bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of Serological SARS-CoV-2 Lateral Flow Assays for Rapid Point of Care Testing
Authors: Conklin Steven E. , Martin Kathryn , Manabe Yukari C , Schmidt Haley A , Miller Jernelle , Keruly Morgan , Klock Ethan , Kirby Charles S , Baker Owen R , Fernandez Reinaldo E , Eby Yolanda J , Hardick Justin , Shaw-Saliba Kathryn , Rothman Richard E , Caturegli Patrizio P , Redd Andrew R , Tobian Aaron AR , Bloch Evan M , Larman H Benjamin , Quinn Thomas C , Clarke William , Laeyendecker Oliver 
Published: August 2020

ABSTRACTBackgroundRapid point-of-care tests (POCTs) for SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies vary in performance. A critical need exists to perform head-to-head comparison of these assays.MethodsPerformance of fifteen different lateral flow POCTs for the detection of SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies was performed on a well characterized set of 100 samples. Of these, 40 samples from known SARS-CoV-2-infected, convalescent individuals (average of 45 days post symptom onset) were used to assess sensitivity. Sixty samples from the pre-pandemic era (negative control), that were known to have been infected with other respiratory viruses (rhinoviruses A, B, C and/or coronavirus 229E, HKU1, NL63 OC43) were used to assess specificity. The timing of seroconversion was assessed on five POCTs on a panel of 272 longitudinal samples from 47 patients of known time since symptom onset.ResultsFor the assays that were evaluated, the sensitivity and specificity for any reactive band ranged from 55%-97% and 78%-100%, respectively. When assessing the performance of the IgM and the IgG bands alone, sensitivity and specificity ranged from 0%-88% and 80%-100% for IgM and 25%-95% and 90%-100% for IgG. Longitudinal testing revealed that median time post symptom onset to a positive result was 7 days (IQR 5.4, 9.8) for IgM and 8.2 days (IQR 6.3 to 11.3).ConclusionThe testing performance varied widely among POCTs with most variation related to the sensitivity of the assays. The IgM band was most likely to misclassify pre-pandemic samples. The appearance of IgM and IgG bands occurred almost simultaneously.
Evaluating the effects of SARS-CoV-2 Spike mutation D614G on transmissibility and pathogenicity
Authors: Volz Erik , Hill Verity , McCrone John T. , Price Anna , Jorgensen David , O’Toole Áine , Southgate Joel , Johnson Robert , Jackson Ben , Nascimento Fabricia F. , Rey Sara M. , Nicholls Samuel M. , Colquhoun Rachel M. , da Silva Filipe Ana , Shepherd James , Pascall David J. , Shah Rajiv , Jesudason Natasha , Li Kathy , Jarrett Ruth , Pacchiarini Nicole , Bull Matthew , Geidelberg Lily , Siveroni Igor , Goodfellow Ian , Loman Nicholas J. , Pybus Oliver G. , Robertson David L. , Thomson Emma C. , Rambaut Andrew , Connor Thomas R. 
Published: August 2020

SummaryGlobal dispersal and increasing frequency of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein variant D614G are suggestive of a selective advantage but may also be due to a random founder effect. We investigate the hypothesis for positive selection of Spike D614G in the United Kingdom using more than 25,000 whole genome SARS-CoV-2 sequences. Despite the availability of a large data set, well represented by both Spike 614 variants, not all approaches showed a conclusive signal of positive selection. Population genetic analysis indicates that 614G increases in frequency relative to 614D in a manner consistent with a selective advantage. We do not find any indication that patients infected with the Spike 614G variant have higher COVID-19 mortality or clinical severity, but 614G is associated with higher viral load and younger age of patients. Significant differences in growth and size of 614G phylogenetic clusters indicate a need for continued study of this variant.
Supervised beego, a traditional Chinese water-only fasting, ends up with reduced thrombosis risk without compromising hemostasis capacity
Authors: Fang Yixuan , Gu Yue , Zhao Chen , Lv Yaqi , Qian Jiawei , Zhu Lingjiang , Yuan Na , Zhang Suping , Wang Li , Li Mengli , Zhang Qing , Xu Li , Wei Wen , Li Lei , Ji Li , Gao Xueqin , Zhang Jingyi , Shen Yueping , Chen Zixing , Wang Guanghui , Dai Kesheng , Wang Jianrong 
Published: August 2020

