bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Night Shift Work Before and During Pregnancy and Offspring Weight Outcomes Through Adolescence
Authors: Strohmaier Susanne , Devore Elizabeth E. , Vetter Celine , Missmer Stacey , Heather Eliassen A. , Rosner Bernard , Rich‐Edwards Janet , Field Alison E. , Schernhammer Eva S.
Published: September 2018

Objective

This study aimed to investigate associations between maternal history of rotating night shift nursing work before pregnancy and number of night shifts worked during pregnancy with offspring weight outcomes from early life through adolescence.

Methods

More than 4,000 children, enrolled in the second phase of the Growing Up Today Study between 2004 and 2013, and their mothers participating in the Nurses' Health Study II were included in our analyses.

Results

Children of women with and without a history of rotating night shift work before pregnancy were similar in birth weight and body size at age 5. However, for mothers with night shift work before pregnancy, their children had a modestly elevated risk of having overweight or obesity (relative risk = 1.11; 95% CI: 1.02‐1.21), which was stronger for persistently having overweight or obesity during adolescence and early adulthood. Longer duration of rotating night shift work was not associated with any of these weight outcomes. Weight outcomes of children of women with versus without night shift work during pregnancy were similar, regardless of frequency of night shifts worked during pregnancy (all P > 0.09).

Conclusions

Overall, nurses' night shift work before or during pregnancy did not affect offspring weight outcomes. Future larger studies should explore these associations in more detail.
Pooled Findings from the LIFE‐Moms Randomized Trials: Where Do We Go from Here?
Authors: Herring Sharon J.
Published: September 2018

See accompanying article, pg. 1396.
High BMI: A New Determinant of Impaired Rubella Immunity During Pregnancy?
Authors: Andersen Catherine J.
Published: September 2018

See accompanying article, pg. 1392.
The engineering and immobilization of penicillin G acylase onto thermo‐sensitive tri‐block copolymer system
Authors: Li Ke , Liu Xiao Ting , Zhang Yun Fei , Liu Donglei , Zhang Xin Yu , Ma Song Mei , Ruso Juan M. , Tang Zhenghua , Chen Zhen Bin , Liu Zhen
Published: September 2018

In this work, the relationships between catalytic performances of penicillin G acylase (PGA) and the molar ratio of carrier, thermo‐sensitive tri‐block polymer, poly (N,N‐diethylacrylamide‐b‐ β‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate‐b‐glycidyl methacrylate) (PDEA‐b‐PHEMA‐b‐PGMA) were studied firstly, and result documented the optimal molar ratio was nDEA:nHEMA:nGMA = 100:47:24, which presented a suitable lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of 35°C and the activity retention ratio of 80.62% (±0.50%). Based on the suitable carrier, immobilization conditions were investigated and optimized. When pH of solution, concentration of PGA, immobilized time, and immobilization temperature were 8.0, 1/10 (m/v), 16 hours, and 36°C, respectively, enzyme loading capacity (L), enzyme activity (Ea), and activity retention ratio (Ar) of PGA arrived at the highest value of 21 223 U, 16 199 U/g, and 93.50% (±0.50%), respectively. Besides, the response rate (Rr) of immobilized PGA was the same as free PGA, the reusable stability (Rs) was 77.00% (±1.00%) after using for 11 times, which indicated that the carrier has better compatibility with L, Ar, Rs, and Rr.
Risk of suicide attempts among colorectal cancer patients: A nationwide population‐based matched cohort study
Authors: Sun Li‐Min , Lin Cheng‐Li , Hsu Chung‐Y. , Kao Chia‐Hung
Published: September 2018

Objective

Patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) have been found to have a higher risk of suicide in limited‐number studies. However, data on the actual incidence rate of suicide remain scarce.

Methods

Using Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database, we examined whether patients with CRC in Taiwan are at increased risk of suicide attempts. In this retrospective matched cohort study, data of 96 470 cases of CRC during 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2010 were collected. The control group was derived from general population by frequency matching 2 individuals without CRC for each individual with CRC by year of CRC diagnosis, age, and sex. The suicide risk in the CRC group compared with the control group was determined through Cox proportional hazard regression. We also compared the Kaplan‐Meier analyses to competing risk cumulative incidence curves using the Aalen‐Johansen estimator.

Results

A statistically significant 103% higher risk of suicide was observed in the CRC group compared with the control group (adjusted hazard ratio: 2.03; 95% confidence ratio: 1.60‐2.56). Additional stratified analyses revealed a significantly elevated risk across almost all demographic groups but limited to rectum location, short follow‐up time (<5 years), and without comorbidity.

Conclusions

Our study suggested that patients with CRC in Taiwan have an elevated risk of suicide. Oncologists should pay attention to these patients and should consider referring them for psychological consultation to prevent suicide.
Direct mechanical characterization of prostate tissue—a systematic review
Authors: Kelly Niall P. , Flood Hugh D. , Hoey David A. , Kiely Patrick A. , Giri Subhasis K. , Coffey J. Calvin , Walsh Michael T.
Published: September 2018

Background

Direct mechanical characterization of tissue is the application of engineering techniques to biological tissue to ascertain stiffness or elasticity, which can change in response to disease states. A number of papers have been published on the application of these techniques to prostate tissue with a range of results reported. There is a marked variability in the results depending on testing techniques and disease state of the prostate tissue. We aimed to clarify the utility of direct mechanical characterization of prostate tissue in identifying disease states.

