bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Paracetamol – An old drug with new mechanisms of action
Authors: Przybyła Grzegorz W. , Szychowski Konrad A. , Gmiński Jan 
Published: August 2020

AbstractParacetamol (acetaminophen) is the most commonly used over‐the‐counter (OTC) drug in the world. Despite its popularity and use for many years, the safety of its application and its mechanism of action are still unclear. Currently, it is believed that paracetamol is a multidirectional drug and at least several metabolic pathways are involved in its analgesic and antipyretic action. The mechanism of paracetamol action consists in inhibition of cyclooxygenases (COX‐1, COX‐2, and COX‐3) and involvement in the endocannabinoid system and serotonergic pathways. Additionally, paracetamol influences transient receptor potential (TRP) channels and voltage‐gated Kv7 potassium channels and inhibits T‐type Cav3.2 calcium channels. It also exerts an impact on L‐arginine in the nitric oxide (NO) synthesis pathway. However, not all of these effects have been clearly confirmed. Therefore, the aim of our paper was to summarize the current state of knowledge of the mechanism of paracetamol action with special attention to its safety concerns.
Estimates of individual differences in vocabulary size in English: how many words are needed to ‘close the vocabulary gap’?
Authors: Duff Dawna , Brydon Melissa 
Published: August 2020

BackgroundTeaching vocabulary may be an effective way to address poor reading comprehension. However, it is unclear how many words or word families a school aged child with poor vocabulary would need to learn to meaningfully impact comprehension. This study provides estimates of vocabulary size for children with differing vocabulary achievement in middle elementary grades.MethodsEnglish speaking children (n = 41) completed an adapted version of the Vocabulary Size Test (VST‐a) , which estimates number of word families known. VST‐a scores were significantly related to raw scores on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test‐4 (PPVT‐4) , F(1,40)=71.6, p < 0.0001, R2 of 0.642. The regression equation defining the relationship between VST‐a and PPVT‐4 raw scores and normative data from the PPVT‐4 were used to estimate vocabulary size for children (fourth–eighth grades) with typical, high and low scores on the PPVT‐4. These were considered in terms of word families required to support comprehension of a range of texts (Nation, 2006).ResultsTypical vocabulary size for fourth–eighth grades was estimated to be approximately 7,300–9,100 word families, increasing at approximately 460 word families annually. Within grades, there is a gap of approximately 1,300 word families between individuals with PPVT‐4 scores at the mean and 1 SD below the mean.ConclusionsDirect teaching of vocabulary may make a meaningful contribution to typical rates of vocabulary growth. Long‐term vocabulary instruction would be required for those with low vocabulary knowledge, if ‘typical’ vocabulary breadth is the target. Vocabulary gains required to reach a threshold of 8,000 word families may be smaller. Results could help to identify students most likely to have improved reading comprehension as a result of vocabulary instruction. Theoretically, these estimates help specify the nature of vocabulary as a comprehension ‘pressure point’.
Political parties, globalization and labour strength: Assessing differences across welfare state programs
Authors: ENGLER FABIAN 
Published: August 2020

AbstractThis article investigates how globalization and organized labour condition partisan effects on different welfare state programs. The main argument is that the conditional effect of globalization on government partisanship depends on how relevant a program is to the needs of vulnerable groups and that organized labour additionally affects this relationship. Analyzing 21 OECD countries between 1980 and 2011/2014, empirical evidence largely corroborates this argument: Firstly, the expectation that partisan differences decrease with globalization in general and especially in weak labour countries in the case of programs that are less relevant for compensation holds true for old‐age provision and partly for sick pay insurance. Secondly, and in accordance with theoretical expectations concerning programs that are primarily relevant for compensation, partisan differences increase with globalization, in general regarding education and only in strong labour countries regarding unemployment benefits. Therefore, while globalization constrains national politics’ room for manoeuvre in some areas, parties are still able to follow their ideologically preferred policies and respond to compensation demands in others.
Under pressure. Economic constraints, electoral politics and labour market reforms in Southern Europe in the decade of the Great Recession
Authors: BULFONE FABIO , TASSINARI ARIANNA 
Published: August 2020

