bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The ECG Belt for CRT response trial: Design and clinical protocol
Authors: Rickard John , Jackson Kevin , Biffi Mauro , Vernooy Kevin , Bank Alan , Cerkvenik Jeff , Ghosh Subham , Gold Michael R. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractThe ECG Belt for CRT response trial is designed to test the hypothesis that in patients traditionally less likely to respond to cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT), an individualized approach utilizing the electrocardiogram (ECG) Belt to guide lead placement, vector selection, and device programming is superior to current standard of care. The ECG Belt is a noninvasive mapping technology designed to measure beat by beat electrical activation of the left ventricle by utilizing unipolar measurements from multiple ECG electrodes on the body surface. The ECG Belt for CRT response trial is a multicenter, prospective, randomized, investigational pre‐market research study conducted at 48 centers in the United States, Canada, and Europe and will randomize approximately 400 subjects. The trial has three arms (enrollment will be 2:1:1, respectively): utilization of the Belt to guide implant as well as postimplant programming, utilizing the Belt to guide postimplant programming alone, and a non‐Belt control arm. AdaptivCRT will be an option in the treatment arm but not the control arms. The primary endpoint is change in left ventricular end‐systolic volume between preimplant and at 6 months. This paper describes the design and analytic plan for the trial.
Staphylococcal toxic shock syndrome in a child with interleukin‐17 inhibitor treatment for psoriasis
Authors: Sánchez Martín María , Amores Hernández Irene , Argumánez García David , Silva Hernández Mariano , De Lucas Laguna Raúl , Aracil Santos Francisco Javier , López López Rosario , de Ceano‐Vivas La Calle María 
Published: June 2020

AbstractA 6‐year‐old girl presented with fever, skin rash, anuria, and conjunctivitis that rapidly progressed to toxic shock syndrome. Following hospital discharge, she developed a staphylococcal abscess on the lower extremity. She had recently received the first two doses of the interleukin‐17 (IL‐17) inhibitor secukinumab for resistant plaque psoriasis. IL‐17 is known to be essential in host defense against Staphylococcus aureus. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of staphylococcal toxic shock syndrome (STSS) associated with an IL‐17 inhibitor.
Differences in rate and medical indication of caesarean section between Germany and Japan
Authors: Fröhlich Matthias , Koga Chie , Bührer Christoph , Mori Chisato , Yamamoto Midori , Sakurai Kenichi , Hinkson Larry ,   Japan Environment, Children's Study Group
Published: June 2020

AbstractBackgroundThere are growing concerns about the increasing rate of caesarean section (CS) worldwide. Various strategies have been implemented to reduce the proportion of CS to a reasonable level. Most research on medical indications for CS focuses on nationwide evaluations. Comparative research between different countries is sparse. The aim of this study was to evaluate differences in the rate and indications for CS between Japan and Germany in 2012 and 2013.MethodsComparison of the overall rate and medical indications for CS in two cohort studies from Germany and Japan. We used data from the German Perinatal Survey and the Japan Environment and Children's Study (JECS).ResultsWe analyzed data of 1 335 150 participants from the German perinatal survey and of 62 533 participants from JECS and found significant differences between the two countries in CS rate (30.6% vs 20.6%) and main medical indications: cephalopelvic disproportion (3.2% vs 1.3%; OR: 2.4 [95% CI: 2.2–2.6]), fetal distress (7.3% vs 2.3%; OR: 3.4 [95%‐CI: 3.2–3.6]), and past uterine surgery/repeat CS (8.4% vs 8.8%; OR: 0.9 [95%‐CI: 0.9–1]).ConclusionThere are differences in the rate and medical indications for CS between Germany and Japan at the population level. Fetal distress was identified as a medical indication for CS more often Germany than in Japan. Considering the substantial diagnostic uncertainty of electronic fetal monitoring (EFM) as the major indicator for fetal distress, it would seem to be reasonable to rethink CS decision algorithms.
The Symbolic Power of the State: Inheritance Disputes and Litigants’ Judicial Trajectories in Cotonou
Authors: Andreetta Sophie 
Published: June 2020