Methods

A systematic review of the published literature regarding direct mechanical characterization of prostate tissue was undertaking according to PRISMA guidelines.

Results

A variety of testing methods have been used, including compression, indentation, and tensile testing, as well as some indirect testing techniques, such as shear‐wave elastography. There is strong evidence of significant stiffness differences between cancerous and non‐cancerous prostate tissue, as well as correlations with prostate cancer stage. There is a correlation with increasing prostate stiffness and increasing lower urinary tract symptoms in patients with benign prostate hyperplasia. There is a wide variation in the testing methods and protocols used in the literature making direct comparison between papers difficult. Most studies utilise ex‐vivo or cadaveric tissue, while none incorporate in vivo testing.

Conclusion

Direct mechanical assessment of prostate tissue permits a better understanding of the pathological and physiological changes that are occurring within the tissue. Further work is needed to include prospective and in vivo data to aid medical device design and investigate non‐surgical methods of managing prostate disease.
Influence of PP types on migration of zinc from nano‐ZnO/PP composite films
Authors: Chen Hong‐Biao , Hu Chang‐Ying
Published: September 2018

Polypropylene nanocomposites have great potential applications in food packaging and the evaluation of the migration of nanoparticles is important for the food safety. Three types of polypropylene (homopolymer of polypropylene, PPH; blockcopolymer of polypropylene, PPB; random copolymer of polypropylene, PPR) nanocomposite films with or without coupling agent were tested in 3% acetic acid as food simulant. The migration amount of zinc was quantified by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy. The surface morphology and crystallinity were explored by field emission scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and differential scanning calorimetry, respectively. The results showed that the incorporation of titanate coupling agent could inhibit ZnO‐NPs migration from the films since titanate coupling agent could improve the interface between ZnO‐NPs and PP molecular chain segment. Furthermore, the migration rate of zinc was dependent on the degree of crystallinity (Xc) of PP and their order of the maximum migration rate was PPH, PPB and PPR. The notable phase separation could be observed from the morphology of nano‐ZnO/PPH, while ZnO‐NPs could be well dispersed in the PPR matrix. Thus, ZnO‐NPs restricted the molecular chain segment of PPH and reduced its Xc from 88.6% to 73.2%. The results demonstrated that titanate coupling agent and PPR could inhibit the migration of ZnO‐NPs significantly.
Characterization of the long‐distance dispersal of Johnsongrass (Sorghum halepense) in a vegetated irrigation channel
Authors: Rudi Gabrielle , Bailly Jean‐Stéphane , Belaud Gilles , Vinatier Fabrice
Published: September 2018

Hydrochorous dispersal may play a major role in the propagation of weeds such asSorghum halepense(Johnsongrass). However, the long‐distance dispersal of this weed via agricultural intermittent channel networks, such as irrigation channels, has been poorly studied. In this study, we focused on a seed dispersal kernel obtained after an irrigation event in a vegetated channel. The main objectives of the study were to highlight the specificities of irrigation channels in relation to seed transport and investigate hydraulic factors and microscale channel features associated with the deposition of seeds along the channel. Our results showed that despite very different flow and morphological conditions compared with natural waterways, seeds of Johnsongrass were able to travel hundred meters at the scale of one irrigation event. This is likely due to the floating ability of more than 50% of the Johnsongrass seeds. A Regression Tree algorithm, which explained 72% of seed deposition variability, showed the importance of the channel features such as the width of the section and the hydraulic structures, sluice gates and culvert, to explain the patterns of seed deposition. A complex role of the emergent vegetation was highlighted. The results suggest that a threshold of vegetation density should be reached to enhance seed deposition. The results indicate that the spread of existing Johnsongrass populations could be limited by preserving existing hydraulic structures or maintaining areas where the density of terrestrial vegetation is sufficient to enhance seed retention downstream.
Alternate field evaporation by changing laser pulsing and voltage pulsing dynamically for atom probe analysis
Authors: Taniguchi M. , Nishikawa O.
Published: September 2018

Time‐of‐flight mass analysis in atom‐by‐atom scale is performed in atom probe (AP) by pulsed field evaporation of sample material. The pulsed field evaporation is triggered by superposing voltage pulse or shooting laser pulse together with stationary voltage for evaporation field. Voltage pulse which has been used from the establishment of AP in the 1960s is going to be replaced by short pulsed laser with high repetition rate in the nanometer scale characterization of materials by 3‐dimensional AP. The criterion for choosing appropriate trigger method is not clear because it is difficult to compare the result of 2 triggering method applied on the same sample in atomic scale. The precise comparison of 2 triggering method was enabled by applying voltage pulse and laser pulse alternately to the identical sample. The results of composition and spatial information reflected the mechanism of assisting field evaporation. But the evaporation order was almost random or disordered showing no correlation between 2 triggering method. To make clear the correlation between voltage pulsing and laser pulsing, the authors report their new system forcing alternate evaporation switching to the other trigger after the detection of ion in 1 trigger between voltage and laser.
Estimating onset time from longitudinal data in the presence of measurement error with application to estimating gestational age from maternal anthropometry during pregnancy
Authors: Ortega‐Villa Ana M. , Albert Paul S.
Published: September 2018

