bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Predators enhance resilience of a saltmarsh foundation species to drought
Authors: Sharp Sean J. , Angelini Christine
Published: October 2020

Disturbances are increasing in size and frequency with climate change, facilitating species that opportunistically exploit areas where habitat‐forming foundation species have been removed. Although it is well‐recognized that consumers, disease and weedy space‐holders can affect foundation species’ resistance to and recovery from disturbance, how predators influence their resilience is less clear.

In salt marshareas de‐vegetated by drought and intensive snail Littoraria irrorata grazing (hereafter, ‘die‐offs’), we monitored bird use and experimentally manipulated bird and nekton access to the vegetated borders of die‐off mudflats across periods of both vegetation die‐off and regrowth to explore how these predators mediate the resilience of cordgrass Spartina alterniflora, the foundation species that structures US Atlantic coast salt marshes.

Surveys revealed that birds, especially probers that agitate soils, forage year‐round for invertebrates in die‐off mudflats in our study area but not in adjacent vegetated areas.

During periods of die‐off, cordgrass borders accessible to bird and nekton predators retreated >3‐times slower and snail densities were halved, relative to predator exclusion cages. In predator‐accessible plots, slower border retreat corresponded to greater snail infection by a bird host‐dependent trematode parasite. During recovery, cordgrass borders revegetated more quickly, and snail densities declined faster over time in unmanipulated controls relative to predator exclusions.

Synthesis. These findings suggest that birds, through their transmission of parasites to snails, appear to act synergistically with snail‐consuming nekton to slow cordgrass loss after drought‐snail disturbances. Predator access also corresponds to faster cordgrass recovery as environmental conditions improve, although the mechanisms behind this need further investigation. Thus, predators that opportunistically forage within disturbances have the potential to suppress consumer impacts through multiple mechanisms, including consumption and disease transmission, thereby bolstering foundation species’ resilience and modulating whole ecosystem responses to climate change.
Magnolol inhibits sodium currents in freshly isolated mouse dorsal root ganglion neurons
Authors: Qiu Jie , Zhang Lulu , Hong Jiangru , Ni Xiao , Li Jun , Li Guang , Zhang Guangqin
Published: October 2020

The voltage‐gated sodium channel (VGSC) currents in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons contain mainly TTX‐sensitive (TTX‐S) and TTX‐resistant (TTX‐R) Na+ currents. Magnolol (Mag), a hydroxylated biphenyl compound isolated from the bark of Magnolia officinalis, has been well documented to exhibit analgesic effects, but its mechanism is not yet fully understood. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether the antinociceptive effects of Mag is through inhibition of Na+ currents. Na+ currents in freshly isolated mouse DRG neurons were recorded with the whole cell patch clamp technique. Results showed that Mag inhibited TTX‐S and TTX‐R Na+ currents in a concentration‐dependent manner. The IC50 values for block of TTX‐S and TTX‐R Na+ currents were 9.4 and 7.0 μmol/L, respectively. Therefore, TTX‐R Na+ current was more susceptible to Mag than TTX‐S Na+ current. For TTX‐S Na+ channel, 10 μmol/L Mag shifted the steady state inactivation curve toward more negative by 9.8 mV, without affecting the activation curve. For TTX‐R Na+ channel, 7 μmol/L Mag shifted the steady state activation and inactivation curves toward more positive and negative potentials by 6.5 and 11.7 mV, respectively. In addition, Mag significantly postponed recovery of TTX‐S and TTX‐R Na+ currents from inactivation, and produced frequency dependent blocks of both subtypes of Na+ currents. These results suggest that the inhibitory effects of Mag on Na+ channels may contribute to its analgesic effect.
Long‐term observation of fish community in streams inside and outside road construction of Teshio River system, northern Hokkaido, Japan
Authors: Umatani Yoshiyuki , Okuda Atsushi , Fujito Eishi , Yoshida Toshiya , Satoh Fuyuki , Maekawa Koji , Nakamura Masahiro
Published: October 2020

Nakagawa experimental forest of Hokkaido University is located in the middle Teshio River and some tributaries flow through the forest. The construction of Otoineppu bypass route started in 2007. This bypass route will pass through the forest. In order to evaluate the impacts of the road construction on stream ecosystem, a long‐term monitoring of fish community and stream environmental characteristics have been conducted including before, during and after the road construction. The survey has been implemented on five streams in Teshio River (three streams inside the bypass construction zone and two streams outside the zone). Here, we report the data of species, body size and weight of fish sampled using an electrofishing unit and the data of stream environmental characteristics such as water temperature, water surface area, pH and EC. The three‐pass removal method for fish sampling and measurement of stream environmental characteristics was conducted three times a year (mainly June, August and October) from 1999 to 2018. A total of 57,203 individuals were observed, belonging to 11 species in seven families. After bypass road construction started (2007), the number of fishes gradually increased at both bypass road construction and control sites. Occasionally, the number of fishes at the bypass construction site tended to be lower than at the control site, but there was not always noticeable difference between them.