AbstractOver the last 10 years, scholars have started to focus on African states’ bureaucracies by investigating public servants’ relationships with the state, their professional ethos, how they appropriate reforms, and the way they interact with citizens. With inheritance disputes as a focal point, this article highlights the users’ perspective—which is often overlooked—and asks how litigants in Cotonou(Benin) see the state, appropriate legal reforms, and use the courts. It shows that citizens, despite a general sense that the court system is corrupt and ineffective, continue to use it because state institutions convey a form of authority that allows them either to legitimize or challenge family decisions in inheritance matters.
Through the Looking Glass: Televised Politics in Contemporary Populist Italy
Authors: Giusto Salvatore 
Published: June 2020

AbstractThis article evaluates the role of political mediation played by national and local television networks within the social peripheries of Naples, Southern Italy. In the context of contemporary Italian populism, the management of this medium by simultaneously public and private —as well as formal and informal— power‐holders, such as the neoliberal state and the Camorra (a powerful criminal organization) have increasingly replaced civil society's historical role of mediation between centers and peripheries. The direct participation of the subaltern in the production and circulation of explicitly populist televised content is now strongly promoted and yet informally monitored by the Italian state authorities. The regimes of media production and social representation emerging from these mediatic processes have not triggered crises of cultural hegemony—exercised by the Italian neoliberal “establishment” over the lower classes—but instead furthered the sovereignty of the state and amplified its ability to arouse the political imaginary of both its most marginalized citizens and “middle‐class” cultural operators. Simultaneously, however, these regimes have also spawned new modes of socioeconomic mobility and forms of “political society,” which reproduce the mediacratic features of Italian state power among a plethora of local informal agencies, including ostensible “public enemies” such as the Camorra.
Banishing barberry: The history of Berberis vulgaris prevalence and wheat stem rust incidence across Britain
Authors: Barnes Gerry , Saunders Diane G. O. , Williamson Tom 
Published: June 2020

AbstractWheat stem rust, caused by the fungus Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici (Pgt), is a notoriously damaging disease of wheat and barley. Pgt requires two hosts to complete its lifecycle; undergoing asexual reproduction on cereal crops and completing sexual reproduction on Berberis spp. The latter stage of its lifecycle is of particular importance in temperate regions such as western Europe, where asexual urediniospores are unable to survive cold winter weather. In the past, the crucial role of Berberis in the lifecycle of stem rust led to intensive eradication campaigns, initially carried out by farmers in the face of hostile scientific opinion. In the United Kingdom, common barberry (Berberis vulgaris) is today a relatively rare plant. Stem rust is, however, currently experiencing a resurgence; at the same time, there has been a general increase in the prevalence of barberry and an upsurge in its planting which, in the United Kingdom, is associated with attempts to encourage the endangered barberry carpet moth (Pareulype berberata). This article situates current developments within a broader chronological framework, examining changing attitudes towards barberry and rust in England in the past and the history of the plant's use and cultivation. It assesses how widespread B. vulgaris really was in the environment historically, and thus the scale of its eradication. We suggest that Berberis was never widely established as an archaeophyte in the United Kingdom. Current attempts to re‐establish it are based on a misunderstanding of the plant's historical status and could potentially pose a serious threat to food security.
Effects of crocin on frozen‐thawed sperm apoptosis, protamine expression and membrane lipid oxidation in Yanbian yellow cattle
Authors: Lv YQ , Ji S , Chen X , Xu D , Luo XT , Cheng MM , Zhang YY , Qu XL , Jin Y 
Published: June 2020

