bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Ease and equity of access to free DR-TB services in Nigeria- a qualitative analysis of policies, structures and processes
Authors: Oga-Omenka Charity , Bada Florence , Agbaje Aderonke , Dakum Patrick , Menzies Dick , Zarowsky Christina 
Published: December 2020

AbstractIntroductionPersistent low rates of case notification and treatment coverage reflect that accessing diagnosis and treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) in Nigeria remains a challenge, even though it is provided free of charge to patients. Equity in health access requires availability of comparable, appropriate services to all, based on needs, and irrespective of socio-demographic characteristics. Our study aimed to identify the reasons for Nigeria’s low rates of case-finding and treatment for DR-TB. To achieve this, we analyzed elements that facilitate or hinder equitable access for different groups of patients within the current health system to support DR-TB management in Nigeria.MethodsWe conducted documentary review of guidelines and workers manuals, as well as 57 qualitative interviews, including 10 focus group discussions, with a total of 127 participants, in Nigeria. Between August and November 2017, we interviewed patients who were on treatment, their treatment supporter, and providers in Ogun and Plateau States, as well as program managers in Benue and Abuja. We adapted and used Levesque’s patient-centered access to care framework to analyze DR-TB policy documents and interview data.ResultsThematic analysis revealed inequitable access to DR-TB care for some patient socio-demographic groups. While patients were mostly treated equally at the facility level, some patients experienced more difficulty accessing care based on their gender, age, occupation, educational level and religion. Health system factors including positive provider attitudes and financial support provided to the patients facilitated equity and ease of access. However, limited coverage and the absence of patients’ access rights protection and considerations in the treatment guidelines and workers manuals likely hampered access.ConclusionIn the context of Nigeria’s low case-finding and treatment coverage, applying an equity of access framework was necessary to highlight gaps in care. Differing social contexts of patients adversely affected their access to DR-TB care. We identified several strengths in DR-TB care delivery, including the current financial support that should be sustained. Our findings highlight the need for government’s commitment and continued interventions.
Quality of life 10 years after cardiac surgery in adults: a long-term follow-up study
Authors: Vincelj Josip , Bitar Lela 
Published: December 2020

AbstractWe have read the article titled „Quality of life 10 years after cardiac surgery in adults: a long-term follow-up study “ by Perrotti A. et al. published in your distinguished journal with great interest. Unfortunately, we found few errors in this article.
Gray matter volume alterations associated with suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in patients with mood disorders
Authors: Wang Pengshuo , Zhang Ran , Jiang Xiaowei , Wei Shengnan , Wang Fei , Tang Yanqing 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Background
Mood disorders are severe mental disorders related to increased suicidal behavior. Finding neural features for suicidal behavior, including suicide attempts (SAs) and suicidal ideation (SI), in mood disorders may be helpful in preventing suicidal behavior.

Methods
Subjects consisted of 70 patients with mood disorders and suicidal behavior, 128 patients with mood disorders without suicidal behavior (mood disorders control, MC), and 145 health control (HC) individuals. All participants underwent structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We used voxel-based morphometry (VBM) techniques to examine gray matter volumes (GMVs).

Results
Significant differences were found in GMVs of the left and right middle frontal gyrus among the patients with mood disorders and suicidal behavior, MC, and HC. Post hoc comparisons showed significant differences in the GMVs of the above regions across all three groups (P < 0.01): HC > MC > mood disorders with suicidal behavior. However, there were no significant differences in the GMVs of the left and right middle frontal gyrus between the mood disorders with SI and mood disorders with SAs groups.