SummaryBeego is a traditional Chinese complete water-only fasting practice initially developed for spiritual purposes, later extending to physical fitness purposes. Beego notably includes a psychological induction component that includes meditation and abdominal breathing, light body exercise, and ends with a specific gradual refeeding program before returning to a normal diet. Beego has regained its popularity in recent decades in China as a strategy for helping people in subhealthy conditions or with metabolic syndrome, but we are unaware of any studies examining the biological effects of this practice. To address this, we here performed a longitudinal study of beego comprising fasting (7 and 14 day cohorts) and a 7-day programmed refeeding phase. In addition to detecting improvements in cardiovascular physiology and selective reduction of blood pressure in hypertensive subjects, we observed that beego decreased blood triacylglycerol (TG) selectively in TG-high subjects and increased cholesterol in all subjects during fasting; however, the cholesterol levels were normalized after completion of the refeeding program. Strikingly, beego reduced platelet formation, activation, aggregation, and degranulation, resulting in an alleviated thrombosis risk, yet maintained hemostasis by sustaining levels of coagulation factors and other hemostatic proteins. Mechanistically, we speculate that downregulation of G6B and MYL9 may influence the observed beego-mediated reduction in platelets. Fundamentally, our study supports that supervised beego reduces thrombosis risk without compromising hemostasis capacity. Moreover, our results support that beego under medical supervision can be implemented as noninvasive intervention for reducing thrombosis risk, and suggest several lines of intriguing inquiry for future studies about this fasting practice (http://www.chictr.org.cn/index.aspx, number, ChiCTR1900027451).
Estimating the reproductive numberR0of SARS-CoV-2 in the United States and eight European countries and implications for vaccination
Authors: Ke Ruian , Sanche Steven , Romero-Severson Ethan , Hengartner Nick 
Published: August 2020

AbstractSARS-CoV-2 rapidly spread from a regional outbreak to a global pandemic in just a few months. Global research efforts have focused on developing effective vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 and the disease it causes, COVID-19. However, some of the basic epidemiological parameters, such as the exponential epidemic growth rate and the basic reproductive number,R0, across geographic areas are still not well quantified. Here, we developed and fit a mathematical model to case and death count data collected from the United States and eight European countries during the early epidemic period before broad control measures were implemented. Results show that the early epidemic grew exponentially at rates between 0.19-0.29/day (epidemic doubling times between 2.4-3.6 days). We discuss the current estimates of the mean serial interval, and argue that existing evidence suggests that the interval is between 6-8 days in the absence of active isolation efforts. Using parameters consistent with this range, we estimated the medianR0value to be 5.8 (confidence interval: 4.7-7.3) in the United States and between 3.6 and 6.1 in the eight European countries. This translates to herd immunity thresholds needed to stop transmission to be between 73% and 84%. We further analyze how vaccination schedules depends onR0, the duration of vaccine-induced immunity to SARS-CoV-2, and show that individual-level heterogeneity in vaccine induced immunity can significantly affect vaccination schedules.SignificanceWith the global efforts to develop vaccines for COVID-19, it is important to understand the contagiousness of the virus to design regional vaccination policy. To that end, we fit a mathematical model to data collected from the early epidemic period in the United States and eight European countries, estimating that the early epidemic doubles between 2.4-3.6 days. This suggests that SARS-CoV-2 is highly transmissible in the absence of strong control measures irrespective of heterogeneity in geographic and social settings. We estimated the median basic reproduction number,R0to be 5.8 (confidence interval: 4.7-7.3) in the United States and between 3.6 and 6.1 in the eight European countries. The herd immunity needed to stop transmission is high (between 73% and 84%).
Containing the Spread of Infectious Disease on College Campuses
Authors: Shah Mirai , Ferra Gabrielle , Fitzgerald Susan , Barreira Paul J. , Sabeti Pardis C. , Colubri Andres 
Published: August 2020