AbstractGlycerol is used as a bovine semen osmotic cryoprotectant that greatly improves the quality of frozen and thawed bovine sperm. However, high glycerol concentrations can have a toxic effect on frozen and thawed bovine sperm. Therefore, this experiment investigated the effect of replacing a portion of the glycerol in a cryoprotectant solution with crocin on the sperm apoptosis, protamine deficiency and membrane lipid oxidation of frozen and thawed Yanbian yellow cattle sperm. The experiment included a control group (6% glycerol) and four treatment groups: I (3% glycerol), II (3% glycerol +0.5 mM crocin), III (3% glycerol + 1 mM crocin) and IV (3% glycerol + 2 mM crocin). Computer assisted semen analysis was used to detect sperm motility, Hoechst 33,342, propidium iodide, and JC‐1 staining were used to analyse sperm viability and mitochondrial membrane potential, chromomycin A3 staining was used to detect protamine deficiency and DNA damage, flow cytometry was used for sperm membrane lipid disorder detection and analysis, and real‐time quantitative RT‐qPCR was used to detect the mRNA expression levels of protamine‐related genes (PRM2, PRM3), sperm acrosome‐associated genes (SPACA3), oxidative stress‐related genes (ROMO1) and apoptosis‐related genes (BCL2, BAX). Compared to the control group, replacing a portion of glycerol with 1 mM crocin significantly improved sperm motility, plasma membrane integrity, membrane lipid disorders (p < .05) and viability, mitochondrial membrane potential, protamine deficiency (p < .01). The expression level of PRM2, PRM3, SPACA3 and BCL2 significantly increased (p < .05), while the expression levels of ROMO1 and BAX significantly decreased (p < .05). Accordingly, the BCL2/BAX ratio significantly increased (p < .05). In summary, the substitution of a portion of glycerol with crocin in cryoprotective solution improved the quality of Yanbian yellow cattle sperm after freezing and thawing.
Nudging the nudger: Toward a choice architecture for regulators
Authors: Dudley Susan E. , Xie Zhoudan 
Published: June 2020

AbstractBehavioral research has shown that individuals do not always behave in ways that match textbook definitions of rationality but are subject to cognitive biases that may lead to systematic errors in judgments and decisions. Recognizing that regulators are not immune from these cognitive irrationalities, this article explores how the institutional framework or “choice architecture” in which they operate interacts with those biases. By examining five cognitive biases that may be prevalent among regulators, it discusses the extent to which the institutions regulators face reinforce or counteract the influence of cognitive biases in regulatory decision making. Just as behavioral insights can help design a choice architecture to frame individual decisions in ways that encourage welfare‐enhancing choices, consciously designing regulators' institutional frameworks with behavioral insights in mind could lead to more public‐welfare‐enhancing policies. The article concludes with some modest ideas for improving regulators' choice architecture and suggestions for further research.
A 21st Century Low‐Carbon Transition in U.S. Electric Power: Extent, Contributing Factors, and Implications
Authors: Murray Brian C. , Niver William H. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractThe U.S. electric power sector has experienced a substantial shift of the generation mix since the turn of the century, moving from heavy reliance on coal‐powered generation to one drawing more from natural gas and, more recently, renewables. This transition has been forged by a mix of macroeconomic factors (recession and recovery); technological breakthroughs (horizontal drilling coupled with hydraulic fracturing; improvements in natural gas plant efficiency); clean energy policies at federal, state, and local levels of government; and private sector demands for carbon‐free energy sources. These factors have combined to reduce carbon emissions from electric power generation substantially this century. In this article we examine the extent of this transition, its causes, as well as the distinct American institutional factors steering it, including energy and environmental federalism, electoral politics, and the political economy of clean energy policy enactment and resistance.
Monoclonal antibody therapy that targets phospholipid‐binding protein delays lupus activity in MRL/lpr mice
Authors: Mihaylova Nikolina , Bradyanova Silviya , Chipinski Petroslav , Chausheva Stela , Kyurkchiev Dobroslav , Tchorbanov Andrey I. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractSystemic lupus erythematosus is an autoimmune syndrome characterized by the development of autoantibodies to a wide range of antigens. Together with B cells, respective self‐reactive T cells have an important contribution in disease progression as being responsible for inflammatory cytokines secretion, B cell activation and promoting amplification of the autoimmune response. Annexin A1 is expressed by many cell types and binds to phospholipids in a Ca2+‐dependent manner. Abnormal expression of annexin A1 was found on activated B and T cells in both murine and human autoimmunity suggesting its potential role as a therapeutic target. In the present study, we have investigated the possibility to suppress autoimmune manifestation in spontaneous mouse model of lupus using anti‐annexin A1 antibody. Groups of lupus‐prone MRL/lpr mice were treated with the anti‐annexin A1 monoclonal antibody, and the disease activity and survival of the animals were following up. Flow cytometry, ELISA assays, and histological and immunofluorescence kidney analyses were used to determine the levels of Annexin A1 expression, cytokines, anti‐dsDNA antibodies and kidney injuries. The administration of this monoclonal antibody to MRL/lpr mice resulted in suppression of IgG anti‐dsDNA antibody production, modulated IL‐10 secretion, decreased disease activity and prolonged survival compared with the control group.
Range‐expansion technology and fatigue performance study on the self‐sensing steel strand with an embedded fibre Bragg grating sensor
Authors: Qin H.Y. , Shen Q.X. , Zhu W.X. , Zhang H.L. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractFor the protection of a fragile optical fibre with a fibre Bragg grating (FBG) sensor, the encapsulating method of embedding the FBG sensor in a longitudinal groove set in the central wire of the steel strand is presented. According to the theoretical analysis of the strain transfer and sensing capacity between the embedded FBG sensor and substrate, the requirements for the cross‐sectional size of the groove and bond‐length of the optical fibre to the self‐sensing steel strand are discussed. A prepressure technology is proposed to overcome the problem of low ultimate tensile strain of FBGs. Experiments for range‐expansion with different prepressure values were carried out. The results showed that a prepressure of 30% Pc produced the optimum range expansion of the FBG sensor with a maximum strain measurement of 12,361 με, which was 1.3 times higher than the yield strain of the strands. The analyses of the fatigue performance and static load tests on self‐sensing steel strands were also carried out. The results indicated that the self‐sensing steel strand exhibited good performance after fatigue loading operation of 2 million cycles with a maximum stress of 0.45 σb and a stress amplitude of 250 MPa. Moreover, the decrease in the monitoring strain sensitivity of the FBG was calculated to be below 3.5%, whereas the experimental data showed good linearity and repeatability. Therefore, for effective lifetime monitoring of steel strands under fatigue loading, it is suggested that the FBG sensors need to be placed under a certain prepressure before the construction and service of self‐sensing steel strand.
Island Geographies of Separation and Cohesion: The Coronavirus (COVID‐19) Pandemic and the Geopolitics of Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland)
Authors: Grydehøj Adam , Kelman Ilan , Su Ping 
Published: June 2020