Accurate assessment of gestational age at birth is necessary for optimal pediatric care. In high resource countries, several methods using ultrasound have been proposed to assess gestational age at birth; however, these methods are not easily accessible for low‐resource populations. We develop a shared random parameter model for estimating gestational age at birth from longitudinal maternal anthropometry that incorporates additional maternal information from the last menstrual period, a measure of gestational age collected with sizable measurement error. The proposed methodology is evaluated using simulation studies under a training‐test set paradigm. In addition, we propose methodology to validate prediction when some measurements of the gold standard are collected with measurement error. We illustrate the proposed methodologies with data from the NICHD Fetal Growth Studies.
Automatic detection of significant areas for functional data with directional error control
Authors: Xu Peirong , Lee Youngjo , Shi Jian Qing , Eyre Janet
Published: September 2018

In this paper, we propose a large‐scale multiple testing procedure to find the significant sub‐areas between two samples of curves automatically. The procedure is optimal in that it controls the directional false discovery rate at any specified level on a continuum asymptotically. By introducing a nonparametric Gaussian process regression model for the two‐sided multiple test, the procedure is computationally inexpensive. It can cope with problems with multidimensional covariates and accommodate different sampling designs across the samples. We further propose the significant curve/surface, giving an insight on dynamic significant differences between two curves. Simulation studies demonstrate that the proposed procedure enjoys superior performance with strong power and good directional error control. The procedure is also illustrated with the application to two executive function studies in hemiplegia.
Application of kriging models for a drug combination experiment on lung cancer
Authors: Xiao Qian , Wang Lin , Xu Hongquan
Published: September 2018

Combinatorial drugs have been widely applied in disease treatment, especially chemotherapy for cancer, due to its improved efficacy and reduced toxicity compared with individual drugs. The study of combinatorial drugs requires efficient experimental designs and proper follow‐up statistical modeling techniques. Linear and nonlinear models are often used in the response surface modeling for such experiments. We propose the use of kriging models to better depict the response surfaces of combinatorial drugs. We illustrate our method via a drug combination experiment on lung cancer and further show how proper experimental designs can reduce the necessary run size. We demonstrate that only 27 runs are needed to predict all 512 runs in the original experiment and achieve better precision than existing analyses.
Committing the primordial germ cell: An updated molecular perspective
Authors: Tan Haihan , Tee Wee‐Wei
Published: September 2018

The germ line is a crucial cell lineage that is distinct from somatic cells, and solely responsible for the trans‐generational transmission of hereditary information in metazoan sexual reproduction. Primordial germ cells (PGCs)—the precursors to functional germ cells—are among the first cell types to be allocated in embryonic development, and this lineage commitment is a critical event in partitioning germ line and somatic tissues. Classically, mammalian PGC development has been largely informed by investigations on mouse embryos and embryonic stem cells. Recent findings from corresponding nonrodent systems, however, have indicated that murine PGC specification may not be fully archetypal. In this review, we outline the current understanding of molecular mechanisms in PGC specification, emphasizing key transcriptional events, and focus on salient differences between early human and mouse PGC commitment. Beyond these latest findings, we also contemplate the future outlook of inquiries in this field, highlighting the importance of comprehensively understanding early fate decisions that underlie the segregation of this unique lineage.

This article is categorized under:

Developmental Biology > Stem Cell Biology and Regeneration

Biological Mechanisms > Cell Fates

Physiology > Mammalian Physiology in Health and Disease
BRST quantization and equivariant cohomology: localization with asymptotic boundaries
Authors: de Wit Bernard , Murthy Sameer , Reys Valentin
Published: September 2018

Abstract

We develop BRST quantization of gauge theories with a soft gauge algebra on spaces with asymptotic boundaries. The asymptotic boundary conditions are imposed on background fields, while quantum fluctuations about these fields are described in terms of quantum fields that vanish at the boundary. This leads us to construct a suitable background field formalism that is generally applicable to soft gauge algebras, and therefore to supergravity. We define a nilpotent BRST charge that acts on both the background and the quantum fields, as well as on the background and quantum ghosts.

