bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Screen printed TiO2film: A candidate for photovoltaic applications
Authors: Zargar Rayees Ahmad , Boora Navjyoti , Hassan Malik Mubasher , Khan Aslam , Hafiz Aurangzeb Khurram 
Published: June 2020

AbstractIn this paper we report synthesis and analysis of low cost screen printed coating of TiO2in the form of thick film fabricated on glass substrate followed by annealing at 350 °C. The film has been characterized by x-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscope (SEM) with energy dispersive x-ray (EDX), UV-visible and Fourier-transform infrared(FTIR) spectroscopy and current-voltage (I-V) measurement via two probe. The XRD analysis showed that the prepared thick film has crystal structure of anatase phase with preferred orientation of (1 0 1)plane. The SEM image identified porous nature of film while EDX spectra revealed the presence of titanium and oxygen atoms in the film. The FTIR spectrum displayed the strong presence of TiO2. DC electrical conductivity measurements revealed that electrical conductivity increases on increasing temperature which confirms semiconducting behaviour.
Time-of-Day Differences in Treatment-Related Habit Strength and Adherence
Authors: Phillips L Alison , Burns Edith , Leventhal Howard 
Published: June 2020

Abstract

Background
Many of our daily behaviors are habitual, occurring automatically in response to learned contextual cues, and with minimal need for cognitive and self-regulatory resources. Behavioral habit strength predicts adherence to actions, including to medications. The time of day (morning vs. evening) may influence adherence and habit strength to the degree that stability of contexts/routines varies throughout the day.

Purpose
The current study evaluates whether patients are more adherent to morning versus evening doses of medication and if morning doses show evidence of greater habit strength than evening doses.

Methods
Objective adherence data (exact timing of pill dosing) were collected in an observational study by electronic monitoring pill bottles in a sample of patients on twice-daily pills for Type 2 diabetes (N = 51) over the course of 1 month.

Results
Data supported the hypothesis that patients would miss fewer morning than evening pills. However, counter to the hypothesis, variability in dose timing (an indicator of habit strength) was not significantly different for morning versus evening pills.

Conclusions
Findings suggest that medication adherence may be greater in the morning than in the evening. However, more research is needed to evaluate the role of habitual action in this greater adherence. Furthermore, future research should evaluate the validity of behavioral timing consistency as an indicator of habit strength.
A meta-analysis of factors influencing the strength of mate-choice copying in animals
Authors: Davies Alice D , Lewis Zenobia , Dougherty Liam R 
Published: June 2020

Abstract
Mate-choice copying is a form of social learning in which an individual’s choice of mate is influenced by the apparent choices of other individuals of the same sex and has been observed in more than 20 species across a broad taxonomic range. Though fitness benefits of copying have proven difficult to measure, theory suggests that copying should not be beneficial for all species or contexts. However, the factors influencing the evolution and expression of copying have proven difficult to resolve. We systematically searched the literature for studies of mate-choice copying in nonhuman animals and, then, performed a phylogenetically controlled meta-analysis to explore which factors influence the expression of copying across species. Across 58 published studies in 23 species, we find strong evidence that animals copy the mate choice of others. The strength of copying was significantly influenced by taxonomic group; however, sample size limitations mean it is difficult to draw firm conclusions regarding copying in mammals and arthropods. The strength of copying was also influenced by experimental design: copying was stronger when choosers were tested before and after witnessing a conspecific’s mate choice compared to when choosers with social information were compared to choosers without. Importantly, we did not detect any difference in the strength of copying between males and females or in relation to the rate of multiple mating. Our search also highlights that more empirical work is needed to investigate copying in a broader range of species, especially those with differing mating systems and levels of reproductive investment.
Programmatic access to bacterial regulatory networks with regutools
Authors: Chávez Joselyn , Barberena-Jonas Carmina , Sotelo-Fonseca Jesus E , Alquicira-Hernández José , Salgado Heladia , Collado-Torres Leonardo , Reyes Alejandro 
Published: June 2020

Abstract

Summary
RegulonDB has collected, harmonized and centralized data from hundreds of experiments for nearly two decades and is considered a point of reference for transcriptional regulation in Escherichia coli K12. Here, we present the regutools R package to facilitate programmatic access to RegulonDB data in computational biology. regutools gives researchers the possibility of writing reproducible workflows with automated queries to RegulonDB. The regutools package serves as a bridge between RegulonDB data and the Bioconductor ecosystem by reusing the data structures and statistical methods powered by other Bioconductor packages. We demonstrate the integration of regutools with Bioconductor by analyzing transcription factor DNA binding sites and transcriptional regulatory networks from RegulonDB. We anticipate that regutools will serve as a useful building block in our progress to further our understanding of gene regulatory networks.

