bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
What are affecting choice of childbirth place among childbearing age women in western Ethiopia? A community-based cross-sectional study
Authors: Bekuma Tariku Tesfaye , Firrisa Belaynesh , Girmaye Melese , Bikila Haile , Kejela Gemechu 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
Background: Maternal death is the most extreme consequence of poor maternal health. More than 30 million women in developing regions suffer from serious diseases and disabilities due to inadequate care during pregnancy and delivery. Access to proper medical attention and hygienic conditions during delivery can reduce the risk of complications and infections that may lead to death or serious illness for the mother, baby, or both. In Ethiopia, the high maternal mortality rate with delivery by unskilled birth attendants shows low utilization of maternal health services.Objective: This study was aimed to assess factors determining the choice of childbirth place among women of childbearing age in Jimma Arjo District.Method A cross-sectional study design was conducted in Jimma Arjo District East Wollega Zone, Ethiopia, from March 20 to April 20, 2018. Multistage sampling technique was used to select a total sample of 506 participants. Data were collected using structured questionnaires to interview women of childbearing age. It was entered into Epi-Info and was exported to SPSS software version 20 for analysis. Data was checked for its completeness, cleaned, entered and analyzed accordingly. Bivariate and Multivariable data analysis was used to examine the association between dependent and independent variables. Result: A total of 506 women participated in this study, giving a response rate of 97.8%. This study has investigated that home delivery was found to be 200(39.5%) whereas institutional delivery was 306(60.5%) in the study area. Factors found to be statistically associated with choice of institutional delivery at p<0.05 were; history of obstetric difficulties (AOR=6, 95% CI= (2.08, 17.60)), women educational status(AOR = 4.4, 95% CI= (1.47, 13.42)), husband educational status (AOR=4, 95% CI= (1.43, 11.60)), having 2-3 ANC Visits (AOR=4, 95%CI= (1.95, 8.52)), and accessing vehicle transportation (AOR = 2.8, 95% CI= (1.23, 6.46)).Conclusion: Preferring health facility as birth place in this study seems relatively better compared to other studies. It’s shown that attending secondary and more educational level in both mothers’ and their husbands’, history of obstetric difficulties, history of ANC attendance, having 2-3 ANC visits, and accessing facilty nearby have influenced mothers to prefer health institution as childbirth place. Therefore, any programs aimed at increasing choice of institutional delivery should first work on education, ANC follow up and transportation facilities in the study area.
Evaluation of retinal and choroidal changes in patients with Alzheimer’s type dementia using optical coherence tomography angiography
Authors: Li Zebing , Lin Zhongjing , Li Na , Yu Huan , Wu Yanlin , Shen Xi 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
Purpose To evaluate the changes in fundus parameters in patients with Alzheimer’s type dementia (ATD) using optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA), to record flash electroretinograms using the RETeval system and to explore changes in retinal function.Methods Twenty-nine patients with ATD and 26 age-matched normal subjects were enrolled. All subjects underwent OCTA scans to analyse the superficial retinal vessel parameters in the macular area, including the vascular length density, the vascular width density and the area of foveal avascular zone (FAZ), as well as the choroidal thickness. The differences between the patients with ATD and the normal control group were compared and explored the relevant factors affecting vessel parameters. We also recorded the flash electroretinograms (ERG) using the RETeval system and intended to explore changes in retinal function by analysing the ERG image amplitude in patients with ATD.Results The vessel parameters and average choroid thickness in the macular area of the ATD group was less than the control group, The FAZ area was statistically significantly enlarged in the ATD group. These parameters were correlated with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA).Conclusions Patients with Alzheimer’s type dementia exhibit decreases in the parameters associated with fundus. In addition, these indicators significantly correlated with the MMSE score and the MoCA score. OCTA may be an adjunct tool with strong potential to track changes in the diagnosis and monitoring the progression of the disease.
