bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Association between anesthesia duration and outcome in dogs with surgically treated acute severe spinal cord injury caused by thoracolumbar intervertebral disk herniation
Authors: Fenn Joe , Ru Hongyu , Jeffery Nick D. , Moore Sarah , Tipold Andrea , Soebbeler Franz J. , Wang‐Leandro Adriano , Mariani Christopher L. , Early Peter J. , Muñana Karen R. , Olby Natasha J. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractBackgroundRetrospective research recently identified a possible relationship between duration of surgery and outcome in severely affected dogs treated surgically for acute thoracolumbar intervertebral disk herniation (TL‐IVDH).HypothesisThat increased duration of surgery is associated with poorer outcome in dogs with absent pain perception treated surgically for TL‐IVDH.AnimalsTwo hundred ninety‐seven paraplegic dogs with absent pain perception surgically treated for acute TL‐IVDH.MethodsRetrospective cohort study. Medical records of 5 institutions were reviewed. Inclusion criteria were paraplegia with absence of pain perception, surgical treatment of TL‐IVDH, and 1‐year postoperative outcome (ambulatory: yes or no). Canine data, outcome, and surgery and total anesthesia duration were retrieved.ResultsIn this study, 183/297 (61.6%) dogs were ambulatory within 1 year, 114 (38.4%) dogs failed to recover, including 74 dogs (24.9%) euthanized because of progressive myelomalacia. Median anesthesia duration in dogs that regained ambulation within 1 year of surgery (4.0 hours, interquartile range [IQR] 3.2‐5.1) was significantly shorter than those that did not (4.5 hours, IQR 3.7‐5.6, P = .01). Multivariable logistic regression demonstrated a significant negative association between both duration of surgery and total anesthesia time and ambulation at 1 year when controlling for body weight and number of disk spaces operated on.Conclusions and Clinical ImportanceFindings support a negative association between increased duration of anesthesia and outcome in this group of dogs. However, the retrospective nature of the data does not imply a causal relationship.
Are there common assembly rules for different grasslands? Comparisons of long‐term data from a subtropical grassland with temperate grasslands
Authors: Ward David , Kirkman Kevin P. , Tsvuura Zivanai , Morris Craig , Fynn Richard W. S. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractQuestionsHow consistent are assembly rules for grassland communities from different regions in response to management? We compared vegetation response using long‐term experiments in subtropical South Africa with published temperate Park Grass (UK) and Konza Prairie (USA) results.LocationUkulinga, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.MethodsLong‐term experiments in the South African site included a fertilizer experiment (VFE) that was compared with Park Grass and a burning and mowing experiment (BME) that was compared with Konza Prairie.ResultsWe found consistent vegetation patterns of this subtropical grassland and the temperate grasslands at Park Grass and Konza Prairie. In the comparison of the burning and mowing experiments, species richness in the BME at Ukulinga declined across mowing treatments but did not change between control and intermediate burns as found at Konza Prairie. There was dominance by a few species in the subtropical grassland and the two temperate grasslands under high productivity and frequent burns. Annual burns resulted in lower species richness at both subtropical Ukulinga and temperate Konza Prairie. At both temperate Park Grass and Ukulinga, few species dominated in highly fertilized plots, both sites showed a negative effect of nitrogen amount, and there was a positive effect of lime on species richness.ConclusionsConsistent results from long‐term series of subtropical and temperate grasslands suggest that there are similar community assembly rules regardless of different climatic conditions and different species pools. A possible underlying mechanism for community assembly at Ukulinga and Konza Prairie for both fertilization, burning and mowing may be shade tolerance. At Ukulinga and Park Grass, changes in species richness (negative effects of increasing nitrogen amount and positive effects of lime) were remarkably similar. Most of the common grass species in South Africa showed evidence of competition, supporting niche‐based assembly rules.