The complete data set for this abstract published in the Data Paper section of the journal is available in electronic format in MetaCat in JaLTER at http://db.cger.nies.go.jp/JaLTER/metacat/metacat/ERDP-2020-09.1/jalter-en.
Fine‐scale distribution of tropical seagrass beds in Southeast Asia
Authors: Sudo Kenji , Nakaoka Masahiro
Published: October 2020

Southeast Asia is a hotspot of global seagrass diversity, offering valuable ecosystem services for human life. However, historically, there have been large gaps in the scientific knowledge of the distribution of seagrass beds in this region. Information on the distribution has not been updated in global databases since the publication of the World Seagrass Atlas in 2003, which was based on data mostly obtained up until the late 1990s. We collected more recent data on seagrass bed distribution from nine ASEAN countries plus southern China and southern Japan, and integrated these data into a geographic information system (GIS)‐database. A total of 1,064 polygon data and 937 points data were uploaded in this paper, which were obtained from 107 scientific articles and reports published after 2000, including those written in local languages. Among them, 7.3% of the data have associated information on seagrass bed size and 35.3% have associated information on seagrass species composition. Data obtained from Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, Timore‐Leste and Southern China cover almost all the coastlines of each country, whereas data for the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand still have large gaps in areal coverage. The data set has a few points from Brunei Darussalam, the Paracel Islands, Spratly Islands and Pratas Islands, which are areas that we lacked information on for a long time. The obtained data will be useful to understand the current status of seagrass beds and to help facilitate better conservation and management of coastal areas in this region.

The complete data set for this abstract published in the Data Paper section of the journal is available in electronic format in MetaCat in JaLTER at http://db.cger.nies.go.jp/JaLTER/metacat/metacat/ERDP-2020-13.1/jalter-en.
Five structural genes required for ceramide synthesis in Caulobacter and for bacterial survival
Authors: Olea‐Ozuna Roberto Jhonatan , Poggio Sebastian , EdBergström  , Quiroz‐Rocha Elva , García‐Soriano Daniela A. , Sahonero‐Canavesi Diana X. , Padilla‐Gómez Jonathan , Martínez‐Aguilar Lourdes , López‐Lara Isabel M. , Thomas‐Oates Jane , Geiger Otto
Published: October 2020

Sphingolipids are essential and common membrane components in eukaryotic organisms, participating in many important cellular functions. Only a few bacteria are thought to harbour sphingolipids in their membranes, among them the well‐studied α‐proteobacterium Caulobacter crescentus, a model organism for asymmetric cell division and cellular differentiation. Here, we report that C. crescentus wild type produces several molecular species of dihydroceramides, which are not produced in a mutant lacking the structural gene for serine palmitoyltransferase (spt). Whereas growth of a spt‐deficient mutant and wild type are indistinguishable during the exponential phase of growth, survival of the spt‐deficient mutant is much reduced, in comparison with wild type, during stationary phase of growth, especially at elevated temperatures. The structural gene for spt is located within a genomic cluster, comprising another 16 genes and which, like spt, are important for fitness of C. crescentus. Mutants deficient in genes linked to spt by high cofitness were unable to produce dihydroceramide or to survive in stationary phase of growth at elevated temperatures. At least five structural genes are required for dihydroceramide biosynthesis in C. crescentus and sphingolipid biosynthesis is needed for survival of this bacterium and the integrity of its outer membrane.
Digital Election Observation: Regulatory Challenges around Legal Online Content
Authors: Wagner Ben
Published: October 2020

Between public debates about ‘hacking’ elections, so‐called ‘fake news’ and online disinformation campaigns, it has become hard to imagine what free and fair elections in a digital environment could look like. This challenge is particularly pronounced for election observers who monitor free and fair elections. How should election observers fulfil this task when reliable data in online media campaigns are often not even available to media regulators? The following article provides a brief overview of existing challenges around online content regulation and how these apply to elections and election observation. It then considers where resources for digital electoral observation exist and how most effectively to build on these before, in conclusion, discussing next steps and potential opportunities to develop digital election observation further.
Can police training reduce ethnic/racial disparities in stop and search? Evidence from a multisite UK trial
Authors: Miller Joel , Quinton Paul , Alexandrou Banos , Packham Daniel
Published: October 2020

Research Summary

This study examines the effects of a 1‐day pilot training program on ethnic/racial bias in police use of stop and search powers, using a randomized controlled trial in six diverse agencies in England. We theorized the training could reduce officer bias by improving their competence to apply legitimate criteria in search decisions, and/or by reducing their reliance on ethnic/racial stereotypes. Survey results showed the training improved officers’ knowledge of stop and search regulations, made them more selective in declared search intentions in hypothetical scenarios, and reduced their support for ethnic/racial stereotyping in policing. While it showed no effects on the ethnic/racial patterns of search intentions in survey scenarios, there was no survey evidence of bias against black people in the scenarios, even in the absence of training. Police search records revealed no clear training effects on recorded street‐level behaviors, whether in relation to the frequency of searches, the strength of grounds for suspicion, or their ethnic/racial patterning.