AbstractEven when subject to comparable exogenous constraints during the Eurozone crisis and in its immediate aftermath, governments in Southern Europe have pursued distinct labour market reform agendas. What room for manoeuvre did governments of crisis‐struck peripheral countries really have in shaping their labour market reform strategies, and how can we account for the observed variation? We address these questions by making a twofold contribution to the debate on the political economy of austerity in the Eurozone periphery. First, through the first systematic analysis of all labour market and collective bargaining (CB) reforms implemented in Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece over 2009–2019, we identify those elements of core labour market deregulation common across Southern European countries (namely, the loosening of employment protection for workers on open‐ended contracts and the decentralisation of CB to the firm level); and those elements of variation, both cross‐country and cross‐party, in the content of corollary labour market interventions that accompanied this core deregulation. Second, we explain these similarities and variations in reform outcomes as the product of the interaction of two factors: economic constraints and electoral dynamics. We argue that the implementation of the common core of deregulation is linked to the exogenous pressure to improve export competitiveness to which Southern European countries have been subjected since the crisis. Through the combination of survey data analysis and qualitative evidence, we then show empirically how the variation in the corollary measures accompanying deregulation is linked to the class composition of the electoral social blocs Southern European partisan governments rely on or aim to assemble. Based on this analysis, we identify four ideal‐typical labour market reformist strategies attempted by Southern European governments during the decade of the Great Recession. The analysis highlights that although domestic politics plays a crucial role in shaping structural adjustment under crisis conditions, not all reform strategies are equally viable within the framework of Economic and Monetary Union.
Plasma proteomic profile of frailty
Authors: Sathyan Sanish , Ayers Emmeline , Gao Tina , Milman Sofiya , Barzilai Nir , Verghese Joe 
Published: August 2020

AbstractFrailty is a state of decreased physiological reserve and increased vulnerability to adverse outcomes in aging, and is characterized by dysregulation across various biological pathways. Frailty may manifest biologically as alteration in protein expression, possibly regulated at genetic, transcriptional and epigenetic levels. In this study, we examined the proteomic profile associated with frailty defined by an established cumulative frailty index (FI). Using the SomaScan® assay, 4265 proteins were measured in plasma, of which 55 were positively associated and 88 were negatively associated with the FI. The proteins most strongly associated with frailty were fatty acid‐binding proteins, including fatty acid‐binding protein (FABP) (p = 1.96 × 10−19) and FABPA (p = 8.10 × 10−16), leptin (p = 1.43 × 10−14), and ANTR2 (p = 7.95 × 10−20). Pathway analysis with the top 143 frailty‐associated proteins revealed enrichment for proteins in pathways related to lipid metabolism, musculoskeletal development and function, cell‐to‐cell signaling and interaction, cellular assembly, and organization. Frailty prediction model constructed with elastic net regression utilizing 110 proteins demonstrated a correlation between predicted frailty and observed frailty (r = 0.57, p < 2.2 × 10−16). Predicted frailty was also more strongly correlated with chronological age (r = 0.54, p < 2.2 × 10−16) than observed frailty (r = 0.37, p = 1.2 × 10−15). This study identified novel proteins and pathways related to frailty that may offer improved frailty phenotyping and prediction.
Can Alcohol Use Disorder Recovery Include Some Heavy Drinking? A Replication and Extension up to 9 Years Following Treatment
Authors: Witkiewitz Katie , Pearson Matthew R. , Wilson Adam D. , Stein Elena R. , Votaw Victoria R. , Hallgren Kevin A. , Maisto Stephen A. , Swan Julia E. , Schwebel Frank J. , Aldridge Arnie , Zarkin Gary A. , Tucker Jalie A. 
Published: August 2020

