bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Low influenza vaccination coverage in subjects with liver cirrhosis. An alert waiting for winter season 2020–2021 during the COVID‐19 pandemic
Authors: Stroffolini Tommaso , Lombardi Anna , Ciancio Alessia , Niro Grazia A. , Colloredo Guido , Marignani Massimo , Vinci Maria , Morisco Filomena , Babudieri Sergio , Ferrigno Luigina , Sagnelli Evangelista 
Published: December 2020

AbstractWe have evaluated flu vaccine coverage and variables associated with the lack of vaccination in cirrhotic subjects with particular attention to the cirrhosis etiology. Cirrhotic subjects consecutively referring to eight Italian centers were prospectively enrolled for a 6‐month period in 2019. Subjects were asked if they had received a flu vaccine in the last 12 months. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to identify independent predictors of lack of vaccination. A total of 818 cases were recruited. The overall vaccine coverage was 39.6% (26.9% in those younger than 65 years and 51.9% in those older than 64 years; p < 0.001). Age < 65 years (odds ratio [OR] = 2.38; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.68–3.36), alcoholic etiology (OR = 2.40; 95% CI = 1.49–3.85), birth abroad (OR = 2.7; 95% CI = 1.10–6.61), and residence in South/Sardinia island (OR = 1.66; 95% CI = 1.14–2.42) all resulted independent predictors of the likelihood of lack of vaccination. The lack of information regarding the vaccine as the reason for no vaccination was reported by 71.4% of foreigners and by 34.7% of natives (p < 0.001). In conclusion, much work still should be done to improve coverage among groups at higher risk of lack of vaccination identified in this survey. The ongoing SARS‐CoV‐2 pandemic may represent one more alert for improving seasonal flu vaccine coverage to avoid further stress to the National Health System.
The preventative benefit of group diversification on group performance decline: An investigation with latent growth models
Authors: Li Jia , Shemla Meir , Wegge Jürgen 
Published: December 2020

SummaryIntegrating the open systems perspective of groups and the contingency approach to diversity, we study how group diversification (i.e., a process in which a group becomes more diverse over time as members join and/or leave the group) affects group performance change in an adverse task environment. We argue that diversification benefits performance by reducing group performance decline in times of adversity. Group size increase, however, attenuates this preventative benefit of group diversification. Focusing on organizational tenure and gender, we studied 279 sales groups (3277 individuals) in a large German financial consulting company from 2004 to 2008. In this period, a national legislative change prompted the company to withdraw its star product from the market and presented adversity to the sales groups. Results from latent growth models (LGMs) overall support our arguments. This research extends the (conditional) beneficial view of diversity from a static theoretical space about groupbeingdiverse to a dynamic one about groupbecomingdiverse.
The inhibitory effect of volatile organic compounds produced by Bacillus subtilis CL2 on pathogenic fungi of wolfberry
Authors: Ling Lijun , Zhao Yunhua , Tu Yixin , Yang Caiyun , Ma Wenxia , Feng Shenglai , Lu Lu , Zhang Ji 
Published: December 2020

AbstractBacillus subtilis strain CL2 is antagonistic to wolfberry postharvest pathogenic fungi. In this study, we isolated and screened this strain for in vitro experiments. The result of the two‐sealed‐base‐plates method revealed that volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from the strain CL2 inhibited the hyphal growth of four pathogenic fungi Mucor circinelloides LB1, Fusarium arcuatisporum LB5, Alternaria iridiaustralis LB7, and Colletotrichum fioriniae LB8. After exposure to VOCs for 5 days, the hyphal growth of the pathogen C. fioriniae LB8 was inhibited by 73%. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the VOCs produced by B. subtilis CL2 caused the mycelium morphology of the pathogenic fungi to deform, twist, fold, and shrink. In the in vivo experiments, we noticed that VOCs could significantly reduce the weight loss rate of wolfberry fruits caused by the pathogenic fungus M. circinelloides LB1 and that the decay incidence rate were caused by the pathogenic fungi F. arcuatisporum LB5, A. iridiaustralis LB7, and C. fioriniae LB8. On the basis of the headspace‐gas chromatography‐ion mobility spectrometry analysis, seven VOCs produced by strain CL2 were identified. Among them, 2,3‐butanedione and 3‐methylbutyric acid are the main antifungal active substances. This study investigated the antifungal properties of VOCs produced by the strain CL2 on postharvest pathogenic fungi isolated from wolfberry fruits both in vivo and in vitro, thereby providing the theoretical basis for its future applications.
Prognostic Value of Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecules in T1‐2N0M0 Glottic Cancer
Authors: Murakami Naoya , Mori Taisuke , Machida Ryunosuke , Kodaira Takeshi , Ito Yoshinori , Shikama Naoto , Konishi Koji , Matsumoto Yasuo , Murakami Yuji , Nakamura Naoki , Yamashita Hideomi , Yorozu Atsunori , Yoshimura Michio , Inoue Koichi , Nozaki Miwako , Ishikura Satoshi , Itami Jun , Nishimura Yasumasa , Kagami Yoshikazu 
Published: December 2020

