity, pain interference, pain catastrophizing, and depression. Findings suggest that shorter-term psychological interventions may offer similar benefits as longer-term ones. Furthermore, offering a brief intervention in primary care may increase access and engagement in behavioral pain management services. Future research should examine this through a fully-powered trial with longer-term outcomes.
Smell, taste and COVID-19: testing is essential
Authors: Hawkes Christopher H
Published: December 2020

During the COVID-19 pandemic, it became clear that smell and taste (chemosensory) disturbance is very common in the early stages of disease. This article addresses (i) why COVID-19 specifically targets the modalities of smell and possibly taste and what is the mechanism, (ii) what is the frequency of smell and taste loss and (iii) what is the overall prognosis. It is suggested that mouth-breathers may be at particular risk of COVID-19. Symptom-based questionnaires are likely to under-estimate the prevalence of chemosensory impairment by as much as 50%. The prevalence of smell loss is so high that a person who has normal olfaction on formal testing is unlikely to be infected significantly with Cov-2. Furthermore, someone without symptoms who has an abnormal smell test could still be infected and liable to spread the disease. Brief, low-cost, olfactory tests are available that would permit a high throughput in field stations and airports. A normal result might obviate the need for a nasopharyngeal swab for the Cov-2 virus.
Does a Question Prompt List Improve Perceived Involvement in Care in Orthopaedic Surgery Compared with the AskShareKnow Questions? A Pragmatic Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Mariano David J. , Liu Adam , Eppler Sara L. , Gardner Michael J. , Hu Serena , Safran Marc , Chou Loretta , Amanatullah Derek F. , Kamal Robin N.
Published: December 2020

Background

Most conditions in orthopaedic surgery are preference-sensitive, where treatment choices are based on the patient’s values and preferences. One set of tools increasingly used to help align treatment choices with patient preferences are question prompt lists (QPLs), which are comprehensive lists of potential questions that patients can ask their physicians during their encounters. Whether or not a comprehensive orthopaedic-specific question prompt list would increase patient-perceived involvement in care more effectively than might three generic questions (the AskShareKnow questions) remains unknown; learning the answer would be useful, since a three-question list is easier to use compared with the much lengthier QPLs.

Question/purpose

Does an orthopaedic-specific question prompt list increase patient-perceived involvement in care compared with the three generic AskShareKnow questions?

Methods

We performed a pragmatic randomized controlled trial of all new patients visiting a multispecialty orthopaedic clinic. A pragmatic design was used to mimic normal clinical care that compared two clinically acceptable interventions. New patients with common orthopaedic conditions were enrolled between August 2019 and November 2019 and were randomized to receive either the intervention QPL handout (orthopaedic-specific QPL with 45 total questions, developed with similar content and length to prior QPLs used in hand surgery, oncology, and palliative care) or a control handout (the AskShareKnow model questions, which are: “What are my options? What are the benefits and harms of those options? How likely are each of those benefits and harms to happen to me?”) before their visits. A total of 156 patients were enrolled, with 78 in each group. There were no demographic differences between the study and control groups in terms of key variables. After the visit, patients completed the Perceived Involvement in Care Scale (PICS), a validated instrument designed to evaluate patient-perceived involvement in their care, which served as the primary outcome measure. This instrument is scored from 0 to 13, with higher scores indicating higher perceived involvement.

Results

There was no difference in mean PICS scores between the intervention and control groups (QPL 8.3 ± 2.3, control 8.5 ± 2.3, mean difference 0.2 [95% CI -0.53 to 0.93 ]; p = 0.71.

Conclusion

In patients undergoing orthopaedic surgery, a QPL does not increase patient-perceived involvement in care compared with providing patients the three AskShareKnow questions. Implementation of the three AskShareKnow questions can be a more efficient way to improve patient-perceived involvement in their care compared with a lengthy QPL.

Level of Evidence

Level II, therapeutic study.
Improving outcomes collaboratively with families: what works and what doesn’t
Authors: Basken Amy , Acosta Rebeka
Published: December 2020

Purpose of review

As attention begins to shift from short-term surgical outcomes to long-term clinical and quality of life outcomes, patients and families are becoming increasingly responsible for outcomes. For this reason, it is essential to effectively include them in the outcome planning, goal setting, and evaluation processes.

