bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Head model personalization: A framework for morphing lifespan brain images and brains with substantial anatomical changes
Authors: Li Xiaogai
Published: April 2021

Finite element (FE) head models have emerged as a powerful tool in many fields within neuroscience, especially for studying the biomechanics of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Personalized head models are needed to account for geometric variations among subjects for more reliable predictions. However, the generation of subject-specific head models with conforming hexahedral elements suitable for studying the biomechanics of TBIs remains a significant challenge, which has been a bottleneck hindering personalized simulations. This study presents a framework capable of generating lifespan brain models and pathological brains with substantial anatomical changes, morphed from a previously developed baseline model. The framework combines hierarchical multiple feature and multimodality imaging registrations with mesh grouping, which is shown to be efficient with a heterogeneous dataset of seven brains, including a newborn, 1-year-old (1Y), 2Y, 6Y, adult, 92Y, and a hydrocephalus brain. The personalized models of the seven subjects show competitive registration accuracy, demonstrating the potential of the framework for generating personalized models for almost any brains with substantial anatomical changes. The family of head injury models generated in this study opens vast opportunities for studying age-dependent and groupwise brain injury mechanisms. The framework is equally applicable for personalizing head models in other fields, e.g., in tDCS, TMS, TUS, as an efficient approach for generating subject-specific head models than from scratch.
Nej1XLFinteracts with Sae2CTIPto inhibit Dna2 mediated resection at DNA double strand break
Authors: Mojumdar Aditya , Adam Nancy , Cobb Jennifer A.
Published: April 2021

The two major pathways of DNA double strand break (DSB) repair, non-homologous end-joining (NHEJ) and homologous recombination (HR), are highly conserved from yeast to mammals. The regulation of 5’ DNA resection controls repair pathway choice and influences repair outcomes. Nej1 was first identified as a canonical NHEJ factor involved in stimulating the ligation of broken DNA ends and more recently, it was shown to be important for DNA end-bridging and inhibiting 5’ resection mediated by Dna2-Sgs1. Nej1 interacts with Sae2 and this impacts DSB repair in three ways. First, Nej1 inhibits MRX-Sae2 interactions and Sae2 localization to a DSB. Second, Nej1 inhibits Sae2-dependent recruitment of Dna2 in the absence of Sgs1. Third,NEJ1andSAE2showed an epistatic relationship for DNA end-bridging, an event that restrains the broken ends and reduces the frequency of genomic deletions from developing at the DSB. Deletion ofNEJ1suppressed the synthetic lethality ofsae2Δsgs1Δ and was dependent on the nuclease activity of Dna2. These Nej1 functions promote end-joining DSB repair, but could also be relevant for controlling resection initiation during HR repair.

Highlights

Nej1 physically interacts with Sae2 and inhibits end-resection at a DSB.

Nej1 inhibits Sae2 interactions with the MRX complex.

Nej1 inhibits Sae2-dependent recruitment of Dna2 to a DSB.

NEJ1 and SAE2 are epistatic for DNA end-bridging.

Deletion ofNEJ1suppresses the synthetic lethality ofsae2Δsgs1Δ, which is dependent on Dna2 nuclease activity.
BioNERO: an all-in-one R/Bioconductor package for comprehensive and easy biological network reconstruction
Authors: Almeida-Silva Fabricio , Venancio Thiago M.
Published: April 2021

Currently, standard network analysis workflows rely on many different packages, often requiring users to have a solid statistics and programming background. Here, we presentBioNERO,an R package that aims to integrate all aspects of network analysis workflows, including expression data preprocessing, gene coexpression and regulatory network inference, functional analyses, and intra and interspecies network comparisons. The state-of-the-art methods implemented inBioNEROensure that users can perform all analyses with a single package in a simple pipeline, without needing to learn a myriad of package-specific syntaxes.BioNEROoffers a user-friendly framework that can be easily incorporated in systems biology pipelines.

Availability and implementation

The package is available at Bioconductor (http://bioconductor.org/packages/BioNERO).
Nonclassical monocytes are prone to migrate into tumor in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma
Authors: Gallou Simon Le , Lhomme Faustine , Irish Jonathan M. , Mingam Anna , Pangault Celine , Monvoisin Celine , Ferrant Juliette , Azzaoui Imane , Rossille Delphine , Bouabdallah Krimo , Damaj Gandhi , Cartron Guillaume , Godmer Pascal , Gouill Steven Le , Casasnovas René-Olivier , Molina Thierry Jo , Houot Roch , Lamy Thierry , Tarte Karin , Fest Thierry , Roussel Mikael
Published: April 2021

Absolute count of circulating monocytes has been proposed as an independent prognostic factor in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). However, monocyte nomenclature includes various subsets with pro-, anti-inflammatory, or suppressive functions, and their clinical relevance in DLBCL has been poorly explored. Herein, we broadly assessed circulating monocyte heterogeneity in 91 DLBCL patients. Classical- (cMO, CD14posCD16neg) and intermediate- (iMO, CD14posCD16pos) monocytes accumulated in DLBCL peripheral blood and exhibited an inflammatory phenotype. On the opposite, nonclassical monocytes (ncMO, CD14lowCD16pos) were decreased in peripheral blood. Tumor-conditioned monocytes presented similarities with ncMO phenotype from DLBCL and were prone to migrate in response to CCL3, CCL5, and CXCL12, and presented similarities with DLBCL-infiltrated myeloid cells, as defined by mass cytometry. Finally, we demonstrated the adverse value of an accumulation of nonclassical monocytes in 2 independent cohorts of DLBCL.