Small biodiversity effects on leaf litter production of a seasonal heath vegetation
Authors: Silva José Luiz Alves , Souza Alexandre Fadigas , Santiago Louis Stephen , Gripp Anderson da Rocha , Asato Ana Elizabeth Bonato , Silva Gabriel Henrique Santos , Alencar Mery Ingrid Guimarães de , Caliman Adriano 
Published: May 2020

AbstractAimsWe evaluated the relative importance that biodiversity factors, abiotic conditions, and vegetation structure have on monthly leaf litter production. We tested if biodiversity drives leaf litter production through the increase in species richness or community‐weighted mean traits regardless of the influence of other biodiversity factors that reflect species niche differentiation, such as phylogenetic and functional diversities. We also tested if precipitation imposes greater influence on the production than any asynchronous effects between species that result from temporal niche partitioning.LocationSeasonal heath vegetation that covers white‐sand coastal areas in northeastern Brazil.MethodsWe conducted an observational study across 41 25‐m2permanent plots to sample leaf litter production of the vegetation during 18 months from January 2016 to June 2017 at monthly intervals. We used structural equation modeling in combination with linear mixed models to test the above‐mentioned hypotheses.ResultsOur study encompassed 22 focal species. Species richness was the only biodiversity factor to influence leaf litter production, although its effect was weak, suggesting that the chance of including high‐yielding species by increasing richness enhances the production regardless of the degree of species niche complementarity through functional and phylogenetical dissimilarities. We also observed a major control of precipitation on leaf litter production, as well as a lack of interaction between species richness and its temporal dynamic of production, demonstrating the key role of climate‐mediated controls.ConclusionWe believe that plant diversity loses importance for ecosystem functioning in ecological contexts where the entire community responds similarly to abiotic pressures, particularly if the ecosystem process is marked by strong temporal dynamics. Our study provided empirical support for this line of reasoning since the seasonal heath vegetation responded mostly to rainfall seasonality.
First case of drug‐induced liver injury associated with the use of tocilizumab in a patient with COVID‐19
Authors: Muhović Damir , Bojović Jelena , Bulatović Ana , Vukčević Batrić , Ratković Marina , Lazović Ranko , Smolović Brigita 
Published: May 2020

AbstractBackground and AimsTocilizumab (TCZ; interleukine‐6 receptor antagonist) has been proposed to treat severe forms of Coronavirus disease‐19 (COVID‐19) because interleukine‐6 plays an important role in COVID‐19‐induced cytokine storm. Several clinical studies have shown very good effects of TCZ in patients with COVID‐19, with a few minor side effects reported. Only eight serious liver injuries caused by TCZ were reported before being used in the treatment of patients with COVID‐19. Considering the significantly increased use of TCZ for the treatment of COVID‐19, we would like to warn of its rare but possible serious hepatotoxicity, especially when used together with other hepatotoxic drugs.MethodsWe describe a patient with COVID‐19‐induced cytokine storm who developed drug‐induced liver injury associated with the use of TCZ.ResultsOne day after TCZ administration, serum transaminase levels increased 40‐fold. Nevertheless, TCZ had a positive effect on clinical and laboratory parameters in cytokine storm, with transaminases values normalizing in 10 days.ConclusionsThis is the first reported case of DILI caused by TCZ in a COVID‐19 patient. Intensive liver function monitoring is imperative in COVID‐19 patients, because of frequent polypharmacy with potentially hepatotoxic drugs.
Genomic footprints of an old affair: Single nucleotide polymorphism data reveal historical hybridization and the subsequent evolution of reproductive barriers in two recently diverged grasshoppers with partly overlapping distributions
Authors: Tonzo Vanina , Papadopoulou Anna , Ortego Joaquín 
Published: May 2020

AbstractSecondary contact in close relatives can result in hybridization and the admixture of previously isolated gene pools. However, after an initial period of hybridization, reproductive isolation can evolve through different processes and lead to the interruption of gene flow and the completion of the speciation process. Omocestus minutissimus and O. uhagonii are two closely related grasshoppers with partially overlapping distributions in the Central System mountains of the Iberian Peninsula. To analyse spatial patterns of historical and/or contemporary hybridization between these two taxa and understand how species boundaries are maintained in the region of secondary contact, we sampled sympatric and allopatric populations of the two species and obtained genome‐wide single nucleotide polymorphism data using a restriction site‐associated DNA sequencing approach. We used Bayesian clustering analyses to test the hypothesis of contemporary hybridization in sympatric populations and employed a suite of phylogenomic approaches and a coalescent‐based simulation framework to evaluate alternative hypothetical scenarios of interspecific gene flow. Our analyses rejected the hypothesis of contemporary hybridization but revealed past introgression in the area where the distributions of the two species overlap. Overall, these results point to a scenario of historical gene flow after secondary contact followed by the evolution of reproductive isolation that currently prevents hybridization among sympatric populations.