When the background is restricted to be invariant under a residual isometry group, the background ghosts must be restricted accordingly and play the role of the parameters of the background isometries. Requiring in addition that the background ghosts will be BRST invariant as well then converts the BRST algebra into an equivariant one. The background fields and ghosts are then invariant under the equivariant transformations while the quantum fields and ghosts transform under both the equivariant and the background transformations. We demonstrate how this formalism is suitable for carrying out localization calculations in a large class of theories, including supergravity defined on asymptotic backgrounds that admit supersymmetry.
New compact construction of eigenstates for supersymmetric spin chains
Authors: Gromov Nikolay , Levkovich-Maslyuk Fedor
Published: September 2018

Abstract

The problem of separation of variables (SoV) in supersymmetric spin chains is closely related to the calculation of correlation functions in

$$ \mathcal{N}=4 $$

N
=
4

SYM theory which is integrable in the planar limit. To address this question we find a compact formula for the spin chain eigenstates, which does not have any sums over auxiliary roots one usually gets in the widely adopted nested Bethe ansatz. Our construction only involves one application of a simple B

g
(u

k
) operator to the reference state for each of the magnons, in complete analogy with the

$$ \mathfrak{s}\mathfrak{u}(2) $$

s
u

2

algebraic Bethe ansatz. This generalizes our SoV based construction for

$$ \mathfrak{s}\mathfrak{u}(n) $$

s
u

n

to the supersymmetric

$$ \mathfrak{s}\mathfrak{u}\left(1\Big|2\right) $$

s
u

1
|
2

case.
Spontaneous Deceleration and Acceleration of Growth Rate in Medullary Thyroid Carcinomas Suggested by Changes in Calcitonin Doubling Times Over Long‐Term Surveillance
Authors: Miyauchi Akira , Kudo Takumi , Kihara Minoru , Oda Hitomi , Ito Yasuhiro , Miya Akihiro
Published: September 2018

Background

Based on our long‐term observation of medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) patients, we hypothesized that some MTCs have spontaneous deceleration or regression of tumor growth over a long term and that a minority may acquire growth acceleration. We thus compared the calcitonin doubling time (Ct‐DT) in the earlier and later half‐periods of MTC patients’ postoperative course.

Methods

We followed 26 MTC patients (14 hereditary and 12 sporadic MTCs) with postoperative hypercalcitoninemia with periodic measurements of serum calcitonin (Ct) for >10 years without major interventions. The median period of Ct measurements was 18.3 years (range 10.6–30.2 years). We divided the individual patients’ study periods into the earlier and later halves and calculated the Ct‐DTs for both periods.

Results

In the hereditary group, the Ct‐DT in the later half‐period (Later‐Ct‐DT) was significantly longer than that in the earlier half‐period (Earlier‐Ct‐DT) (median 20.0 years vs. 7.1 years, p = 0.013). These values in the sporadic group were 20.0 years versus 11.1 years, respectively (p =0.774). Twelve patients (seven hereditary and five sporadic) had Later‐Ct‐DTs significantly longer than their Earlier‐Ct‐DTs (median 27.4 years vs. 4.9 years) and good prognoses. Two patients (one hereditary, one sporadic) had Later‐Ct‐DTs significantly shorter than their Earlier‐Ct‐DTs, and both developed structural recurrence and died of the disease.

Conclusion

Many of the hereditary and some of the sporadic MTC patients had elongated Ct‐DTs over a long period, suggesting spontaneous deceleration and regression of tumor growth. A minority of the MTC patients showed Ct‐DT shortening, suggesting tumor growth acceleration.
Infliximab biosimilar CT-P13 therapy in patients with Takayasu arteritis with low dose of glucocorticoids: a prospective single-arm study
Authors: Park Eun Hye , Lee Eun Young , Lee Yun Jong , Ha You Jung , Yoo Wan-Hee , Choi Byoong Yong , Paeng Jin Chul , Suh Hoon Young , Song Yeong Wook
Published: September 2018

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of infliximab biosimilar CT-P13 in patients with active Takayasu arteritis (TAK). In this single-center open-label trial, patients with active TAK received CT-P13 at a starting dose of 5 mg/kg at weeks 0, 2, 6, and then every 8 weeks up to week 46. They were followed up until week 54. From week 14 to week 46, patients with inadequate response received increased dose of CT-P13 by 1.5 mg/kg. Concomitant prednisolone was allowed ≤ 10 mg/day. The primary efficacy end point was the achievement of partial or complete remission at week 30. All patients underwent positron emission tomography–computed tomography (PET–CT) at baseline and week 30. Twelve patients with TAK received CT-P13; one patient with protocol violation was excluded from analysis. Nine (81.8%) patients had taken concomitant prednisolone with median dose of 5.0 mg/day. At week 30, three (27.3%) patients achieved complete remission and six (54.5%) patients achieved partial remission. Statistically significant improvements in modified Indian Takayasu Clinical Activity Score (ITAS2010), ITAS-A, and serum levels of erythrocyte sedimentation rate and C-reactive protein were seen at week 30 from baseline. PET parameters were significantly reduced from baseline to week 30, including maximum standardized uptake value, target-to-vein ratio, target-to-liver ratio, and PET Vascular Activity Score. There were no serious adverse events. Treatment with CT-P13 may lead to improvement in clinical, radiographic, and serological activities with lower glucocorticoid requirement in TAK.