Availability and implementation
regutools is an R package available through Bioconductor at bioconductor.org/packages/regutools.
Network-guided search for genetic heterogeneity between gene pairs
Authors: Gumpinger Anja C , Rieck Bastian , Grimm Dominik G ,   International Headache Genetics Consortium, Borgwardt Karsten 
Published: June 2020

Abstract

Motivation
Correlating genetic loci with a disease phenotype is a common approach to improve our understanding of the genetics underlying complex diseases. Standard analyses mostly ignore two aspects, namely genetic heterogeneity and interactions between loci. Genetic heterogeneity, the phenomenon that genetic variants at different loci lead to the same phenotype, promises to increase statistical power by aggregating low-signal variants. Incorporating interactions between loci results in a computational and statistical bottleneck due to the vast amount of candidate interactions.

Results
We propose a novel method SiNIMin that addresses these two aspects by finding pairs of interacting genes that are, upon combination, associated with a phenotype of interest under a model of genetic heterogeneity. We guide the interaction search using biological prior knowledge in the form of protein–protein interaction networks. Our method controls type I error and outperforms state-of-the-art methods with respect to statistical power. Additionally, we find novel associations for multiple Arabidopsis thaliana phenotypes, and, with an adapted variant of SiNIMin, for a study of rare variants in migraine patients.

Availability and implementation
Code available at https://github.com/BorgwardtLab/SiNIMin.

Supplementary information
Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Evaluating individual genome similarity with a topic model
Authors: Juan Liran , Wang Yongtian , Jiang Jingyi , Yang Qi , Wang Guohua , Wang Yadong 
Published: June 2020

Abstract

Motivation
Evaluating genome similarity among individuals is an essential step in data analysis. Advanced sequencing technology detects more and rarer variants for massive individual genomes, thus enabling individual-level genome similarity evaluation. However, the current methodologies, such as the principal component analysis (PCA), lack the capability to fully leverage rare variants and are also difficult to interpret in terms of population genetics.

Results
Here, we introduce a probabilistic topic model, latent Dirichlet allocation, to evaluate individual genome similarity. A total of 2535 individuals from the 1000 Genomes Project (KGP) were used to demonstrate our method. Various aspects of variant choice and model parameter selection were studied. We found that relatively rare (0.001&lt;allele frequency &lt; 0.175) and sparse (average interval &gt; 20 000 bp) variants are more efficient for genome similarity evaluation. At least 100 000 such variants are necessary. In our results, the populations show significantly less mixed and more cohesive visualization than the PCA results. The global similarities among the KGP genomes are consistent with known geographical, historical and cultural factors.

Availability and implementation
The source code and data access are available at: https://github.com/lrjuan/LDA_genome.

Supplementary information
Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Elevation-dependent endopolyploid response suggests that plants with holocentric chromosomes are less stressed by UV-B
Authors: Zedek František , Šmerda Jakub , Veselý Pavel , Horová Lucie , Kocmanová Jana , Bureš Petr 
Published: June 2020

