bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
GIS-modelled built-environment exposures reflecting daily mobility for applications in child health research
Authors: Mizen Amy , Fry Richard , Rodgers Sarah 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Background
Inaccurately modelled environmental exposures may have important implications for evidence-based policy targeting health promoting or hazardous facilities. Travel routes modelled using GIS generally use shortest network distances or Euclidean buffers to represent journeys with corresponding built-environment exposures calculated along these routes. These methods, however, are an unreliable proxy for calculating child built-environment exposures as child route choice is more complex than shortest network routes.

Methods
We hypothesised that a GIS model informed by characteristics of the built-environment known to influence child route choice could be developed to more accurately model exposures. Using GPS-derived walking commutes to and from school we used logistic regression models to highlight built-environment features important in child route choice (e.g. road type, traffic light count). We then recalculated walking commute routes using a weighted network to incorporate built-environment features. Multilevel regression analyses were used to validate exposure predictions to the retail food environment along the different routing methods.

Results
Children chose routes with more traffic lights and residential roads compared to the modelled shortest network routes. Compared to standard shortest network routes, the GPS-informed weighted network enabled GIS-based walking commutes to be derived with more than three times greater accuracy (38%) for the route to school and more than 12 times greater accuracy (92%) for the route home.

Conclusions
This research advocates using weighted GIS networks to accurately reflect child walking journeys to school. The improved accuracy in route modelling has in turn improved estimates of children’s exposures to potentially hazardous features in the environment. Further research is needed to explore if the built-environment features are important internationally. Route and corresponding exposure estimates can be scaled to the population level which will contribute to a better understanding of built-environment exposures on child health and contribute to mobility-based child health policy.
Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated transformation of the aquatic carnivorous plant Utricularia gibba
Authors: Oropeza-Aburto A. , Cervantes-Pérez S. A. , Albert V. A. , Herrera-Estrella L. 
Published: April 2020

AbstractBackgroundThe genusUtriculariabelongs to Lentibulariaceae, the largest family of carnivorous plants, which includes terrestrial, epiphytic and aquatic species. The development of specialized structures that evolved for carnivory is a feature of this genus that has been of great interest to biologists since Darwin‘s early studies.Utricularia gibbais itself an aquatic plant with sophisticated bladder traps having one of the most complex suction mechanisms for trapping prey. However, the molecular characterization of the mechanisms that regulate trap development and the biophysical processes involved in prey trapping are still largely unknown due to the lack of a simple and reproducible gene transfer system.ResultsHere, we report the establishment of a simple, fast and reproducible protocol for genetic transformation ofU. gibbabased on the T-DNA ofAgrobacterium tumefaciens. An in vitro selection system using Phosphinotricin as a selective agent was established forU. gibba. Plant transformation was confirmed by histochemical GUS assays and PCR and qRT-PCR analyses. We report on the expression pattern of the 35S promoter and of the promoter of a trap-specific ribonuclease gene in transgenicU. gibbaplants.ConclusionsThe genetic transformation protocol reported here is an effective method for studying developmental biology and functional genomics of this genus of carnivorous plants and advances the utility ofU. gibbaas a model system to study developmental processes involved in trap formation.
An efficient system for Agrobacterium-mediated transient transformation in Pinus tabuliformis
Authors: Liu Shuangwei , Ma Jingjing , Liu Hongmei , Guo Yingtian , Li Wei , Niu Shihui 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Background
Functional genomic studies using genetics approaches of conifers are hampered by the complex and enormous genome, long vegetative growth period, and exertion in genetic transformation. Thus, the research carried out on gene function in Pinus tabuliformis is typically performed by heterologous expression based on the model plant Arabidopsis. However, due to the evolutionary and vast diversification from non-flowering (gymnosperms) to flowering (angiosperms) plants, several key differences may alter the underlying genetic concerns and the analysis of variants. Therefore, it is essential to develop an efficient genetic transformation and gene function identification protocol for P. tabuliformis.