Key points

Nonclassical monocytes are prone to migrate to DLBCL tumor

High count of circulating nonclassical monocytes is an independent adverse event in DLBCL
Deep RNN with Pseudo Loss Objective for Forecasting Stop-over Decisions of Wild Migratory Birds
Authors: Owoeye Kehinde
Published: April 2021

Forecasting stop-over decisions and mapping the stop-over sites of wild migratory birds is fast becoming important in light of recent developments affecting global health. Migratory wild birds stop at sites with access to food resources so they can rest before continuing with their journey. Unfortunately, these sites offer opportunities for these birds to spread pathogens and viruses by interacting with the ecosystem. While previous work has focused on predicting stop-over sites using historical information, we emphasize that this is not useful for any planning efforts by health authorities and instead offer a new perspective by proposing an approach that can forecast the duration of stop-over. In this work, first we cast this problem as a classification task and show how pseudo labels and losses in a Bi-directional recurrent neural network can help improve performance given the presence of significantly underrepresented class. We use dataset of Turkey vulture (avian pox vector) movement over several years for the forecasting task where we compare our approach with a variety of baselines and show that it outperforms them. We also use this dataset and the White Fronted Geese (avian flu vector) movement dataset to understand the nature of the habitats used for stop-over using a publicly available model pre-trained on more than half a million land cover images. By knowing the preferred stop-over habitats and the time spent in and between stop-overs using our model, we can help relevant authorities come up with efficient intervention measures.
Remotely sensed carotenoid dynamics predict photosynthetic phenology in conifer and deciduous forests
Authors: Wong Christopher Y.S. , Mercado Lina M. , Arain M. Altaf , Ensminger Ingo
Published: April 2021

Crucially, the phenology of photosynthesis conveys the length of the growing season. Assessing the timing of photosynthetic phenology is key for terrestrial ecosystem models for constraining annual carbon uptake. However, model representation of photosynthetic phenology remains a major limitation. Recent advances in remote sensing allow detecting changes of foliar pigment composition that regulate photosynthetic activity. We used foliar pigments changes as proxies for light-use-efficiency (LUE) to model gross primary productivity (GPP) from remote sensing data. We evaluated the performance of LUE-models with GPP from eddy covariance and against MODerate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) GPP, a conventional LUE model, and a process-based dynamic global vegetation model at an evergreen needleleaf and a deciduous broadleaf forest. Overall, the LUE-models using foliar pigment information best captured the start and end of season, demonstrating that using regulatory carotenoids and photosynthetic efficiency in LUE models can improve remote monitoring of the phenology of forest vegetation.
Total factor productivity growth and its decomposition in the Chinese construction industry since China's accession to the World Trade Organization
Authors: Wang Yuhe , Ye Gui , Zheng Chenli , Zhang Shilian
Published: April 2021

Purpose

Since China's accession of the World Trade Organization (WTO), its construction industry has attained unprecedented growth. However, for the sources of this enormous growth, a controversy regarding the total factor productivity growth (TFPG) still remains in production practice and extant studies. In view of this, the purpose of this paper is to measure TFPG and to explore its sources in the industry post-WTO accession.

Design/methodology/approach

This study presents an innovative source analysis of TFPG. Stochastic frontier approach is adopted to measure TFPG and to explore its sources by decomposing TFPG into technical progress (TP), technical efficiency change (TEC), allocative efficiency change (AEC) and scale efficiency change (SEC). Although China joined WTO in 2001, to provide an effective baseline, the study period is from 2000 to 2017.

Findings

The empirical results reveal that TFPG presented an overall downward evolutionary trend, but it still maintained a high growth post-WTO accession. From the perspective of decomposition, TP was the main source of TFPG. Furthermore, as a neglected source, interaction effects among TP, TEC, AEC and SEC have been demonstrated to have a significant influence on the cumulative TFPG.

Practical implications

To make the results be reliable, the authors discuss the empirical findings mainly by revealing the reasons behind the evolutions of TFPG and its sources. Based on these revealed reasons, government and policy makers can further refine and summarize some more detailed and targeted policy implications to improve TFPG.

Originality/value

By providing many empirical evidences to solve the aforesaid TFPG controversy, this paper, therefore, enriches the body of knowledge on growth theories, especially at the level of industrial economics.
Measurement and determinants of total factor productivity: evidence from Indian banking industry
Authors: Bhuyan Biswabhusan , Patra Subhamitra , Bhuian Ranjan Kumar
Published: April 2021

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to measure the level of total factor productivity of the Indian banking sector and to identify both the bank-specific and macroeconomic determinants of the total factor productivity after the global subprime mortgage crisis.

Design/methodology/approach

The research sample consists of 61 commercial banks including 21 public sector banks, 18 private sector banks and 22 foreign banks. The annual data is collected from the website of Reserve Bank of India from 2008 to 2019. The authors employed the non-parametric DEA approach to estimate Malmquist total factor productivity index for each bank as well as across different ownership groups. The panel data estimation technique was used to identify the determinants of total factor productivity.