AbstractKalaallit Nunaat (Greenland) is an Arctic highly autonomous subnational island jurisdiction (SNIJ) of Denmark, its former coloniser. The coronavirus (COVID‐19) pandemic of 2020 has influenced both Kalaallit Nunaat’s relations with the outside world and relations between people and places within the territory. The Kalaallit Nunaat government’s response to the pandemic, including both internal and external travel bans and restrictions on movement, has focused on eradicating the disease from the territory. This strategy, however, is challenged both by the SNIJ’s economic reliance on Denmark and by the Danish government’s own strategy of mitigating the disease. This paper explores the ways in which the coronavirus pandemic has altered how the people of Kalaallit Nunaat interact with the people of Denmark and with one another, ultimately shedding light on the relationship between islands, disease, and geopolitics more generally.
Simultaneous coccidioidomycosis and phaeohyphomycosis in a kidney transplant recipient: A case report and literature review
Authors: Puing Alfredo G. , Couture‐Cossette Antoine , Wang Aileen X. , Zygourakis Corinna C. , Cheng Xingxing , Stevens Bryan A. , Banaei Niaz , Novoa Roberto A. , Ho Dora Y. , Subramanian Aruna K. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractAdvances in solid organ transplantation have improved the survival of end‐stage organ disease at the expense of an increased risk for opportunistic infections. Unusual clinical presentations and the possibility of concurrent infections make diagnosing invasive fungal infection (IFI) more difficult. Here, we present a case of simultaneous vertebral infection caused by Coccidioides immitis‐posadasii and subcutaneous phaeohyphomycosis due to Nigrograna mackinnonii in a kidney transplant recipient. The diagnosis of both infections required invasive procedures to obtain tissue and a high index of suspicion that more than one IFI could be present. A multidisciplinary team approach for the management of immunocompromised patients with suspected or diagnosed IFI is warranted.
Cryptococcal pericarditis in a heart transplant recipient
Authors: Mann Sarah , Tobolowsky Farrell , Purohit Suneet , Henao‐Martínez Andres , Bajrovic Valida , Ramanan Poornima , Wolfel Eugene , Khazanie Prateeti , Barron Michelle , Madinger Nancy , Benamu Esther 
Published: June 2020