Development of FRET‐based high‐throughput screening for viral RNase III inhibitors
Authors: Wang Linping , Saarela Jani , Poque Sylvain , Valkonen Jari P.T. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe class 1 ribonuclease III (RNase III) encoded by Sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus (CSR3) suppresses RNA silencing in plant cells and thereby counters the host antiviral response by cleaving host small interfering RNAs, which are indispensable components of the plant RNA interference (RNAi) pathway. The synergy between sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus and sweet potato feathery mottle virus can reduce crop yields by 90%. Inhibitors of CSR3 might prove efficacious to counter this viral threat, yet no screen has been carried out to identify such inhibitors. Here, we report a novel high‐throughput screening (HTS) assay based on fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) for identifying inhibitors of CSR3. For monitoring CSR3 activity via HTS, we used a small interfering RNA substrate that was labelled with a FRET‐compatible dye. The optimized HTS assay yielded 109 potential inhibitors of CSR3 out of 6,620 compounds tested from different small‐molecule libraries. The three best inhibitor candidates were validated with a dose–response assay. In addition, a parallel screen of the selected candidates was carried out for a similar class 1 RNase III enzyme from Escherichia coli (EcR3), and this screen yielded a different set of inhibitors. Thus, our results show that the CSR3 and EcR3 enzymes were inhibited by distinct types of molecules, indicating that this HTS assay could be widely applied in drug discovery of class 1 RNase III enzymes.
Did hard substrate taxa diversify prior to the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event?
Authors: Franeck Franziska , Liow Lee Hsiang 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (GOBE) refers to one of the greatest increases in biodiversity during the Phanerozoic. Recent studies have shown that this taxonomic increase can be attributed to elevated origination rates around the Dapingian–Darriwilian boundary in the Middle Ordovician, while extinction rates stayed relatively constant throughout the Ordovician. Even though this global pattern of origination and extinction appears similar across diverse groups and geographical areas, earlier studies suggested that hard substrate taxa may have diversified prior to the GOBE, during the Early Ordovician. Here, we quantify Ordovician diversification dynamics of hard substrate taxa while simultaneously accounting for temporally varying sampling probabilities. Diversification rates of hard substrate taxa, both as a whole and when analysed as separate groups, appear to be very similar to those of free‐living benthic taxa. The observation that the diversification dynamics of many different taxonomic and ecological groups show the same temporal pattern, suggests a common cause of Ordovician diversification dynamics.
Genetically modified live attenuated vaccine: A potential strategy to combat visceral leishmaniasis
Authors: Pandey Satish Chandra , Kumar Awanish , Samant Mukesh 
Published: May 2020

AbstractVisceral leishmaniasis (VL) is caused by a protozoan parasite Leishmania donovani mainly influencing the population of tropical and subtropical regions across the globe. The arsenal of drugs available is limited, and prolonged use of such drugs makes parasite to become resistant. Therefore, it is very imperative to develop a safe, cost‐effective and inexpensive vaccine against VL. Although in recent years, many strategies have been pursued by researchers, so far only some of the vaccine candidates reached for clinical trial and more than half of them are still in pipeline. There is now a broad consent among Leishmania researchers that the perseverance of parasite is very essential for eliciting a protective immune response and may perhaps be attained by live attenuated parasite vaccination. For making a live attenuated parasite, it is very essential to ensure that the parasite is deficient of virulence and should further study genetically modified parasites to perceive the mechanism of pathogenesis. So it is believed that in the near future, a complete understanding of the Leishmania genome will explore clear strategies to discover a novel vaccine. This review describes the need for a genetically modified live attenuated vaccine against VL, and obstacles associated with its development.