AbstractCollege campuses are highly vulnerable to infectious disease outbreaks, and there is a pressing need to develop better strategies to mitigate their size and duration, particularly as educational institutions around the world reopen to in-person instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic. Towards addressing this need, we applied a stochastic compartmental model to quantify the impact of university-level responses to past mumps outbreaks in college campuses and used it to determine which control interventions are most effective. Mumps is a very relevant disease in such settings, given its airborne mode of transmission, high infectivity, and recurrence of outbreaks despite availability of a vaccine. Our model allows for stochastic variation in small populations, missing or unobserved case data, and changes in disease transmission rates post-intervention. We tested the model and assessed various interventions using data from the 2014 and 2016 mumps outbreaks at Ohio State University and Harvard University, respectively. Our results suggest that in order to decrease infectious disease incidence on their campuses, universities should apply diagnostic protocols that address false negatives from molecular tests, stricter quarantine policies, and effective awareness campaigns among their students and staff. However, one needs to be careful about the assumptions implicit in the model to ensure that the estimated parameters have a reasonable interpretation. This modeling approach could be applied to data from other outbreaks in college campuses and similar small-population settings.
Anuran assemblage changes along small-scale phytophysiognomies in natural Brazilian grasslands
Authors: Dalmolin Diego Anderson , Filho Volnei Mathies , Tozetti Alexandro Marques 
Published: August 2020

AbstractWe studied the species composition of frogs in two phytophysiognomies (grassland and forest) of a Ramsar site in southern Brazil. We aimed to assess the distribution of species on a small spatial scale and dissimilarities in community composition between grassland and forest habitats. The sampling of individuals was carried out through pitfall traps and active search in the areas around the traps. We evaluated the existence of these differences by using permutational multivariate analysis of variance and multivariate dispersion. We found 13 species belonging to six families. Leptodactylidae and Hylidae were the most representative families. The compositional dissimilarity was higher between the sampling sites from different phytophysiognomies than within the same phytophysiognomy, suggesting that forest and grassland drive anuran species composition differently. Also, the difference in anuran species composition between the sampling sites within the forest was considerably high. Based on our results, we could assume that the phytophysiognomies evaluated here offer quite different colonization opportunities for anurans, especially those related to microhabitat characteristics, such as microclimate variables.
Astroglia in lateral habenula is essential for antidepressant efficacy of light
Authors: Delcourte Sarah , Etievant Adeline , Rovera Renaud , Mor Damien , Cooper Howard M , Le Hiep D. , Williams April E. , Panda Satchidananda , Azmani Rihab , Raineteau Olivier , Coutanson Christine , Dkhissi-Benyahya Ouria , Haddjeri Nasser 
Published: August 2020

AbstractSuccessful antidepressant (AD) treatments are still difficult to achieve. Recently, bright light stimulation (BLS) was shown effective in non-seasonal depression but its mode of action remains elusive. We demonstrate here, using a new mouse model of depression resistant to ADs including ketamine, that chemogenetic activation of lateral habenula (LHb) astroglia prevented the potentiating effect of BLS on the AD response. Additionally, the beneficial action of BLS was associated with upregulation of a specific part of the prefrontal cortex opioid system. These results show that improved behavioral outcome produced by BLS requires habenular astroglia and endogenous opioids as crucial buffer systems.
SK3-overexpression drives sex-dimorphic working and social memory impairment in mice
Authors: Campos Alline C , Scarante Franciele F , Martin Sabine , Lazzarini Marcio , Hermes Doris , De Souza-Silva Maria A , Pardo Luis A , Stühmer Walter , Del-Bel Elaine A 
Published: August 2020

AbstractAlthough sex differences in memory tasks dependent on hippocampal function have been described in several species, including rodents and humans, the exact mechanisms involved remain debatable. The function of the small-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ channel type 3 has been associated with cognitive deficits, and its overexpression in male mice (T/T) induces shrinkage of the hippocampus. Here we describe that opposite to the observation in males, in female mice, SK3-induced-reduction in the volume of the hippocampal formation does not interfere with working and social memory performance. Male, but not female T/T mice showed decreased adult hippocampal neurogenesis and down-regulation of the expression of the genes related to Akt/mTOR and MAP kinase pathways. T/T male mice exhibit impaired estrogen and Neurogulin 1 signaling. An increased number of filopodia spines is observed in the dentate gyrus (DG). Our results suggest a fine-tune modulation of SK3 expression participates in the sex-dependent function of the hippocampus via estrogen signaling and neuroplasticity in the DG. Our results reinforce the importance of testing male and female mice while conducting experiments with transgenic mice.
Morphological and genomic shifts in mole-rat ‘queens’ increase fecundity but reduce skeletal integrity
Authors: Johnston Rachel A. , Vullioud Philippe , Thorley Jack , Kirveslahti Henry , Shen Leyao , Mukherjee Sayan , Karner Courtney , Clutton-Brock Tim , Tung Jenny 
Published: August 2020