Findings

The results suggested that an increase in the technological shift raised the bank's productivity above the optimal frontier. Among the bank-specific determinants, the bank size and bank diversifications are significantly declining productivity, whereas credit-deposit ratio and return on asset significantly increasing productivity. Among the macro-specific determinants, inflation, growth rate and fiscal deficit ratio negatively affect productivity, whereas capital formation to the GVA ratio boosts the level of productivity.

Research limitations/implications

The authors have used intermediate method to select the inputs and outputs as per the suitability to the context. However, the disaggregate level such as state and district level analysis can be done using production and value-added approaches to explore the regional variations of the banking performance. Furthermore, the parametric methods such as stochastic frontier analysis can be used to examine banking performance, which the authors left for the future research.

Practical implications

This study suggested that banks should increase the economies of scale of their total assets and focus on the interest-earning activity. The banks need to proactively operate the business policy by following the changing path of inflation. The banks need to reduce their rate of fiscal-deficit to the GVA with the purpose to boost their level of productivity.

Originality/value

The study provides an important implication for bankers and policymakers in terms of heightening the banking performance during the period of dynamic economic events.
The moderating role of job resources in the relationship between ageing, professional status and well-being in healthcare
Authors: Tomo Andrea , De Simone Stefania
Published: April 2021

Purpose

This study aims to test the relationship between ageing, professional status and well-being and the moderating role that job resources might have in this relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors relied upon the literature on well-being and the job demands–resources (JD-R) model and employed the Copenhagen psychological questionnaire administered to patient care workers in three paediatric hospitals belonging to the same healthcare organization.

Findings

The findings, on the one hand, confirm a not-significant relationship between ageing, professional status and well-being; on the other hand, they indicate that job resources have a positive, significant and direct impact on well-being and a significant role in moderating the relationship between ageing, professional status and well-being.

Originality/value

The present paper has manifold academic and practical interesting implications as it contributes to the literature on the well-being of healthcare workers and provides implications to identify interventions for better human resource (HR) management in the healthcare context.
Root influence on soil nitrogen availability and microbial community dynamics results in contrasting rhizosphere priming effects in pine and spruce soil
Authors: Li Jian , Alaei Saeed , Zhou Moyan , Bengtson Per
Published: April 2021

The rhizosphere priming effect (RPE) is increasingly considered an important regulator of below‐ground C and N cycling, with implications for terrestrial ecosystem feedback to global change. Even so, there is a lack of knowledge about the mechanisms underlying RPEs.

We used novel stable isotope probing methods to investigate RPEs in an experiment with Scots pine and Norway spruce seedlings, two of the most common boreal forest species. We determined root exudation rates, RPEs on SOM decomposition and gross N mineralization, and the contribution of different microbial functional groups to the observed RPEs.

Pine induced positive and spruce induced negative RPEs on SOM decomposition, while no RPE on gross N mineralization was observed. Negative RPEs in the spruce treatment were attributed to an opportunistic subset of the fungal community that was growing on root‐derived13C while depleting available N, thus reducing the activity of microbial SOM decomposers. In the pine treatment, available N was likely sufficient to support the root‐induced decomposition activities of fungal decomposers, resulting in positive RPEs.

The findings suggest that RPEs, promoted by root stimulation of distinct subsets of the microbial community, can either contribute to conserving the soil C stock or to depleting it, depending on plant species and soil N availability.

A freePlain Language Summarycan be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
Tripartite symbioses regulate plant–soil feedback in alder
Authors: Ardanuy Agnès , Walker Jennifer K. M. , Kritzler Ully , Taylor Andy F. S. , Johnson David
Published: April 2021

Plant–soil feedbacks regulate plant productivity and diversity, but potential mechanisms underpinning such feedbacks, such as the allocation of recent plant assimilate, remain largely untested especially for plants forming tripartite symbioses.

We tested how soils from under alder Alnus glutinosa and beneath other species of the same and different families affected alder growth and nutrition, and colonization of roots by nitrogen‐fixing Frankia bacteria and ectomycorrhizal fungi. We also measured how the soil environment affected carbon capture and allocation by pulse labelling seedlings with 13CO2. We then tested for linkages between foliar nutrient stoichiometry and carbon capture and allocation and soil origin using statistical modelling approaches.

Performance of alder and nitrogen nutrition were best on home and birch Betula pendula soils (both Betulaceae), whereas performance on Douglas fir Pseudotsuga menziesii (Pinaceae) soil was poor. Plants growing in P. menziesii soil were virtually devoid of Frankia and ectomycorrhizas, and the natural abundance 15N signatures of leaves were more enriched indicating distinct nitrogen acquisition pathways. Seedlings in these soils also had smaller 13C fixation and root allocation rates, leading to smaller 13C respiration rates by microbes.

Statistical models showed that the best predictors of foliar N concentration were 13C allocation rates to fine roots and net CO2 exchange from the mesocosms. The best predictors for foliar phosphorus concentration were net CO2 exchange from the mesocosms and soil origin; seedlings in home soils tended to have greater foliar phosphorus compared to birch soils while seedlings from Douglas fir soils were no different from the other treatments. Foliar phosphorus concentration was not correlated with plant available or total soil phosphorus for any of the soils. Home soils also resulted in distinct ectomycorrhizal communities on seedlings roots, which could be responsible for greater foliar phosphorus concentration.