AbstractPrevious studies suggested that holocentric chromosomes may confer a selective advantage under high ionizing or UV-B radiation due to their tolerance of fragmentation, and that the first plant and animal colonizers of land in the Palaeozoic were or may have been holocentric. Holocentric chromosomes could have, therefore, aided terrestrialization of Earth’s biota half a billion years ago, because leaving water meant facing a sharp increase of UV-B. Because we cannot go back in time, the hypothesis needs to be tested with present-day species using an indicator of UV-B stress. We took advantage of the fact that UV-B intensity increases with elevation and tested whether holocentric plants (six species of Cyperaceae and Juncaceae) are less stressed with increasing elevation than monocentric plants (six species of Poaceae). Phylogenetically corrected regression showed that the proxy for UV-B stress (endopolyploidy index from 671 samples measured by flow cytometry) increased with elevation in holocentric and monocentric species, but the increase was more rapid in monocentric species. Although half a billion year elapsed since terrestrialization, holocentric Cyperaceae and Juncaceae still appear less stressed by UV-B than monocentric Poaceae, despite the other counter UV-B adaptations they both have evolved (graminoid morphology, silica bodies).
Simultaneous Separation and Quantification of Vitamins by Microemulsion Liquid Chromatography
Authors: Xu Tongtong , Wu Hongxing , Zheng Aini , Yu Nuojun , Li Ning 
Published: June 2020

Abstract
Microemulsion eluents have been found to have excellent potential uses in high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Here, a novel, environmentally benign and simple method using concentration/flow-rate double-gradient elution using a microemulsion eluent was used to separate water- and fat-soluble vitamins simultaneously and rapidly. Preliminary screening experiments were performed to determine the optimum column type, surfactant concentration, co-surfactant to surfactant ratio, oil, mobile phase pH and microemulsion concentration. The resolution and analysis time were simultaneously optimized using concentration/flow-rate double-gradient elution. The optimized method simultaneously separated water- and fat-soluble vitamins using a Venusil ASB C8 column and a combination of isocratic and linear gradient elution modes using a microemulsion mobile phase (solvent A) consisting of 3.5% (w/w) sodium dodecyl sulfate, 10.5% (w/w) n-butanol, 0.8% (w/w) n-octanol and 85.2% (w/w) water and water (solvent B) at pH 2.50. The optimum detection wavelength was 283 nm. The method was validated and used to analyze a solid pharmaceutical sample.
The Effect of Saccharomyces boulardii Primary Prevention on Risk of Hospital-onset Clostridioides difficile Infection in Hospitalized Patients Administered Antibiotics Frequently Associated With C. difficile Infection
Authors: Wombwell Eric , Patterson Mark E , Bransteitter Bridget , Gillen Lisa R 
Published: June 2020

Abstract

Background
Hospital-onset Clostridioides difficile infection (HO-CDI) is a costly problem leading to readmissions, morbidity, and mortality. We evaluated the effect of a single probiotic strain, Saccharomyces boulardii, at a standardized dose on the risk of HO-CDI within hospitalized patients administered antibiotics frequently associated with HO-CDI.

Methods
This retrospective cohort study merged hospital prescribing data with HO-CDI case data. The study assessed patients hospitalized from January 2016 through March 2017 who were administered at least 1 dose of an antibiotic frequently associated with HO-CDI during hospitalization. Associations between S. boulardii administration, including timing, and HO-CDI incidence were evaluated by multivariable logistic regression.

Results
The study included 8763 patients. HO-CDI incidence was 0.66% in the overall cohort. HO-CDI incidence was 0.56% and 0.82% among patients coadministered S. boulardii with antibiotics and not coadministered S. boulardii, respectively. In adjusted analysis, patients coadministered S. boulardii had a reduced risk of HO-CDI (odds ratio [OR], 0.57 [95% confidence interval {CI}, .33–.96]; P = .04) compared to patients not coadministered S. boulardii. Patients coadministered S. boulardii within 24 hours of antibiotic start demonstrated a reduced risk of HO-CDI (OR, 0.47 [95% CI, .23–.97]; P = .04) compared to those coadministered S. boulardii after 24 hours of antibiotic start.

Conclusions
Saccharomyces boulardii administered to hospitalized patients prescribed antibiotics frequently linked with HO-CDI was associated with a reduced risk of HO-CDI.
Nosocomial Transmission of Coronavirus Disease 2019: A Retrospective Study of 66 Hospital-acquired Cases in a London Teaching Hospital
Authors: Rickman Hannah M , Rampling Tommy , Shaw Karen , Martinez-Garcia Gema , Hail Leila , Coen Pietro , Shahmanesh Maryam , Shin Gee Yen , Nastouli Eleni , Houlihan Catherine F 
Published: June 2020

