bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Molecular characterization of Brucella species detected in humans and domestic ruminants of pastoral areas in Kagera ecosystem, Tanzania
Authors: Ntirandekura Jean‐Bosco , Makene Victor A. , Kasanga Christopher J. , Matemba Lucas E. , Kimera Sharadhuli I. , Muma John B. , Karimuribo Esron D. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractBrucellosis is a zoonotic disease of importance to both public health and the livestock industry. The disease is likely to be endemic in Tanzania and little is reported on molecular characterization of Brucella species in pastoral settings. This study aimed at characterizing Brucella species (targeting genus Brucella) infecting humans, cattle and goat in Kagera region (Ngara and Karagwe districts) using real‐time PCR, PCR amplification of 16S rRNA genes and Sanger sequencing. Brucella spp. were detected in 47 samples (19 sera and 28 milk) out of 125 samples (77 sera, 35 milk and 13 aborted materials) using real‐time PCR. All aborted materials (13 samples) were negative to real‐time PCR. Out of the 47 real‐time PCR positive samples (28 milk and 19 sera), 20 samples (10 milk and 10 sera) showed an expected 16S rRNA gene PCR product. Sequence analysis and blasting confirmed the presence of Brucella spp. in pastoral areas of Kagera region. The Brucella spp. from Kagera were phylogenetically grouped in two clades and three branches all closer to B. melitensis, B. abortus and B. suis from USA, Sudan and Iran. However, they were distinct from other species isolated also in USA, New Zealand, Germany and Egypt. This was expected based on the distance between the geographical regions from which the data (nucleotides sequences from 16S gene sequencing) for the phylogeny reconstruction were obtained. This is the first study to report Brucella species identified using 16S rRNA gene sequencing in East and Central Africa. A livestock vaccination program re‐inforced with a high index of Brucella diagnosis is needed to eradicate brucellosis in animals and minimize suffering from Brucella infections in humans in Tanzania.
Cover Image, Volume 7, Issue 4
Authors: Wang Chaozi , Wang Ruoyu , Huo Zailin , Xie En , Dahlke Helen E. 
Published: June 2020

The cover image is based on the Advanced Review Colloid transport through soil and other porous media under transient flow conditions—A review by Chaozi Wang et al., https://doi.org/10.1002/wat2.1439.image
The Use of Remote Sensing to Enhance Biodiversity Monitoring and Detection: A Critical Challenge for the Twenty-First Century
Authors: Cavender-Bares Jeannine , Gamon John A. , Townsend Philip A. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractImproved detection and monitoring of biodiversity is critical at a time when the Earth’s biodiversity loss due to human activities is accelerating at an unprecedented rate. We face the largest loss of biodiversity in human history, a loss which has been called the “sixth mass extinction” (Leakey 1996; Kolbert 2014), given that its magnitude is in proportion to past extinction episodes in Earth history detectable from the fossil record. International efforts to conserve biodiversity (United Nations 2011) and to develop an assessment process to document changes in the status and trends of biodiversity globally through the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (Díaz et al. 2015) have raised awareness about the critical need for continuous monitoring of biodiversity at multiple spatial scales across the globe. Biodiversity itself—the variation in life found among ecosystems and organisms at any level of biological organization—cannot practically be observed everywhere. However, if habitats, functional traits, trait diversity, and the spatial turnover of plant functions can be remotely sensed, the potential exists to globally inventory the diversity of habitats and traits associated with terrestrial biodiversity. To face this challenge, there have been recent calls for a global biodiversity monitoring system (Jetz et al. 2016; Proença et al. 2017; The National Academy of Sciences 2017). A central theme of this volume is that remote sensing (RS) will play a key role in such a system.
Consideration of Scale in Remote Sensing of Biodiversity
Authors: Gamon John A. , Wang Ran , Gholizadeh Hamed , Zutta Brian , Townsend Phil A. , Cavender-Bares Jeannine 
Published: June 2020

