bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
MRI of the Neonatal Brain: A Review of Methodological Challenges and Neuroscientific Advances
Authors: Dubois Jessica , Alison Marianne , Counsell Serena J. , Hertz‐Pannier Lucie , Hüppi Petra S. , Benders Manon J.N.L. 
Published: May 2020

In recent years, exploration of the developing brain has become a major focus for researchers and clinicians in an attempt to understand what allows children to acquire amazing and unique abilities, as well as the impact of early disruptions (eg, prematurity, neonatal insults) that can lead to a wide range of neurodevelopmental disorders. Noninvasive neuroimaging methods such as MRI are essential to establish links between the brain and behavioral changes in newborns and infants. In this review article, we aim to highlight recent and representative studies using the various techniques available: anatomical MRI, quantitative MRI (relaxometry, diffusion MRI), multiparametric approaches, and functional MRI. Today, protocols use 1.5 or 3T MRI scanners, and specialized methodologies have been put in place for data acquisition and processing to address the methodological challenges specific to this population, such as sensitivity to motion. MR sequences must be adapted to the brains of newborns and infants to obtain relevant good soft‐tissue contrast, given the small size of the cerebral structures and the incomplete maturation of tissues. The use of age‐specific image postprocessing tools is also essential, as signal and contrast differ from the adult brain. Appropriate methodologies then make it possible to explore multiple neurodevelopmental mechanisms in a precise way, and assess changes with age or differences between groups of subjects, particularly through large‐scale projects. Although MRI measurements only indirectly reflect the complex series of dynamic processes observed throughout development at the molecular and cellular levels, this technique can provide information on brain morphology, structural connectivity, microstructural properties of gray and white matter, and on the functional architecture. Finally, MRI measures related to clinical, behavioral, and electrophysiological markers have a key role to play from a diagnostic and prognostic perspective in the implementation of early interventions to avoid long‐term disabilities in children.Evidence Level2Technical Efficacy Stage1
Early trends for SARS‐CoV‐2 infection in central and north Texas and impact on other circulating respiratory viruses
Authors: Mutnal Manohar B. , Arroliga Alejandro C. , Walker Kimberly , Mohammad Amin , Brigmon Matthew M. , Beaver Ryan M. , Midturi John K. , Rao Arundhati 
Published: May 2020

AbstractRapid diagnosis and isolation are key to containing the quick spread of a pandemic agent like severe acute respiratory syndrome‐related coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2), which has spread globally since its initial outbreak in Wuhan province in China. SARS‐CoV‐2 is novel and the effect on typically prevalent seasonal viruses is just becoming apparent. We present our initial data on the prevalence of respiratory viruses in the month of March 2020. This is a retrospective cohort study post launching of SARS‐CoV‐2 testing at Baylor Scott and White Hospital (BSWH), Temple, Texas. Testing for SARS‐CoV‐2 was performed by real‐time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction assay and results were shared with State public health officials for immediate interventions. More than 3500 tests were performed during the first 2 weeks of testing for SARS‐CoV‐2 and identified 168 (4.7%) positive patients. Sixty‐two (3.2%) of the 1912 ambulatory patients and 106 (6.3%) of the 1659 emergency department/inpatients tested were positive. The highest rate of infection (6.9%) was seen in patients aged 25 to 34 years, while the lowest rate of infection was seen among patients aged <25 years old (2%). County‐specific patient demographic information was shared with respective public health departments for epidemiological interventions. Incidentally, this study showed that there was a significant decrease in the occurrence of seasonal respiratory virus infections, perhaps due to increased epidemiological awareness about SARS‐CoV‐2 among the general public, as well as the social distancing measures implemented in response to SARS‐CoV‐2. Data extracted for BSWH from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System site revealed that Influenza incidence was 8.7% in March 2020, compared with 25% in March 2019. This study was intended to provide an initial experience of dealing with a pandemic and the role of laboratories in crisis management. This study provided SARS‐CoV‐2 testing data from ambulatory and inpatient population. Epidemiological interventions depend on timely availability of accurate diagnostic tests and throughput capacity of such systems during large outbreaks like SARS‐CoV‐2.
Evidence of increasing diversification of emerging Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 strains
Authors: Castells Matías , Lopez‐Tort Fernando , Colina Rodney , Cristina Juan 
Published: May 2020