Astaxanthin-loaded polymer-lipid hybrid nanoparticles (ATX-LPN) Assessment of potential otoprotective effects
Authors: Gu Jiayi , Chen Yuming , Tong Ling , Wang Xueling , Yu dehong , Wu Hao 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
Background: Ototoxicity is one of the major side effects of platinum-based chemotherapy, especially cisplatin therapy. To date, no FDA approved agents to alleviate or prevent this ototoxicity are available. However, ototoxicity is generally believed to be produced by excessive generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the inner ear, thus leading to the development of various antioxidants, which act as otoprotective agents. Astaxanthin (ATX) is an interesting candidate in the development of new therapies for preventing and treating oxidative stress-related pathologies, owing to its unique antioxidant capacity. Methods and Results: In this study, we aimed to evaluate the potential antioxidant properties of ATX in the inner ear by using the HEI-OC1 cell line, zebrafish, and guinea pigs. Because ATX has poor solubility and cannot pass through round window membranes (RWM), we established lipid-polymer hybrid nanoparticles (LPN) for loading ATX. The LPN enabled ATX to penetrate RWM and maintain concentrations in the perilymph in the inner ear for 24 h after a single injection. ATX-LPN were found to have favorable biocompatibility and to strongly affect cisplatin-induced generation of ROS, on the basis of DCFHDA staining in HEI-OC1 cells. JC-1 and MitoTracker Green staining suggested that ATX-LPN successfully reversed the decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential induced by cisplatin in vitro and rescued cells from early stages of apoptosis, as demonstrated by FACS stained with Annexin V-FITC/PI. Moreover, ATX-LPN successfully attenuated OHC losses in cultured organ of Corti and animal models (zebrafish and guinea pigs) in vivo. In investigating the protective mechanism of ATX-LPN, we found that ATX-LPN decreased the expression of pro-apoptotic proteins (caspase 3/9 and cytochrome-c) and increased expression of the anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2. In addition, the activation of JNK induced by CDDP was up-regulated and then decreased after the administration of ATX-LPN, while P38 stayed unchanged. Conclusions: To best of our knowledge, this is first study concluded that ATX-LPN as a new therapeutic agent for the prevention of cisplatin-induced ototoxicity.
Overexpression of an aquaporin gene PvPIP2;9 increased leaf length, improved drought tolerance and water use efficiency and affected other PIP2 genes’ expression in switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.)
Authors: Zhang Jing , Wen Wuwu , Li Hui , Lu Qiyu , Xu Bin , Huang Bingru 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
Background: Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) is a prime candidate for non-grain-based bioenergy feedstock production. Improved the drought tolerance and higher water use efficiency are important traits for its successful field establishment and production especially in marginal land. Aquaporins are key channels and regulators for water transportation and maintenance of cellular water status. In this study, the functional role of an aquaporin gene, PvPIP2;9, in switchgrass drought tolerance was studied.Results: Expression of PvPIP2;9 was regulated by the diurnal oscillation and osmotic stress. Constitutive over-expressing PvPIP2;9 in switchgrass significantly improved its drought tolerance and water use efficiency with less electrolyte leakage rates but higher relative water contents, photochemical efficiencies, and chlorophyll contents. Moreover, expression patterns of all 14 switchgrass PIP2 subfamily genes were checked in wildtype and transgenic plants during the water-withdrawal treatment, and the result showed that over-expressing PvPIP2;9 also affected transcript levels of most other PIP2 genes. Conclusions: Together, this study showed that improved drought tolerance and higher water use efficiency can be achieved by manipulating the expression level of PvPIP2;9 and also suggested PIP2 subfamily genes were transcriptionally regulated in a coordinated manner.