AbstractA coherent and effective remote sensing (RS) contribution to biodiversity monitoring requires careful consideration of scale in all its dimensions, including spatial, temporal, spectral, and angular, along with biodiversity at different levels of biological organization. Recent studies of the relationship between optical diversity (spectral diversity) and biodiversity reveal a scale dependence that can be influenced by the RS methods used, vegetation type, and degree and nature of disturbance. To better understand these issues, we call for multi-scale field campaigns that test the effect of sampling scale, vegetation type, and degree of disturbance on the ability to detect different kinds of biodiversity, along with the development of improved models that incorporate both physical and biological principles as well as ecological and evolutionary theory. One goal of these studies would be to more closely match instrumentation and sampling scales to biological definitions of biodiversity and so improve optical diversity (spectral diversity) as a proxy for biodiversity. The ultimate goal would be to design and implement a truly effective, “scale-aware” global biodiversity monitoring system employing RS methods. Such a system could improve our understanding of the distribution and functional importance of biodiversity and enhance our ability to manage ecosystems for resilience and sustainability in a changing world.
Essential Biodiversity Variables: Integrating In-Situ Observations and Remote Sensing Through Modeling
Authors: Fernández Néstor , Ferrier Simon , Navarro Laetitia M. , Pereira Henrique M. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractEssential biodiversity variables (EBVs) are designed to support the detection and quantification of biodiversity change and to define priorities in biodiversity monitoring. Unlike most primary observations of biodiversity phenomena, EBV products should provide information readily available to produce policy-relevant biodiversity indicators, ideally at multiple spatial scales, from global to subnational. This information is typically complex to produce from a single set of data or type of observation, thus requiring approaches that integrate multiple sources of in situ and remote sensing (RS) data. Here we present an up-to-date EBV concept for biodiversity data integration and discuss the critical components of workflows for EBV production. We argue that open and reproducible workflows for data integration are critical to ensure traceability and reproducibility so that each EBV endures and can be updated as novel biodiversity models are adopted, new observation systems become available, and new data sets are incorporated. Fulfilling the EBV vision requires strengthening efforts to mobilize massive amounts of in situ biodiversity data that are not yet publicly available and taking full advantage of emerging RS technologies, novel biodiversity models, and informatics infrastructures, in alignment with the development of a globally coordinated system for biodiversity monitoring.
Remote Sensing for Early, Detailed, and Accurate Detection of Forest Disturbance and Decline for Protection of Biodiversity
Authors: Pontius Jennifer , Schaberg Paul , Hanavan Ryan 
Published: June 2020

AbstractMany ecosystems and the biodiversity they contain are currently faced with increasing disturbance frequency and intensity, concurrent with converging stress agents such as climate change, invasive species, and pollutant loads. Research has shown that the earlier decline can be detected, the more successful efforts will be in sustaining critical natural resources. While historically remote sensing (RS) has been successfully used to assess and monitor vegetation condition on a relative, coarse scale, advances in RS technologies and new modeling approaches now enable the identification and tracking of early and more subtle changes in vegetation condition, function, and structure. Here we review the current techniques used to assess and monitor forest ecosystem condition and disturbance and outline a general approach for earlier, more detailed, and accurate decline assessment. We also discuss the importance of engaging land managers, practitioners, and decision-makers in these efforts to ensure that the final products developed can be utilized by stakeholders to maximize the impact of these technologies moving forward.
Formal Verification of Robotic Cell Injection systems up to 4-DOF using HOL Light
Authors: Rashid Adnan , Hasan Osman 
Published: June 2020