Trial registration number NCT02457585.
Examining the readiness of best evidence in medical education guides for integration into educational practice: A meta-synthesis
Authors: Maggio Lauren A. , Thomas Aliki , Chen H. Carrie , Ioannidis John P.A. , Kanter Steven L. , Norton Candace , Tannery Nancy H. , Artino Jr Anthony R.
Published: September 2018

Background To support evidence-informed education, health professions education (HPE) stakeholders encourage the creation and use of knowledge syntheses or reviews. However, it is unclear if these knowledge syntheses are ready for translation into educational practice. Without understanding the readiness, defined by three criteria—quality, accessibility and relevance—we risk translating weak evidence into practice and/or providing information that is not useful to educators.
Methods A librarian searched Web of Science for knowledge syntheses, specifically Best Evidence in Medical Education (BEME) Guides. This meta-synthesis focuses on BEME Guides because of their explicit goal to inform educational practice and policy. Two authors extracted data from all Guides, guided by the 25-item STructured apprOach to the Reporting In healthcare education of Evidence Synthesis (STORIES).
Results Forty-two Guides published in Medical Teacher between 1999 and 2017 were analyzed. No Guide met all STORIES criteria, but all included structured summaries and most described their literature search (n = 39) and study inclusion/exclusion (n = 40) procedures. Eleven Guides reported the presence of theory and/or educational principles, and eight consulted with external subject matter experts. Accessibility to each Guide’s full-text and supplemental materials was variable.
Discussion For a subset of HPE knowledge syntheses, BEME Guides, this meta-synthesis identifies factors that support readiness and indicates potential areas of improvement, such as consistent access to Guides and inclusion of external subject matter experts on the review team.
Chimeric antigen receptor modified T‐cells for cancer treatment
Authors: Han Xiao , Wang Yao , Han Wei‐Dong
Published: September 2018

T cells engineered with the chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) are rapidly emerging as an important immunotherapy for hematologic malignancies. The anti‐cluster of differentiation (CD)19 CAR‐T cell therapy has been remarkably successful against refractory/relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), and a complete remission rate as high as 90% was observed, in both children and adults. Although the achievement of clinical efficacy using CAR‐T cell therapy for solid tumors has encountered several obstacles that were associated with the multiple mechanisms contributing to an immunosuppressive microenvironment, investigators are exploring more optimized approaches to improve the efficiency of CAR‐T in solid tumors. In addition, cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and neurotoxicity following CAR‐T cell therapy can be severe or even fatal; therefore, the management of these toxicities is significant. Herein, we briefly review the structure of CAR‐T and some novel CAR designs, the clinical application of CAR‐T cell therapies, as well as the assessment and management of toxicities.
Preparing Adolescents for Life after School (PALS) Project: A Randomised Controlled Trial of a Coaching Intervention for Young People with Acquired Brain Injury
Authors: Tate Robyn L. , Genders Michelle , Soo Cheryl , Rosenkoetter Ulrike , Dunn Margaret , Briggs Rachel
Published: September 2018

Introduction: Existing resources to support adolescents with acquired brain injury (ABI) in transition from school to the ‘adult world’ are variable. This study evaluated an intervention using a coaching approach to support adolescents during this transition phase.

Method: The study design was a parallel-group randomised controlled trial (RCT). Participants (n= 43) aged 14–19 years were randomised to intervention (n= 21) or no-intervention control (n= 21) conditions. The intervention group received six coaching sessions over an average of 22 weeks. Outcome measures evaluated changes reported by the adolescent (satisfaction, emotional functioning and hope) and their parent (participation, behaviour and support needs).

Results: Relative to baseline, there was no significant improvement for those in the intervention group in comparison to the control group on any of the outcome measures.

Conclusion: The results of this RCT do not support coaching as an intervention for adolescents with ABI.
Precariousness, youth and political participation: the emergence of a new political cleavage
Authors: Monticelli Lara , Bassoli Matteo
Published: September 2018

The article aims at disentangling the existing relation between job precariousness and political participation at the individual level illustrating that the former can be considered an emerging political cleavage. The authors apply an interpretive framework typical of political participation studies to an original data set composed of two groups of young workers (with precarious and open-ended contracts) in a big Italian post-industrial city, Turin. First, applying a confirmatory factor analysis, a typology of three ‘modes’ of political participation – voting, collective action, and political consumerism – is used to reduce data complexity. Second, logistic regressions are deployed to analyze the role played by occupational status, political positioning, and the interaction between the two, on the different modes of political participation. Precarious youth show a higher level of political participation in representational behaviours (voting). Left-wing youth are generally more active than non-left-wing ones in non-representational behaviours (collective actions and consumerism), the impact is more pronounced for precarious young people. Thus, results demonstrate the relevance of occupational status in explaining patterns of participation and invite scholars to promote a dialogue between industrial relations and political participation studies.
The invisibility of racism: on the reception of Giovanni Vento’s Il Nero and Antonio Campobasso’s Nero di Puglia, 1967-1982
Authors: Patriarca Silvana
Published: September 2018