Policy implications

A 1‐day police training program to reduce ethnic/racial bias may change officers’ knowledge and attitudes but, on its own, may not be sufficient to impact their street‐level behaviors. Training is probably most effective as part of a package of reforms, and particularly when it: involves sufficient “dosage”; addresses the mechanisms contributing to disparities beyond individual officer decisions; deploys active learning approaches; uses demonstration, modeling and feedback; and pays attention to participant engagement and reinforcement before and after the scheduled training.
Sentencing scorecards: Reducing racial disparities in prison sentences at their source
Authors: Ridgeway Greg , Moyer Ruth A. , Bushway Shawn D.
Published: October 2020

Research Summary

Scorecards have become an increasingly common tool for public policy decision making about important issues in education, finance, and health care. Few scorecards have been applied in criminal justice and none has been developed to highlight racial disparities in incarceration. We constructed county‐level scorecards for racial disparities in incarceration rates for the New York State Permanent Commission on Sentencing. Using detailed data on felony cases in New York State between 2000 and 2014, including the specific penal law criminal offense, features of the underlying charges, and criminal history, we assembled a set of White defendants within each county that collectively resembled Black and Hispanic defendants in that county. Statewide, Black defendants were more likely to receive prison sentences than similar White defendants (43% vs. 40%). Some individual counties had much greater racial disparities with relative risks of prison as high as 1.36. We found similar results for Hispanic defendants.

Policy Implications

Early institutional support for our scorecard receded once racial disparities were flagged in specific, named counties. The scorecard was never deployed by the Commission. Commission members and the research team met with individual counties but the Commission was disbanded during this process. New York State still lacks a formal sentencing commission. We recommend future scorecard efforts come from legislative or executive mandates, requiring rigorous methods and public presentations.
Climate Change Impacts on Local Flood Risks in the U.S. Northeast: A Case Study on the Connecticut and Merrimack River Basins
Authors: Siddique Ridwan , Palmer Richard
Published: October 2020

This study investigates the potential impacts of climate change on future flows in the main stem of the Connecticut and Merrimack rivers within Massachusetts. The study applies two common climate projections based on (Representative Concentration Pathways), RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 and downscaled gridded climate projections from 14 global climate models (GCMs) to estimate the 100‐year, 24‐h extreme precipitation events for two future time‐periods: near‐term (2021–2060) and far‐term (2060–2099). 100‐year 24‐h precipitation events at near‐ and far‐term are compared to GCM‐driven historical extreme precipitation events during a base period (1960–1999) and results for RCP 8.5 scenario show average increases between 25%–50% during the near‐term compared to the base period and increases of over 50% during the far‐term. Streamflow conditions are generated with a distributed hydrological model where downscaled climate projections are used as inputs. For the near‐term, the medians of the GCMs using the RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 suggest 2.9%–8.1% increases in the 100‐year, 24‐h flow event in the Connecticut and an increase of 9.9%–13.7% in the Merrimack River. For the far‐term, the medians of the GCMs using the RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5 suggest a 9.0%–14.1% increase in the Connecticut and 15.8%–20.6% for the Merrimack River. Ultimately, the results presented here can be used as a guidance for the long‐term management of infrastructures on the Connecticut and Merrimack River floodplains.
Cohesion between pulmonary artery and bronchus after immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy in a lung cancer patient
Authors: Takamori Shinkichi , Takenoyama Mitsuhiro , Matsubara Taichi , Fujishita Takatoshi , Ito Kensaku , Yamaguchi Masafumi , Toyozawa Ryo , Seto Takashi , Okamoto Tatsuro
Published: October 2020

Immunotherapy targeting programmed death‐1 or programmed death‐ligand 1 has become the standard of care for advanced non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Several recent clinical trials have investigated the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) as neoadjuvant treatment for early NSCLC. However, the safety and feasibility of pulmonary resection after ICIs remain unclear. We herein report a patient in whom cohesion between the left main pulmonary artery and left upper bronchus was found during left upper lobectomy following neoadjuvant ICI combined with chemotherapy. After both central and peripheral sides of the left main pulmonary artery were clamped with the aim of controlling hemorrhage in case of vascular injury, the left main pulmonary artery and left upper bronchus were divided and individually cut with staplers. The thoracoscopic procedure was otherwise uneventful. The patient was discharged from our hospital with no postoperative complications. Thoracic surgeons should anticipate the possible need for management of cohesion between a pulmonary artery and bronchus in patients who have received immune checkpoint inhibitors preoperatively.
Extracellular vesicles in embryo implantation and disorders of the endometrium
Authors: Mishra Anuradha , Ashary Nancy , Sharma Richa , Modi Deepak
Published: October 2020

Implantation of the embryo is a rate‐limiting step for a successful pregnancy, and it requires an intricate crosstalk between the embryo and the endometrium. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are membrane‐enclosed, nano‐sized structures produced by cells to mediate cell to cell communication and modulate a diverse set of biological processes. Herein, we review the involvement of EVs in the process of embryo implantation and endometrial diseases. EVs have been isolated from uterine fluid, cultured endometrial epithelial/stromal cells and trophectodermal cells. The endometrial epithelial and stromal/decidual cell‐derived EVs and its cargo are internalized bythe trophoblast cells, and they regulate a diverse set of genes involved in adhesion, invasion and migration. Conversely, the embryo‐derived EVs and its cargo are internalized by epithelial and immune cells of the endometrium for biosensing and immunomodulation required for successful implantation. EVs have also been shown to play a role in infertility, recurrent implantation failure, endometriosis, endometritis and endometrial cancer. Further research should set a stage for EVs as non‐invasive “liquid biopsy” tools for assessment of endometrial health.
Renal impairment and its impact on clinical outcomes in patients who are critically ill with COVID‐19: a multicentre observational study
Authors: Gasparini M. , Khan S. , Patel J. M. , Parekh D. , Bangash M. N. , Stϋmpfle R. , Shah A. , Baharlo B. , Soni S. ,   Collaborators
Published: October 2020