AbstractCell injection is an approach used for the delivery of small sample substances into a biological cell and is widely used in drug development, gene injection, intracytoplasmic sperm injection and in-vitro fertilization. Robotic cell injection systems provide the automation of the process as opposed to the manual and semi-automated cell injection systems, which require expert operators and involve time consuming processes and also have lower success rates. The automation of the cell injection process is obtained by controlling the orientation and movement of its various components, like injection manipulator, microscope etc., and planning the motion of the injection pipette by controlling the force of the injection. The conventional techniques to analyze the cell injection process include paper-and-pencil proof and computer simulation methods. However, both these techniques suffer from their inherent limitations, such as, proneness to human error for the former and the approximation of the mathematical expressions involved in the numerical algorithms for the latter. Formal methods have the capability to overcome these limitations and can provide an accurate analysis of these cell injection systems. Model checking, i.e., a state-based formal method, has been recently used for analyzing these systems. However, it involves the discretization of the differential equations capturing the continuous dynamics of the system and thus compromises on the completeness of the analysis of these safety-critical systems. In this paper, we propose a higher-order-logic theorem proving (a deductive-reasoning based formal method) based framework for analyzing the dynamical behavior of the robotic cell injection systems upto 4-DOF. The proposed analysis, based on the HOL Light theorem prover, enabled us to identify some discrepancies in the simulation and model checking based analysis of the same robotic cell injection system.
Influence of breast cancer risk factors and intramammary biotransformation on estrogen homeostasis in the human breast
Authors: Pemp Daniela , Geppert Leo N. , Wigmann Claudia , Kleider Carolin , Hauptstein René , Schmalbach Katja , Ickstadt Katja , Esch Harald L. , Lehmann Leane 
Published: June 2020

AbstractUnderstanding intramammary estrogen homeostasis constitutes the basis of understanding the role of lifestyle factors in breast cancer etiology. Thus, the aim of the present study was to identify variables influencing levels of the estrogens present in normal breast glandular and adipose tissues (GLT and ADT, i.e., 17β-estradiol, estrone, estrone-3-sulfate, and 2-methoxy-estrone) by multiple linear regression models. Explanatory variables (exVARs) considered were (a) levels of metabolic precursors as well as levels of transcripts encoding proteins involved in estrogen (biotrans)formation, (b) data on breast cancer risk factors (i.e., body mass index, BMI, intake of estrogen-active drugs, and smoking) collected by questionnaire, and (c) tissue characteristics (i.e., mass percentage of oil, oil%, and lobule type of the GLT). Levels of estrogens in GLT and ADT were influenced by both extramammary production (menopausal status, intake of estrogen-active drugs, and BMI) thus showing that variables known to affect levels of circulating estrogens influence estrogen levels in breast tissues as well for the first time. Moreover, intratissue (biotrans)formation (by aromatase, hydroxysteroid-17beta-dehydrogenase 2, and beta-glucuronidase) influenced intratissue estrogen levels, as well. Distinct differences were observed between the exVARs exhibiting significant influence on (a) levels of specific estrogens and (b) the same dependent variables in GLT and ADT. Since oil% and lobule type of GLT influenced levels of some estrogens, these variables may be included in tissue characterization to prevent sample bias. In conclusion, evidence for the intracrine activity of the human breast supports biotransformation-based strategies for breast cancer prevention. The susceptibility of estrogen homeostasis to systemic and tissue-specific modulation renders both beneficial and adverse effects of further variables associated with lifestyle and the environment possible.
Short‐ to Midterm Results After Posterior Component Separation with Transversus Abdominis Release: Initial Experience from India
Authors: Priya Pallawi , Kantharia Nimisha , Agrawal Jugal B. , Agrawal Abhay , Agrawal Laksh , Afaque Md Yusuf , Rizvi Amjad Syed Ali , Baig Sarfaraz J. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractPurposePosterior component separation with transversus abdominis release is a new procedure and is quickly gaining popularity. It has shown promising results in terms of low recurrence rates for large and complex hernias. However, there are very little Indian data available on this to date. The purpose of this study was to assess the outcomes of the technique at three centers in India.MethodsThis was a retrospective analysis of the prospectively collected data. Patients with a minimum follow‐up of 3 months who underwent open or minimal access posterior component separation were included.ResultsA total of 72 patients (open = 44, minimal access = 25, and hybrid = 3) were included in the analysis. At a follow‐up ranging from 3 months to 35 months, there were two recurrences (2.78%). Surgical site occurrences were seen in 23/72 (31.9%), and surgical site infection was seen in 7/72 (9.7%). Surgical site occurrence requiring procedural intervention was 3/72 (4.2%). There were two (2.78%) mortalities in the open group due to myocardial infarction.ConclusionPosterior component separation with transversus abdominis release may have advantages in terms of low recurrence in large hernias in the Indian population and can be used in carefully selected patients.
Perioperative Management and Outcomes of Hyperthyroid Patients Unable to Tolerate Antithyroid Drugs
Authors: Hsieh Lily B. , Yen Tina W. F. , Dream Sophie , Patel Dhaval , Evans Douglas B. , Wang Tracy S. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractBackgroundPrior to thyroidectomy for hyperthyroidism, it is recommended that patients are managed with antithyroid drugs (ATDs) and rendered euthyroid to decrease the risk of thyroid storm. However, not all patients tolerate ATD and the risk of thyroid storm during thyroidectomy in these patients is unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the management and outcomes of hyperthyroid patients that were on ATDs prior to surgery to those who were not.Study designA prospectively maintained, single‐institution database was queried for all hyperthyroid patients who were initially treated with ATDs and underwent thyroidectomy from January 1, 2012, to June 18, 2018. Patients were divided into two groups: (1) those on ATDs at surgery (ATD group) and (2) those who could not tolerate and stopped ATDs prior to surgery (no‐ATD group). Demographic and clinical data were collected. Primary outcomes were readmissions/emergency department visits and postoperative complications within 30 days of thyroidectomy.ResultsOf the 248 patients, 231 were in the ATD group and 17 (7%) were in the no‐ATD group. There were no mortalities or thyroid storm events in either group. There was no difference in Clavien–Dindo Grade 2 or 3 complications between the two groups. There were no ED visits or 30‐day readmissions in the no‐ATD group compared to 17 (7%) events in the ATD group (p = 1.0).ConclusionWhile it is preferable to render patients euthyroid prior to thyroidectomy for hyperthyroidism, results of this study suggest that when patients cannot tolerate ATDs, it is possible to perform thyroidectomy without increased risk of thyroid storm or intra‐ and postoperative complications.
Comparison of short-stem with conventional-stem prostheses in total hip arthroplasty: an 8-year follow-up study
Authors: Zimmerer Alexander , Slouka Stefanie , Kinkel Stefan , Fritz Thomas , Weiss Stefan , Sobau Christian , Miehlke Wolfgang 
Published: June 2020