Results
In the present study we established a highly efficient transgene Agrobacterium-mediated transient expression system for P. tabuliformis. Using a β-glucuronidase gene (GUS) as a reporter gene expression, the highest transformation efficiency (70.1%) was obtained by co-cultivation with Agrobacterium strain GV3101 at an optical density at 600 nm of 0.8, with 150 μM acetosyringone for 30 min followed by 3 days in the dark at 23 ± 1 °C. This protocol would be applied to other conifers; GUS staining was observed 24 h post-infection.

Conclusions
We report a simple, fast, and resilient system for transient Agrobacterium-mediated transformation high-level expression of target genes in P. tabuliformis, which will also improve transformation efficiency in other conifer species.
A novel ECG-biomarker for cardiac arrest during hypothermia
Authors: Dietrichs Erik Sveberg , Tveita Torkjel , Myles Rachel , Smith Godfrey 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Background
Treatment of arrhythmias evoked by accidental or therapeutic hypothermia and rewarming remains challenging. We aim to find an ECG-biomarker that can predict ventricular arrhythmias at temperatures occurring in therapeutic and accidental hypothermia.

Main body
Evaluation of ECG-data from accidental and therapeutic hypothermia patients and experimental data on ECG and ventricular fibrillation (VF) threshold in hypothermic New Zealand White Rabbits. VF threshold was measured in rabbit hearts cooled to moderate (31 °C) and severe (17 °C) hypothermia. QRS-interval divided by corrected QT-interval (QTc) was calculated at same temperatures. Clinical QRS/QTc data were obtained after a systematic literature review. Rabbit QRS/QTc values correlated with risk for VF (correlation coefficient: 0.97). Human QRS/QTc values from hypothermic patients, showed similar correlation with risk for ventricular fibrillation in the experimental data (correlation coefficient: 1.00).

Conclusions
These calculations indicate that QRS/QTc has potential as novel biomarker for predicting risk of hypothermia-induced cardiac arrest. Our findings apply both to victims of accidental hypothermia and to patients undergoing therapeutic hypothermia during surgery or after e.g. cardiac arrest.
Biological and morphological consequences of dsRNA-induced suppression of tetraspanin mRNA in developmental stages of Echinococcus granulosus
Authors: Mousavi Seyed Mohammad , Afgar Ali , Mohammadi Mohammad Ali , Mortezaei Seifollah , Faridi Ashkan , Sadeghi Balal , Fasihi Harandi Majid 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Background
Cystic echinococcosis, caused by the cestode Echinococcus granulosus, is a neglected tropical disease with remarkable morbidity in humans and a problem of worldwide economic importance in livestock industry. Understanding the molecular basis of the parasite growth and development is essential for the disease diagnosis, management and control. The tetraspanin (TSP) family of proteins are transmembrane proteins with a role in many physiological processes of eukaryotic organisms. TSPs present in the tegumental surface of platyhelminths play pivotal roles in host-parasite interaction. However, little is known about the role of TSPs in growth and development in the Platyhelminthes. To understand the role of TSP1 in the growth and development of E. granulosus we investigated the effect of EgTSP1-specific long dsRNA in different in vitro stages of the parasite.

Methods
Different stages of E. granulosus, protoscoleces and strobilated worms, were cultivated In vitro in di-phasic media. Using long dsRNA and two delivery methods, i.e. electroporation and electro-soaking, EgTSP1 silencing was performed with an EgTSP1-specific dsRNA. The TSP1 expression profile was assessed as well as the biological and ultrastructural properties of the parasites.

Results
After three days of dsRNA treatment, EgTSP1 expression was significantly reduced in both stages of E. granulosus as compared to irrelevant/unrelated dsRNA and untreated controls. Silencing expression of EgTSP1 in different stages of E. granulosus resulted in reduced viability and body contractions, inhibition of protoscoleces evagination and distinctive tegumental changes. Ultrastructural morphology of the strobilated worms treated with EgTSP1-specific dsRNA was indicative of the microtriches impairments and vacuolated tegument compared to the control helminths.