Renal impairment is common in patients who are critically ill with coronavirus disease‐19 (COVID‐19). We examined the association between acute and chronic kidney disease with clinical outcomes in 372 patients with coronavirus disease‐19 admitted to four regional intensive care units between 10 March 2020 and 31 July 2020. A total of 216 (58%) patients presented with COVID‐19 and renal impairment. Acute kidney injury and/or chronic kidney disease was associated with greater in‐hospital mortality compared with patients with preserved renal function (107/216 patients (50%) (95%CI 44–57) vs. 32/156 (21%) (95%CI 15–28), respectively; p < 0.001, relative risk 2.4 (95%CI 1.7–3.4)). Mortality was greatest in patients with renal transplants (6/7 patients (86%) (95%CI 47–100)). Mortality rates increased in patients with worsening renal injury according to the Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes classification: stage 0 mortality 33/157 patients (21%) (95%CI 15–28) vs. stages 1–3 mortality 91/186 patients (49%) (95%CI 42–56); p < 0.001, relative risk 2.3 (95%CI 1.7–3.3). Survivors were less likely to require renal replacement therapy compared with non‐survivors (57/233 patients (24%) vs. 64/139 patients (46%), respectively; p < 0.001, relative risk 1.9 (95%CI 1.4–2.5)). One‐fifth of survivors who required renal replacement therapy acutely in intensive care continued to require renal support following discharge. Our data demonstrate that renal impairment in patients admitted to intensive care with COVID‐19 is common and is associated with a high mortality and requirement for on‐going renal support after discharge from critical care. Our findings have important implications for future pandemic planning in this patient cohort.
Climate and plant structure determine the spatiotemporal butterfly distribution on a tropical mountain
Authors: Beirão Marina V. , Neves Frederico S. , Fernandes G. Wilson
Published: October 2020

Mountains are among the most powerful natural gradients for testing ecological and evolutionary responses of biota to environmental influences because differences in climate and plant structure occur over short spatial scales. We describe the spatiotemporal distribution patterns and drives of fruit‐feeding butterfly diversity in the mountainous region of Serra do Cipó, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Seven elevations from 822 to 1,388 m a.s.l. were selected for evaluating the effects of abiotic factors and vegetation characteristics on butterfly diversity. A total of 44 fruit‐feeding butterfly species were recorded in a two‐year study. Species richness (local and regional) of fruit‐feeding butterflies decreased with increasing elevation. The interaction between temperature or humidity and precipitation influenced the abundance and β‐diversity of butterflies in the elevation gradient, whereas β‐diversity decreased with increasing plant richness. Butterfly richness (local and regional) and β‐diversity varied with the sampling period, with fewer species in July (2012 and 2013), the dry period, as expected for Neotropical insects. β‐Diversity in space and time was due to species replacement (turnover), indicating that butterfly composition differs throughout the mountain and over time. In summary, climate and plant richness largely influence butterfly diversity in the elevational gradient. Climatic changes in conjunction with increasing anthropic impacts on mountainous regions of southeast Brazil will likely influence the community of mountaintop butterflies in the Espinhaço Mountain Range.

Abstract in Portuguese is available with online material.
Programmed cell death 1‐expressing CD56‐negative natural killer (NK) cell expansion is a hallmark of chronic NK cell activation during dasatinib treatment
Authors: Ishiyama Ken‐ichi , Kitawaki Toshio , Otsuka Yasuyuki , Takaori‐Kondo Akifumi , Kadowaki Norimitsu
Published: October 2020

Dasatinib treatment markedly increases the number of large granular lymphocytes including natural killer (NK) cells in a proportion of Ph+ leukemia patients, which associates with a better prognosis. In‐depth immune profiling of NK cells can predict therapeutic response in these patients. In the present study, we showed that CD56‐negative (CD56neg) NK cells increased exclusively in cytomegalovirus‐seropositive (CMV+) patients treated with dasatinib. The increase longitudinally paralleled with progressive differentiation of CD56dim NK cells during dasatinib therapy driven by CMV reactivation as shown by principal component analysis on 19 NK cell markers. The CD56neg NK cells showed downregulation of NK‐activating receptors, upregulation of PD‐1, and lower cytotoxicity and cytokine production, indicating that these cells are anergic and dysfunctional as seen in chronic infections with HIV‐1 or hepatitis C virus. Moreover, cytolytic activity of CD56dim and CD56neg NK cells against leukemia cells was partially restored by nivolumab in proportion to the frequency of PD‐1+ NK cells. The proportion of patients who achieved deep molecular responses at 2 years was significantly higher in dasatinib‐treated patients with ≥3% CD56neg NK cells than in those with fewer CD56neg NK cells (54.5% vs 15.8%, P = .0419). These findings suggest that CD56neg NK cells may be an exhausted population induced by chronic activation through CMV reactivation during dasatinib therapy. Expansion of CD56neg NK cells is a hallmark of chronic NK cell activation in patients treated with dasatinib and may predict a better clinical outcome. Furthermore, PD‐1 blockade may enhance anti‐leukemia responses of such NK cells.
Aetiology, clinical features and surgical outcomes of isolated medial rectus palsy
Authors: Zhu Binbin , Wang Fang , Yan Jianhua
Published: October 2020