Our findings show how the association of alder with nitrogen‐fixing Frankia relieved nitrogen limitation in the seedling triggering a performance feedback loop. We propose that relief of nitrogen limitation likely increases plant phosphorus demand, which may promote the formation of ectomycorrhizas in nutrient‐deficient soils. The formation of tripartite symbioses therefore generates positive plant–soil feedbacks, which enables plants to acquire mineral nutrients otherwise inaccessible in trade for carbon.

A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
Hybrid networks reveal contrasting effects of agricultural intensification on antagonistic and mutualistic motifs
Authors: Martínez‐Núñez Carlos , Rey Pedro J.
Published: April 2021

Anthropogenic‐driven perturbations such as agricultural intensification can affect simultaneously and distinctly several species groups and ecosystem functions. Unveiling these concurrent effects on interdependent species groups connected by different types of ecological interactions is a key challenge for ecologists. To this endeavour, hybrid ecological networks arise as a promising tool.

In this study, we used bee trap nests to sample hybrid networks that combined mutualistic and antagonistic interactions to explore agricultural intensification effects on the representation of network motifs (i.e. subnetworks showing different interaction types between a small number of species). Also, we assessed the variability of network motif's frequencies on farms under similar management regimes and the dissimilarity between farms under different ones. For this, we implemented a novel approach, calculating network functional spaces based on probability density estimates of network motif's frequencies, using network motifs as traits.

Results showed that environmentally friendly practices maximize the representation of mutualistic (cavity nesting bees–plants) and predation (wasps–prey and bees/wasps–antagonists) motifs. In contrast, intensive agriculture favoured generalist and intraguild predation interactions. Lastly, the frequency of motifs representing antagonistic interactions was more inconsistent and unpredictable across sites than mutualistic motifs, especially on intensified farms.

Our novel approach, dissecting hybrid networks into their motifs and analysing the functional space defined by these, reported detailed and contrasting effects of agricultural intensification on network motifs that represent the mutualistic and antagonistic interactions in this system.

A free plain language summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
Clinical characteristics associated with idiopathic rapid gastric emptying in patients referred for gastric emptying studies
Authors: Xiao Ted , Koch Kenneth , Bones Brent , Urbain Jean‐Luc Claude , Bennett Paige , Rejeski Jared
Published: April 2021

Objectives

Rapid gastric emptying (RGE) is diagnosed using nuclear medicine gastric emptying scintigraphy (GES). The clinical symptoms are non‐specific and its pathophysiology in the absence of gastric surgery is poorly understood. We aimed to evaluate the clinical characteristics associated with idiopathic RGE.

Methods

GES studies were reviewed from a database of 1958 4‐hour solid‐phase GES performed over an 8‐year period. RGE was defined as <30% of the test meal remaining in the stomach at 1 hour. Patients who had had any gastric operation were excluded. A chart review was conducted to extract patients’ baseline data and clinical characteristics.

Results

Of the 1958 GES studies reviewed, 156 (8.0%) patients had RGE, and 534 (27.3%) had delayed gastric emptying (>10% retained food at 4 h), respectively. Idiopathic RGE constituted 22.6% (156/690) of all abnormal GES studies. The patients’ average age at diagnosis was 54.0 years and 53.8% of patients with RGE were female. Most (69.2%) of these studies were ordered with an initial clinical suspicion of gastroparesis, compared with only 12.2% with a suspicion of RGE. Among this idiopathic RGE cohort, 71.2% presented with symptoms of nausea, 42.9% with vomiting, 32.1% with abdominal pain, 21.2% with bloating and 17.9% with early satiety. Only 7.7% presented with diarrhea, 0.6% with palpitations and 0.6% with hypoglycemia.

Conclusions

Idiopathic RGE is an important differential diagnosis in patients with symptoms classically associated with gastroparesis. Few have postprandial diarrhea or palpitations as their presenting symptom. Further studies of idiopathic RGE syndrome are warranted.
The Flora Incognita app – Interactive plant species identification
Authors: Mäder Patrick , Boho David , Rzanny Michael , Seeland Marco , Wittich Hans Christian , Deggelmann Alice , Wäldchen Jana
Published: April 2021

Being able to identify plant species is an important factor for understanding biodiversity and its change due to natural and anthropogenic drivers.

We discuss the freely available Flora Incognita app for Android, iOS and Harmony OS devices that allows users to interactively identify plant species and capture their observations. Specifically developed deep learning algorithms, trained on an extensive repository of plant observations, classify plant images with yet unprecedented accuracy. By using this technology in a context‐adaptive and interactive identification process, users are now able to reliably identify plants regardless of their botanical knowledge level.

Users benefit from an intuitive interface and supplementary educational materials. The captured observations in combination with their metadata provide a rich resource for researching, monitoring and understanding plant diversity.