Recent findings

There are a number of tools and strategies available to maximize patient engagement. These must be employed in direct patient care and system and policy conversations, for meaningful patient partnerships that can lead to improved outcomes.

As we move from a culture of paternalistic medicine to engaged patient care, there remains a need for a systematic approach to encourage patients and families to play a more active role as partners in improving outcomes. There is a need to be deliberate in setting up infrastructures to ensure successful patient participation. A gap in rigorous research in this area provides an opportunity for patients and researchers to put patient-centered research into practice, to better evaluate effective strategies, and further develop best practices in patient and provider collaboration to improve outcomes.
Phenotypic profile clustering pragmatically identifies diagnostically and mechanistically informative subgroups of chronic pain patients
Authors: Gaynor Sheila M. , Bortsov Andrey , Bair Eric , Fillingim Roger B. , Greenspan Joel D. , Ohrbach Richard , Diatchenko Luda , Nackley Andrea , Tchivileva Inna E. , Whitehead William , Alonso Aurelio A. , Buchheit Thomas E. , Boortz-Marx Richard L. , Liedtke Wolfgang , Park Jongbae J. , Maixner William , Smith Shad B.
Published: December 2020

Traditional classification and prognostic approaches for chronic pain conditions focus primarily on anatomically based clinical characteristics not based on underlying biopsychosocial factors contributing to perception of clinical pain and future pain trajectories. Using a supervised clustering approach in a cohort of temporomandibular disorder cases and controls from the Orofacial Pain: Prospective Evaluation and Risk Assessment study, we recently developed and validated a rapid algorithm (ROPA) to pragmatically classify chronic pain patients into 3 groups that differed in clinical pain report, biopsychosocial profiles, functional limitations, and comorbid conditions. The present aim was to examine the generalizability of this clustering procedure in 2 additional cohorts: a cohort of patients with chronic overlapping pain conditions (Complex Persistent Pain Conditions study) and a real-world clinical population of patients seeking treatment at duke innovative pain therapies. In each cohort, we applied a ROPA for cluster prediction, which requires only 4 input variables: pressure pain threshold and anxiety, depression, and somatization scales. In both complex persistent pain condition and duke innovative pain therapies, we distinguished 3 clusters, including one with more severe clinical characteristics and psychological distress. We observed strong concordance with observed cluster solutions, indicating the ROPA method allows for reliable subtyping of clinical populations with minimal patient burden. The ROPA clustering algorithm represents a rapid and valid stratification tool independent of anatomic diagnosis. ROPA holds promise in classifying patients based on pathophysiological mechanisms rather than structural or anatomical diagnoses. As such, this method of classifying patients will facilitate personalized pain medicine for patients with chronic pain.
Impact of a Real-Time, Pharmacist-Led, Intensive Care Unit–Based Feedback Intervention on Analgesia and Sedation Quality Among Mechanically Ventilated Patients
Authors: Mancheril Benjamin , Kram Bridgette , Schultheis Jennifer , Kram Shawn , Trammel Morgan , Liu Beiyu , Jordan Weston , Cox Christopher E.
Published: December 2020

Background:

Consensus guidelines for pain, agitation, and delirium (PAD) in mechanically ventilated patients recommend maintaining a light level of sedation.

Local Problem:

Consistent attainment of target PAD assessments in mechanically ventilated ICU patients is often challenging.

Methods:

This is a single-center, prospective study.

Interventions:

In the intervention group, a pharmacist provided weekly feedback to nurses on their success in achieving target PAD assessments compared with a historical cohort without feedback.

Results:

Overall, 478 patients and 205 nurses were included. The odds of having weekly Richmond Agitation-Sedation Scale (RASS) score, pain score goals, and Confusion Assessment Method for the ICU (CAM-ICU) negative assessments at goal between the intervention and control groups fluctuated over time without a discernible trend.

Conclusion:

The provision of weekly feedback to nurses on PAD nursing assessments by a pharmacist did not impact the achievement of PAD goals among critically ill mechanically ventilated patients.
Patients' and Nurses' Perceptions of the Quality of Nursing Care in Surgical Clinics
Authors: Mert Selda , Kersu Özlem , Aydin Sayilan Aylin , Baydemir Canan , Ilter Gonca
Published: December 2020

Background:

The evaluation of the quality of nursing care by patients and nurses is important for improving care.