Abstract
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) can cause deadly healthcare-associated outbreaks. In a major London teaching hospital, 66 of 435 (15%) COVID-19 inpatient cases between 2 March and 12 April 2020 were definitely or probably hospital-acquired, through varied transmission routes. The case fatality was 36%. Nosocomial infection rates fell following comprehensive infection prevention and control measures.
Reconstruction of the aortic valve leaflet with autologous pulmonary artery wall
Authors: El Arid Jean-Marc , Neville Paul , Soulé Nathalie , Lefort Bruno 
Published: June 2020

Abstract
Leaflet reconstruction outcomes in young patients can be compromised by treated autologous pericardium utilization. We present a new and simple unicuspid/unicommissural aortic valve repair technique with an autologous pulmonary artery wall graft. With comparative and longitudinal follow-up studies, this technique could constitute a living reconstruction of the aortic valve that does not preclude a future Ross procedure.
Anticipating the financial crisis: evidence from insider trading in banks
Authors: Akin Ozlem , Marín José M , Peydró and José-Luis 
Published: June 2020

AbstractBanking crises are recurrent phenomena, often induced by excessive bank risk-taking, which may be due to behavioural reasons (over-optimistic banks neglecting risks) and to conflicts of interest between bank shareholders/managers and debtholders/taxpayers (banks exploiting moral hazard). We test whether US banks’ stock returns in the 2007–8 financial crisis are associated with bank insiders’ sales of their own bank’s shares in the period prior to 2006Q2 (the peak and reversal in real estate prices). We find that top-five executives’ sales of shares predict bank performance during the crisis. Interestingly, effects are insignificant for the sales of independent directors and other officers. Moreover, the top-five executives’ impact is stronger for banks with higher exposure to the real estate bubble, where a one standard deviation increase of insider sales is associated with a 13.33 percentage point drop in stock returns during the crisis period. Finally, even though bankers in riskier banks sold more shares (furthering their own interests), they did not change their bank’s policies, for example, by reducing bank-level exposure to real estate. The informational content of bank insider trading before the crisis suggests that insiders knew that their banks were taking excessive risks, which has important implications for theory, public policy and the understanding of crises, as well as a supervisory tool for early warning signals.
Diversity and function of soil microbes on montane gradients: the state of knowledge in a changing world
Authors: Looby Caitlin I , Martin Patrick H 
Published: June 2020

ABSTRACT
Mountains have a long history in the study of diversity. Like macroscopic taxa, soil microbes are hypothesized to be strongly structured by montane gradients, and recently there has been important progress in understanding how microbes are shaped by these conditions. Here, we summarize this literature and synthesize patterns of microbial diversity on mountains. Unlike flora and fauna that often display a mid-elevation peak in diversity, we found a decline (34% of the time) or no trend (33%) in total microbial diversity with increasing elevation. Diversity of functional groups also varied with elevation (e.g. saprotrophic fungi declined 83% of the time). Most studies (82%) found that climate and soils (especially pH) were the primary mechanisms driving shifts in composition, and drivers differed across taxa—fungi were mostly determined by climate, while bacteria (48%) and archaea (71%) were structured primarily by soils. We hypothesize that the central role of soils—which can vary independently of other abiotic and geographic gradients—in structuring microbial communities weakens diversity patterns expected on montane gradients. Moving forward, we need improved cross-study comparability of microbial diversity indices (i.e. standardizing sequencing) and more geographic replication using experiments to broaden our knowledge of microbial biogeography on global gradients.
Long-term Survival After Hospital Admission in Older Italians: Comparison Between Geriatrics and Internal Medicine Across Different Discharge Diagnoses and Risk Status
Authors: Di Bari Mauro , Carreras Giulia , Giordano Antonella , Degli Esposti Luca , Buda Stefano , Michelozzi Paola , Bernabei Roberto , Marchionni Niccolò , Balzi Daniela 
Published: June 2020

Abstract

Background
In randomized clinical trials, compared to Internal Medicine, admission to Geriatrics improved clinical outcomes of frail older patients accessing the Emergency Department (ED). Whether this advantage is maintained also in the “real world” is uncertain. We compared long-term survival of patients admitted to Geriatrics or Internal Medicine wards after stratification for background risk and across a variety of discharge diagnoses.