Mobile applications such as Flora Incognita stimulate the successful interplay of citizen science, conservation and education.
Prophylactic platelet transfusions in hospitalised patients with thrombocytopenia—Protocol for a systematic review with meta‐analysis
Authors: Anthon Carl T. , Sivapalan Praleene , Granholm Anders , Pène Frédéric , Puxty Kathryn , Perner Anders , Møller Morten Hylander , Russell Lene
Published: April 2021

Background

Prophylactic platelet transfusions are frequently used to prevent bleeding in hospitalised patients with thrombocytopenia. Recommendations regarding the use of prophylactic platelet transfusions in non‐haematological patients are based on extrapolations, observational studies, and expert opinions, and transfusion with platelets has been associated with adverse effects. We aim to assess the overall benefits and harms of prophylactic platelet transfusions in hospitalised patients with thrombocytopenia.

Methods/Design

We will conduct a systematic review with meta‐analyses and trial sequential analyses in compliance with the recommendations by the Cochrane Collaboration and the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. We will prepare the manuscript in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis (PRISMA) statement. We will include randomised clinical trials assessing prophylactic platelet transfusion versus no prophylaxis or placebo in hospitalised patients with thrombocytopenia. The primary outcome is mortality at longest follow‐up. Secondary outcomes include episodes of clinically important bleeding, nosocomial infections, transfusion‐related adverse events, thromboembolic events, length of hospital stay, quality of life, and days alive without the use of life support. We will conduct prespecified subgroup analyses and sensitivity analyses and assess the risk of random errors by trial sequential analyses.

Discussion

The proposed systematic review will provide an overview of the certainty of evidence for the benefits and harms of prophylactic platelet transfusion in hospitalised patients with thrombocytopenia.
Prevalence and impact of hazardous alcohol use in intensive care cohort: A multicenter, register‐based study
Authors: Nissilä Eliisa , Hynninen Marja , Reinikainen Matti , Bendel Stepani , Suojaranta Raili , Korhonen Anna‐Maija , Suvela Markku , Loisa Pekka , Kaminski Tadeusz , Hästbacka Johanna
Published: April 2021

Background

Reports of the prevalence and impact of hazardous alcohol use among intensive care unit (ICU) patients are contradictory. We aimed to study the prevalence of hazardous alcohol use among ICU patients and its association with ICU length of stay (LOS) and mortality.

Methods

Finnish ICUs have been using the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test–Consumption (AUDIT‐C) to evaluate and record patients' alcohol use into the Finnish Intensive Care Consortium's Database (FICC). We retrieved data from the FICC from a 3‐month period. We excluded data from centers with an AUDIT‐C recording rate of less than 70% of admissions. We defined hazardous alcohol use as a score of 5 or more for women and 6 or more for men from a maximum score of 12 points.

Results

Two thousand forty‐five patients were treated in the 10 centers with an AUDIT‐C recording rate of 70% or higher. AUDIT‐C was available for 1576 (77%) patients and indicated hazardous alcohol use for 334 (21%) patients who were more often younger (median age 55 [interquartile range 42‐65] vs 67 [57‐74] [P < .001]) and male (78.1% vs 61.3% [P < .001]) compared to other patients. We found no difference in LOS or hospital mortality between hazardous and non‐hazardous alcohol users. Among the non‐abstinent, risk of death within a year increased with increasing AUDIT‐C scores adjusted odds ratio 1.077 (95% confidence interval, 1.006‐1.152) per point.

Conclusion

The prevalence of hazardous alcohol use in Finnish ICUs was 21%. Patients with hazardous alcohol use were more often younger and male compared with non‐hazardous alcohol users.
Parsing the microRNA genetics basis regulating skeletal muscle fiber types and meat quality traits in pigs
Authors: Jiang A. , Yin D. , Zhang L. , Li B. , Li R. , Zhang X. , Zhang Z. , Liu H. , Kim K. , Wu W.
Published: April 2021

Muscle fibers are closely related to human diseases and livestock meat quality. However, the genetics basis of microRNAs (miRNAs) in regulating muscle fibers is not completely understood. In this study, we constructed the whole genome‐wide miRNA expression profiles of porcine fast‐twitch muscle [biceps femoris (Bf)] and slow‐twitch muscle [soleus (Sol)], and identified hundreds of miRNAs, including four skeletal muscle‐highly expressed miRNAs, ssc‐miR‐378, ssc‐let‐7f, ssc‐miR‐26a, and ssc‐miR‐27b‐3p. Moreover, we identified 63 differentially expressed (DE) miRNAs between biceps femoris vs. soleus, which are the key candidate miRNAs regulating the skeletal muscle fiber types. In addition, we found that the expression of DE ssc‐miR‐499‐5p was significantly correlated to the expression of Myoglobin (r = 0.6872, P < 0.0001) and Myosin heavy chain 7 (MYH7; r = 0.5408, P = 0.0020), and pH45 min (r = 0.3806, P = 0.0380) and glucose content (r = −0.4382, P = 0.0154); while the expression of DE ssc‐miR‐499‐3p was significantly correlated to the expression of Myoglobin (r = 0.5340, P = 0.0024) and pH45 min (r = 0.4857, P = 0.0065). Taken together, our data established a sound foundation for further studies on the regulatory mechanisms of miRNAs in skeletal muscle fiber conversion and meat quality traits in livestock, and could provide a genetic explanation of the role of miRNAs in human muscular diseases.
IgE antibodies increase honeybee venom responsiveness and detoxification efficiency of mast cells
Authors: Starkl Philipp , Gaudenzio Nicolas , Marichal Thomas , Reber Laurent L. , Sibilano Riccardo , Watzenboeck Martin L. , Fontaine Frédéric , Mueller André C. , Tsai Mindy , Knapp Sylvia , Galli Stephen J.
Published: April 2021

Background

In contrast to their clearly defined roles in allergic diseases, the physiologic functions of Immunoglobulin E antibodies (IgEs) and mast cells (MCs) remain enigmatic. Recent research supports the toxin hypothesis, showing that MCs and IgE‐related type 2 immune responses can enhance host defense against certain noxious substances, including honeybee venom (BV). However, the mechanisms by which MCs can interfere with BV toxicity are unknown. In this study, we assessed the role of IgE and certain MC products in MC‐mediated BV detoxification.