Conclusions
These findings provide evidence that abnormal regional GMV in the middle frontal gyrus is associated with suicidal behavior in mood disorders. Further investigation is warranted to determine whether the GMV alterations in mood disorders with SI are different from these in mood disorders with SAs.
Bio-sorption for effective removal of chromium(VI) from wastewater using Moringa stenopetala seed powder (MSSP) and banana peel powder (BPP)
Authors: Badessa Tolera Seda , Wakuma Esayas , Yimer Ali Mohammed 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Chromium is an extremely toxic metal in the form of Cr(VI) that causes severe environmental and health problems. Therefore, the aim of this study was to remove chromium ions from wastewater by using cost effective and environmentally friendly bio-sorbents; Moringa stenopetala seed powder (MSSP), and banana peel powder (BPP) and to evaluate its adsorption capacities as bio-sorbents. FT-IR characterization of the adsorbents showed that there was a change in the functional groups of the structure of both adsorbents before and after the adsorption that might be due to the adsorption processes taken place on the surface of adsorbent. Adsorption experiments were carried out as batch studies with different contact times, pH, adsorbent dose, initial metal ion concentration, and temperature. Results showed maximum removal efficiency for Cr(VI) at 120 min contact time, adsorbent dose of 20 g/L and pH 2 by MSSP and pH 4 by BPP. The percentage removal of Cr(VI) increased with increasing adsorbent dose (from 5 to 20 g/L) and contact time (from 60 to 120 min). Freundlich isotherm model showed a better fit to the equilibrium data than the Langmuir model. The kinetics of adsorption for chromium was well represented by pseudo-second order kinetic model and the calculated equilibrium sorption capacity of the model showed good agreement with the sorption capacity obtained from experimental results.
Relative contributions of various endogenous and exogenous factors to the mosquito microbiota
Authors: Bogale Haikel N. , Cannon Matthew V. , Keita Kalil , Camara Denka , Barry Yaya , Keita Moussa , Coulibaly Drissa , Kone Abdoulaye K. , Doumbo Ogobara K. , Thera Mahamadou A. , Plowe Christopher V. , Travassos Mark , Irish Seth , Serre David 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Background
The commensal microbiota of mosquitoes impacts their development, immunity, and competency, and could provide a target for alternative entomological control approaches. However, despite the importance of the mosquito/microbiota interactions, little is known about the relative contribution of endogenous and exogenous factors in shaping the bacterial communities of mosquitoes.

Methods
We used a high-throughput sequencing-based assay to characterize the bacterial composition and diversity of 665 individual field-caught mosquitoes, as well as their species, genotype at an insecticide resistance locus, blood-meal composition, and the eukaryotic parasites and viruses they carry. We then used these data to rigorously estimate the individual effect of each parameter on the bacterial diversity as well as the relative contribution of each parameter to the microbial composition.

Results
Overall, multivariate analyses did not reveal any significant contribution of the mosquito species, insecticide resistance, or blood meal to the bacterial composition of the mosquitoes surveyed, and infection with parasites and viruses only contributed very marginally. The main driver of the bacterial diversity was the location at which each mosquito was collected, which explained roughly 20% of the variance observed.

Conclusions
This analysis shows that when confounding factors are taken into account, the site at which the mosquitoes are collected is the main driver of the bacterial diversity of wild-caught mosquitoes, although further studies will be needed to determine which specific components of the local environment affect bacterial composition.

Graphical Abstract
Intruder (DD38E), a recently evolved sibling family of DD34E/Tc1 transposons in animals
Authors: Gao Bo , Zong Wencheng , Miskey Csaba , Ullah Numan , Diaby Mohamed , Chen Cai , Wang Xiaoyan , Ivics Zoltán , Song Chengyi 
Published: December 2020