AbstractOn 30th January 2020, an outbreak of atypical pneumonia caused by a novel betacoronavirus, named severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2), was declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization. For this reason, a detailed evolutionary analysis of SARS‐CoV‐2 strains currently circulating in different geographic regions of the world was performed. A compositional analysis as well as a Bayesian coalescent analysis of complete genome sequences of SARS‐CoV‐2 strains recently isolated in Europe, North America, South America, and Asia was performed. The results of these studies revealed a diversification of SARS‐CoV‐2 strains in three different genetic clades. Co‐circulation of different clades in different countries, as well as different genetic lineages within different clades were observed. The time of the most recent common ancestor was established to be around 1st November 2019. A mean rate of evolution of 6.57 × 10−4 substitutions per site per year was found. A significant migration rate per genetic lineage per year from Europe to South America was also observed. The results of these studies revealed an increasing diversification of SARS‐CoV‐2 strains. High evolutionary rates and fast population growth characterizes the population dynamics of SARS‐CoV‐2 strains.
Best practices for estimating near‐surface air temperature lapse rates
Authors: Lute A. C. , Abatzoglou John T. 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe near‐surface air temperature lapse rate is the predominant source of spatial temperature variability in mountains and controls snowfall and snowmelt regimes, glacier mass balance, and species distributions. Lapse rates are often estimated from observational data, however there is little guidance on best practices for estimating lapse rates. We use observational and synthetic datasets to evaluate the error and uncertainty in lapse rate estimates stemming from sample size, dataset noise, covariate collinearity, domain selection, and estimation methods. We find that lapse rates estimated from small sample sizes (<5) or datasets with high noise or collinearity can have errors of several °C km−1. Uncertainty in lapse rates due to non‐elevation related large‐scale temperature variability was reduced by correcting for spatial temperature gradients and restricting domains based on spatial clusters of stations. We generally found simple linear regression to be more robust than multiple linear regression for lapse rate estimation. Finally, lapse rates had lower error and uncertainty when estimated from a sample of topoclimatically self‐similar stations. Motivated by these results, we outline a set of best practices for lapse rate estimation that include using quality controlled temperature observations from as many locations as possible within the study domain, accounting for and minimizing non‐elevational sources of climatic gradients, and calculating lapse rates using simple linear regression across topoclimatically self‐similar samples of stations which are roughly 80% of the station population size.
Optimizing root yield of cassava under fertigation and the masked effect of atmospheric temperature
Authors: Omondi John Okoth , Yermiyahu Uri , Rachmilevitch Shimon , Boahen Steve , Ntawuruhunga Pheneas , Sokolowski Eldad , Lazarovitch Naftali 
Published: May 2020