Importance

Isolated medial rectus palsy is extremely rare in clinical practice.

Background

To report demographics, aetiology, clinical findings, imaging features and surgical outcomes in patients with isolated medial rectus palsy.

Design

Retrospective study.

Participants

All patients treated for isolated medial rectus palsy at Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat‐sen University, between September 2003 and March 2019.

Methods

Review of patient records.

Main Outcome Measures

Aetiology, clinical findings, imaging features and surgical outcomes.

Results

A total of 32 patients (22 males, 10 females) were included. Mean age was 33.19 ± 19.78 years. The right eye was involved in 17 patients, the left eye was involved in 14 patients, and both eyes were involved in one patient. The most common causes were iatrogenic injury (43.75%), followed by trauma (37.50%) and congenital (18.75%). The most common clinical findings included outward deviation, diplopia and limited adduction. Six patients showed combined small‐angle vertical strabismus, and 10 patients experienced a scale of −1 motility defect in other directions. After individualized strabismus surgery, preoperative exotropia of 60 ± 25 prism diopters (PD) was significantly reduced to 12 ± 13 PD (t = 10.938, P < .0001). Ocular motility improved in 21 patients, and five patients achieved normal ocular motility. Successful correction was obtained in 20/32 (62.50%) patients, with under‐correction in 12/32 (37.50%) patients. Twenty‐eight patients had only one surgery, three patients had two surgeries and one patient had three surgeries.

Conclusions and Relevance

The most common cause of isolated medial rectus palsy was local injury. Satisfactory results were obtained after individualized surgical interventions based on personalized preoperative evaluations.
A rare case of a periorbital respiratory (choristomatous) cyst
Authors: Yeh Christopher , Atillasoy Cem , Seykora John T. , Lee Vivian
Published: October 2020

Respiratory cysts are benign lesions lined by normal respiratory epithelium. There are few reported cases localized to the orbit, while those of the eyelid are exceedingly rare. Respiratory cysts usually arise either from a non‐hereditary congenital malformation, where they are distinguished as choristomatous, or from trauma. Here, we report a case of a 53‐year‐old man who presented with a large right lower eyelid cyst that was histopathologically diagnosed as a respiratory cyst.
Bilateral renal masses in an adult with haematuria
Authors: Gupta Parikshaa , Prakash Sharma Aditya , Mathew Jeni , Rajwanshi Arvind
Published: October 2020

Renal angiomyolipoma (AML) is a rare, benign mesenchymal neoplasm which can occur sporadically or in association with tuberous sclerosis complex. In the absence of typical radiologic features, a definitive diagnosis of AML requires microscopic examination of the tumor tissue supplemented by cell‐block immunocytochemistry.
Top Corporate Leaders in Vietnam's Transitional Economy: Origins and Career Pathways
Authors: Fujita Mai
Published: October 2020

Literature on the corporate elite in transitional economies has focused on the elite's political backgrounds. However, the evolution of the corporate sector amidst decades of transition in these economies suggests that research needs to go beyond origins to focus on career pathways. Adopting a career history analysis, this study constitutes the first systematic attempt to empirically analyze career pathways of top corporate leaders in Vietnam, where, the literature has argued, capitalists emerged from within the state sector. The analysis of an originally constructed database of top leaders of the 100 largest listed firms reveals, firstly, that state‐origin leaders persist alongside newly emerging private‐origin leaders and, secondly, that leaders following different career pathways exhibit different attributes, which influence the leaders' capacity to rise and stay in power. These findings demonstrate how a focus on career pathways would shed new light on the emerging patterns and drivers of social stratification in transitional economies.
ATP1A3‐related neurological disorders and cerebellar ataxia in childhood
Authors: Ng Joanne
Published: October 2020

This commentary is on the case series by Sasaki et al. on pages 111–115 of this issue.
Increased short‐ and long‐term mortality following infections in dementia: a nationwide registry‐based cohort study
Authors: Janbek J. , Taudorf L. , Musaeus C. S. , Frimodt‐Møller N. , Laursen T. M. , Waldemar G.
Published: October 2020

Background and purpose

Mortality following infections in dementia has not yet been comprehensively explored. The aim of this cohort study was to investigate the short‐ and long‐term mortality following infections in dementia.

Methods

Follow‐up was from 1 January 2000 or the 65‐year birthday until death, immigration, or 31 December 2015. Exposure was incident dementia and a first infection. The outcome was all‐cause mortality. Mortality rate ratios (MRRs) were calculated using Poisson regression in 4 exposure groups (dementia yes/no, infection yes/no) by sex, infection site, and time since infection.