Purpose:

The aim was to determine patients' and nurses' perceptions of the quality of nursing care in surgical clinics and influencing factors.

Methods:

The sample of this cross-sectional, descriptive, and comparative study consisted of 503 surgical patients and 308 surgical nurses. The data were collected between February 2018 and June 2019.

Results:

Characteristics of patients such as age, gender, complications, and nursing care scores, and the characteristics of the nurses such as being satisfied with the current clinic, their work experience in the clinic, and the number of daily surgical interventions affected the perceptions of care quality.

Conclusions:

The study revealed that the patients' perceptions of the quality of care were lower than those of nurses, and some factors belonging to the patients and nurses negatively influenced the quality of care.
Nursing Policies and Protocols
Authors: Kelly Ursula , Edwards Geneva , Shapiro Susan E.
Published: December 2020

Background:

Nursing policies and protocols exist to promote high-quality, safe, and effective nursing practice; however, there is little evidence demonstrating how nurses actually use them to inform their everyday, routine practice.

Purpose:

The purposes were to explore the extent to which nurses use nursing policies and protocols to guide their routine practice, and identify barriers and facilitators affecting the frequency with which nurses use nursing policies and protocols.

Methods:

Licensed nurses (N = 235) providing direct care to inpatients and outpatients in a large medical center participated in an 18-question online survey.

Results:

Most nurses access policies and protocols once a month or more; the greatest barrier to more frequent access was length of the policy or protocol.

Conclusions:

Organizations should make policies and protocols succinct, current, and easily accessible. Studies are needed to determine how policies and procedures can best meet the needs of stakeholders, including health care organizations, staff, and patients.
Detection of Radioactive DNA in Polyacrylamide Gels
Authors: Green Michael R. , Sambrook Joseph
Published: December 2020

Bands of radioactive DNA separated by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis may be detected by autoradiography or phosphorimaging. Analytical polyacrylamide gels containing radioactive DNA are usually fixed and dried before autoradiography. However, if bands of radioactive DNA are to be recovered from the gel, the gel should generally not be fixed or dried.
Managing diversity in minority business enterprises: the impact of employee homogeneity on financial performance
Authors: Blount Ian , Smith Delmonize
Published: December 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of employee homogeneity on the financial performance of minority business enterprises (MBEs). It is widely postulated that MBEs tend to hire minorities that resemble the ethnicity of the founder(s) and that this is beneficial by helping to decrease minority unemployment rates as well as providing new opportunities to minorities that they might not otherwise receive at White-owned firms.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used hierarchical linear regression on archival data of 271 MBEs to determine if employee homogeneity will be a factor in understanding their financial performance. The authors also conducted exploratory interviews with a convenience sample of MBEs to gain insight into the concept of employee homophily.

Findings

The research uncovered that as homogeneity increases, MBE financial performance decreases, and this effect is more pronounced the longer the MBE is in business.

Research limitations/implications

The data set is cross-sectional in nature and lack the perspective and clarity of time. The paper only contains a small set of exploratory interviews. The most significant implication from the study is that a lack of diversity decreases the long-term financial viability of MBEs which is to counter mainstream arguments that speak only to the positive aspects of MBEs hiring their own.

Originality/value

The research builds on the scant literature on the impact of diversity within MBEs. It also provides guidance to MBEs by suggesting they be strategic in diversifying their employee base in order to improve performance.
Employee satisfaction with the built environment of a software development company
Authors: da Silva Marcelo Benetti Corrêa , Valente Marina Giacometti , Petroli Angela , Notari Daniel Luis , Bebber Suélen , Fachinelli Ana Cristina
Published: December 2020

Purpose

The raised competitiveness among technology companies, especially for being able to work with markets physically distant from their final consumer, makes it important to know the employee’s perception about the built environment since the physical workspaces influence productivity. This paper aims to analyze the attributes and dimensions of the built environment of a development software company that most impact the employee’s satisfaction through their perception. It allows the company to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the built environment, enhancing the employee’s satisfaction, productivity and, consequently, the company revenues.

Design/methodology/approach

This research applied a survey by the drop off method and analyzed data through confirmatory factor analysis and multiple linear regression. Therefore, these methods explain how the attributes behave in each theoretical dimension and evaluate the relation between the dependent and independent dimensions.