This essay explores attitudes towards home-grown anti-black racism in Italy from the 1960s to the early1980s by focusing on the reception of Giovanni Vento’s Il Nero, a 1965 film that depicts the everyday lives of two biracial Italians born at the end of the Second World War from encounters between Italian women and non-white Allied soldiers, and of Antonio Campobasso’s Nero di Puglia, a partly autobiographical book by one of these biracial Italians, published in 1980. Campobasso’s powerful text, which denounced the hypocrisies of the Republic, received some acknowledgement in the intellectual community, but the lenses that the cultural critics used to interpret the text impeded a foregrounding of the racism that the book denounced. Giovanni Vento’s innovative film, on the other hand, did not even reach the commercial circuit and was also interpreted in leftist circles through a political and aesthetic paradigm that downplayed the specificity of anti-black racism. The article invites a reflection on the legacy that these attitudes have had in shaping the limited sensitivity to racism in contemporary Italy.
A randomised, placebo-controlled 24-week study evaluating adjunctive brexpiprazole in patients with major depressive disorder
Authors: Bauer Michael , Hefting Nanco , Lindsten Annika , Josiassen Mette Krog , Hobart Mary
Published: September 2018

Objective

To evaluate brexpiprazole adjunctive to antidepressant therapies (ADTs) as maintenance treatment in patients with major depressive disorder with inadequate response to ADT, utilising a novel study design.

Methods

The study comprised an 8-week prospective treatment period with open-label ADT with double-blind placebo treatment and a 24-week randomised treatment period. Investigators and patients were blinded to treatment periods, randomisation criteria, and timing of randomisation. Patients with early response to open-label ADT were withdrawn at Week 6. Patients fulfilling criteria for inadequate response were randomised to ADT+brexpiprazole 1–3 mg/day, or ADT+placebo. The primary endpoint was full remission: Montgomery–Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) total score ≤10 and ≥50% decrease from randomisation (i.e. baseline) in MADRS total score for at least 8 consecutive weeks.

Results

The primary efficacy analysis failed to show a statistically significant difference between the proportions of patients on ADT+brexpiprazole (21.4%) and ADT+placebo (24.9%) achieving full remission; odds ratio: 0.83; p=0.2641. The secondary endpoint of change from baseline to Week 6 in MADRS total score showed no difference between ADT+brexpiprazole and ADT+placebo (−0.4; p=0.3259). The most frequent treatment-emergent adverse event (TEAE) in patients receiving ADT+brexpiprazole was weight increased (9.5% vs. 5.0% in ADT+placebo). The incidence of TEAEs leading to withdrawal in the randomised treatment period was 6.3% in the ADT+brexpiprazole group and 3.4% in the ADT+placebo group.

Conclusion

Adjunctive brexpiprazole did not differentiate from ADT+placebo on the primary endpoint of full remission. A number of design elements in this previously untried study design may have contributed to the study result. Brexpiprazole was well tolerated.
A textual Taylor rule: estimating central bank preferences combining topic and scaling methods
Authors: Baerg Nicole , Lowe Will
Published: September 2018

Scholars often use voting data to estimate central bankers’ policy preferences but consensus voting is commonplace. To get around this, we combine topic-based text analysis and scaling methods to generate theoretically motivated comparative measures of central bank preferences on the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) leading up to the financial crisis in a way that does not depend on voting behavior. We apply these measures to a number of applications in the literature. For example, we find that FOMC members that are Federal Reserve Bank Presidents from districts experiencing higher unemployment are also more likely to emphasize unemployment in their speech. We also confirm that committee members on schedule to vote are more likely to express consensus opinion than their off schedule voting counterparts.
Limits of Conversion: Caste, Labor, and the Question of Emancipation in Colonial Panjab
Authors: Gill Navyug
Published: September 2018

This article explores the contradictory history of lower castes converting out of Hinduism yet not out of lowliness or casteism in early twentieth-century Panjab. It begins by contextualizing what B. R. Ambedkar's undelivered 1936 Lahore speech on annihilating caste might have meant to an audience of largely landless agricultural laborers. Next it examines the changing constellation of caste names and occupational designations for these groups amid the emergence of the Ad Dharm movement and its struggle to impart equality, dignity, and community to Panjabi Dalits. To situate this new sense of identity in the context of actual labor practices, the article then analyzes the fraught relationship between landholding cultivators and landless laborers working side-by-side while continuing to be separate and unequal. That a large proportion of lower castes could adopt religions other than Hinduism or even start their own and yet remain excluded and exploited reveals the limits of a politics centered on conversion, as well as a different horizon for emancipation.
Variability of vestibular aqueduct measurements among axial, single-oblique and double-oblique computed tomography images
Authors: Quan Y , Gao X J , Liu J , Gong R Z , Wang Q , Liang H , Fu J L , Cheng Q
Published: September 2018

Objective

To investigate the morphology and dimensions of the vestibular aqueduct on axial, single-oblique and double-oblique computed tomography images.

Methods

The computed tomography temporal bone scans of 112 patients were retrospectively evaluated. Midpoint and opercular measurements were performed using axial, single-oblique and double-oblique images. Morphometric analyses were also conducted. The vestibular aqueduct sizes on axial, single-oblique and double-oblique images were compared.