Abstract
Purpose
Coxarthrosis is a common disease of the adult hip joint. Elderly patients have mainly been treated with total hip arthroplasty (THA); however, younger patients are increasingly affected. Short-stem prostheses were developed for this special patient group. There have been few studies on the clinical outcomes of this type of prosthesis. This study compared the mid-term results of a short-stem prosthesis and a standard-stem prosthesis 8 years after implantation.

Methods
According to our clinical registry, patients who received a short-stem prosthesis before 2011 were identified. Patients in the standard-stem prosthesis group were matched based on the sex, age, height, weight, and degree of arthrosis. At the follow-up time, the modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS), University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) activity score and visual analog scale (VAS) pain score were collected and compared with the preoperative values.

Results
Fifty-five patients could be matched and analyzed for both groups. No patients needed revision surgery. In both groups, there were significant improvements at the follow-up time. The pre- and postoperative mHHSs, UCLA scores, and VAS scores were 41.9 and 95 (p < 0.0001), 3.75 and 7.9 (p < 0.0001), and 7.6 and 0.9 (p < 0.0001), respectively, in the short-stem group and 44.8 and 96.25 (p < 0.0001), 3.6 and 7.7 (p < 0.0001), and 7.7 and 0.9 (p < 0.0001), respectively, in the control group, with no significant differences between the groups at the follow-up time.

Conclusion
The short-stem prosthesis provides mid-term results comparable to those of a standard-stem prosthesis. In both groups, excellent patient-reported outcomes were achieved after an average of 8 years.