Findings

The theoretical result of this research concerns the employee’s satisfaction with the built environment of a software development company. Overall, employee satisfaction is related to the dimensions of functionality, appearance and personal relationships, not being significant aspects of configuration. On the other hand, the employee’s overall satisfaction with the built environment is related to the functional dimension.

Research limitations/implications

This research limitation is related to the size of the sample, which is a pre-determined and fixed population: all the company’s employees.

Originality/value

Perceived quality applied to a work environment of a software development company.
Identifying future trends by podcast mining: an explorative approach for Web-based horizon scanning
Authors: Welz Juliane , Riemer Annamaria , Döbel Inga , Dakkak Nora , Von Schwartzenberg Anna Sophie
Published: December 2020

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to gain knowledge in podcast mining as an additional source for Web-based horizon scanning (HS). The paper presents theoretical insights on the potential of podcast mining by exploring topics, which may be relevant in the future, and by reflecting the results against a background of HS approaches. The study provides a preliminary overview by presenting an exemplary list of podcast shows for further research.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses an exploratory quantitative content analysis, which was conducted on the basis of 30 topics deemed to be relevant in the future and which were identified in the field of applied science. Based on these topics, podcasts and episodes were identified which address future-oriented topics and were discussed in terms of range of content.

Findings

The findings indicate that future-oriented topics are addressed in podcasts. However, differences in dynamics and range of content of the podcasts concerned highlight the necessity of identifying a list of suitable podcasts according to the specific scanning focus and the dynamics of each future-oriented topics.

Originality/value

While a growing number of podcast studies have already noted the importance of podcasts as a key medium, for example, educational processes and media sciences, no detailed explanation of podcast mining as a tool for the purposes of HS has been published. The review therefore makes an original contribution to this field, highlighting areas where future research is needed.
Innovation in policy-making for big science: a cultural analysis of interdisciplinary research in China’s biotechnology industry
Authors: Wang Kai , Wang Ying , Ma Yun , Xu Sutian
Published: December 2020

Purpose

Big science has become a new normative standard in transforming science policy with the interdisciplinary research (IDR) pattern serving as an organizational strategy in scientific inquiries. This paper aims to show how policy-making is organized in the real situation of the R&D sectors for this trend.

Design/methodology/approach

Cultural theory and new institutionalism are tinkered for a close examination of the ways in which IDR has been enacted and implemented in BGI Group, an exemplar of big science and leading biotechnology research facility in China, by interrogating institutional cultures in the context of big science projects, whilst investigating how IDR is evolved against the specific social process of interaction.

Findings

The findings include that the IDR has profoundly influenced how scientific knowledge is produced, the social interactions between stakeholders and the innovation of research policy within the network of China’s biotechnology industry.

Originality/value

Advances in biotechnology and related fields are redrafting China’s hi-tech industry development and governance landscape. This is the first empirical study of innovation in R&D management for big science project as presented by the IDR pattern in the BGI. It makes an important contribution to the understanding of both the nature of China’s biotechnology industry governance practices and the culture of scientific innovation within which the IDR mediates social interactions and thereby the policy-making process.
On the relevance of self-service business intelligence to university management
Authors: Arnaboldi Michela , Robbiani Andrea , Carlucci Paola
Published: December 2020

Purpose

Nearly 40 years since they first appeared, there is renewed interest in dashboards, engendered by the diffusion of business intelligence (BI) desktop software, such as Power BI, QlikView and Tableau, denoted collectively as “self-service” BI. Using these commodity software tools, the work to construct dashboards apparently becomes easier and more manageable and no longer requires the intervention of specialists. This paper aims to analyse the implementation of this kind of commodity dashboard in a university, exploring its role in performance management processes and investigating whether the dashboard affects the organisation (or not).

Design/methodology/approach

This paper focusses on an action research project developed by the authors, where the objective was to design and implement a dynamic performance measurement tool fitting the needs of department directors. The three authors were all involved in the project, respectively, as project manager, dashboard implementation manager and accounting manager of the studied organisation.

Findings

The results reveal a specific but complex change to the procedures and outcomes in the organisation studied, where the dashboard becomes a boundary infrastructure, thereby reviving technical and organisational problems that had been latent for years.