Investigation of the antigenicity and protective efficacy of Leishmania promastigote membrane antigens in search of potential diagnostic and vaccine candidates against visceral leishmaniasis
Authors: Ejazi Sarfaraz Ahmad , Ghosh Smriti , Bhattacharyya Anirban , Kamran Mohd , Das Sonali , Bhowmick Sudipta , Rahaman Mehebubar , Goswami Rama Prosad , Ali Nahid 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
BackgroundVisceral leishmaniasis (VL), a parasitic disease causes serious medical consequences if treatment is delayed. Despite a decline in the number of VL cases in the Indian Subcontinent, commencement of the disease in newer areas continues to be a major concern. Although serological diagnosis mainly by immunochromatographic tests has been found to be effective, test for cure in different phases of treatment is still desired. Even though good prophylactic response has been obtained in murine models by a number of vaccine candidates, few have been proposed for human use. MethodsIn this study, nine antigenic components (31, 34, 36, 45, 51, 63, 72, 91 and 97 kDa) of Leishmania promastigote membrane antigens, LAg, were electroeluted and evaluated through ELISA to diagnose and distinguish active VL from one month cured and six month past infection. Further, to investigate the immunogenicity of electroeluted proteins, humans PBMCs of cured VL patients were stimulated with 31, 34, 51, 63, 72, and 91 kDa proteins.ResultsWe found that 34 and 51 kDa fractions show 100% sensitivity and specificity with healthy controls and other diseases. After six months post treatment antibodies to 72 and 91 kDa antigens show a significant decline to almost normal levels. This suggests that 34 and 51 kDa are efficient in diagnosis whereas 72 and 91 kDa may be used to monitor treatment outcome. In another study, 51 and 63 kDa proteins demonstrated maximum ability for up-regulate IFN-g and IL-12 with minimum induction of IL-10 and TGF-β. The results indicating that 51 and 63 kDa proteins could be strong candidates for human immunization against VL. In contrast, 34 and 91 kDa demonstrated a reverse profile and may not be a good vaccine candidate. ConclusionsThe present study accounts our search for new biomarkers for tests of clinical cure as well as effective immunoprophylactic candidates for VL vaccination.
Can direct smear results that are routinely collected at health centre level be used for monitoring the impact of mass drug administration with praziquantel on schistosomiasis in Burundi? A preliminary assessment
Authors: BIZIMANA Paul , POLMAN Katja , ORTU Giuseppina , KRIT Meryam , NSABIYUMVA Frédéric , NKESHIMANA Audace , BIJABUKA Urlich , NIBAKIRE Marceline , GEERTRUYDEN Jean-Pierre VAN 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
BackgroundIntestinal schistosomiasis is still a public health problem in Burundi. Since 2008, annual mass drug administration (MDA) with praziquantel have been rolled out in 11 endemic districts. The national programme relies on school based surveys with Kato-Katz (KK) to monitor the impact of MDA. We explored whether routine data on intestinal schistosomiasis as determined by direct fecal smears (DS) at health centre (HC) level could be used.MethodsWe collected routine incidence data on intestinal schistosomiasis from the Burundian National Health Information System. These data concerned the number of intestinal schistosomiasis cases as detected by DS examination in the HC of all 45 sanitary districts (SD) between 2011 and 2015. A temporal trends analysis was performed using mixed Negative Binomial regression. Sanitary districts with MDA campaigns with praziquantel (n=11) were compared with those without (n=34). In addition, KK-based prevalence data from a school-based national mapping in 2014 were compared with the DS-based incidence data in the 45 SD.ResultsIn the 11 SD applying MDA with praziquantel, the incidence rate decreased significantly for the years 2014 (β2014=-0.826, p=0.010) and 2015 (β2015=-1.294, p<0.001) and for the five-year period (β=-0.286, p<0.001), whereas in the 34 districts without MDA, there was no significant trend (β=-0.087, p=0.219). In most of the 45 SD, the low prevalences based on KK in school children were confirmed by low incidence rates based on DS in the HC.ConclusionsThe results of this preliminary study suggest that routine surveillance data at HC level, may be able to monitor the impact of MDA with praziquantel on intestinal schistosomiasis in Burundi. However, more sensitive POC diagnostic tests, such as the POC-CCA assay are desirable when moving from control to elimination of schistosomiasis. Elimination of intestinal schistosomiasis calls for integration of adequate diagnosis and treatment into routine activities of primary health care facilities.