AbstractBACKGROUNDFertigation is a rare and an expensive method of fertilizer application to cassava, and hence there is a need to optimize its efficiency for profitability. This study's objective was to optimize root yield of cassava through fertigation using a logistic model.RESULTSThe field treatments were six fertigation concentrations against three cassava varieties, selected according to their maturity period. The logistic model predicted 52%, 116% and 281% benefit of fertigation for the varieties Mweru, Kampolombo and Nalumino, respectively. Furthermore, only half of the amount of fertilizer applied for Mweru was required to achieve twice the root yield of Kampolombo. During the experiment, an unknown importance of atmospheric temperature to cassava and its relationship to fertigation was observed. An elevation of 3.7 °C in atmospheric temperature led to 226%, 364% and 265% increase in root yield of Mweru, Kampolombo and Nalumino, respectively. Conversely, shoot biomass and root yield declined when the average atmospheric temperatures dropped by 3.6 °C. However, the cold temperatures affected the short‐growth‐duration (Mweru) and medium‐growth‐duration (Kampolombo) varieties earlier, 22 days after the drop, than the long‐growth‐duration variety (Nalumino) – 50 days after the drop.CONCLUSIONFertigation induced resilience of the shoot biomass production to cold which was most pronounced in the root yield of Mweru in response to the highest fertigation concentration. Thus, while fertigation improved cassava's resilience to cold, it only did so effectively for short‐growth‐duration variety, Mweru. Also, enhanced performance of cassava under increased atmospheric temperature indicated its importance as a climate‐smart crop. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry
Polystyrene Nanospheres Modified with a Hydrophilic Polymer Brush through Subsurface‐Initiated Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization as Biolubricating Additive
Authors: Feng Haiyan , Ma Zhengfeng , Zhang Yujue , Liu Fengzhen , Ma Shuanhong , Zhang Ran , Cai Meirong , Yu Bo , Zhou Feng 
Published: May 2020

AbstractHydration lubrication plays an important role including the cartilage of an organism. Here, polystyrene nanospheres modified with a hydrophilic polymer through subsurface‐initiated grafting as a biolubricating additive is proposed. The material provides good tribological performance when subjected to high load. Compared with surfaced‐initiated grafting polymer brushes, subsurface initiation can form much thicker hydration layers to obtain a lower friction coefficient and better mechanical properties for withstanding prolonged shearing forces with less measurable damage. The polymer brushes penetrate through the covalent network of the polystyrene nanospheres providing a match in mechanical properties between them, so that the additives obtain more excellent lubricity in an aqueous environment under shear pressure, which is expected to become a promising artificial joint biolubricating additive.
Adamantane‐Terminated Polypeptides: Synthesis by N‐Carboxyanhydride Polymerization and Template‐Based Self‐Assembly of Responsive Nanocontainers via Host–Guest Complexation with β‐Cyclodextrin
Authors: Pottanam Chali Sharafudheen , Ravoo Bart Jan 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe synthesis of adamantane‐terminated polypeptides by N‐carboxyanhydride (NCA) polymerization and their use in the template‐based self‐assembly of redox‐responsive nanocontainers is described. Cyclodextrin vesicles (CDV) serve as a supramolecular template to anchor adamantane terminated polypeptides on to the surface of CDV and to form polypeptide shelled vesicles (PPSVss) which are stabilized by crosslinking with cystamin. Polypeptides are characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance, matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI), and gel permeation chromatography, and nanocontainer formation at each step is confirmed by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and zeta potential measurements. MALDI confirms the presence of the adamantane at the end of the polymers, and isothermal titration calomatry (ITC) of the adamantane‐terminated polypeptides with β‐cyclodextrin proves the capability of adamantane on the polypeptides to form host–guest inclusion complexes even with the longest polypeptides. Encapsulation of a model dye carboxyfluorescein in PPSVss and its redox‐responsive release demonstrates the potential use of this novel type of completely biodegradable and biocompatible nanocontainer for the purpose of intracellullar delivery.
An oral health optimized diet reduces the load of potential cariogenic and periodontal bacterial species in the supragingival oral plaque: A randomized controlled pilot study
Authors: Tennert Christian , Reinmuth Ann‐Christin , Bremer Katharina , Al‐Ahmad Ali , Karygianni Lamprini , Hellwig Elmar , Vach Kirstin , Ratka‐Krüger Petra , Wittmer Annette , Woelber Johan Peter 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThis study aimed to investigate the effects of an oral health optimized diet on the composition of the supragingival oral plaque in a randomized controlled trial. Participants of the standard diet group (n = 5) had a diet high in processed carbohydrates and did not change their dietary behavior during the observation. The healthy diet group (n = 9) had to change the diet after 2 weeks from a diet high in processed carbohydrates to a diet low in carbohydrates, rich in omega‐3 fatty acids, rich in vitamins C and D, antioxidants and fiber for 4 weeks. Saliva and supragingival plaque samples were taken at the end of week two and eight of the observation period to investigate the composition of microbiota in saliva and supragingival plaque. Data were subjected to an exploratory analysis to identify significant differences. Statistically significant differences were only found in the healthy diet group between the baseline (week 2) and the final sample (week 8) for specific species in plaque and saliva samples. A reduction of the total counts of Streptococcus mitis group, Granulicatella adiacens, Actinomyces spp., and Fusobacterium spp. was found in plaque samples of the healthy diet group. In saliva samples of the healthy diet group, the total counts of Actinomyces spp. and Capnocytophaga spp. decreased. A diet low in carbohydrates, rich in omega‐3 fatty acids, rich in vitamins C and D, and rich in fiber reduced Streptococcus mitis group, Granulicatella adiacens, Actinomyces spp., and Fusobacterium spp. in the supragingival plaque.
Modified acquisition strategy for reduced motion artifact in super resolution FSE multislice MRI: Application to prostate
Authors: Kargar Soudabeh , Borisch Eric A. , Froemming Adam T. , Grimm Roger C. , Kawashima Akira , King Bernard F. , Stinson Eric G. , Riederer Stephen J. 
Published: May 2020