ObjectiveThis is an ancillary study of a multi‐institutional randomized non‐inferiority phase III trial of accelerated fractionation (AF) versus standard fractionation (SF) radiation therapy for T1‐2N0M0 glottic cancer (JCOG0701). Biopsy specimens of tumors from the patients enrolled in the JCOG0701 are collected and the association between clinical outcomes and histopathologic features such as expression of epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM), p53, and p16 were investigated.MethodsFive slices of undyed slides from biopsy specimens were sent to the National Cancer Center Hospital and all the specimens were assessed for the expression of EpCAM, p53, and p16. The primary objective was to investigate the association between 3‐year progression‐free survival (PFS) and expression of EpCAM, p53, and p16.ResultsA total of 88 out of 370 patients were enrolled in this ancillary study. The 3‐year PFS for tumors with strong expression of EpCAM was 70.6% (95% CI 43.1%–86.6%), while that of tumors without strong expression of EpCAM was 77.5% (95% CI 65.9%–85.5%) with no remarkable difference between groups (P = .67). Likewise, there was no significant difference in 3‐year PFS between tumors regardless of p53 or p16 status. However, in a subgroup analysis for 17 patients with a strong expression of EpCAM, AF showed better 3‐year PFS than SF (100% vs 54.5%, P = .07).ConclusionsFrom the current study, it could not be concluded that EpCAM, p16, and p53 were prognostic factors for early‐stage glottic cancer after primary radiation therapy. AF might be an appropriate fractionation for tumors with a strong expression of EpCAM.Level of Evidence3 Laryngoscope, 131:1522–1527, 2021
Fast and Slow Nonlinearities in Epsilon‐Near‐Zero Materials
Authors: Khurgin Jacob B. , Clerici Matteo , Kinsey Nathaniel 
Published: December 2020

AbstractNovel materials, with enhanced light–matter interaction capabilities, play an essential role in achieving the lofty goals of nonlinear optics. Recently, epsilon‐near‐zero (ENZ) media have emerged as a promising candidate to enable the enhancement of several nonlinear processes including refractive index modulation and harmonic generation. Here, the optical nonlinearity of ENZ media is analyzed to clarify the commonalities with other nonlinear media and its unique properties. Transparent conducting oxides as the family of ENZ media with near‐zero permittivity in the near‐infrared (telecom) band are focused on. The instantaneous and delayed nonlinearities are investigated. By identifying their common origin from the band nonparabolicity, it is shown that their relative strength is entirely determined by a ratio of the energy and momentum relaxation (or dephasing) times. Using this framework, ENZ materials are compared against the many promising nonlinear media that are investigated in literature and show that while ENZ materials do not radically outpace the strength of traditional materials in either the fast or slow nonlinearity, they pack key advantages such as an ideal response time, intrinsic slow light enhancement, and broadband nature in a compact platform making them a valuable tool for ultrafast photonics applications for decades to come.
Effect of Copolymer Structure on Rare‐Earth‐Element Chelation Thermodynamics
Authors: Archer William R. , Thompson Tiffany N. , Schulz Michael D. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractRare‐earth elements (REEs) are crucial to modern technology, leading to a high demand for materials capable of REE extraction and purification. Metal‐chelating polymers (e.g., polycarboxylic acids, polyamines, and others) are particularly useful in these applications due to their synthetic accessibility and high selectivity. Copolymers with varied mole fractions of acrylic acid and methyl acrylate are synthesized and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) to measure the thermodynamics of REE binding for each material is used. Across a series of copolymer compositions, entropically driven binding thermodynamics (∆G, ∆H, and ∆S) that appear to be independent of χAcrylic Acid are found. ITC stoichiometry data reveal that each copolymer requires between four and five repeat units to bind each REE. These data suggest that alterations in the copolymer structure do not affect the overall binding thermodynamics of REEs to these copolymers.
Efficient Synthesis of Stable Polyelectrolyte Complex Nanoparticles by Electrostatic Assembly Directed Polymerization
Authors: Ding Peng , Chen Lusha , Wei Cheng , Zhou Wenjuan , Li Chendan , Wang Jiahua , Wang Mingwei , Guo Xuhong , Cohen Stuart Martien A. , Wang Junyou 
Published: December 2020