AbstractWe present a case of Cryptococcus neoformans pericarditis in a cardiac transplant recipient. This article reviews the diagnosis, treatment, and complications of cryptococcosis specifically in transplant patients. While pericarditis is a rare manifestation of Cryptococcus infection, this case highlights that cryptococcosis should be considered in the differential diagnosis for solid organ transplant and immunocompromised patients presenting with pericardial effusions.
Incidental COVID‐19 in a heart‐kidney transplant recipient with malnutrition and recurrent infections: Implications for the SARS‐CoV‐2 immune response
Authors: Serrano Oscar K. , Kutzler Heather L. , Rochon Caroline , Radojevic Joseph A. , Lawlor Michael T. , Hammond Jonathan A. , Gluck Jason , Feingold Andrew D. , Jaiswal Abhishek 
Published: June 2020

AbstractThe clinical course and outcomes of immunocompromised patients, such as transplant recipients, with COVID‐19 remain unclear. It has been postulated that a substantial portion of the disease burden seems to be mediated by the host immune activation to the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2). Herein, we present a simultaneous heart‐kidney transplant (SHKT) recipient who was hospitalized for the management of respiratory failure from volume overload complicated by failure to thrive, multiple opportunistic infections, and open non‐healing wounds in the setting of worsening renal dysfunction weeks prior to the first case of SARS‐CoV‐2 being detected in the state of Connecticut. After his third endotracheal intubation, routine nucleic acid testing (NAT) for SARS‐CoV‐2, in anticipation of a planned tracheostomy, was positive. His hemodynamics, respiratory status, and ventilator requirements remained stable without any worsening for 4 weeks until he had a negative NAT test. It is possible that the immunocompromised status of our patient may have prevented significant immune activation leading up to clinically significant cytokine storm that could have resulted in acute respiratory distress syndrome and multisystem organ failure.
First results of a ferritin‐based blood donor deferral policy in the Netherlands
Authors: Vinkenoog Marieke , van den Hurk Katja , van Kraaij Marian , van Leeuwen Matthijs , Janssen Mart P. 
Published: June 2020

BACKGROUNDWhole blood donors are at risk of becoming iron deficient. To monitor iron stores, Sanquin implemented a new deferral policy based on ferritin levels, in addition to the traditional hemoglobin measurements.METHODSFerritin levels are determined in every fifth donation, as well as in all first‐time donors. Donors with ferritin levels <15 ng/mL (WHO threshold) are deferred for 12 months; those ≥15 and ≤30 ng/mL for 6 months. The first results were analyzed and are presented here.RESULTSThe results show that 25% of women (N = 20151, 95% CI 24%‐25%) and 1.6% of men (N = 10391, 95% CI 1.4%‐1.8%) have ferritin levels ≤30 ng/mL at their first blood center visit. For repeat (non‐first‐time) donors, these proportions are higher: 53% of women (N = 28329, 95% CI 52%‐54%) and 42% of men (N = 31089, 95% CI 41%‐43%). After a 6‐month deferral, in 88% of returning women (N = 3059, 95% CI 87%‐89%) and 99% of returning men (N = 3736, 95% CI 98%‐99%) ferritin levels were ≥15 ng/mL. After a 12‐month deferral, in 74% of returning women (N = 486, 95% CI 70%‐78%) and 95% of returning men (N = 479, 95% CI 94%‐97%) ferritin levels increased to ≥15 ng/mL.CONCLUSIONDeferral of donors whose pre‐donation ferritin levels were ≤30 ng/mL might prevent donors from returning with ferritin levels <15 ng/mL. This policy is promising to mitigate effects of repeated donations on iron stores.
The importance of heterogeneity in determining the effects of preferential trade agreements on Foreign Direct Investment
Authors: Hiraide Norikatsu , Shen Leilei , Silva Peri 
Published: June 2020

AbstractThis paper investigates the importance of PTA formation in attracting inflows of foreign direct investment (FDI). In particular, we examine the heterogeneous effects of different types of PTAs (FTAs or CUs) on the extensive and intensive margins of FDI and on how the interdependence among various PTAs may affect a country's ability to attract FDI inflows. We find that the larger the preferential markets to which a country has access, the larger the FDI inflows the country receives. Furthermore, we find that the type of PTA matters in determining FDI inflows. In this case, we find that the formation of CUs tends to promote more FDI inflows than the formation of FTAs. Our findings also indicate that the formation of PTAs significantly affects FDI through the intensive margin, rather than through the extensive margin. Importantly, notice that these effects are driven by the preferential markets to which a country has access and that have not established a PTA with the FDI‐originating (home) country, confirming that PTA interdependence matters in determining FDI inflows.