Methods

We applied in vitro and in vivo fluorescence microscopyimaging, and flow cytometry, fibroblast‐based toxicity assays and mass spectrometry to investigate IgE‐mediated detoxification of BV cytotoxicity by mouse and human MCs in vitro. Pharmacologic strategies to interfere with MC‐derived heparin and proteases helped to define the importance of specific detoxification mechanisms.

Results

Venom‐specific IgE increased the degranulation and cytokine responses of MCs to BV in vitro. Passive serum sensitization enhanced MC degranulation in vivo. IgE‐activated mouse or human MCs exhibited enhanced potential for detoxifying BV by both proteolytic degradation and heparin‐related interference with toxicity. Mediators released by IgE‐activated human MCs efficiently degraded multiple BV toxins.

Conclusions

Our results both reveal that IgE sensitization enhances the MC's ability to detoxify BV and also assign efficient toxin‐neutralizing activity to MC‐derived heparin and proteases. Our study thus highlights the potential importance of IgE, MCs, and particular MC products in defense against BV.
Making Better Numbers through Bioethnographic Collaboration
Authors: Roberts Elizabeth F. S.
Published: April 2021

In this article, I describe my ongoing bioethnographic collaboration with a multidisciplinary team of exposure scientists in environmental engineering and health. First, I explain how and why integrating ethnography and number‐based disciplines is such a complex, time‐consuming, and worthwhile process, when ethnography produces a kind of excessive “big data” that is not easily enumerated. Then I describe three of our current bioethnographic projects that seek to make better numbers about how (1) neighborhoods, (2) water distribution, and (3) employment and chemical exposures shape bodily processes in a highly unequal world. To conclude, I reflect on how we might harness ethnographic excess for making better numbers and thus better knowledge, and also how bioethnographic collaboration inevitably transforms ethnography even as we insist on its excess. [collaboration, methodology, ethnography, big data, biomedical science]
Children's Knowledge of a Name‐Based Avoidance Register: A Quantitative Study among Datooga of Tanzania
Authors: Mitchell Alice , Rácz Péter Marton
Published: April 2021

Among Datooga pastoralists of Tanzania, an elaborate in‐law naming taboo has led to the emergence of a conventionalized avoidance vocabulary used by married women. We report on a survey investigating Datooga children's knowledge of this special vocabulary. The questionnaire and our expectations were pre‐registered and the results were analyzed using regression analysis. Though use of the avoidance vocabulary is gender‐specific, girls were only slightly more knowledgeable than boys about avoidance words. More predictive of children's responses was sociolinguistic environment: children from more “traditional” backgrounds showed greater knowledge of avoidance words. Based on this finding, we discuss how social change may be affecting this particular kind of knowledge transmission. Low overall accuracy reveals the gradual nature of certain types of sociocultural learning. [language learning, knowledge transmission, avoidance registers]
Aging in digital
Authors: ÖZDEN‐SCHILLING TOM
Published: April 2021

In British Columbia, Canada, aging forestry scientists struggle to pass on long‐term projects to younger colleagues who may never arrive. Thanks to the government of British Columbia's radical downsizing of its forestry research institutions, many of these scientists have been forced to reconceptualize the meaning of “succession.” Central to this process are computer‐based simulations of forest change, which have become critical sites of relationality for scientists struggling to sustain key experiments and their attending intellectual legacies. Digital simulations have increasingly come to mediate the expectations and shared dependencies that constitute scientific authorship. As a result, contemporary processes of institutional reproduction can depend less on deliberate enactments of agency than on subtler processes of detachment. To have their epistemic authority recognized by funders, apprentices, and collaborators, aging scientists must increasingly foreground their vulnerabilities and prepare for the possibility of their own erasure. [expertise,aging,simulation,forestry,environmental science,British Columbia,Canada,North America]
Distress in fathers of babies with infant colic
Authors: de Kruijff Ineke , Veldhuis Moniek S. , Tromp Ellen , Vlieger Arine M. , Benninga Marc.A. , Lambregtse‐van den Berg Mijke P.
Published: April 2021

Aim

The aim of this case‐control study was to compare parental stress, depression, anxiety and bonding problems between fathers and mothers of babies with infant colic and parents of control infants.

Methods

Parents of 34 infants with infant colic and 67 control dyads were included. Parental feelings were assessed using validated questionnaires.