Results

At the midpoint, the mean (± standard deviation) vestibular aqueduct measured 0.61 ± 0.23 mm, 0.74 ± 0.27 mm and 0.82 ± 0.38 mm on axial, single-oblique and double-oblique images, respectively; at the operculum, the vestibular aqueduct measured 0.91 ± 0.30 mm, 1.11 ± 0.45 mm and 1.66 ± 1.07 mm on the respective images. The co-efficients of variation of the vestibular aqueduct measured at the midpoint were 37.4 per cent, 36.5 per cent and 47.5 per cent on axial, single-oblique and double-oblique images, respectively; at the operculum, the measurements were 33.0 per cent, 40.5 per cent and 64.5 per cent. Regarding morphology, the vestibular aqueduct was fissured (33.5 per cent), tubular (64.3 per cent) or invisible (2.2 per cent).

Conclusion

The morphology and dimensions of the vestibular aqueduct were highly variable among axial, single-oblique and double-oblique images.
QUALITY AND USE OF FREE SMOKING CESSATION APPS FOR SMARTPHONES
Authors: Regmi Dybesh , Tobutt Clive , Shaban Sami
Published: September 2018

Objectives:

Smartphone Apps are one of the tools available to support patients who wish to quit smoking. Content analysis studies have indicated multiple deficiencies within these Apps including minimal use of evidence-based research and Nicotine Dependence Treatment Provider (NDTP) in App development. The aim of this study was to determine quality and features of smoking cessation Apps available on Android® and iOS® platforms.

Methods:

The first fifty free smoking cessation Apps available for download using the search term smoking cessation on Google Play Store and Apple App Store were chosen. Each of these Apps was analyzed and categorized based on ratings, target audience age, language, and a variety of tracking functionalities noted on the Apps. Indications and suggestions regarding either the use of NDTP or evidence-based behavior change protocols were noted.

Results:

There were no significant differences in the features of smoking cessation Apps on Android and iOS. Only 15 percent of all Apps analyzed on both platforms indicated some involvement of NDTP and there was no difference between the two platforms. More than 50 percent of Apps studied were downloaded over half a million times and the average user rating was 3.89/5.00 for Android and 3.72/5.00 for iOS with no significant difference.

Conclusions:

Most smoking cessation Apps in both platforms offer basic tracking functionalities with limited motivational tips. Only a handful of Apps have moved beyond this role and while their development is applaudable much innovation remains.
In evidence: Linguistic transformations of events in police interview reports
Authors: Byrman Gunilla , Byrman Ylva
Published: September 2018

The aim of this article is to examine how police investigators reproduce interviewees’ utterances in narratives, in direct and indirect reported speech, and by enclosing words in reports in quotation marks. Drawing on a larger study of professional writing, the pertinent research question for the current investigation is how writing techniques in police interview reports convey evidential value in the form of reported utterances. A corpus of police reports on domestic violence is explored from the theoretical perspectives of critical discourse analysis, polyvocality and reportative evidentiality. A new analytical framework for polyvocal texts is developed in terms of utterance, source and framer. The results show that it is difficult to determine whether or not words placed within quotation marks are meant to present verbatim quotes. Another finding is that police investigators are not consistent in documenting utterances from different sources, or in showing whether utterances are embedded in other utterances. This may obscure the structure of the original events and the source of crucial utterances, resulting in unclear evidential status for police reports.
Underlying motivations for the use of linguistic disguise in written English and German threats and ransom demands in an experimental corpus
Authors: Marko Karoline
Published: September 2018

This paper addresses the problem of disguise in written threatening messages and investigates the connection between (meta-)linguistic awareness and the successful implementation of disguise strategies through the use of two experimental studies. The first study, a language production experiment with 116 participants, focused on the actual use of disguise strategies in the participants’ written texts. The second study, which had 167 respondents, was designed to investigate the perception of threats and respondents’ awareness and ideas of disguise. The findings of these studies indicate that sociolinguistic and metalinguistic awareness, awareness of one's own language production and the ability to manipulate language in other than outer forms of words are closely connected, which has important implications for forensic authorship analyses. Bredthauer (2013) estimated that approximately 20% of the authentic threatening messages in her corpus contained some form of disguise.
On the avascular ellipsoidal tumour growth model within a nutritive environment
Authors: FRAGOYIANNIS GEORGE , KARIOTOU FOTEINI , VAFEAS PANAYIOTIS
Published: September 2018