AbstractBackgroundA family ofTc1/marinertransposons with a characteristic DD38E triad of catalytic amino acid residues, namedIntruder(IT), was previously discovered in sturgeon genomes, but their evolutionary landscapes remain largely unknown.ResultsHere, we comprehensively investigated the evolutionary profiles ofITs, and evaluated their cut-and-paste activities in cells.ITsexhibited a narrow taxonomic distribution pattern in the animal kingdom, with invasions into two invertebrate phyla (Arthropoda and Cnidaria) and three vertebrate lineages (Actinopterygii, Agnatha, and Anura): very similar to that of the DD36E/ICfamily. Some animal orders and species seem to be more hospitable toTc1/marinertransposons, one order of Amphibia and seven Actinopterygian orders are the most common orders with horizontal transfer events and have been invaded by all four families (DD38E/IT, DD35E/TR, DD36E/ICand DD37E/TRT) ofTc1/marinertransposons, and eight Actinopterygii species were identified as the major hosts of these families. IntactITshave a total length of 1.5–1.7 kb containing a transposase gene flanked by terminal inverted repeats (TIRs). The phylogenetic tree and sequence identity showed thatITtransposases were most closely related to DD34E/Tc1.ITshave been involved in multiple events of horizontal transfer in vertebrates and have invaded most lineages recently (< 5 million years ago) based on insertion age analysis. Accordingly,ITspresented high average sequence identity (86–95%) across most vertebrate species, suggesting that some are putatively active.ITs can transpose in human HeLa cells, and the transposition efficiency of consensus TIRs was higher than that of the TIRs of natural isolates.ConclusionsWe conclude that DD38E/IToriginated from DD34E/Tc1and can be detected in two invertebrate phyla (Arthropoda and Cnidaria), and in three vertebrate lineages (Actinopterygii, Agnatha and Anura).IThas experienced multiple HT events in animals, dominated by recent amplifications in most species and has high identity among vertebrate taxa. Our reconstructedITtransposon vector designed according to the sequence from the “cat” genome showed high cut-and-paste activity. The data suggest thatIThas been acquired recently and is active in many species. This study is meaningful for understanding the evolution of theTc1/marinersuperfamily members and their hosts.
Speech enhancement by LSTM-based noise suppression followed by CNN-based speech restoration
Authors: Strake Maximilian , Defraene Bruno , Fluyt Kristoff , Tirry Wouter , Fingscheidt Tim 
Published: December 2020

AbstractSingle-channel speech enhancement in highly non-stationary noise conditions is a very challenging task, especially when interfering speech is included in the noise. Deep learning-based approaches have notably improved the performance of speech enhancement algorithms under such conditions, but still introduce speech distortions if strong noise suppression shall be achieved. We propose to address this problem by using a two-stage approach, first performing noise suppression and subsequently restoring natural sounding speech, using specifically chosen neural network topologies and loss functions for each task. A mask-based long short-term memory (LSTM) network is employed for noise suppression and speech restoration is performed via spectral mapping with a convolutional encoder-decoder network (CED). The proposed method improves speech quality (PESQ) over state-of-the-art single-stage methods by about 0.1 points for unseen highly non-stationary noise types including interfering speech. Furthermore, it is able to increase intelligibility in low-SNR conditions and consistently outperforms all reference methods.
Conversion hepatectomy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma after right portal vein transection and lenvatinib therapy
Authors: Ohya Yuki , Hayashida Shintaro , Tsuji Akira , Kuramoto Kunitaka , Shibata Hidekatsu , Setoyama Hiroko , Hayashi Hironori , Kuriwaki Kazumi , Sasaki Masato , Iizaka Masayoshi , Nakahara Osamu , Inomata Yukihiro 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Background
Lenvatinib is a novel tyrosine kinase inhibitor that exhibits an antitumor effect on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). An established strategy that involves surgery and usage of lenvatinib for advanced HCC remains elusive.

Case presentation
A 58-year-old male patient with advanced HCC and untreated hepatitis B was referred to our hospital. The tumor at the right lobe was 10 cm in diameter with right portal vein thrombus. Because of the possible lung metastasis and concern about the remaining hepatic function after extended right hepatectomy, lenvatinib was initiated before surgery. After the confirmation of a sharp decrease of tumor markers during the 3-week lenvatinib therapy, only a right portal vein transection was done leaving the enlargement of the left lobe for improved post-hepatectomy liver function while lenvatinib therapy was continued. The laparotomy revealed that the tumor was invading the right diaphragm. After 7 weeks of lenvatinib administration after right portal vein transection, an extended right hepatectomy with resection of the tumor-invaded diaphragm was successfully done. The lung nodules that were suspected as metastases had disappeared. The patient has been doing well without any sign of recurrence for 1 year.

Conclusion
The strategy involving the induction of lenvatinib to conversion hepatectomy including the portal vein transection was effective for advanced HCC.
Regulatory sampling of industrial hemp plant samples (Cannabis sativa L.) using UPLC-MS/MS method for detection and quantification of twelve cannabinoids
Authors: Berthold Erin C. , Yang Rui , Sharma Abhisheak , Kamble Shyam H. , Kanumuri Siva R. , King Tamara I. , Popa Raluca , Freeman Joshua H. , Brym Zachary T. , Avery Bonnie A. , McCurdy Christopher R. 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Background
In 2018, the Farm Bill mandated the United States Department of Agriculture to develop regulations governing the cultivation, processing, and marketing of industrial hemp. Industrial hemp is defined as Cannabis sativa L. with a total Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ-9-THC) content ≤0.3%. Therefore, for hemp to become an agricultural commodity, it is important to regulate production by developing standard methods for sampling and testing of the plant material.