Nocturnal Blood Pressure Dipping As a Marker of Endothelial Function and Subclinical Atherosclerosis in Pediatric-onset Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Authors: Chang Joyce C , Xiao Rui , Meyers Kevin E , Mercer-Rosa Laura , Natarajan Shobha S , Weiss Pamela F , Knight Andrea M 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
Background: Loss of the normal nocturnal decline in blood pressure (BP), known as non-dipping, is a potential measure of cardiovascular risk identified by ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM). We sought to determine whether non-dipping is a useful marker of abnormal vascular function and subclinical atherosclerosis in pediatric-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (pSLE). Methods: Twenty subjects 9-19 years of age with pSLE underwent ABPM, peripheral endothelial function testing, carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity/analysis for aortic stiffness, and carotid intima-media thickness. We assessed the prevalence of non-dipping and other ABPM abnormalities. Pearson or Spearman rank correlation tests were used to evaluate relationships between nocturnal BP dipping, BP load (% of abnormally elevated BPs over 24-hours) and vascular outcome measures. Results: The majority (75%) of subjects had inactive disease, with mean disease duration of 3.2 years (±2.1). The prevalence of non-dipping was 50%, which occurred even in the absence of nocturnal or daytime hypertension. Reduced diastolic BP dipping was associated with poorer endothelial function (𝒓 0.5, p=0.04). Intima-media thickness was significantly greater in subjects with non-dipping (mean standard deviation score of 3.0 vs 1.6, p=0.02). In contrast, higher systolic and diastolic BP load were associated with increased aortic stiffness (𝜌 0.6, p=0.01 and 𝜌 0.7, p<0.01, respectively), but not with endothelial function or intima-media thickness. Conclusion: In a pSLE cohort with low disease activity, isolated nocturnal BP non-dipping is prevalent and associated with endothelial dysfunction and atherosclerotic changes. In addition to hypertension assessment, ABPM has a promising role in risk stratification and understanding heterogeneous mechanisms of cardiovascular disease in pSLE.
Intravenous delivery of enzalutamide based on high drug loading multifunctional graphene oxide nanoparticles for castration-resistant prostate cancer therapy
Authors: Jiang Wenjun , Chen Jiyuan , Gong Chunai , Wang Yuanyuan , Gao Yuan , Yuan Yongfang 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
Background: Enzalutamide (Enz) has shown limited bioavailability via oral administration and is easy for patients to develop into castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) due to resistance to 18-24 months of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT). Moreover, it is hard to delivery Enz for low drug loading (DL) and encapsulation efficiency (EE). Therefore, we developed a multifunctional enzalutamide-loaded graphene oxide nanosystem (TP-GQDss/Enz) for castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) intravenous treatment, with high drug loading efficiency and good biocompatibility.Methods: Aminated graphene quantum dots (GQDs) were first cross-linked via a disulfide bond into a graphene quantum dot derivative of approximately 200 nm (GQDss), which was further functionalized with a tumour-targeting peptide and PEG to form TP-GQDss. Enz was loaded into TP-GQDss for in vitro and in vivo study.Results: The results showed that high drug-loading efficiency was achieved by TP-GQDss via π-π electron interaction. TP-GQDss could be rapidly internalized by CRPC cells via endocytosis. Moreover, Enz in TP-GQDss could promote the inhibition of cell growth in vitro against CRPC cells, while TP-GQDss alone did not show any obvious cytotoxicity on CRPC cells after 24 h of incubation. Further, TP-GQDss exhibited an enhanced cancer-targeting ability and alleviated the side effects of Enz in vivo. Conclusions: The multifunctional nanocarrier constructed here could accomplish controlled Enz release and serve as a intravenous therapy platform for CRPC.
CTNNBIP1 modulates keratinocyte differentiation through promoting the transcription of β-catenin/TCF-complex downstream genes
Authors: Wang Chang , Wang Haizhen , Peng Youhua , Zeng Bijun , Zhang Yujin , Tang Xueyong , Mi Lan , Pan Yi , Yang Zhibo 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
Background: During psoriasis initiation and development, deregulations in signaling pathways and gene expression are observed. Methods: Herein, we downloaded seven sets of microarray mRNA expression profiles showing differentially-expressed genes in psoriasis lesion skin and non-lesion skin tissues and three sets of RNA-seq data and analyzed these online data attempting to screen for crucial genes related to keratinocyte differentiation and psoriasis development. Results: The expression of catenin beta interacting protein 1 (CTNNBIP1) was remarkably downregulated within psoriasis lesion skin tissue samples compared to that within non-lesion skin tissues based on both online data and experimental results. In response to a period of different therapies, respectively, CTNNBIP1 expression could be rescued in lesion skin tissues. Within IMQ-induced psoriasis-like dermatitis in mice, CTNNBIP1 silence further aggravated psoriatic phenotypes. In human immortalized keratinocytes, HaCaT cells, CTNNBIP1 silence significantly inhibited cell apoptosis and promoted cell proliferation. Regarding the molecular mechanism, CTNNBIP1 silence in HaCaT cells promoted β-catenin nucleus translocation, enhanced the transcriptional activity of TCF4, and increased β-catenin/TCF-complex downstream c-Myc and cyclin D1 proteins while decreased the late differentiation marker filaggrin. In contrast to CTNNBIP1, the expression of c-Myc and cyclin D1 showed to be dramatically upregulated within psoriasis lesion tissue samples than that within non-lesion tissue samples. Within tissues, c-Myc and cyclin D1 showed to be negatively correlated with CTNNBIP1, respectively. Conclusions: We identify CTNNBIP1 as an abnormally downregulated gene in psoriasis. CTNNBIP1 silence significantly disturbs the differentiation of keratinocytes through promoting the transcription of β-catenin/TCF-complex downstream genes.