AbstractPolyelectrolyte complex nanoparticles with integrated advances of coacervate complexes and nanomaterials have attracted considerable attention as soft templates and functional nano‐carriers. Herein, a facile and robust strategy, namely electrostatic assembly directed polymerization (EADP), for efficient and scalable preparation of stable coacervate nanoparticles is presented. With homo‐polyelectrolyte PAA (polyacrylic acid) as template and out of charge stoichiometry, the cationic monomers are polymerized together with cross‐linkers, which creates coacervate nanoparticles featuring high stability against salt through one‐pot synthesis. The particle size can be tuned by varying the cross‐linker amount and salt concentrations during the polymerization and the composition of nanoparticles, as well as the corresponding properties can be regulated by combining different charged blocks from both strong and weak ionic monomers. The strategy can tolerate both high monomer concentrations and increased volume of up to l L, which is favorable for scaled‐up preparations. Moreover, the coacervate nanoparticles can be freeze‐dried to produce a product in powder form, which can be redispersed without any effect on the particle size and size distribution. Finally, the obtained nanoparticles loaded with enzyme and Au nanoparticles exhibit enhanced catalytic performance, demonstrating a great potential for exploring various applications of coacervate particles as soft and functional nano‐carriers.
Synthesis and Characterization of Cationic Dendrimer‐PDMS Hybrids
Authors: Marks Monica A. , Kalaitzidou Kyriaki , Gutekunst Will R. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractA modular strategy for the synthesis of dendron‐linear polymer hybrids comprised of a flexible polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) midblock with cationic 2,2‐bis(hydroxymethyl)propionic acid (bis‐MPA) dendron end groups is developed. The invention of a scalable methodology to access quaternary ammonium carboxylate building blocks and their direct use in esterification chemistry enables rapid access to cationic bis‐MPA dendrons. The convergent click coupling of highly charged dendrons to hydrophobic PDMS chain‐ends gives a 12‐membered family of hybrids that are comprised of different dendron generations (G1–3) and quaternary ammonium alkyl chain lengths (C4, C8, C12, C16). This provides a library of materials with variable hydrophobicity, charge density, and chain‐end valency. The physical behavior of the dendron‐linear PDMS hybrid copolymers significantly changes after introduction of the cationic dendron end‐groups and leads to soft‐solid materials as a result of inhibited chain mobility. These PDMS‐dendron hybrids are expected to behave as surface‐active antimicrobial additives in bulk cross‐linked silicone systems.
Flexible Cyclic‐Poly(phthalaldehyde)/Poly(ε‐caprolactone) Blend Fibers with Fast Daylight‐Triggered Transience
Authors: Li Shanshan , Rizvi Mehedi H. , Lynch Brian B. , Tracy Joseph B. , Ford Ericka 
Published: December 2020