Originality/value

In this paper, the authors contribute to the debate on the digital age and the role of accounting with their exploration into the “revolution” of self-service BI tools. The democratisation and flexibility of these instruments put into discussion two core and somewhat controversial functions of accounting: data integration and personalised reporting.
Reliability analysis for a multi-stack solid oxide fuel cell system subject to operation condition-dependent degradation
Authors: Eichhorn Colombo Konrad W. , Schütz Peter , Kharton Vladislav V.
Published: December 2020

Purpose

A reliability analysis of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) system is presented for applications with strict constant power supply requirements, such as data centers. The purpose is to demonstrate the effect when moving from a module-level to a system-level in terms of reliability, also considering effects during start-up and degradation.

Design/methodology/approach

In-house experimental data on a system-level are used to capture the behavior during start-up and normal operation, including drifts of the operation point due to degradation. The system is assumed to allow replacement of stacks during operation, but a minimum number of stacks in operation is needed to avoid complete shutdown. Experimental data are used in conjunction with a physics-based performance model to construct the failure probability function. A dynamic program then solves the optimization problem in terms of time and replacement requirements to minimize the total negative deviation from a given target reliability.

Findings

Results show that multi-stack SOFC systems face challenges which are only revealed on a system- and not on a module-level. The main finding is that the reliability of multi-stack SOFC systems is not sufficient to serve as sole power source for critical applications such as data center.

Practical implications

The principal methodology may be applicable to other modular systems which include multiple critical components (of the same kind). These systems comprise other electrochemical systems such as further fuel cell types.

Originality/value

The novelty of this work is the combination of mathematical modeling to solve a real-world problem, rather than assuming idealized input which lead to more benign system conditions. Furthermore, the necessity to use a mathematical model, which captures sufficient physics of the SOFC system as well as stochasticity elements of its environment, is of critical importance. Some simplifications are, however, necessary because the use of a detailed model directly in the dynamic program would have led to a combinatorial explosion of the numerical solution space.
Can a multi-cultural industry such as tourism be inclusive?
Authors: Tarlow Peter
Published: December 2020

Purpose

This paper aims to look at the question of inclusivity and argue that the term reflects a majority culture “including” a minority culture – whether it desires to be included or not.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper provides a discussion on tourism as a multi-cultural industry.

Findings

This paper offers a new sociological framework.

Practical implications

This paper is of value in a time when minorities are questioning their role in society and provides insights into those who believe that they may be serving society when in fact the opposite might be the case.

Originality/value

This paper creates a new sociological framework
Impairment of autophagy may be associated with follicular miniaturization in androgenetic alopecia by inducing premature catagen
Authors: Liu Weiwen , Li Kaitao , Wang Gaofeng , Yang Lunan , Qu Qian , Fan Zhexiang , Sun Yang , Huang Junfei , Miao Yong , Hu Zhiqi
Published: December 2020

Androgenetic alopecia is the most common form of hair loss disorder. The features of this process are shortening of the anagen phase in hair cycling and progressive miniaturization of the hair follicle. However, the mechanisms in androgenetic alopecia are still unclear, and the treatment methods are also limited. Therefore, further study on the pathogenesis and new therapies for androgenetic alopecia are urgently needed. In this study, we found that endogenous autophagy was severely impaired, accompanied by increased apoptosis in early catagen‐like miniaturized hair follicles from the balding scalps of androgenetic alopecia patients. Moreover, inhibition of autophagy using 3‐methyladenine could induce apoptosis, premature hair follicle regression and slow down the hair growth in organ‐cultured hair follicles. Taken together, these results suggest that impairment of autophagy could be a potential mechanism in androgenetic alopecia.
Pathways to reduced emergency department and urgent care center use: Lessons from the comprehensive primary care initiative
Authors: Timmins Lori , Peikes Deborah , McCall Nancy
Published: December 2020

Objective

To determine the association between a large‐scale, multi‐payer primary care redesign—the Comprehensive Primary Care (CPC) Initiative—on outpatient emergency department (ED) and urgent care center (UCC) use and to identify the types of visits that drive the overall trends observed.

Data Sources

Medicare claims data capturing characteristics and outcomes of 565 674 Medicare fee‐for‐service (FFS) beneficiaries attributed to 497 CPC practices and 1 165 284 beneficiaries attributed to 908 comparison practices.