BackgroundRecent research indicates some individuals who engage in heavy drinking following treatment for alcohol use disorder fare as well as those who abstain with respect to psychosocial functioning, employment, life satisfaction, and mental health. The current study evaluated whether these findings replicated in an independent sample and examined associations between recovery profiles and functioning up to 6 years later.MethodsData were from the 3‐year and 7‐ to 9‐year follow‐ups of subsamples initially recruited for the COMBINE study (3‐year follow‐up: n = 694; 30.1% female, 21.0% non‐White; 7‐ to 9‐year follow‐up: n = 127; 38.9% female, 27.8% non‐White). Recovery at 3 years was defined by latent profile analyses including measures of health functioning, quality of life, employment, alcohol consumption, and cannabis and other drug use. Functioning at the 7‐ to 9‐year follow‐up was assessed using single items of self‐rated general health, hospitalizations, and alcohol consumption.ResultsWe identified 4 profiles at the 3‐year follow‐up: (i) low‐functioning frequent heavy drinkers (13.9%), (ii) low‐functioning infrequent heavy drinkers (15.8%), (iii) high‐functioning heavy drinkers (19.4%), and (iv) high‐functioning infrequent drinkers (50.9%). At the 7‐ to 9‐year follow‐up, the 2 high‐functioning profiles had the best self‐rated health, and the high‐functioning heavy drinking profile had significantly fewer hospitalizations than the low‐functioning frequent heavy drinking profile.ConclusionsPrevious findings showing heterogeneity in recovery outcomes were replicated. Most treatment recipients functioned well for years after treatment, and a subset who achieved stable recovery engaged in heavy drinking and reported good health outcomes up to 9 years after treatment. Results question the long‐standing emphasis on drinking practices as a primary outcome, as well as abstinence as a recovery criterion in epidemiologic and treatment outcome research and among stakeholder groups and funding/regulatory agencies. Findings support an expanded recovery research agenda that considers drinking patterns, health, life satisfaction, and functioning.
Metabolic behavior and prognostic role of pretreatment 18F‐FDG PET/CT in gist
Authors: Albano Domenico , Bosio Giovanni , Tomasini Davide , Bonù Marco , Giubbini Raffaele , Bertagna Francesco 
Published: August 2020

AbstractAimThe metabolic behavior and the prognostic value of 18F‐FDG‐PET/CT in gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is not well investigated. The aim of this study was to analyze the metabolic behavior of GIST and the prognostic role of pretreatment PET/CT features.MethodsIn this retrospective study, we included 35 patients with a diagnosis of GIST who underwent a pretreatment 18F‐FDG‐PET/CT scan. We analyzed PET images visually and semiquantitatively by measuring several metabolic parameters as the maximum standardized uptake value corrected for body weight (SUVbw), for lean body mass (SUVlbm), for body surface area (SUVbsa), metabolic tumor volume (MTV) and total lesion glycolysis (TLG). The Kaplan–Meier method was used to measure the progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival curves.ResultsTwenty‐nine (82%) patients showed a positive 18F‐FDG‐PET/CT, whereas the remaining 6 had no hypermetabolic lesions. 18F‐FDG‐avidity was significantly related with mitotic index, tumor stage and tumor risk group. Instead, semiquantitative PET/CT parameters correlated only with tumor risk group. Disease progression occurred in 16 patients whereas death in seven. 18F‐FDG‐avidity, MTV and TLG were the only variables significantly associated with PFS.ConclusionAn 82% rate of PET avidity in GIST was found and it was correlated with stage, tumor risk group and mitotic index. Only baseline 18F‐FDG‐avidity, MTV and TLG were independently correlated with PFS.
Cabbage and fermented vegetables: From death rate heterogeneity in countries to candidates for mitigation strategies of severe COVID‐19
Authors: Bousquet Jean , Anto Josep M. , Czarlewski Wienczyslawa , Haahtela Tari , Fonseca Susana C. , Iaccarino Guido , Blain Hubert , Vidal Alain , Sheikh Aziz , Akdis Cezmi A. , Zuberbier Torsten ,   ARIA group
Published: August 2020