AbstractCyclic‐poly(phthalaldehyde) (cPPHA) exhibits photo‐triggerable depolymerization on‐demand for applications like the photolithography of microfabricated electronics. However, cPPHA is inherently brittle and thermally sensitive; both of these properties limit its usefulness as an engineering plastic. Prior to this report, small molecule plasticizers are added to cPPHA‐based films to make the polymer more flexible. But plasticizers can eventually leach out of cPPHA, then leaving it increasingly more brittle throughout product lifetime. In this research, a new approach to fabricating flexible cPPHA blends for use as spun fibers is achieved through the incorporation of poly (ε‐caprolactone) (PCL) by a modified wet spinning method. Among blend compositions, the 50/50 cPPHA/PCL fiber shows fast transience (<50 s) in response to daylight while retaining the flexibility of PCL and mechanical properties of an elastomer (i.e., tensile strength of ≈8 MPa, Young's modulus of ≈118 MPa, and elongation at break of ≈190%). Embedding 2 wt% gold nanoparticles to cPPHA can further improve the transience rate of fibers comprising less than 50% cPPHA. These flexible, daylight‐triggerable cPPHA/PCL fibers can be applied to an extensive range of applications, such as wearable electronics, intelligent textiles, and zero waste packaging for which modest mechanical performance and fast transience are desired.
Triple‐Responsive Polyampholytic Graft Copolymers as Smart Sensors with Varying Output
Authors: Max Johannes B. , Nabiyan Afshin , Eichhorn Jonas , Schacher Felix H. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThree triggers result in two measurable outputs from polymeric sensors: multiresponsive polyampholytic graft copolymers respond to pH‐value and temperature, as well as the type and concentration of metal cations and therefore, allow the transformation of external triggers into simply measurable outputs (cloud point temperature (TCP) and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) of encapsulated silver nanoparticles). The synthesis relies on poly(dehydroalanine) (PDha) as the reactive backbone and gives straightforward access to materials with tunable composition and output. In particular, a rather high sensitivity toward the presence of Cu2+, Co2+, and Pb2+ metal cations is found.
Improving the characterization of meningioma microstructure in proton therapy from conventional apparent diffusion coefficient measurements using Monte Carlo simulations of diffusion MRI
Authors: Buizza Giulia , Paganelli Chiara , Ballati Francesco , Sacco Simone , Preda Lorenzo , Iannalfi Alberto , Alexander Daniel C. , Baroni Guido , Palombo Marco 
Published: December 2020