Study Design

We used an adjusted difference‐in‐differences framework to test the association between CPC and beneficiaries’ ED and UCC use from October 2012 through December 2016. Regression models controlled for baseline practice and patient characteristics and practice‐level clustering of standard errors. Our key outcomes were all‐cause and primary care substitutable (PC substitutable) outpatient ED and UCC visits, and potentially primary care preventable (PPC preventable) ED visits, categorized by the New York University Emergency Department Algorithm. We used a propensity score‐matched comparison group of practices that were similar to CPC practices before CPC on multiple dimensions. Both groups of practices had similar growth in ED and UCC visits in the two‐year period before CPC.

Principal Findings

Comprehensive Primary Care practices had 2% (P = .06) lower growth in all‐cause ED visits than comparison practices. They had 3% (P = .02) lower growth in PC substitutable ED visits, driven by lower growth in weekday PC substitutable visits (4%, P = .002). There was 3% (P = .04) lower growth in PPC preventable ED visits with no weekday/nonweekday differential. As expected, our falsification test showed no difference in ED visits for injuries. UCC visits had 9% lower growth for both all‐cause (P = .08) and PC substitutable visits (P = .07).

Conclusions

Our results suggest that greater access to the practice and more effective primary care both contributed to the lower growth in ED and UCC visits during the initiative.
Comparison of refractive prediction for intraoperative aberrometry and Barrett True K no history formula in cataract surgery patients with prior radial keratotomy
Authors: Dawson Valerie J. , Patnaik Jennifer L. , Ifantides Cristos , Miller D. Claire , Lynch Anne M. , Christopher Karen L.
Published: December 2020

Purpose

To compare prediction errors of the Barrett True K No History (Barrett TKNH) formula and intraoperative aberrometry (IA) in eyes with prior radial keratotomy (RK).

Methods

A retrospective, non‐randomized study of all patients with RK who underwent cataract surgery using IA at the UCHealth Sue Anschutz‐Rodgers Eye Center from 2014 to 2019 was conducted. Refraction prediction error (RPE) for IA and Barrett TKNH was compared. General linear modelling accounting for the correlation between eyes was used to determine whether absolute RPE differed significantly between Barrett TKNH and IA. Outcome by number of RK cuts was also compared between the two methods.

Results

Forty‐seven eyes (31 patients) were included. The mean RPEs for Barrett TKNH and IA were 0.04 ± 0.92D and 0.01 ± 0.92D, respectively, neither was significantly different than zero (p = 0.77, p = 0.91). The median absolute RPEs were 0.50D and 0.48D, respectively (p = 0.70). The refractive outcome fell within ± 0.50D of prediction for 51.1% of eyes with Barrett TKNH and 55.3% with IA, and 80.8% were within ± 1.00D for both techniques. Mean absolute RPE increased with a higher number of RK cuts (grouped into < 8 cuts and ≥ 8 cuts) for both Barrett TKNH (0.35D and 0.74D, p = 0.008) and IA (0.30D and 0.80D, p = 0.0001).

Conclusions

There is no statistically significant difference between Barrett TKNH and IA in predicting postoperative refractive error in eyes with prior RK. Both are reasonable methods for choosing intraocular lens power. Eyes with more RK cuts have higher prediction errors.
Towards an ecology of protective coloration
Authors: Caro Tim , Koneru Manisha
Published: December 2020

The strategies underlying different forms of protective coloration are well understood but little attention has been paid to the ecological, life‐history and behavioural circumstances under which they evolve. While some comparative studies have investigated the ecological correlates of aposematism, and background matching, the latter particularly in mammals, few have examined the ecological correlates of other types of protective coloration. Here, we first outline which types of defensive coloration strategies may be exhibited by the same individual; concluding that many protective coloration mechanisms can be employed simultaneously, particularly in conjunction with background matching. Second, we review the ecological predictions that have been made for each sort of protective coloration mechanism before systematically surveying phylogenetically controlled comparative studies linking ecological and social variables to antipredator defences that involve coloration. We find that some a priori predictions based on small‐scale empirical studies and logical arguments are indeed supported by comparative data, especially in relation to how illumination affects both background matching and self‐shadow concealment through countershading; how body size is associated with countershading, motion dazzle, flash coloration and aposematism, although only in selected taxa; how immobility may promote background matching in ambush predators; and how mobility may facilitate motion dazzle. Examination of nearly 120 comparative tests reveals that many focus on ecological variables that have little to do with predictions derived from antipredator defence theory, and that broad‐scale ecological studies of defence strategies that incorporate phylogenetics are still very much in their infancy. We close by making recommendations for future evolutionary ecological research.
Prototypes as identity markers: The double‐edged role of prototypes in multidisciplinary innovation teams
Authors: Dosi Clio , Mattarelli Elisa , Vignoli Matteo
Published: December 2020