Level of evidence
IV.
Thyroxine restores severely impaired cutaneous re-epithelialisation and angiogenesis in a novel preclinical assay for studying human skin wound healing under “pathological” conditions ex vivo
Authors: Post H. , Hundt J. E. , Zhang G. , Depping R. , Rose C. , Langan E. A. , Paus R. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractImpaired cutaneous wound healing remains a major healthcare challenge. The enormity of this challenge is compounded by the lack of preclinical human skin wound healing models that recapitulate selected key factors underlying impaired healing, namely hypoxia/poor tissue perfusion, oxidative damage, defective innervation, and hyperglycaemia. Since organ-cultured human skin already represents a denervated and impaired perfusion state, we sought to further mimic “pathological” wound healing conditions by culturing experimentally wounded, healthy full-thickness frontotemporal skin from three healthy female subjects for three days in either serum-free supplemented Williams’ E medium or in unsupplemented medium under “pathological” conditions (i.e. hypoxia [5% O2], oxidative damage [10 mM H2O2], absence of insulin, excess glucose). Under these “pathological” conditions, dermal–epidermal split formation and dyskeratosis were prominent in organ-cultured human skin, and epidermal reepithelialisation was significantly impaired (p < 0.001), associated with reduced keratinocyte proliferation (p < 0.001), cytokeratin 6 expression (p < 0.001) and increased apoptosis (p < 0.001). Moreover, markers of intracutaneous angiogenesis (CD31 immunoreactivity and the number of of CD31 positive cells and CD31 positive vessel lumina) were significantly reduced. Since we had previously shown that thyroxine promotes wound healing in healthy human skin ex vivo, we tested whether this in principle also occurs under “pathological” wound healing conditions. Indeed, thyroxine administration sufficed to rescue re-epithelialisation (p < 0.001) and promoted both epidermal keratinocyte proliferation (p < 0.01) and angiogenesis in terms of CD31 immunoreactivity and CD31 positive cells under “pathological” conditions (p < 0.001) ex vivo. This demonstrates the utility of this pragmatic short-term ex vivo model, which recapitulates some key parameters of impaired human skin wound healing, for the preclinical identification of promising wound healing promoters.
Systematic review: non-adherence and non-persistence in intravitreal treatment
Authors: Ehlken Christoph , Ziemssen Focke , Eter Nicole , Lanzl Ines , Kaymak Hakan , Lommatzsch Albrecht , Schuster Alexander K. 
Published: June 2020

Abstract
Purpose
Intravitreal injection of VEGF inhibitors has become the standard of care for different macular diseases within the last years resulting in improved visual outcomes. Under real-life conditions, however, the necessity for frequent retreatments and reexaminations poses a burden for patients and treatment centers. Non-adherence and non-persistence to intravitreal treatment may lead to inferior clinical outcomes, and knowledge of contributing factors is crucial to improve adherence. This systematic review analyzes current literature for potential factors involved in non-adherence and non-persistence.

Methods
A systematic search was conducted in PubMed and Embase including three different aspects of intravitreal injection therapy: (1) diseases with intravitreal injections as treatment, (2) intravitreal injection, and (3) aspects of therapy adherence or therapy persistence. Data from identified quantitative studies were further extracted and grouped according to WHO criteria (condition, socio-economy, therapy, patient, and health system). The methodological quality of identified studies was graded. Identified qualitative studies (i.e., interviews) were descriptively analyzed and their findings narratively reported.

Results
Twenty-four publications were included. In 16 of those publications, a quantitative data analysis was conducted, analyzing factors associated with non-adherence. Worse visual acuity at baseline and unfavorable development of visual acuity, higher age, and greater distance to the treatment center were associated with non-adherence, while there was inconsistent evidence for an association of comorbidity. In qualitative studies, high follow-up/treatment burden, fear and anxiety, disappointed patient expectations, and lack of motivation to continue treatment were reported as reasons for non-persistence.

Conclusions
Knowledge of potential barriers in IVT treatment may improve adherence and potentially clinical results. Improvements can be achieved particularly in the healthcare complex (organizational improvements) and the “patient” complex by establishing realistic expectations. Recurrent education of the patient may be necessary.