PurposeProton therapy could benefit from noninvasively gaining tumor microstructure information, at both planning and monitoring stages. The anatomical location of brain tumors, such as meningiomas, often hinders the recovery of such information from histopathology, and conventional noninvasive imaging biomarkers, like the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) from diffusion‐weighted MRI (DW‐MRI), are nonspecific. The aim of this study was to retrieve discriminative microstructural markers from conventional ADC for meningiomas treated with proton therapy. These markers were employed for tumor grading and tumor response assessment.MethodsDW‐MRIs from patients affected by meningioma and enrolled in proton therapy were collected before (n = 35) and 3 months after (n = 25) treatment. For the latter group, the risk of an adverse outcome was inferred by their clinical history. Using Monte Carlo methods, DW‐MRI signals were simulated from packings of synthetic cells built with well‐defined geometrical and diffusion properties. Patients’ ADC was modeled as a weighted sum of selected simulated signals. The weights that best described a patient’s ADC were determined through an optimization procedure and used to estimate a set of markers of tumor microstructure: diffusion coefficient (D), volume fraction (vf), and radius (R). Apparent cellularity (ρapp) was estimated from vf and R for an easier clinical interpretability. Differences between meningothelial and atypical subtypes, and low‐ and high‐grade meningiomas were assessed with nonparametric statistical tests, whereas sensitivity and specificity with ROC analyses. Similar analyses were performed for patients showing low or high risk of an adverse outcome to preliminary evaluate response to treatment.ResultsSignificant (P < 0.05) differences in median ADC, D, vf, R, and ρapp values were found when comparing meningiomas’ subtypes and grades. ROC analyses showed that estimated microstructural parameters reached higher specificity than ADC for subtyping (0.93 for D and vf vs 0.80 for ADC) and grading (0.75 for R vs 0.67 for ADC). High‐ and low‐risk patients showed significant differences in ADC and microstructural parameters. The skewness of ρapp was the parameter with highest AUC (0.90) and sensitivity (0.75).ConclusionsMatching measured with simulated ADC yielded a set of potential imaging markers for meningiomas grading and response monitoring in proton therapy, showing higher specificity than conventional ADC. These markers can provide discriminative information about spatial patterns of tumor microstructure implying important advantages for patient‐specific proton therapy workflows.
Calibration and validation of a new elastoviscoplastic soil model
Authors: Yuan Yixing , Whittle Andrew J. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThis paper presents the calibration and validation for a new 3D elastoviscoplastic soil model, MIT‐SR, for Resedimented Boston Blue Clay (RBBC). The calibration procedure requires selection of material constants from standard types of laboratory consolidation and undrained shear tests, and a procedure for initialization of state variables. The formulation includes two key input parameters that describe sensitivity of rate dependence, β, and creep behavior, ρα, for which the calibration requires data including CRS consolidation tests at a range of strain rates and drained creep tests. The calibrated MIT‐SR model is benchmarked through a series of simulations of K0‐consolidated triaxial shear tests and direct simple shear tests on RBBC performed at different rates of shear strain. The calibrated model provides very good predictions of the effects of shear strain rate on key engineering properties such as undrained shear strength, strain to peak shear resistance and critical state conditions as functions of the consolidation stress history. The predictions of multistage, undrained relaxation tests are also in good agreement with unique measured behavior reported for RBBC. The comparisons provide clear evidence of the advances in predictive capabilities achieved using the proposed MIT‐SR formulation compared to preexisting isotache‐type models.
Determinants of social entrepreneurial intention: An alternative model based on social cognitive career theory
Authors: Ip Ching Yin , Liang Chaoyun , Lai Hsiang Ju , Chang Yuan Jhen 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThis study examines the determinants of social entrepreneurial intention (SEI) through two models: a revised Hockerts' model based on the theory of planned behavior that replaced moral obligation with social responsibility and an alternative model incorporating social cognitive career theory. A survey of 472 residents in Taiwan is conducted for analysis. Results of the revised Hockerts' model observe direct positive effects of perceived social support and social responsibility on SEI, whereas results of the alternative model suggest that social entrepreneurial self‐efficacy and outcome expectations act as critical mediators on SEI. This study also demonstrates that extrinsic reward moderates the relationship between outcome expectations and SEI. Theoretical contributions and practical implications are correspondingly discussed.
Exploring self‐management in adult sickle cell disease patients' at a Teaching Hospital in Ghana
Authors: Amertil Ninon P. , Ayitey Elikem Keli , Kpongboe Doris Grace , Attafuah Priscilla Y. A. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractAimTo evaluate the relationships among self‐efficacy, uncertainty, self‐management and emergency hospital visits yearly among adult sickle cell disease patients’ and related demographics at a Teaching Hospital in Ghana.DesignA quantitative cross‐sectional design.MethodA purposive and convenience sample of 85 adult clients from a sickle cell clinic in Ghana completed research instruments. Data collection occurred in March and April 2019. Instruments used were the self‐efficacy scale, self‐care agency scale, Mishel uncertainty scale and socio‐demographic variables. Pearson correlation and regression techniques were used for analysis.FindingsThe correlation results showed a low positive and significant correlation between self‐efficacy and self‐management (r = 0.357, p < .01), a significant moderate negative relationship between self‐efficacy and uncertainty (r = −0.459, p < .01) and a significant low negative relationship between self‐management and uncertainty. For the regression, employment (p = .003) and marital status (p = .002) significantly predicted self‐management among others.ConclusionSelf‐efficacy had positive and significant relationship with self‐management. Similarly, patients with family support and employment experienced better self‐management. Furthermore, patients with higher education and living with family had reduced illness uncertainty. Thus, the findings can improve self‐care measures and mitigate illness uncertainty for better health outcomes.
Two‐dimensional Haar wavelet based approximation technique to study the sensitivities of the price of an option
Authors: Kumar Devendra , Deswal Komal 
Published: December 2020

AbstractIn the present work, a two‐dimensional Haar wavelet method is proposed to study the sensitivities of the price of an option. The method is appropriate to study these sensitivities as it explicitly gives the values of all the derivatives of the solution. A Black–Scholes model for European style options is considered to analyze the physical and numerical aspects of the put and the call option Greeks. We use the concept of coordinate transformation to make the Black–Scholes equation dimensionless and to resolve the obstacle in approximating the Greeks having non‐smoothness at the strike price. The infinite spatial domain is truncated into the finite domain to avoid large truncation errors. Through rigorous analysis, the method is shown first‐order accurate in the L2−norm. The numerical computations performed to approximate the option price and various Greeks, like delta, theta, gamma, and so forth, confirm the theoretical results in L2−norm. The relative errors and the maximum absolute errors are also presented. The motivational work of option Greeks analysis may leave a significant impact on financial institutes; it helps them to manage the risk by setting the portfolio's new value and to estimate the probability of losing money.