Conclusions
Results of the present study suggest that EgTSP1 plays important structural roles in tegument configuration in E. granulosus. EgTSP1 is proved to be a potential target for the development of vaccines and RNAi-based drugs.
Disease prediction via Bayesian hyperparameter optimization and ensemble learning
Authors: Gao Liyuan , Ding Yongmei 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Objective
Early disease screening and diagnosis are important for improving patient survival. Thus, identifying early predictive features of disease is necessary. This paper presents a comprehensive comparative analysis of different Machine Learning (ML) systems and reports the standard deviation of the results obtained through sampling with replacement. The research emphasises on: (a) to analyze and compare ML strategies used to predict Breast Cancer (BC) and Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) and (b) to use feature importance ranking to identify early high-risk features.

Results
The Bayesian hyperparameter optimization method was more stable than the grid search and random search methods. In a BC diagnosis dataset, the Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) model had an accuracy of 94.74% and a sensitivity of 93.69%. The mean value of the cell nucleus in the Fine Needle Puncture (FNA) digital image of breast lump was identified as the most important predictive feature for BC. In a CVD dataset, the XGBoost model had an accuracy of 73.50% and a sensitivity of 69.54%. Systolic blood pressure was identified as the most important feature for CVD prediction.
Single-site, five-year experience with human eosinophil isolation by density gradient centrifugation and CD16 immunomagnetic negative separation
Authors: Cao Yun , Shin Sooncheon , Carroll Daniela J. , O’Sullivan Jeremy A. , Bochner Bruce S. 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Objective
Little has been reported regarding the reliability of methods for the purification of human blood eosinophils. We retrospectively reviewed our experience with 350 consecutive eosinophil isolations.

Results
Between January 2014 and December 2018, we conducted 350 eosinophil purifications from 83 donors. Absolute eosinophil count (AEC), calculated from hospital complete blood counts when available (n = 289), ranged from 32 to 1352 eosinophils/µL ($$\bar{x} \pm {\text{SD}}$$x¯±SD: 179 ± 136/µL). Eosinophil yields ranged from 0.4 to 24.4 million cells per 20 mL of blood drawn ($$\bar{x} \pm {\text{SD}}$$x¯±SD: 3.1 ± 1.9 million eosinophils) with > 98% purity. Comparing AEC to actual yield, recovery was 87% ± 29% ($$\bar{x} \pm {\text{SD}}$$x¯±SD) and AEC strongly correlated with yield. To explore the reproducibility of yield, a subsequent analysis was limited to those donors drawn ≥ 3 times (N = 35), and there was no difference in the average coefficient of variation for yield between allergic and non-allergic donors. Viability of isolated eosinophils was consistently > 95% and after 24 h of culture did not differ between allergic and non-allergic donors. We conclude that this immunomagnetic separation method for human eosinophil isolation from whole blood is a reliable, reproducible technique for obtaining an average of 87% yield with high purity and viability.
The relationship of autistic traits to taste and olfactory processing in anorexia nervosa
Authors: Kinnaird Emma , Stewart Catherine , Tchanturia Kate 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Background
There is a heightened prevalence of autism in anorexia nervosa (AN) compared to the general population. Autistic people with AN experience a longer illness duration and poorer treatment outcomes. Whether sensory differences in autism could contribute to altered taste and smell as a potential maintaining factor in AN is under-explored. The aim of this study was to explore whether autistic traits are associated with taste and olfaction differences in AN.

Methods
The study recruited n = 40 people with AN, and n = 40 healthy controls (HC). Smell sensitivity was measured using the Sniffin’ Sticks test. Taste sensitivity was measured using taste strips. Participants self-rated their autistic traits using the Autism Spectrum Quotient.

Results
There were no significant differences on taste and olfactory outcomes between people with AN and HC. These findings did not change after controlling for the heightened levels of autistic traits in the AN group. No relationship between taste and smell outcomes and autistic traits were identified within the AN group.