PurposeTo reduce slice‐to‐slice motion effects in multislice
‐weighted fast‐spin‐echo (
FSE) imaging, manifest as “scalloping” in reformats, by modification of the acquisition strategy and to show applicability in prostate MRI.Methods FSE images of contiguous or overlapping slices are typically acquired using multiple passes in which each pass is comprised of multiple slices with slice‐to‐slice gaps. Combination of slices from all passes provides the desired sampling. For enhancement of through‐plane resolution with super resolution or for reformatting into other orientations, subtle ≈1 mm motion between passes can cause objectionable “scalloping” artifact. Here we address this by subdivision of each pass into multiple segments. Interleaving of segments from the multiple passes causes all slices to be acquired over substantially the same time, reducing pass‐to‐pass motion effects. This was implemented in acquiring 78 overlapped
FSE axial slices and studied in phantoms and in 14 prostate MRI patients. Super‐resolution axial images and sagittal reformats from the original and new segmented acquisitions were evaluated by 3 uroradiologists.ResultsFor all criteria of sagittal reformats, the segmented acquisition was statistically superior to the original. For all sharpness criteria of axial images, although the trend preferred the original acquisition, the difference was not significant. For artifact in axial images, the segmented acquisition was significantly superior.ConclusionsFor prostate MRI the new segmented acquisition significantly reduces the scalloping motion artifact that can be present in reformats due to long time lags between the acquisition of adjacent or overlapped slices while retaining image sharpness in the acquired axial slices.
Evaluation of the Potential Risk of Advanced Peak Determination in Distorting Isobaric Labeling‐Based Single‐Shot Proteome Quantitation
Authors: Wang Jinlong , Zhang Yuanya , Huang Xiahe , Lu Dandan , Wang Yingchun 
Published: May 2020

AbstractThe recent development and implementation of the advanced peak determination (APD) algorithm with MS instrument dramatically increased the sampling of low abundance features for MS/MS fragmentation. After in‐depth evaluation, it is found that with APD on, many chimeric spectra are acquired through co‐fragmentation of high abundance contaminants with low abundance targets, and such co‐fragmentations are largely avoided when APD is off. To evaluate whether such a co‐fragmentation could significantly distort the accuracy of the isobaric‐labeling based quantitation of the low abundance target, a single‐shot TMT experiment is performed using a two‐proteome model, whereby each TMT channel contains premixed peptides from human and a cyanobacterium with a known ratio. Unexpectedly, it is found that APD does not significantly distort TMT ratios, probably because the majority of the APD‐specific chimeric spectra are not identifiable. Nevertheless, a few examples of significant distortion of TMT ratios of low abundance peptides caused by APD is found through manual inspection, and suggests that APD should be off in a single‐shot TMT experiment to avoid the laborious and time‐costing manual inspection.
Changing climate and the permafrost environment on the Qinghai–Tibet (Xizang) plateau
Authors: Zhao Lin , Zou Defu , Hu Guojie , Du Erji , Pang Qiangqiang , Xiao Yao , Li Ren , Sheng Yu , Wu Xiaodong , Sun Zhe , Wang Lingxiao , Wang Chong , Ma Lu , Zhou Huayun , Liu Shibo 
Published: May 2020