In vitro susceptibility of Aspergillus and Fusarium associated with equine keratitis to new antifungal drugs
Authors: Roberts Darby , Cotter Henry Van T. , Cubeta Marc , Gilger Brian C. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractObjectiveTo determine minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of four fungal species isolated from horses presented with equine fungal keratitis (EFK) in the southeastern United States to previously untested azole, echinocandin, and carboxamide antifungal drugs.MethodsIn vitro assays were performed to determine the susceptibility of Aspergillus flavus, A. fumigatus, Fusarium falciforme, and F. keratoplasticum to five antifungal drugs representing three modes of action.ResultsLuliconazole exhibited increased growth inhibition against both Aspergillus and Fusarium compared to commonly used, standard antifungal drugs. MIC values for luliconazole at 0.001‐0.002 µg/mL were at least 25‐fold lower than all other antifungal drugs tested, including voriconazole.ConclusionsThe increased antifungal activity of luliconazole observed in this study warrants further investigation for its potential as an antifungal drug for equine fungal keratitis.
Porcine rotavirus C strains carrying human‐like NSP4 and NSP5
Authors: Costa Fábio Burack , Flores Patrícia Soares , Amorim Ariane Ribeiro , Mendes Gabriella da Silva , Santos Norma 
Published: May 2020

AbstractBackgroundRotavirus C (RVC) is an enteric pathogen that affects humans and animals around the world.MethodsIn this study, we characterized the genetic diversity of RVC strains detected in asymptomatic Brazilian pigs by sequencing the NSP4, NSP5 and VP6 genes.ResultsThe results of reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction showed that 53 of 579 samples (9.2%) contained RVC. Positive samples were genotyped by sequencing gene segments NSP4, and NSP5. Most of the RCV strains encountered were classified into typically porcine genotypes: E1‐H1. In two strains, BP182 and BP208, the NSP4 gene grouped with E2‐RVC human strains with 94.2%–96.5% nucleotide identity, although the NSP5 gene was porcine‐like (H1). In strain SD67, the NSP5 gene grouped with human H2‐RVC with 92.5%–98.7% nucleotide identity and the NSP4 gene grouped with porcine strains (E1). Two strains (BP208 and SD67) were also genotyped by sequencing gene segment VP6. The VP6 gene grouped with porcine strains, I6 (89.3%–90.2% nucleotide identity) and I5 (88.7%–90.5% nucleotide identity), for strains BP208 and SD67, respectively.ConclusionsThese results are indicative of genomic reassortment between RVC strains of human and porcine origin. In recent years, the incidence of RVC infection among humans has increased significantly. It is important to measure the frequency of interspecies transmission in order to monitor the evolution of these viruses and to identify rearranged strains that may lead to an epidemic.
A new class of activation functions. Some related problems and applications
Authors: Kyurkchiev Nikolay V. 
Published: May 2020

The cumulative distribution function (cdf) of the discrete two--parameter bathtub hazard distribution has important role in the fields of population dynamics, reliability analysis and life testing experiments.В Also of interest to the specialists is the task of approximating the Heaviside function by new (cdf) in Hausdorff sense.В We define new activation function and family of new recurrence generated functions and study the ''saturation'' by these families.В In this paper we analyze some intrinsic properties of the new Topp-Leone-G-Family with baseline ''deterministic-type'' (cdf) - (NTLG-DT).В Some numerical examples with real data from Biostatistics, Population dynamics and Signal theory, illustrating our results are given.В It is shown that the study of the two characteristics - "confidential curves" and ''super saturation'' is a must when choosing the right model.В Some related problems are discussed, as an example to the Approximation Theory.