Method
Data were derived from the “Silver Code National Project,” an observational study of 180,079 unselected 75+ years old persons, admitted via the ED to Internal Medicine (n = 169,717, 94.2%) or Geriatrics (n = 10,362) wards in Italy. The Dynamic Silver Code (DSC), based on administrative data, was applied to balance for background risk between participants admitted to Geriatrics or Internal Medicine.

Results
One-year mortality was 33.7%, lower in participants discharged from Geriatrics (32.1%) than from Internal Medicine (33.8%; p &lt; .001), and increased progressively across four DSC risk classes (p &lt; .001). Admission to Geriatrics was associated with survival advantage in DSC class II to IV participants, with HR (95% CI) of 0.88 (0.83–0.94), 0.86 (0.80–0.92), and 0.92 (0.86–0.97), respectively. Cerebrovascular diseases, cognitive disorders, and heart failure were the discharge diagnoses with the widest survival benefit from admission to Geriatrics, which was mostly observed in DSC class III.

Conclusions
Admission to Geriatrics may provide long-term survival benefit in subjects who, based on the DSC, may be considered at an intermediate risk. Specific clinical conditions should be considered in the ED to improve selection of patients to be targeted for Geriatrics admission.
Corporate social responsibility and internal stakeholders’ health and well-being in Europe: a systematic descriptive review
Authors: Macassa Gloria , McGrath Cormac , Tomaselli Gianpaolo , Buttigieg Sandra C 
Published: June 2020

Abstract
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) can contribute to the triple bottom line of economic, social and environmental performance in organizations. However, the relationship between CSR, employee health and well-being has not been frequently assessed despite an increased awareness that this relationship can contribute to sustainable workplaces. To identify studies addressing the relationship between CSR and employee health and well-being within the EuCIropean context, we conducted a systematic literature search using Web of Science and Medline. Of the 60 articles screened for inclusion, 16 were retained. The results suggest that the majority (n = 14) of the identified studies aimed to understand the impact of CSR strategies on employees’ job satisfaction. None of the studies investigated the relationship between internal CSR and physical health. There was no clarity in the measurement of either internal CSR or the extent to which it affected employee outcomes. There is a need for consensus on measurement of internal CSR and of the health and well-being-related outcomes. Public health and occupational health researchers should be part of the discussion on the potential role of CSR in physical and psychological health outcomes beyond job satisfaction.
Retailer-led healthy pricing interventions: a pilot study within aquatic and recreation centres in Victoria, Australia
Authors: Huse Oliver , Orellana Liliana , Ferguson Megan , Palermo Claire , Jerebine Alethea , Zorbas Christina , Boelsen-Robinson Tara , Blake Miranda R , Peeters Anna , Brimblecombe Julie , Moodie Marj , Backholer Kathryn 
Published: June 2020

Abstract
This study aimed to pilot the feasibility, acceptability and effectiveness of three co-developed healthy food and beverage pricing interventions in a community retail setting. Aquatic and recreation centres in Victoria, Australia were recruited to co-develop and pilot pricing interventions within their onsite cafés, for 15 weeks from January 2019. A mixed method intervention evaluation was conducted. Interviews were conducted with food retail managers to understand the factors perceived to influence implementation, maintenance and effectiveness. Customer surveys assessed support for, and awareness of, interventions. Interrupted time series analysis estimated the impact of pricing interventions on food and beverage sales. Three centres each implemented a unique intervention: (i) discounted healthy bundles (‘healthy combination deals’), (ii) offering deals at specific times of the day (‘healthy happy hours’) and (iii) increasing the prices of selected unhealthy options and reducing the prices of selected healthier options (‘everyday pricing changes’). Café team leaders did not identify any significant challenges to implementation or maintenance of interventions, though low staff engagement was identified as potentially influencing the null effect on sales for healthy combination deals and healthy happy hours interventions. Customers reported low levels of awareness and high levels of support for interventions. Everyday pricing changes resulted in a significant decrease in sales of unhealthy items during the intervention period, though also resulted in a decrease in café revenue. Co-developed healthy food and beverage pricing interventions can be readily implemented with broad customer support. Everyday pricing changes have demonstrated potential effectiveness at reducing unhealthy purchases.