AbstractIn some mammals and many social insects, highly cooperative societies are characterized by reproductive division of labor, in which breeders and nonbreeders become behaviorally and morphologically distinct. While differences in behavior and growth between breeders and nonbreeders have been extensively described, little is known of their molecular underpinnings. Here, we investigate the consequences of breeding for skeletal morphology and gene regulation in highly cooperative Damaraland mole-rats. By experimentally assigning breeding ‘queen’ status versus nonbreeder status to age-matched littermates, we confirm that queens experience vertebral growth that likely confers advantages to fecundity. However, they also up-regulate bone resorption pathways and show reductions in femoral mass, which predicts increased vulnerability to fracture. Together, our results show that, as in eusocial insects, reproductive division of labor in mole-rats leads to gene regulatory rewiring and extensive morphological plasticity. However, in mole-rats, concentrated reproduction is also accompanied by costs to bone strength.
Progressive Sperm Separation Using Parallelized, High-Throughput, Microchamber-based Microfluidics
Authors: Yaghoobi Mohammad , Azizi Morteza , Mokhtare Amir , Abbaspourrad Alireza 
Published: August 2020

AbstractMotility is one of the most important factors in sperm migration toward egg. Therefore, sperm separation based on motility increases the chance of the best sperm selection in the process of infertility treatments. Unfortunately, it is now vastly done by conventional procedures which lack certain delicacy and precision and increase the risk of damage to sperm cells. Microfluidic systems, on the other hand, can sort sperm in a less intrusive way. However, microfluidic techniques have yet to receive widespread adoption in clinical settings, not only due to their relatively cumbersome operation, but also their extremely low outcome, leaving them inefficient in practice. Here we propose a microchamber-based microfluidic platform that can separate progressive motile sperm from nonviable sperm and debris as well as trapped nonprogressive sperm in the microchambers. Our platform is operated in a short period of time (<10 min) with an excellent degree of controllability, without any prior sample preparation. Our results show that the microchambers’ depth does not affect the residence time of motile sperm. Therefore, we are able to inspect high sample volumes (1 mL) within the same time. Furthermore, we maximize the concentration of the collected sperm by tuning the washing medium flow rate above the sperm rheotactic threshold. We foresee that our microfluidic platform may provide a facile solution for high-throughput, robust, and easy-to-modify for collection of progressive sperm needed for assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs).Significance StatementAssisted Reproductive Technologies require efficient, minimally invasive, and fast methods of sperm separation. Centrifugation methods used in clinics and biological research labs, fall short in these aspects as they are low-yield, intrusive to sperm’s DNA, and time consuming. We have developed a microchamber-based microfluidic platform for high-throughput separation of progressive motile sperm from undiluted raw semen samples. The method was further optimized to increase the concentration of collected samples. Higher concentration of collected samples combined with higher motility of the separated sperm compared to those in raw semen, make it a suitable choice in clinical applications, fertility diagnostics, and fundamental research.
Potential Hematotoxicity and Genotoxicity of Multi-Herbal Formulations in Albino Mice (Mus musculus)
Authors: Kehinde S. , Adebayo S. M. , Adesiyan A. L. , Kade E. A. , Gurpreet K. 
Published: August 2020