Assessment of diabetes and prediabetes prevalence and predictors by HbA1c in a population from sub-Saharan Africa with a high proportion of anemia: a prospective cross-sectional study
Authors: Hodel Nikolai Carl , Hamad Ali , Reither Klaus , Mwangoka Grace , Kasella Irene , Praehauser Claudia , Abdulla Salim , Hatz Christoph F R , Mayr Michael 
Published: May 2020

IntroductionEpidemiological data about diabetes mellitus (DM) for sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are scarce and the utility of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) to diagnose DM is uncertain in African populations with a high proportion of anemia.Research design and methodsIn a cross-sectional study, age-adjusted prevalence rates and predictors for DM and pre-DM were prospectively assessed by HbA1c in a semirural walk-in population of Tanzania (n=992). Predictors for DM were calculated by logistic regression. Correlations between HbA1c, hemoglobin, and blood glucose levels were done by Pearson’s correlation.ResultsOverall, DM and pre-DM prevalence rates were 6.8% (95% CI 5.3 to 8.5) and 25% (95% CI 22.8 to 28.3), respectively. There was an increase in DM prevalence in patients 50–59 (14.9%; 95% CI 9.1 to 22.5), ≥60 years old (18.5%; 95% CI 12.2 to 26.2) and in patients with overweight (9.3%; 95% CI 5.9 to 13.7), obesity (10.9%; 95% CI 6.9 to 16) compared with patients 18–29 years old (2.2%; 95% CI 0.9 to 4.4) (p<0.001) and to normal-weight patients (3.6%; 95% CI 2.1 to 5.6) (p<0.01), respectively. Age (OR 1.08, 95% CI 1.05 to 1.12; p<0.001), body mass index (BMI) (OR 1.10, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.16; p<0.001), and acute infection (OR 3.46, 95% CI 1.02 to 10.8; p=0.038) were predictors for DM. Comparing patients with a BMI of 20 kg/m2and a BMI of 35 kg/m2, the relative risk for DM increases in average by 2.12-fold (range 1.91–2.24) across the age groups. Comparing patients 20 years old with patients 70 years old, the relative risk for DM increases in average 9.7-fold (range 8.9–10.4) across the BMI groups. Overall, 333 patients (36%) suffered from anemia. Pearson’s correlation coefficients (r) between HbA1c and hemoglobin was −0.009 (p=0.779), and between HbA1c and fasting blood glucose and random blood glucose, it was 0.775 and 0.622, respectively (p<0.001).ConclusionWe observed a high prevalence of DM and pre-DM, mainly triggered by increasing age and BMI, and provide evidence that HbA1c is suitable to assess DM also in populations of SSA with high proportions of anemia.Trial registration numberNCT03458338.
Rapid implementation of virtual clinics due to COVID-19: report and early evaluation of a quality improvement initiative
Authors: Gilbert Anthony William , Billany Joe C T , Adam Ruth , Martin Luke , Tobin Rebecca , Bagdai Shiv , Galvin Noreen , Farr Ian , Allain Adam , Davies Lucy , Bateson John 
Published: May 2020

BackgroundThe COVID-19 outbreak has placed the National Health Service under significant strain. Social distancing measures were introduced in the UK in March 2020 and virtual consultations (via telephone or video call) were identified as a potential alternative to face-to-face consultations at this time.Local problemThe Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital (RNOH) sees on average 11 200 face-to-face consultations a month. On average 7% of these are delivered virtually via telephone. In response to the COVID-19 crisis, the RNOH set a target of reducing face-to-face consultations to 20% of all outpatient attendances. This report outlines a quality improvement initiative to rapidly implement virtual consultations at the RNOH.MethodsThe COVID-19 Action Team, a multidisciplinary group of healthcare professionals, was assembled to support the implementation of virtual clinics. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement approach to quality improvement was followed using the Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle. A process of enablement, process redesign, delivery support and evaluation were carried out, underpinned by Improvement principles.ResultsFollowing the target of 80% virtual consultations being set, 87% of consultations were delivered virtually during the first 6 weeks. Satisfaction scores were high for virtual consultations (90/100 for patients and 78/100 for clinicians); however, outside of the COVID-19 pandemic, video consultations would be preferred less than 50% of the time. Information to support the future redesign of outpatient services was collected.ConclusionsThis report demonstrates that virtual consultations can be rapidly implemented in response to COVID-19 and that they are largely acceptable. Further initiatives are required to support clinically appropriate and acceptable virtual consultations beyond COVID-19.RegistrationThis project was submitted to the RNOH’s Project Evaluation Panel and was classified as a service evaluation on 12 March 2020 (ref: SE20.09).