Limitations
The current study is not able to draw conclusions about taste and smell processing in co-occurring autism and AN as it only measured levels of autistic traits, rather than comparing people with and without an autism diagnosis.

Conclusions
No significant associations between autistic traits and taste and smell processing in AN were identified. Future research should consider further exploring this area, including by comparing autistic women to women with AN.
Space mapping-based receding horizon control for stochastic interacting particle systems: dogs herding sheep
Authors: Totzeck Claudia , Pinnau René 
Published: April 2020

AbstractControl of stochastic interacting particle systems is a non-trivial task due to the high dimensionality of the problem and the lack of fast algorithms. Here, we propose a space mapping-based approximation of the stochastic control problem by solutions of the deterministic one. In combination with the receding horizon control technique this yields a reliable and fast numerical scheme for the closed loop control of stochastic interacting particle systems. As a numerical example we consider the herding of sheep with dogs. The numerical results underline the feasibility of our approach and further show stabilizing behaviour of the closed loop control.
Scoring pleurisy in slaughtered pigs using convolutional neural networks
Authors: Trachtman Abigail R. , Bergamini Luca , Palazzi Andrea , Porrello Angelo , Capobianco Dondona Andrea , Del Negro Ercole , Paolini Andrea , Vignola Giorgio , Calderara Simone , Marruchella Giuseppe 
Published: April 2020

AbstractDiseases of the respiratory system are known to negatively impact the profitability of the pig industry, worldwide. Considering the relatively short lifespan of pigs, lesions can be still evident at slaughter, where they can be usefully recorded and scored. Therefore, the slaughterhouse represents a key check-point to assess the health status of pigs, providing unique and valuable feedback to the farm, as well as an important source of data for epidemiological studies. Although relevant, scoring lesions in slaughtered pigs represents a very time-consuming and costly activity, thus making difficult their systematic recording. The present study has been carried out to train a convolutional neural network-based system to automatically score pleurisy in slaughtered pigs. The automation of such a process would be extremely helpful to enable a systematic examination of all slaughtered livestock. Overall, our data indicate that the proposed system is well able to differentiate half carcasses affected with pleurisy from healthy ones, with an overall accuracy of 85.5%. The system was better able to recognize severely affected half carcasses as compared with those showing less severe lesions. The training of convolutional neural networks to identify and score pneumonia, on the one hand, and the achievement of trials in large capacity slaughterhouses, on the other, represent the natural pursuance of the present study. As a result, convolutional neural network-based technologies could provide a fast and cheap tool to systematically record lesions in slaughtered pigs, thus supplying an enormous amount of useful data to all stakeholders in the pig industry.
A patient with colitis-associated cancer who developed clinically manifest Crohn’s disease only after surgery
Authors: Shimizu Yoshio , Takaku Hideya , Paku Sugiru , Azuma Kazuaki , Suzuki Toshishige , Kashimura Hiroshi , Ohtani Haruo , Ohkochi Nobuhiro 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Background
Patients with prolonged inflammatory bowel disease have a greater risk of colorectal cancer, known as colitis-associated cancer. Here we describe an unusual case of colitis-associated cancer.

Case presentation
The subject is a 41-year-old male who has not presented digestive symptoms and has an appreciable medical history. He consulted a nearby doctor with left flank pain. A colonoscopy revealed a lateral spreading tumor (granular-type) in his descending colon. With a clinical diagnosis of cancer, D3 left hemicolectomy was performed and a small intestine stoma was constructed. The pathological diagnosis of the tumor was mucinous adenocarcinoma, pT4a(SE), pN2a, which was associated with dysplasia in the surface area. Post-operative ileus was prolonged and the endoscopic examination revealed longitudinal ulcers in the ileum. These ulcers responded quite well to the administration of infliximab, confirming the final diagnosis of Crohn’s disease. Pathological re-examination revealed that the tumor was dysplasia-associated type, and another dysplasia was confirmed near the tumor. Furthermore, mural scars and sporadic lymphoid aggregates were noted in the colon tissues, which suggested pre-existing Crohn’s disease. The patient died of peritoneal dissemination of cancer on day 207 after surgery.