AbstractThe current increase in the use of multi-herbal remedies coupled with loose regulation on public access to these products underscore research efforts to evaluate their biochemical effect, noting that many of the herbal medicines lack scientific evidence to support their medicinal claims. Objective: We therefore investigated the potential genotoxicity and hematotoxicity of commonly consumed multi-herbal formulations (YoyoBitters™, Ogidiga™ and BabyOku™) in Lagos, Nigeria, in experimental mice. Methods: Fifty (50) adult female albino mice were randomly selected and distributed into 5 groups of 10 mice each. Two mL/kg body weight of distilled water were orally administered to the control groups while BabyOku™, YoyoBitters™ and Ogidiga™ herbal formulations were administered to the experimental groups at doses of 2 mL/kg body weights. Results: A dose- and tissue-dependent increase in induction of apoptotic DNA fragmentation was observed in the triherbal groups relative to control groups. Also, an increase in micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes was formed in a dose-dependent manner in the multi-herbal groups when compared with the control groups. Conclusion: From our findings, multi-herbal formulations may possess hematotoxic and genotoxic potentials in mice.
Living in a changing world: effects of roads andPinusmonocultures on an anuran metacommunity in southern Brazil
Authors: Dalmolin Diego Anderson , Tozetti Alexandro Marques , Pereira Maria João Ramos 
Published: August 2020

AbstractAmphibians are undergoing global-scale declines due to the increased incidence of anthropogenic stressors. The loss of species with unique evolutionary histories and functional traits poses a serious risk to the maintenance of ecosystem functions in aquatic environments, already directly affected by several anthropogenic land-use changes. Here, we investigated the influence of anthropogenic stressors (roads andPinusmonocultures) on functional, phylogenetic and taxonomic composition and functional dispersion of an anuran metacommunity of 33 ponds in southern Brazil. We expected for the relative influence of anthropogenic stressors to vary according to the compositional facet, with a greater influence of these stressors on the functional and phylogenetic than on the taxonomic facet. We also expected traits related to habitat exploration (head shape and eye size and position) to be more influenced byPinusmonocultures, while the traits related to the dispersion and the physiological control of individuals (limb length and body mass) to be similarly influenced by roads andPinus. To evaluate this, we used PERMANOVA analyses for each of the compositional facets and anthropogenic stressor, and path models to verify all possible relationships between patterns of functional dispersion and anthropogenic stressors. We found that, while the distance from ponds toPinusmonocultures influences the phylogenetic composition, distance to roads influences the functional composition; distance to roads affects mostly the functional dispersion of the communities. These anthropogenic stressors affect the structure of anuran communities, even those formed by generalist species in terms of habitat use. There is a decline in diversity in communities located close toPinusand roads, leading to losses in the evolutionary history accumulated in these communities. The control of vehicle traffic during reproduction periods and the maintenance of areas with natural vegetation, particularly around ponds, may help mitigate the negative effects of anthropogenic stressors on anuran communities.
Neurovascular coupling and bilateral connectivity during NREM and REM sleep
Authors: Turner Kevin L. , Gheres Kyle W. , Proctor Elizabeth A. , Drew Patrick J. 
Published: August 2020

AbstractHemodynamic signals in the brain are used as surrogates of neural activity, but how these hemodynamic signals depend on arousal state is poorly understood. Here, we monitored neural activity and hemodynamic signals in un-anesthetized, head-fixed mice to understand how sleep and awake states impact cerebral hemodynamics. In parallel with electrophysiological recordings, we used intrinsic optical signal imaging to measure bilateral changes in cerebral hemoglobin ([HbT]), and two-photon laser scanning microscopy (2PLSM) to measure dilations of individual arterioles. We concurrently monitored body motion, whisker movement, muscle EMG, cortical LFP, and hippocampal LFP to classify the arousal state of the mouse into awake, NREM sleep, or REM sleep. We found that mice invariably fell asleep during imaging, and these sleep states were interspersed with periods of awake. During both NREM and REM sleep, mice showed large increases in [HbT] relative to the awake state, showing increase in hemoglobin and arteriole diameter two to five times larger than those seen in response to sensory stimulation. During NREM sleep, the amplitude of bilateral low-frequency oscillations in [HbT] increased markedly, and coherency between neural activity and hemodynamic signals was higher than the awake resting and REM states. Bilateral correlations in neural activity and [HbT] were highest during NREM sleep, and lowest in the awake state. Our results show that hemodynamic signals in the cortex are strongly modulated by arousal state, with hemodynamic changes during sleep being substantially larger than sensory-evoked responses. These results underscore the critical importance of behavioral monitoring during studies of spontaneous activity, as sleep-related hemodynamics dominate measures of neurovascular coupling and functional connectivity.