Methods
An ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analytical method for the quantification of twelve cannabinoids was developed. The method was applied to a regulatory sampling trial of three hemp varieties cultivated for cannabidiol (CBD) production. Two samples were taken from 28 plants with one sample being flower only while the other was a composite sample that included flowers, leaves, and stems.

Results
The assay method was validated for specificity, range, repeatability, reproducibility, and recovery in accordance with all applicable standards for analytical methods. The results of the regulatory study indicated a significant decrease in the concentration of total Δ-9-THC and total CBD of 0.09% and 1.32%, respectively, between a flower only and a composite sample.

Conclusions
There are many factors that may influence reported total Δ-9-THC content in industrial hemp. A robust analytical method was developed to analyze hemp samples in a trial regulatory study. The results indicate that the way hemp is sampled and analyzed may influence the legality of a crop, which could have negative economic and legal consequences.
Nose to brain delivery of antiretroviral drugs in the treatment of neuroAIDS
Authors: Sarma Anupam , Das Malay K. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractNeuroAIDS (Neuro Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome) or HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) associated neuronal abnormality is continuing to be a significant health issue among AIDS patients even under the treatment of combined antiretroviral therapy (cART). Injury and damage to neurons of the brain are the prime causes of neuroAIDS, which happens due to the ingress of HIV by direct permeation across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) or else via peripherally infected macrophage into the central nervous system (CNS). The BBB performs as a stringent barricade for the delivery of therapeutics drugs. The intranasal route of drug administration exhibits as a non-invasive technique to bypass the BBB for the delivery of antiretroviral drugs and other active pharmaceutical ingredients inside the brain and CNS. This method is fruitful for the drugs that are unable to invade the BBB to show its action in the CNS and thus erase the demand of systemic delivery and thereby shrink systemic side effects. Drug delivery from the nose to the brain/CNS takes very less time through both olfactory and trigeminal nerves. Intranasal delivery does not require the involvement of any receptor as it occurs by an extracellular route. Nose to brain delivery also involves nasal associated lymphatic tissues (NALT) and deep cervical lymph nodes. However, very little research has been done to explore the utility of nose to brain delivery of antiretroviral drugs in the treatment of neuroAIDS. This review focuses on the potential of nasal route for the effective delivery of antiretroviral nanoformulations directly from nose to the brain.
Phenome-wide and genome-wide analyses of quality of life in schizophrenia
Authors: Pazoki Raha , Lin Bochao Danae , van Eijk Kristel R. , Schijven Dick , de Zwarte Sonja ,   GROUP Investigators, Guloksuz Sinan , Luykx Jurjen J. 
Published: December 2020

Background
Schizophrenia negatively affects quality of life (QoL). A handful of variables from small studies have been reported to influence QoL in patients with schizophrenia, but a study comprehensively dissecting the genetic and non-genetic contributing factors to QoL in these patients is currently lacking.

Aims
We adopted a hypothesis-generating approach to assess the phenotypic and genotypic determinants of QoL in schizophrenia.

Method
The study population comprised 1119 patients with a psychotic disorder, 1979 relatives and 586 healthy controls. Using linear regression, we tested >100 independent demographic, cognitive and clinical phenotypes for their association with QoL in patients. We then performed genome-wide association analyses of QoL and examined the association between polygenic risk scores for schizophrenia, major depressive disorder and subjective well-being and QoL.

Results
We found nine phenotypes to be significantly and independently associated with QoL in patients, the most significant ones being negative (β = −1.17; s.e. 0.05; P = 1 × 10–83; r2 = 38%), depressive (β = −1.07; s.e. 0.05; P = 2 × 10–79; r2 = 36%) and emotional distress (β = −0.09; s.e. 0.01; P = 4 × 10–59, r2 = 25%) symptoms. Schizophrenia and subjective well-being polygenic risk scores, using various P-value thresholds, were significantly and consistently associated with QoL (lowest association P-value = 6.8 × 10–6). Several sensitivity analyses confirmed the results.