Conclusion
The present case was diagnosed as colitis-associated cancer with clinically latent Crohn’s disease, who developed clinically manifest Crohn’s disease only after surgery. Our review of literature revealed no cases comparable to ours.
Flash floods mitigation and assessment of groundwater possibilities using remote sensing and GIS applications: Sharm El Sheikh, South Sinai, Egypt
Authors: Yousif Mohamed , Hussien Hussien M. 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Background
In arid and hyper arid regions, flash floods directly affect human life and ecosystem balance through soil erosion and sediment exchange between different watersheds. The present study provides an integrated approach using remote sensing and geophysical data, multiple thematic layers, and field investigations to mitigate the flash flood hazard and explore the groundwater potentiality in Sharm El Sheikh area, Egypt, where devastating flash flood hazards and shortage in water supply are critical problems against the development of the touristic city.

Results
A new flood hazard index (FHI) is introduced using the morphometric parameters and multiple thematic layers for the investigated hydrographic basins. The FHI ranges between 55.2 (low) and 73 (very high). The resulted surface runoff from a single event (59 mm/day) reached up to 7.96 mm while the total runoff volume reached up to 20.23 (106) m3 representing about 13.5 % of the total rainfall. Hydrogeologically, the Miocene sediments represent the main aquifer, which is cut by four recognized faults providing opportunities for enhanced groundwater recharge. The integrated geophysical datasets (aeromagnetic and vertical electrical sounding) and borehole data indicate that the subsurface sedimentary succession reaches up to 200 m of Quaternary and Miocene sediments.

Conclusions
The present study introduces a comprehensive system to mitigate floods and increase the opportunity of groundwater recharge that could protect and enhance the environment under arid conditions. The presented approach can be applied in any arid and hyper arid regions with the same conditions.

Graphical abstract
Sustainable management approach for sucking pests control in betel leaf of Bangladesh
Authors: Hossain Md. Motaher , Singha Ashutus , Jiku Md. Abu Sayem , Sarker Debasish , Sarkar Akhtaruzzaman , Alam Ashraful , Sinha Shata Rupa 
Published: April 2020

Abstract
Background
Betel leaf is the oldest and now highly paid farmer’s crop, but the most vulnerable to insect pests, leading to massive yield drops in Bangladesh. For this reason, the experiment was carried out at the Spices Research Centre, Bangladesh, during the period of January 2018 to December 2018 and to assess the effectiveness of the different bio-rational approach against the betel leaf sucking pests. In this study, BARI Paan-3 was used as a test crop. Studies were important that sucking insect pests to include red mite population (black fly, white fly, red mite and mealy bug) has been found actively around the year in Bangladesh.

Results
Studies have shown that sucking insect population (black fly, white fly, red mite and mealy bug) has been found actively year round, whereas the maximum (22.7, 17.2, 16.1, and 14 adult/vine) and minimum (3.2, 2.8, 2.6, and 1.5 adult/vine) were recorded during the month of October and January, respectively. The results explored that the significant variations and the R2 value suggested that biotic factor contributes 57.9, 50.9, 51.3, and 53.7% variations in black fly, white fly, red spider mite, and mealy bug population. Among approaches, the highest mortality rate (80.56, 84.73, 82.44, and 90.96%) of black fly, white fly, red mite, and mealy bug over untreated control with maximum vine yield (18.61 t/ha) is recorded from sanitation + three alternate spraying of fizimite and antario.

Conclusions
It had concluded that sanitation of betel leaf garden along with three alternate spraying of fizimite (sodium lauryl ether) at 1 ml/l and antario WP (Bt + abamectin 0.1%) at 0.5 g/l recommended for an effective management of the betel vine sucking pest complex.