The present work is part of a series of studies conducted by the authors on analytical models of avascular tumour growth that exhibit both geometrical anisotropy and physical inhomogeneity. In particular, we consider a tumour structure formed in distinct ellipsoidal regions occupied by cell populations at a certain stage of their biological cycle. The cancer cells receive nutrient by diffusion from an inhomogeneous supply and they are subject to also an inhomogeneous pressure field imposed by the tumour microenvironment. It is proved that the lack of symmetry is strongly connected to a special condition that should hold between the data imposed by the tumour’s surrounding medium, in order for the ellipsoidal growth to be realizable, a feature already present in other non-symmetrical yet more degenerate models. The nutrient and the inhibitor concentration, as well as the pressure field, are provided in analytical fashion via closed-form series solutions in terms of ellipsoidal eigenfunctions, while their behaviour is demonstrated by indicative plots. The evolution equation of all the tumour’s ellipsoidal interfaces is postulated in ellipsoidal terms and a numerical implementation is provided in view of its solution. From the mathematical point of view, the ellipsoidal system is the most general coordinate system that the Laplace operator, which dominates the mathematical models of avascular growth, enjoys spectral decomposition. Therefore, we consider the ellipsoidal model presented in this work, as the most general analytic model describing the avascular growth in inhomogeneous environment. Additionally, due to the intrinsic degrees of freedom inherited to the model by the ellipsoidal geometry, the ellipsoidal model presented can be adapted to a very populous class of avascular tumours, varying in figure and in orientation.
Noise-induced mixing and multimodality in reaction networks
Authors: PLESA TOMISLAV , ERBAN RADEK , OTHMER HANS G.
Published: September 2018

We analyse a class of chemical reaction networks under mass-action kinetics involving multiple time scales, whose deterministic and stochastic models display qualitative differences. The networks are inspired by gene-regulatory networks and consist of a slow subnetwork, describing conversions among the different gene states, and fast subnetworks, describing biochemical interactions involving the gene products. We show that the long-term dynamics of such networks can consist of a unique attractor at the deterministic level (unistability), while the long-term probability distribution at the stochastic level may display multiple maxima (multimodality). The dynamical differences stem from a phenomenon we call noise-induced mixing, whereby the probability distribution of the gene products is a linear combination of the probability distributions of the fast subnetworks which are ‘mixed’ by the slow subnetworks. The results are applied in the context of systems biology, where noise-induced mixing is shown to play a biochemically important role, producing phenomena such as stochastic multimodality and oscillations.
THREE NEW COMBINATIONS IN EUMACHIA (RUBIACEAE–PALICOUREEAE) FROM SOUTHEAST ASIA
Authors: Turner I. M.
Published: September 2018

For 185 years, the genus Eumachia (Rubiaceae) was considered to include one species from Tonga. Since 2015, 94 more names have been added to it, expanding Eumachia into a pantropical genus of shrubby plants, most of whose members were originally described in Psychotria. Four Psychotria species from Southeast Asia that were identified as potentially belonging in Margaritopsis (now a synonym of Eumachia) have not yet had combinations made in Eumachia. They are considered here, and new combinations are made for Psychotria extensa Miq., P. montana Blume and P. rostrata Blume. The fourth name, Psychotria expansa Blume, is considered a synonym. The identities of Chassalia sangiana Miq. and Psychotria rhodocarpa Teijsm. & Binn. are also discussed. Lectotypes are designated for several names.
Psychosocial services for primary immunodeficiency disorder families during hematopoietic cell transplantation: A descriptive study
Authors: Mangurian Christina , Scalchunes Christopher , Yoo Jennie , Logan Brent , Henderson Tiffany , Iyengar Sumathi , Smith Heather , Cowan Morton J.
Published: September 2018

Objective

Caregivers for patients undergoing hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) are susceptible to significant psychosocial distress. This cross-sectional study aimed to describe psychosocial support services offered and used by caregivers of pediatric primary immune deficiency (PID) during HCT at 35 hospitals across North America.

Method

Caregivers of pediatric patients with PID were recruited by e-mail to participate in an anonymous 140-question survey instrument between April and May 2016 (N = 171).

Result

Of those meeting inclusion criteria (53%), family counseling services were only offered to fewer than half of caregivers (42%). Of the survey participants not offered counseling services, the majority desired family counseling (70%) and sibling counseling (73%). That said, when offered counseling, utilization rates were low, with 22% of caregivers using family counseling and none using sibling counseling.

Significance of results

These results indicate the need to offer and tailor counseling services for families throughout the HCT process. Further research should focus on reducing barriers to utilization of counseling services such as offering bedside counseling services, online modalities, and/or financial assistance.
Early-life origins of disparities in chronic diseases among Indigenous youth: pathways to recovering health disparities from intergenerational trauma
Authors: Phillips-Beck W. , Sinclair S. , Campbell R. , Star L. , Cidro J. , Wicklow B. , Guillemette L. , Morris M. I. , McGavock J. M.
Published: September 2018

Indigenous women and children experience some of the most profound health disparities globally. These disparities are grounded in historical and contemporary trauma secondary to colonial atrocities perpetuated by settler society. The health disparities that exist for chronic diseases may have their origins in early-life exposures that Indigenous women and children face. Mechanistically, there is evidence that these adverse exposures epigenetically modify genes associated with cardiometabolic disease risk. Interventions designed to support a resilient pregnancy and first 1000 days of life should abrogate disparities in early-life socioeconomic status. Breastfeeding, prenatal care and early child education are key targets for governments and health care providers to start addressing current health disparities in cardiometabolic diseases among Indigenous youth. Programmes grounded in cultural safety and co-developed with communities have successfully reduced health disparities. More works of this kind are needed to reduce inequities in cardiometabolic diseases among Indigenous women and children worldwide.