Results

1,496,436 people were followed with 12,739,135 person‐years. MRR in dementia/infection was 6.52 (95% confidence interval: 6.43–6.60) and was increased for infections of all sites. Increased mortality was short term (30 days) and long term (10 years).

Conclusions

Increased mortality in people with dementia identifies them as a particularly vulnerable group that needs clinical attention.
Anti‐N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate receptor (NMDAR) encephalitis is associated with IRF7, BANK1 and TBX21 polymorphisms in two populations
Authors: Shu Y. , Guo J. , Ma X. , Yan Y. , Wang Y. , Chen C. , Sun X. , Wang H. , Yin J. , Long Y. , Yan X. , Lu Z. , Petersen F. , Yu X. , Qiu W.
Published: October 2020

Background and purpose

Autoantibodies targeting the GluN1(NR1) subunit of the anti‐N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate receptor (NMDAR) cause encephalitis. Although it has been shown that anti‐NMDAR encephalitis is associated with human leukocyte antigen (HLA) loci, susceptibility genes for the disease outside the HLA loci remain unidentified. In this study, we aimed to explore the association of anti‐NMDAR encephalitis with non‐HLA genes.

Methods

Two Chinese anti‐NMDAR encephalitis cohorts from Han populations were recruited for this study. The North Chinese case–control set consisted of 98 patients and 460 controls, while the South Chinese case–control set included 78 patients and 541 controls. All participants were genotyped for 28 single nucleotide polymorphisms that are associated with autoimmune disorders or infectious diseases.

Results

In two independent case–control sets, we identified significant associations of anti‐NMDAR encephalitis with IRF7 rs1131665 (odds ratio [OR] 3.34, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.99–5.63; P < 0.000001, Padjusted = 0.00004), BANK1 rs4522865 (OR 1.44, 95% CI 1.15–1.82; P = 0.0017, Padjusted = 0.0149), and TBX21 rs17244587 (OR 2.03, 95% CI 1.35–3.05; P = 0.00051, Padjusted = 0.0066). Furthermore, analysis of the three polymorphisms with clinical features of the disease revealed that the IRF7 rs1131665 was associated with tumor status.

Conclusion

The present study has for the first time identified non‐HLA susceptibility genes for anti‐NMDAR encephalitis. The association of IRF7, BANK1 and TBX21 with anti‐NMDAR encephalitis suggests that B‐cell activation, Th1 responses, virus infection and the type I interferon signaling pathway are involved in the pathogenesis of the disease.
Outcomes of resections that spare vs remove an MRI‐normal hippocampus
Authors: Morita‐Sherman Marcia , Louis Shreya , Vegh Deborah , Busch Robyn M. , Ferguson Lisa , Bingaman Justin , Bulacio Juan , Najm Imad , Jones Stephen , Zajichek Alexander , Hogue Olivia , Kattan Michael W. , Blumcke Ingmar , Cendes Fernando , Jehi Lara
Published: October 2020

Objective

To characterize seizure and cognitive outcomes of sparing vs removing an magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)–normal hippocampus in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy.

Methods

In this retrospective cohort study, we reviewed clinical, imaging, surgical, and histopathological data on 152 individuals with temporal lobe epilepsy and nonlesional hippocampi categorized into hippocampus‐spared (n = 74) or hippocampus‐resected (n = 78). Extra‐hippocampal lesions were allowed. Pre‐ and postoperative cognitive data were available on 86 patients. Predictors of seizure and cognitive outcomes were identified using Cox‐proportional hazard modeling followed by treatment‐specific model reduction according to Akaike information criterion, and built into an online risk calculator.

Results

Seizures recurred in 40% within one postoperative year, and in 63% within six postoperative years. Male gender (P = .03), longer epilepsy duration (P < .01), normal MRI (P = .04), invasive evaluation (P = .02), and acute postoperative seizures (P < .01) were associated with a higher risk of recurrence. We found no significant difference in postoperative seizure freedom rates at 5 years between those whose hippocampus was spared and those whose hippocampus was resected (P = .17). Seizure outcome models built with pre‐ and postoperative data had bootstrap validated concordance indices of 0.65 and 0.72. The dominant hippocampus‐spared group had lower rates of decline in verbal memory (39% vs 70%; P = .03) and naming (41% vs 79%; P = .01) compared to the hippocampus‐resected group. Partial hippocampus sparing had the same risk of verbal memory decline as for complete removal.