Prototypes play a powerful role in facilitating the work of multidisciplinary innovation teams, but if not properly managed, they may inhibit innovation processes. This paper inquires into the tensions that exist around the use of prototypes in multidisciplinary teams. We studied the relationship between work identities (related to teams and subgroups within teams) and prototypes with a field study of a multidisciplinary team in an emergency department, in charge of redesigning the layout of the unit. Results show that different values of subgroup identities are reflected in the solutions devised by the team. These values become salient through the prototype; that is, the prototype is an identity marker, especially when it is characterized by higher tangibility, fidelity and validity. When the prototype is an identity marker, it sparks conflict within the team. We also find that a superordinate team identity can help in solving conflictual interactions. Our analysis contributes to revealing how prototypes as identity markers can both inhibit and facilitate the innovation process of multidisciplinary teams. We offer theoretical and practical implications for managers, team members and designers working in multidisciplinary teams.
Understanding and responding to the environmental human rights defenders crisis: The case for conservation action
Authors: Bille Larsen Peter , Le Billon Philippe , Menton Mary , Aylwin José , Balsiger Jörg , Boyd David , Forst Michel , Lambrick Fran , Santos Claudelice , Storey Hannah , Wilding Susan
Published: December 2020

Close to two thousand environmental human rights defenders have been killed in 57 countries since 2002, with about four losing their lives every week in 2019. Many of these defenders represent Indigenous Peoples and local communities protecting ecosystems from large‐scale environmentally destructive projects. As the positive contributions of Indigenous and local communities to biodiversity conservation become better recognized, so should the losses and risks that they face. Despite major efforts at documenting abuses and protecting defenders, many blind spots and gaps remain. Here, we call for the conservation community to put the protection of defenders at the heart of its strategy to slow down and reverse the current onslaught on the environment. The conservation community can respond in a number of ways including reaching out to its constituencies, working together with the human rights community, and mobilizing its networks, field offices, and presence in remote areas to denounce abuses and counter isolation. In doing so the conservation community can advance the collective agenda bringing together conservation and environment‐related human rights through the Post‐2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.
False Pass, Alaska: Significant changes in depth and shoreline in the historic time period
Authors: Zimmermann Mark , Prescott Megan M.
Published: December 2020

Global ocean circulation is limited partly by the small passes of Alaska's Aleutian Islands, which restrict North Pacific Ocean water from flowing north into the Bering Sea and eventually to the Arctic, but the size and shape of these Aleutian passes are poorly described. While quantitatively redefining all of the Aleutian passes, we determined that the easternmost pass, with the cryptic name of False Pass, and with an unusual configuration of having both northern and southern inlets, had two or more inlets to the Bering Sea in the recent past, but that it has only a single northern inlet now (15,822 m2), roughly equivalent in size to the southern inlet, Isanotski Strait (15,969 m2). Navigational charts depict the opposite: two inlets to the Bering Sea now, but just one in older charts (1926–43). This discrepancy inspired a thorough review of the hydrographic history from which we concluded that the second northern inlet did exist and hypothesize that it was a remnant of multiple former openings, or a single large opening, potentially allowing greater northward flow of warmer, fresher Alaska Coastal Current water. While the shoreline changes that we document here are often regarded as minor, ephemeral events, we document similar, nearby, permanent shoreline shifts which changed Ikatan Island into a peninsula and which shifted the Swanson Lagoon outlet over 3 km to the east.
THE CRITICAL PROMISES OF THE HISTORY OF KNOWLEDGE: PERSPECTIVES FROM EAST ASIAN STUDIES
Authors: MARCON FEDERICO
Published: December 2020