AbstractLarge differences in COVID‐19 death rates exist between countries and between regions of the same country. Some very low death rate countries such as Eastern Asia, Central Europe, or the Balkans have a common feature of eating large quantities of fermented foods. Although biases exist when examining ecological studies, fermented vegetables or cabbage have been associated with low death rates in European countries. SARS‐CoV‐2 binds to its receptor, the angiotensin‐converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). As a result of SARS‐CoV‐2 binding, ACE2 downregulation enhances the angiotensin II receptor type 1 (AT1R) axis associated with oxidative stress. This leads to insulin resistance as well as lung and endothelial damage, two severe outcomes of COVID‐19. The nuclear factor (erythroid‐derived 2)‐like 2 (Nrf2) is the most potent antioxidant in humans and can block in particular the AT1R axis. Cabbage contains precursors of sulforaphane, the most active natural activator of Nrf2. Fermented vegetables contain many lactobacilli, which are also potent Nrf2 activators. Three examples are: kimchi in Korea, westernized foods, and the slum paradox. It is proposed that fermented cabbage is a proof‐of‐concept of dietary manipulations that may enhance Nrf2‐associated antioxidant effects, helpful in mitigating COVID‐19 severity.
Correlation of weight loss with residual gastric volume on computerized tomography in patients undergoing sleeve gastrectomy: A systematic review
Authors: Singla Vitish , Aggarwal Sandeep , Aggarwal Samagra , Gupta Mehul , Singh Deepti 
Published: August 2020

SummaryLaparoscopic Sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) is the most commonly performed bariatric surgical procedure worldwide. There is wide variation however in post‐operative weight loss on long term follow‐up, and residual gastric volume (RGV) is believed to be an important variable. Multiple studies have correlated RGV as assessed by Computerized Tomography volumetry with excess weight loss (EWL%) following LSG, but definite consensus is lacking. This article systematically reviews the published studies in English literature to ascertain whether any correlation exists between the RGV and EWL% following LSG. Ten studies were included in this review, and significant differences were noted in the technique of RGV assessment, and timing of RGV and EWL% assessment. Five studies found a statistically significant correlation between the RGV and EWL%. One study found a correlation which did not reach statistical significance. Two additional studies reported that the resected volume rather than RGV correlated with the EWL%. Meta‐analysis of studies reporting correlation between RGV and EWL% showed that up to 26.3% (95% CI: 5.1%‐56.1%) of variability in EWL% can be explained by variations in RGV. A lower RGV is likely to result in a better post‐operative weight loss following LSG. There is need for standardization of technique and timing of RGV assessment.
Eczematous graft‐vs‐host disease: A report of three cases and review of the literature
Authors: Chan Su‐Lin , Wood Benjamin Andrew , Mesbah Ardakani Nima 
Published: August 2020

AbstractGraft‐vs‐host disease (GVHD) is the most common complication following hematopoietic cell transplantation, which affects skin frequently. Acute and chronic forms of GVHD manifest commonly as maculopapular to morbilliform eruptions and sclerotic or lichen‐planus‐like lesions, respectively; however, atypical presentations such as eczema‐like GVHD may occur at times. We describe three cases of GVHD with diverse and polymorphous cutaneous eruptions including pompholyx‐like and vasculitis‐like rash as well as erythematous plaques and papulosquamous eruptions, with skin biopsy showing unifying histopathological findings with concurrent changes of spongiotic dermatitis and vacuolar interface reaction with apoptotic keratinocytes. In addition, the clinical and pathological features of previously reported cases of eczema‐like GVHD are reviewed. It is emphasized that the course of the disease can be variable and successful management often involves a combination of multiple therapeutic modalities including immunosuppression with or without ultraviolet therapy. These cases highlight the importance of meticulous clinicopathological correlation with careful exclusion of mimicking conditions to arrive at the correct diagnosis.
Allegations of misuse of African DNA in the UK: Will data protection legislation in South Africa be sufficient to prevent a recurrence?
Authors: Moodley Keymanthri , Kleinsmidt Anita 
Published: August 2020