Significance

Sparing or removing an MRI‐normal hippocampus yielded similar long‐term seizure outcome. A more conservative approach, sparing the hippocampus, only partially shields patients from postoperative cognitive deficits. Risk calculators are provided to facilitate clinical counseling.
Validation of the Emotional Tone Index for Families (ETIF): A Multi‐Informant Measure of Emotional Closeness
Authors: Kerr Sophie , Hudenko William J. , Godfrey Donald A. , Lundgren Sara N. , O’Malley A. James , Sharp Carla
Published: October 2020

Despite the importance of emotional closeness (EC) in families, few researchers have accurately measured the construct in a systemic way. Additionally, existing measures rely on ratings from one informant, typically the mother, to provide information on closeness within the entire family system. We examined EC in 140 individuals (37 families) using the Emotional Tone Index for Families (ETIF), a novel, multi‐informant measure that obtains bidirectional information about EC within every family relationship. The parent identified as most familiar with the family also completed two widely used single‐informant measures: The McMaster Family Assessment Device and the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales, version IV. The ETIF exhibited good test–retest reliability, high internal consistency, and concurrent validity with the single‐informant measures. Though the primary respondent scores correlated highly with overall family closeness, results revealed only a modest association between closeness ratings within each dyad and parents rated higher levels of closeness toward their children than children rated closeness toward parents. These findings suggest that ratings from multiple informants provide valuable information about discrepancies in perceived closeness between family members and other complex family dynamics that cannot be captured by single‐informant measures. Limitations, future directions, and implications for practice are discussed.
Recent collapse of crop belts and declining diversity of US agriculture since 1840
Authors: Crossley Michael S. , Burke Kevin D. , Schoville Sean D. , Radeloff Volker C.
Published: October 2020

Over the last century, US agriculture greatly intensified and became industrialized, increasing in inputs and yields while decreasing in total cropland area. In the industrial sector, spatial agglomeration effects are typical, but such changes in the patterns of crop types and diversity would have major implications for the resilience of food systems to global change. Here, we investigate the extent to which agricultural industrialization in the United States was accompanied by agglomeration of crop types, not just overall cropland area, as well as declines in crop diversity. Based on county‐level analyses of individual crop land cover area in the conterminous United States from 1840 to 2017, we found a strong and abrupt spatial concentration of most crop types in very recent years. For 13 of the 18 major crops, the widespread belts that characterized early 20th century US agriculture have collapsed, with spatial concentration increasing 15‐fold after 2002. The number of counties producing each crop declined from 1940 to 2017 by up to 97%, and their total area declined by up to 98%, despite increasing total production. Concomitantly, the diversity of crop types within counties plummeted: in 1940, 88% of counties grew >10 crops, but only 2% did so in 2017, and combinations of crop types that once characterized entire agricultural regions are lost. Importantly, declining crop diversity with increasing cropland area is a recent phenomenon, suggesting that corresponding environmental effects in agriculturally dominated counties have fundamentally changed. For example, the spatial concentration of agriculture has important consequences for the spread of crop pests, agrochemical use, and climate change. Ultimately, the recent collapse of most agricultural belts and the loss of crop diversity suggest greater vulnerability of US food systems to environmental and economic change, but the spatial concentration of agriculture may also offer environmental benefits in areas that are no longer farmed.
The shadow pandemic: Inequitable gendered impacts of COVID‐19 in South Africa
Authors: Parry Bianca Rochelle , Gordon Errolyn
Published: October 2020

On March 11, 2020, the outbreak of Novel Coronavirus (SARS‐CoV‐2) Disease, or COVID‐19, was officially declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO). As its effects roll through societies and economies across the globe, women are expected to bear the heaviest impact. Unfortunately, despite gender‐focused reporting on the consequences of the COVID‐19 crisis, few government policies and public health efforts have explicitly addressed the gendered impacts of the pandemic. This academic review paper presents literature, from both academic and media sources, on the early effects of the COVID‐19 crisis on women, specifically within the South African context. Preliminary research and reporting of the effects of COVID‐19 on the South African population indicate that inequitable gendered practices negatively impact women in the general economy, the workplace, and the home. These settings are discussed in this article, along with recommendations to ameliorate the lived experiences of South African women.
Sex‐, landscape‐ and climate‐dependent patterns of home‐range size – a macroscale study on an avian generalist predator
Authors: Mirski Paweł , Cenian Zdzisław , Dagys Mindaugas , Daróczi Szilárd , Dementavičius Deivis , Maciorowski Grzegorz , Menderski Sebastian , Nowak Damian , Pongrácz Ádám , Prommer Matyas , Sellis Urmas , Siekiera Joachim , Szinai Peter , Tumiel Tomasz , Wójciak Janusz , Zeitz Robert , Väli Ülo
Published: October 2020

Animal home‐ranges are expressions of the biology and ecology of a species, and their size is often considered to be a proxy for habitat quality. Understanding the factors affecting variation in home‐range size may aid prediction of the impact of local or global environmental change on studied populations. To this end, we established an international collaborative programme to gather GPS telemetry data on the Lesser Spotted Eagle Clanga pomarina across a large part of its range. The breeding season home‐ranges of 58 individuals from Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Hungary and Romania were estimated using autocorrelated kernel density estimation. Differences in home‐range size were analysed using linear mixed‐effects models incorporating global (latitude, longitude, climate) and local (habitat heterogeneity, land cover, topography, human disturbance) variables. Home‐range was significantly affected by habitat heterogeneity, vegetation cover and human disturbance, and also by climate, increasing with greater temperature seasonality. A quadratic relationship between home‐range and Shannon diversity index, found in males, suggests that Eagles use less space in the least and most diverse habitats. Home‐ranges were also smaller close to human settlements, but range size was positively correlated with human population density. The first result reflects the positive influence of agricultural management on prey availability, whereas the second reflects negative impacts of disturbance and loss of foraging space. Home‐ranges of male Eagles were relatively consistent in size and were more linked to environmental conditions compared with those of females. Female home‐ranges were significantly more variable in size and showed less distinctive patterns of relationship with the tested predictors. Sex‐dependent variation in home‐range may result from the different roles of males and females in breeding activities and territoriality limitations of males. The latter factor both limited and increased the home‐range size in different individuals.
Effect of multiple loading sequence on time‐dependent stress rupture of fiber‐reinforced ceramic‐matrix composites
Authors: Li Longbiao
Published: October 2020