This essay, written from the vantage point of a historian specialized in early modern Japan, asks if and in what capacity the history of knowledge offers an advantage for our understanding of the past compared to established historiographical forms. It accounts for the intellectual relevance of this genre of history and concludes with a strong endorsement of its self‐reflexive methodology. It also contends that historical research on East Asia is of inestimable value for this historiographical approach because of its resistance to uncritically universalizing Eurocentric terminology and because of its direct engagement with transcultural translation of both archival sources and heuristic apparatus. Historians working on knowledge production in East Asia or in other parts of the “non‐Western” world must constantly question the effects of their interpretive categories on the topics and archives they study; they are thus accustomed to the epistemological self‐reflection that this new approach seems to require. The essay concludes by advocating metaphorical comparison as a formal model that best expresses historians’ heuristic practices.
Varying support for abundance‐centre and congeneric‐competition hypotheses along elevational transects of mammals
Authors: Wen Zhixin , Ge Deyan , Feijó Anderson , Du Yuanbao , Cheng Jilong , Sun Jian , Wang Yanqun , Xia Lin , Yang Qisen
Published: December 2020

Aim

Whether species are most abundant at their geographic range centre and increasingly rare towards range limits (the abundance‐centre hypothesis, ACH) has weak empirical support in birds along elevational gradients. This may be due to empirical limitations—most studies do not capture the multi‐faceted nature of elevational gradients or species interactions. We examine the ACH and an alternative that the abundance maximum of elevational sympatric congeners will occur at different elevations along a gradient (the congeneric‐competition hypothesis, CCH).

Location

Twelve elevational gradients in Central and Southwest China.

Taxon

Five small mammal species, including three congeneric species.

Methods

The ACH was tested by fitting abundance patterns to Huisman‐Olff‐Fresco (HOF) models and measuring the relative elevational distance between a species' abundance‐weighted range centre (RCAbu) and its elevational range centre. The CCH was tested by calculating the elevational overlap value of each congeneric pair and the relative elevational distance (RCAbuDiff) between the RCAbus of congeners.

Results

Abundances of each species showed diverse patterns along different gradients. For all species, a unimodal symmetric pattern appeared at most once among the studied gradients and found in only four (8.7%) of the total cases. Most (90.9%) of the Apodemus congeneric pairs had a high elevational overlap (above 75%). For each of the three congeneric pairs, 40.0% to 50.0% of the cases showed RCAbuDiff values > 0.25, suggesting that the congeners’ RCAbus were separated by at least one elevational climate zone.

Main conclusions

Species' elevational abundance patterns may vary among different elevational gradients in the same geographic region. The elevational abundance patterns of five mammalian species were rarely consistent with the ACH after the spatial variability of the patterns was considered. The abundance patterns of congeneric species showed moderate support for the CCH.
Regulatory mechanism of miR‐525‐5p in over‐invasion of trophoblast
Authors: Zhang Min , Li Ping , Mao Xuemei , Zhang Hongyan
Published: December 2020

Aim

To investigate the mechanism of miRNA‐525‐5p (miR‐525‐5p) in regulating the invasion of trophoblast cells.

Methods

The expressions of miR‐525‐5p and Homeobox D10 (HOXD10) in pre‐eclampsia (PE) and normal placentas were detected. Besides the expressions of miR‐525‐5p and HOXD10, the levels of Vimentin, N‐cadherin and E‐cadherin in human trophoblast (HTR)‐8 cells were also measured after cell transfection. 3‐(4,5)‐dimethylthiahiazo (‐z‐y1)‐3,5‐di‐ phenytetrazoliumromide (MTT) and Transwell assays assessed the proliferative and invasive capabilities of HTR‐8 cells, respectively. Dual‐luciferase reporter assay verified the targeting relationship between miR‐525‐5p and HOXD10.

Results

MiR‐525‐5p was lowly expressed and HOXD10 was highly expressed in PE placentas. MiR‐525‐5p inhibition or HOXD10 overexpression suppressed proliferation, invasion and epithelial‐mesenchymal transition (EMT) of HTR‐8 cells. MiR‐525‐5p overexpression or HOXD10 knockdown promoted proliferation, invasion and EMT of HTR‐8 cells. HOXD10 was a downstream target of miR‐525‐5p. Inhibiting HOXD10 reversed the suppressive effects of miR‐525‐5p inhibition on proliferation, invasion and EMT of HTR‐8 cells.

Conclusion

MiR‐525‐5p mediates the invasion of trophoblast cells by regulating HOXD10, which provides new therapeutic targets for PE treatment.