Cloacal swabs and alcohol bird specimens are good proxies for compositional analyses of gut microbial communities of Great tits (Parus major)
Authors: Bodawatta Kasun H , Puzejova Katerina , Sam Katerina , Poulsen Michael , Jønsson Knud A. 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
Background: Comprehensive studies of wild bird microbiomes are often limited by difficulties of sample acquisition. However, widely used non-invasive cloacal swab methods and under-explored museum specimens preserved in alcohol provide promising avenues to increase our understanding of wild bird microbiomes, provided that they accurately portray natural microbial community compositions. To investigate this assertion, we used 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing of Great tit (Parus major) gut microbiomes to compare 1) microbial communities obtained from dissected digestive tract regions and cloacal swabs, and 2) microbial communities obtained from freshly dissected gut regions and from samples preserved in alcohol for two weeks or two months, respectively. Results: We found no significant differences in alpha diversities in communities of different gut regions and cloacal swabs (except in OTU richness between the dissected cloacal region and the cloacal swabs), or between fresh and alcohol preserved samples. However, we did find significant differences in beta diversity and community composition of cloacal swab samples compared to different gut regions. Despite these quantitative differences, swab samples qualitatively captured the bacterial diversity throughout the gut better than any single compartment. Bacterial community compositions of alcohol-preserved specimens did not differ significantly from freshly dissected samples, although some low-abundant taxa were lost in the alcohol preserved specimens. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that widely used non-invasive cloacal swabs qualitatively depict the gut microbiota composition without having to collect birds to extract the full digestive tract. Secondly, the satisfactory depiction of gut microbial communities in alcohol preserved samples opens up for the possibility of using an enormous resource readily available through museum collections to characterize bird gut microbiomes. The use of extensive museum specimen collections of birds for microbial gut analyses would allow for investigations of temporal patterns of wild bird gut microbiomes, including the potential effects of climate change and anthropogenic impacts. Overall, the utilization of cloacal swabs and museum alcohol specimens can positively impact bird gut microbiome research to help increase our understanding of the role and evolution of wild bird hosts and gut microbial communities.
Damage detection in concrete gravity dams using signal processing algorithms based on earthquake vibrations
Authors: Esmaielzadeh Sajad , Ahmadi Hassan , Hosseini Seyed Abbas 
Published: December 2019

In structural engineering, damage detection in concrete gravity dams (CGDS) is a practical problem. Dam destruction can have severe financial consequences and may even lead to fatalities. Therefore, structural health monitoring in advance is crucial. In this regard, a well-known CGD, namely the Pine Flat Dam, has been chosen for the Finite Element Modeling. In this paper, damage is induced in the dam neck through elasticity modulus reduction by 40 % and 80 %. In addition, after applying Northridge earthquake, the acceleration in structure nodes for intact and damaged cases are recorded in vector formats. Using various methods, such as Discrete-time Fourier Transform (DTFT), Wavelet transform and Wiener transform, the differences between these two signals are investigated. The standard deviation (S.D.) of variations is chosen as the performance metric and is applied to the signal amplitude between intact and damage observations/signals. The reason why several signal processing algorithms are used is finding an approach which shows more clearly the differences caused by the destruction. This is evaluated via S.D. values for different algorithms. The results confirm the superiority of DTFT over other given algorithms. DTFT has a negligible outperformance (approximately zero dB) with respect to the Wavelet transform in both the crest and the lower nodes of the dam. This rate for DTFT and Wavelet is 10dB higher than that of Wiener and 35 dB in comparison with the simple amplitude difference. Moreover, the detection thresholds for the given methods are compared, and it is verified that the DTFT and Wavelet indicate the best performance.