In this paper, the effect of multiple loading sequence on time‐dependent stress rupture of fiber‐reinforced ceramic‐matrix composites (CMCs) at intermediate temperatures in oxidative environment is investigated. Considering multiple damage mechanisms, a micromechanical constitutive model for time‐dependent stress rupture is developed to determine damage evolution of matrix crack spacing, interface debonding and oxidation length, and fiber failure probability under single and multiple loading sequences. The relationships between multiple loading sequence, composite strain evolution, time, matrix cracking, interface debonding and oxidation, and fiber fracture are established. The effects of fiber volume, matrix crack spacing, interface shear stress in the slip and oxidation region, and environment temperature on the stress/time‐dependent strain, interface debonding and oxidation fraction, and fiber broken fraction of SiC/SiC composite are analyzed. The experimental stress rupture of SiC/SiC composite under single and multiple loading sequences at 950°C in air atmosphere is predicted. Compared with single loading stress, multiple loading sequence affects the interface debonding and oxidation fraction in the debonding region, leading to the higher fiber broken fraction and shorter stress‐rupture lifetime.
Comparison of HLA ligand elution data and binding predictions reveals varying prediction performance for the multiple motifs recognized by HLA‐DQ2.5
Authors: Koşaloğlu‐Yalçın Zeynep , Sidney John , Chronister William , Peters Bjoern , Sette Alessandro
Published: October 2020

Binding prediction tools are commonly used to identify peptides presented on MHC class II molecules. Recently, a wealth of data in the form of naturally eluted ligands has become available and discrepancies between ligand elution data and binding predictions have been reported. Quantitative metrics for such comparisons are currently lacking. In this study, we assessed how efficiently MHC class II binding predictions can identify naturally eluted peptides, and investigated instances with discrepancies between the two methods in detail. We found that, in general, MHC class II eluted ligands are predicted to bind to their reported restriction element with high affinity. But, for several studies reporting an increased number of ligands that were not predicted to bind, we found that the reported MHC restriction was ambiguous. Additional analyses determined that most of the ligands predicted to not bind, are predicted to bind other co‐expressed MHC class II molecules. For selected alleles, we addressed discrepancies between elution data and binding predictions by experimental measurements and found that predicted and measured affinities correlate well. For DQA1*05:01/DQB1*02:01 (DQ2.5) however, binding predictions did miss several peptides that were determined experimentally to be binders. For these peptides and several known DQ2.5 binders, we determined key residues for conferring DQ2.5 binding capacity, which revealed that DQ2.5 utilizes two different binding motifs, of which only one is predicted effectively. These findings have important implications for the interpretation of ligand elution data and for the improvement of MHC class II binding predictions.
Astilbin prevents osteoarthritis development through the TLR4/MD‐2 pathway
Authors: Sun Shuaibo , Yan Zijian , Shui Xiaolong , Qi Weihui , Chen Yanlin , Xu Xinxian , Hu Yuezheng , Guo Weijun , Shang Ping
Published: October 2020

Osteoarthritis has become one of the main diseases affecting the life of many elderly people with high incidence of disability, and local chronic inflammation in the joint cavity is the most crucial pathological feature of osteoarthritis. Astilbin is the main active component in a variety of natural plants such as Hypericum perforatum and Sarcandra glabra, which possess antioxidant and anti‐inflammatory effects. At present, there is no study about the protective effect of Astilbin for osteoarthritis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of Astilbin in human OA chondrocytes and mouse OA model, which was established by surgery‐mediated destabilization of the medial meniscus (DMM). In vitro, we found that Astilbin pre‐treatment inhibited lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐induced overproduction of inflammation‐correlated cytokines such as nitric oxide (NO), prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), tumour necrosis factor α (TNF‐α) and interleukin 6 (IL‐6), and suppressed overexpression of inflammatory enzymes such as inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase 2 (COX‐2). Astilbin, on the other hand, prevented the LPS‐induced degradation of extracellular matrix (ECM) by down‐regulating MMP13 (matrix metalloproteinases 13) and ADAMTS5 (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin motifs 5). Moreover, by inhibiting the formation of the TLR4/MD‐2/LPS complex, Astilbin blocked LPS‐induced activation of TLR4/NF‐κB signalling cascade. In vivo, Astilbin showed the chondro‐protective effect in the surgical‐induced OA mouse models. In conclusion, our findings provided evidence that develops Astilbin as a potential therapeutic drug for OA patients.