Results

Fathers as well as mothers of infants with infant colic showed significantly higher mean scores compared with controls on stress (20.9 ± 5.8 and 25.5 ± 7.2 vs 16.4 ± 6.1 and 14.7 ± 7.0), depression (5.6 ± 4.0 and 9.1 ± 4.8 vs 2.9 ± 2.9 and 4.0 ± 3.1), anxiety (41.9 ± 9.2 and 46.0 ± 10.2 vs 32.4 ± 8.4 and 32.2 ± 9.3) and bonding problems (16.1 ± 8.1 and 13.7 ± 5.9 vs 8.7 ± 6.3 and 5.0 ± 4.4). In fathers, after adjustments for infant and parental confounders and maternal negative feelings, depression and anxiety were significantly increased in the infant colic group (difference of 2.7 (p = 0.017) and 8.6 (p = 0.002)).

Conclusion

In fathers of infants with infant colic, the experienced distress is strongly associated with maternal distress, except for depression and anxiety. Paediatricians should be aware of these paternal feelings as parental reassurance and support is one of the cornerstones in the treatment of infants with colic.
Untangling fracture risk in monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance: A population‐based cohort study
Authors: Rögnvaldsson Sæmundur , Aspelund Thor , Thorsteinsdóttir Sigrún , Turesson Ingemar , Björkholm Magnus , Landgren Ola , Kristinsson Sigurður Yngvi
Published: April 2021

Objective

Monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) is the asymptomatic precursor of multiple myeloma (MM). Lytic bone lesions and fractures are hallmarks of MM and although there are no lytic lesions in MGUS, it has also been associated with fractures. The causes of fractures in MGUS are currently unclear but potential causes include inherent MGUS bone disease, undiagnosed MM, and peripheral neuropathy (PN). We therefore conducted a large population‐based study including 8395 individuals with MGUS and 30 851 matched controls from Sweden.

Methods

Data on fractures, PN, and confounders were acquired from high‐quality registers in Sweden.

Results

Monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance and PN were independently associated with fractures (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.29; 95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 1.21‐1.37; P < .001 and HR: 1.34; 95% CI: 1.16‐1.55; P < .001). Imminent MGUS progression increased the risk of fractures (odds ratio: 1.66; 95% CI: 1.27‐2.16; P < .001). Fractures were not associated with long‐term risk of MGUS progression (HR: 1.08; 95% CI: 0.77‐1.53; P = .64).

Discussion

Based on these findings, we speculate that MGUS leads to fractures through at least 3 independent mechanisms: undetected MGUS progression to MM, MGUS inherent bone disease, and PN through falls. These findings highlight the need for further study of MGUS inherent bone disease and can inform further research into fracture prevention in MGUS.
Improving Ki67 assessment concordance by the use of an artificial intelligence‐empowered microscope: a multi‐institutional ring study
Authors: Cai Lijing , Yan Kezhou , Bu Hong , Yue Meng , Dong Pei , Wang Xinran , Li Lina , Tian Kuan , Shen Haocheng , Zhang Jun , Shang Jiuyan , Niu Shuyao , Han Dandan , Ren Chen , Huang Junzhou , Han Xiao , Yao Jianhua , Liu Yueping
Published: April 2021

Aims

The nuclear proliferation biomarker Ki67 plays potential prognostic and predictive roles in breast cancer treatment. However, the lack of interpathologist consistency in Ki67 assessment limits the clinical use of Ki67. The aim of this article was to report a solution utilising an artificial intelligence (AI)‐empowered microscope to improve Ki67 scoring concordance.

Methods and results

We developed an AI‐empowered microscope in which the conventional microscope was equipped with AI algorithms, and AI results were provided to pathologists in real time through augmented reality. We recruited 30 pathologists with various experience levels from five institutes to assess the Ki67 labelling index on 100 Ki67‐stained slides from invasive breast cancer patients. In the first round, pathologists conducted visual assessment on a conventional microscope; in the second round, they were assisted with reference cards; and in the third round, they were assisted with an AI‐empowered microscope. Experienced pathologists had better reproducibility and accuracy [intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) = 0.864, mean error = 8.25%] than inexperienced pathologists (ICC = 0.807, mean error = 11.0%) in visual assessment. Moreover, with reference cards, inexperienced pathologists (ICC = 0.836, mean error = 10.7%) and experienced pathologists (ICC = 0.875, mean error = 7.56%) improved their reproducibility and accuracy. Finally, both experienced pathologists (ICC = 0.937, mean error = 4.36%) and inexperienced pathologists (ICC = 0.923, mean error = 4.71%) improved the reproducibility and accuracy significantly with the AI‐empowered microscope.