AbstractPermafrost on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau (QTP) has undergone degradation as a result of recent climate change. This may alter the thermo‐hydrological processes and unlock soil organic carbon, and thereby affect local hydrological, ecological, and climatic systems. The relationships between permafrost and climate change have received extensive attention, and in this paper we review climate change for permafrost regions of the QTP over the past 30 years. We summarize the current state and changes in permafrost distribution and thickness, ground temperature, and ground ice conditions. We focus on changes in permafrost thermal state and in active‐layer thickness (ALT). Possible future changes in ground temperature and ALT are also discussed. Finally, we discuss the changes in hydrological processes and to ecosystems caused by permafrost degradation. Air temperature and ground temperature in the permafrost regions of the QTP have increased from 1980 to 2018, and the active layer has been thickening at a rate of 19.5 cm per decade. The response of permafrost to climate change is not as fast as in some reports, and permafrost degradation is slower than projected by models that do not account for conditions deep in permafrost.
Optimization of STEM‐HAADF Electron Tomography Reconstructions by Parameter Selection in Compressed Sensing Total Variation Minimization‐Based Algorithms
Authors: Muñoz‐Ocaña Juan M. , Bouziane Ainouna , Sakina Farzeen , Baker Richard T. , Hungría Ana B. , Calvino Jose J. , Rodríguez‐Chía Antonio M. , López‐Haro Miguel 
Published: May 2020

AbstractA novel procedure to optimize the 3D morphological characterization of nanomaterials by means of high angle annular dark field scanning‐transmission electron tomography is reported and is successfully applied to the analysis of a metal‐ and halogen‐free ordered mesoporous carbon material. The new method is based on a selection of the two parameters (μ and β) which are key in the reconstruction of tomographic series by means of total variation minimization (TVM). The parameter‐selected TVM reconstructions obtained using this approach clearly reveal the porous structure of the carbon‐based material as consisting of a network of parallel, straight channels of ≈6 nm diameter ordered in a honeycomb‐type arrangement. Such an unusual structure cannot be retrieved from a TVM 3D reconstruction using default reconstruction values. Moreover, segmentation and further quantification of the optimized 3D tomographic reconstruction provide values for different textural parameters, such as pore size distribution and specific pore volume that match very closely with those determined by macroscopic physisorption techniques. The approach developed can be extended to other reconstruction models in which the final result is influenced by parameter choice.
Adaptive neural control for multiagent systems with asymmetric time‐varying state constraints and input saturation
Authors: Yang Bin , Xiao Wenbin , Yin Hao , Zhou Qi , Lu Renquan 
Published: May 2020

SummaryThis article investigates the leader‐follower consensus problem of a class of non‐strict‐feedback nonlinear multiagent systems with asymmetric time‐varying state constraints (ATVSC) and input saturation, and an adaptive neural control scheme is developed. By introducing the distributed sliding‐mode estimator, each follower can obtain the estimation of leader's trajectory and track it directly. Then, with the help of time‐varying asymmetric barrier Lyapunov function and radial basis function neural networks, the controller is designed based on backstepping technique. Furthermore, the mean‐value theorem and Nussbaum function are utilized to address the problems of input saturation and unknown control direction. Moreover, the number of adaptive laws is equal to that of the followers, which reduces the computational complexity. It is proved that the leader‐follower consensus tracking control is achieved without violating the ATVSC, and all closed‐loop signals are semiglobally uniformly ultimately bounded. Finally, the simulation results are provided to verify the effectiveness of the control scheme.