AbstractConcerns have been raised around the alleged commercialisation of South African genetic material by various research institutes nationally and abroad. We consider whether the Protection of Personal Information Act in South Africa will conflict with or complement existing protections in health law and research ethics. The Act is not applicable to de‐identified samples that cannot be re‐identified but we question whether genetic samples can ever be truly de‐identified. The research participants in this matter provided consent for use of their samples for research but did not consent to commercialisation by global research institutions, and neither did the researchers. We suggest that consent models incorporating broad consent as an option should include explicit discussions around benefit sharing and commercialisation. Mistrust between researchers and participants impedes scientific research and can harm relationships built up over the years between South African researchers and local communities.
Basal‐IQ technology in the real world: satisfaction and reduction of diabetes burden in individuals with type 1 diabetes
Authors: Messer L. H. , Campbell K. , Pyle L. , Forlenza G. P. 
Published: August 2020

AbstractAimTo describe person‐reported outcomes of the Basal‐IQ predictive low‐glucose‐suspend system (Tandem Diabetes Care, San Diego, CA, USA) in real‐world use.MethodsAdults with type 1 diabetes/caregivers of minors with type 1 diabetes completed the Diabetes Impact and Device Satisfaction questionnaire (11 items scored on 10‐point Likert scales) prior to Basal‐IQ system initiation, and at 2, 4 and 6 months post‐initiation. Analysis was stratified by previous insulin treatment method. Beta mixed models were used to measure change in device satisfaction (e.g. trust, ease of use) and diabetes impact (e.g. hypoglycaemia fear, poor sleep) scores between time points, adjusting for baseline covariates.ResultsA total of 967 adults and caregivers [54% women, mean (sd) age 36 (17) years, 57% Tandem pump users, 27% non‐Tandem pump users, 17% multiple daily injection users] completed surveys. Device satisfaction significantly increased from baseline to 2 months in all groups (P<0.001 multiple daily injection and non‐Tandem pump users; P=0.048 Tandem pump users), and was sustained from 2 to 6 months in all groups. Diabetes impact decreased significantly from baseline to 2 months in all groups (P<0.001 for all), was sustained from 2 to 6 months in multiple daily injection and Tandem pump users, and increased slightly at 4 months/decreased at 6 months in non‐Tandem users.ConclusionThe Basal‐IQ system increased device satisfaction and reduced diabetes impact in all users in the first 2 months of use, and satisfaction was sustained over 6 months, with small fluctuations.
Small mammals in the big city: Behavioural adjustments of non‐commensal rodents to urban environments
Authors: Mazza Valeria , Dammhahn Melanie , Lösche Elisa , Eccard Jana A. 
Published: August 2020

AbstractA fundamental focus of current ecological and evolutionary research is to illuminate the drivers of animals’ success in coping with human‐induced rapid environmental change (HIREC). Behavioural adaptations are likely to play a major role in coping with HIREC because behaviour largely determines how individuals interact with their surroundings. A substantial body of research reports behavioural modifications in urban dwellers compared to rural conspecifics. However, it is often unknown whether the observed phenotypic divergence is due to phenotypic plasticity or the product of genetic adaptations. Here, we aimed at investigating (a) whether behavioural differences arise also between rural and urban populations of non‐commensal rodents; and (b) whether these differences result from behavioural flexibility or from intrinsic behavioural characteristics, such as genetic or maternal effects. We captured and kept under common environment conditions 42 rural and 52 urban adult common voles (Microtus arvalis) from seven subpopulations along a rural–urban gradient. We investigated individual variation in behavioural responses associated with risk‐taking and exploration, in situ at the time of capture in the field and ex situ after 3 months in captivity. Urban dwellers were bolder and more explorative than rural conspecifics at the time of capture in their respective sites (in situ). However, when tested under common environmental conditions ex situ, rural individuals showed little change in their behavioural responses whereas urban individuals altered their behaviour considerably and were consistently shyer and less explorative than when tested in situ. The combination of elevated risk‐taking and exploration with high behavioural flexibility might allow urban populations to successfully cope with the challenges of HIREC. Investigating whether the observed differences in behavioural flexibility are adaptive and how they are shaped by additive and interactive effects of genetic make‐up and past environmental conditions will help illuminate eco‐evolutionary dynamics under HIREC and predict persistence of populations under urban conditions.