Conclusions
Various clinical phenotypes of schizophrenia, as well as schizophrenia and subjective well-being polygenic risk scores, are associated with QoL in patients with schizophrenia and their relatives. These may be targeted by clinicians to more easily identify vulnerable patients with schizophrenia for further social and clinical interventions to improve their QoL.
First-in-Human Phase I Study of MP0250, a First-in-Class DARPin Drug Candidate Targeting VEGF and HGF, in Patients With Advanced Solid Tumors
Authors: Baird Richard D. , Linossi Constanza , Middleton Mark , Lord Simon , Harris Adrian , Rodón Jordi , Zitt Christof , Fiedler Ulrike , Dawson Keith M. , Leupin Nicolas , Stumpp Michael T. , Harstrick Andreas , Azaro Analía , Fischer Stefanie , Omlin Aurelius 
Published: December 2020

PURPOSE A first-in-human study was performed with MP0250, a DARPin drug candidate. MP0250 specifically inhibits both vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) with the aim of disrupting the tumor microenvironment. PATIENTS AND METHODS A multicenter, open-label, repeated-dose, phase I study was conducted to assess the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of MP0250 in 45 patients with advanced solid tumors. In the dose-escalation part, 24 patients received MP0250 as a 3-hour infusion once every 2 weeks at five different dose levels (0.5-12 mg/kg). Once the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) was established, 21 patients were treated with a 1-hour infusion (n = 13, 8 mg/kg, once every 2 weeks and n = 8, 12 mg/kg, once every 3 weeks) of MP0250 in the dose confirmation cohorts. RESULTS In the dose-escalation cohort, patients treated with 12 mg/kg MP0250 once every 2 weeks experienced dose-limiting toxicities. Therefore, MTD was 8 mg/kg once every 2 weeks or 12 mg/kg once every 3 weeks. The most common adverse events (AEs) were hypertension (69%), proteinuria (51%), and diarrhea and nausea (both 36%); hypoalbuminemia was reported in 24% of patients. Most AEs were consistent with inhibition of the VEGF and HGF pathways. Exposure was dose-proportional and sustained throughout the dosing period for all patients (up to 15 months). The half-life was about 2 weeks. Signs of single-agent antitumor activity were observed: 1 unconfirmed partial response with a time to progression of 23 weeks and 24 patients with stable disease, with the longest duration of 72 weeks and a median duration of 18 weeks. CONCLUSION MP0250 is a first-in-class DARPin drug candidate with suitable tolerability and appropriate pharmacokinetic properties for further development in combination with other anticancer therapies.
Male infertility due to testicular disorders
Authors: Sharma Aditi , Minhas Suks , Dhillo Waljit S , Jayasena Channa N 
Published: December 2020

AbstractContextMale infertility is defined as the inability to conceive following 1 year of regular unprotected intercourse. It is the causative factor in 50% of couples and a leading indication for assisted reproductive techniques (ART). Testicular failure is the most common cause of male infertility, yet the least studied to date.Evidence AcquisitionThe review is an evidence-based summary of male infertility due to testicular failure with a focus on etiology, clinical assessment, and current management approaches. PubMed-searched articles and relevant clinical guidelines were reviewed in detail.Evidence Synthesis/ResultsSpermatogenesis is under multiple levels of regulation and novel molecular diagnostic tests of sperm function (reactive oxidative species and DNA fragmentation) have since been developed, and albeit currently remain as research tools. Several genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors provoking testicular failure have been elucidated during the last decade; nevertheless, 40% of cases are idiopathic, with novel monogenic genes linked in the etiopathogenesis. Microsurgical testicular sperm extraction (micro-TESE) and hormonal stimulation with gonadotropins, selective estrogen receptor modulators, and aromatase inhibitors are recently developed therapeutic approaches for men with the most severe form of testicular failure, nonobstructive azoospermia. However, high-quality clinical trials data is currently lacking.ConclusionsMale infertility due to testicular failure has traditionally been viewed as unmodifiable. In the absence of effective pharmacological therapies, delivery of lifestyle advice is a potentially important treatment option. Future research efforts are needed to determine unidentified factors causative in “idiopathic” male infertility and long-term follow-up studies of babies conceived through ART.