Conclusion

The AI‐empowered microscope allows seamless integration of the AI solution into the clinical workflow, and helps pathologists to obtain higher consistency and accuracy for Ki67 assessment.
Impact of temperature on obstructive sleep apnoea in three different climate zones of Europe: Data from the European Sleep Apnoea Database (ESADA)
Authors: Staats Richard , Bailly Sébastien , Bonsignore Maria Rosaria , Ryan Silke , Riha Renata L. , Schiza Sophia , Verbraecken Johan , Basoglu Ozen K. , Saaresranta Tarja , Pataka Athanasia , Ludka Ondrej , Lombardi Carolina , Hedner Jan Anders , Grote Ludger ,   the European Sleep Apnoea Database (ESADA) collaborators
Published: April 2021

Recent studies indicate that ambient temperature may modulate obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) severity. However, study results are contradictory warranting more investigation in this field. We analysed 19,293 patients of the European Sleep Apnoea Database (ESADA) cohort with restriction to the three predominant climate zones according to the Köppen–Geiger climate classification: Cfb (warm temperature, fully humid, warm summer), Csa (warm temperature, summer dry, hot summer), and Dfb (snow, fully humid, warm summer). Average outside temperature values were obtained and several hierarchical regression analyses were performed to investigate the impact of temperature on the apnea–hypopnea index (AHI), oxygen desaturation index (ODI), time of oxygen saturation <90% (T90) and minimum oxygen saturation (MinSpO2) after controlling for confounders including age, body mass index, gender, and air conditioning (A/C) use. AHI and ODI increased with higher temperatures with a standardised coefficient beta (β) of 0.28 for AHI and 0.25 for ODI, while MinSpO2 decreased with a β of −0.13 (all results p < .001). When adjusting for climate zones, the temperature effect was only significant in Cfb (AHI: β = 0.11) and Dfb (AHI: β = 0.08) (Model 1: p < .001). The presence of A/C (3.9% and 69.3% in Cfab and Csa, respectively) demonstrated only a minor increase in the prediction of the variation (Cfb: AHI, R2 +0.003; and Csa: AHI, R2 +0.007; both p < .001). Our present study indicates a limited but consistent influence of environmental temperature on OSA severity and this effect is modulated by climate zones.
Static spherically symmetric three-form stars
Authors: Barros Bruno J. , Haghani Zahra , Harko Tiberiu , Lobo Francisco S. N.
Published: April 2021

We consider interior static and spherically symmetric solutions in a gravity theory that extends the standard Hilbert–Einstein action with a Lagrangian constructed from a three-form field $$A_{\alpha \beta \gamma }$$

A

α
β
γ

, which generates, via the field strength and a potential term, a new component in the total energy-momentum tensor of the gravitational system. We formulate the field equations in Schwarzschild coordinates and investigate their solutions numerically for different equations of state of neutron and quark matter, by assuming that the three-field potential is either a constant or possesses a Higgs-like form. Moreover, stellar models, described by the stiff-fluid, radiation-like, bag model and the Bose–Einstein condensate equations of state are explicitly obtained in both general relativity and three-form gravity, thus allowing an in-depth comparison between the astrophysical predictions of these two gravitational theories. As a general result we find that, for all the considered equations of state, three-form field stars are more massive than their general relativistic counterparts. As a possible astrophysical application, we suggest that the 2.5$$ M_{\odot }$$

M
⊙

mass compact object, associated with the GW190814 gravitational wave event, could be in fact a neutron or a quark star described by the three-form gravity theory.
A simplified estimate of the effective reproduction number $$R_t$$ using its relation with the doubling time and application to Italian COVID-19 data
Authors: Bonifazi Gianluca , Lista Luca , Menasce Dario , Mezzetto Mauro , Pedrini Daniele , Spighi Roberto , Zoccoli Antonio
Published: April 2021

A simplified method to compute $$R_t$$

R
t

, the effective reproduction number, is presented. The method relates the value of $$R_t$$

R
t

to the estimation of the doubling time performed with a local exponential fit. The condition $$R_t=1$$

R
t

=
1

corresponds to a growth rate equal to zero or equivalently an infinite doubling time. Different assumptions on the probability distribution of the generation time are considered. A simple analytical solution is presented in case the generation time follows a gamma distribution.
An exploration of the link between residents’ demands and caregivers’ well-being: Evidence from the long-term healthcare industry
Authors: Sebastiano Antonio , Giangreco Antonio , Peccei Riccardo
Published: April 2021

This study examines the extent to which important personal characteristics of nursing home residents affect the well-being of caregivers, as reflected in their levels of work-related positive and negative affect. To do this, we applied the Job Demands-Resources model to the analysis of caregivers’ work-related well-being by focusing on residents’ residual cognitive capacity and their perceived adequacy of resources. A multiple regression analysis was carried out based on combined data from a sample of 1080 caregivers and 290 residents from 13 nursing homes in Italy. Predictors of caregivers’ positive and negative well-being included job characteristics such as workload and social support. As expected, residents’ perceived adequacy of resources was positively related to caregivers’ well-being positive affect. Unexpectedly, residents’ residual cognitive capacity was associated with higher rather than lower levels of caregivers’ well-being negative affect. The quality of the interaction between residents and caregivers in nursing homes is contingent on their respective expectations and capabilities, and reciprocal perceptions of the outputs exchanged.
A Review of Conflict and Cohesion in Social Relationships in Family Firms
Authors: Bettinelli Cristina , Mismetti Marco , De Massis Alfredo , Del Bosco Barbara
Published: April 2021

The literature on conflict and cohesion in social relationships in family firms has developed rapidly in recent decades. To take stock and provide directions to move this flourishing research area forward, we conduct a systematic review of the literature. We examine the prevailing conceptualizations of conflict and cohesion in social relationships in family firms, depict their drivers and outcomes, highlight their theoretical and empirical underpinnings, and propose an ontological framework to synthesize this large body of research. Drawing on our review, we identify some important research gaps and suggest fruitful directions for future research.