bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Obesity‐related genes are expressed in human Sertoli cells and modulated by energy homeostasis regulating hormones
Authors: Pereira Sara C. , Martins Ana C. , Moreira Bruno P. , Bernardino Raquel L. , Barros Alberto , Monteiro Mariana P. , Oliveira Pedro F. , Alves Marco G. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThe strong hormonal dysregulation associated with obesity is responsible for the disruption of several reproductive events. Sertoli cells (SCs) function is dependent on energetic homeostasis and thus, directly associated with energy homeostasis regulating hormones. To further understand the influence of those hormones with SCs function and obesity, we hypothesize that human SCs express obesity‐related genes (ORG; MC4R, GNPDA2, TMEM18, and FTO) and that they respond to energy homeostasis regulating hormones (leptin, ghrelin, and glucagon‐like protein 1 [GLP‐1]) stimuli. To test our hypothesis, SCs were cultured with increasing doses of leptin (0, 5, 25, or 50 ng/ml, for 24 h), ghrelin (0, 20, 100, and 500 pM, for 24 h), and GLP‐1 (10, 1000, or 1 × 105 pM, for 6 h). The presence and abundance of ORG transcripts and proteins in SCs were accessed by polymerase chain reaction techniques, Western blot analysis, and immunofluorescence staining. Our results show that human SCs express MC4R, GNPDA2, TMEM18, and FTO in specific cellular locations. MC4R and FTO expression in human SCs was not responsive to the treatments. However, GNPDA2 and TMEM18 expression increased after exposure to the highest concentration of leptin and ghrelin, respectively. We highlight for the first time that human SCs express ORG and that these are responsive to energy homeostasis hormonal stimuli. GNPDA2 and TMEM18 expression respond in opposite directions according to overall energy status, mediated by energy homeostasis regulating hormones. Leptin and ghrelin control of ORG expression by human SCs can be associated with overweight‐related infertility and subfertility in males.
Regulatory environment for novel therapeutic development in mitochondrial diseases
Authors: Hirano Michio , Berardo Andres , Barca Emanuele , Emmanuele Valentina , Quinzii Catarina , Simpson Camilla V. , Engelstad Kristin , Rosales Xiomara Q. , Thompson John L. P. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractAt present, there is just one approved therapy for patients with mitochondrial diseases in Europe, another in Japan, and none in the United States. These facts reveal an important and significant unmet need for approved therapies for these debilitating and often fatal disorders. To fill this need, it is critical for clinicians and drug developers to work closely with regulatory agencies. In the United States, mitochondrial disease patients and clinicians, the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation, and pharmaceutical industry members have engaged with the Food and Drug Administration to educate each other about these complex and heterogeneous diseases and about regulatory requirements to obtain approvals for novel therapies. Clinical development of therapies for rare diseases has been facilitated by the 1983 US Orphan Drug Act (ODA) and similar legislation in Japan and the European Union. Further legislation and regulatory guidance have expanded and refined regulatory flexibility. While regulatory and financial incentives of the ODA have augmented involvement of pharmaceutical companies, clinicians, with patient advocacy groups and industry, need to conduct natural history studies, develop clinical outcome measures, and identify potential supportive surrogate endpoints predictive of clinical benefit, which together are critical foundations for clinical trials. Thus, the regulatory environment for novel therapeutic development is conducive and offers flexibility for mitochondrial diseases. Nevertheless, flexibility does not mean lower standards, as well‐controlled rigorous clinical trials of high quality are still required to establish the efficacy of potential therapies and to obtain regulatory agency approvals for their commercial use. This process is illustrated through the authors' ongoing efforts to develop therapy for thymidine kinase 2 deficiency.
Seroprevalence of HBV and HCV in female sex workers from four cities in the state of Pará, northern Brazil
Authors: Miranda Nelba T. G. P. , de Souza Ronaldo L. , Monteiro Jacqueline C. , Costa Iran B. , Siravenha Leonardo Q. , da Luz Anderson L. B. , de Almeida Núbia C. C. , Oliveira‐Filho Aldemir B. , Laurentino Rogério V. , Machado Luiz F. A. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractFemale sex workers (FSWs) represent a high vulnerability group for the acquisition of sexual and parenteral infections such as hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of serological markers and risk factors associated with exposure to HBV and HCV among FSWs in the state of Pará, Brazil. A cross‐sectional study using principles of the time location sampling (TLS) method was conducted in four cities (Belém, Bragança, Barcarena, and Augusto Corrêa) of the state of Pará, from 2005 to 2006. In total, 365 FSWs were interviewed using a standardized questionnaire. Blood samples were collected and tested for serological markers of exposure to HBV and HCV using an enzyme immunoassay. The overall prevalence of exposure to HBV and HCV was 36.7% and 7.7%, respectively. The prevalence of surface antigen of HBV was 3.0%. The prevalence of anti‐HBc and anti‐HBc+ anti‐HBs antibodies were 6.3% and 27.4%. Very few (4.7%) FSWs had vaccine immunity against HBV (anti‐HBs antibodies only). The prevalence of anti‐HCV antibodies was 7.7%. Low monthly income, drug usage, and unprotected sex were some of the social characteristics associated with exposure to the viruses using different analysis. The seroprevalence of HBV and HCV infections among FSWs in four cities of the state of Pará is high when compared to the general population of Brazil, but similar to those found in FSWs in other nondeveloped countries. The prevalence of HBV was higher in Belém, while the prevalence of HCV was higher in the other three cities, highlighting the importance of establishing control and prevention programs to reduce the risk of acquiring these viruses in Pará.
Co‐infection of malaria and early clearance of SARS‐CoV‐2 in healthcare workers
Authors: Mahajan Niraj N. , Gajbhiye Rahul K. , Bahirat Shubhada , Lokhande Pradip D , Mathe Apeksha , Rathi Surbhi , Warty Neeta , Mahajan Kshitija N. , Srivastava Vartika , Kuppusamy Periyasamy , Mohite Shailesh C. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractHealthcare workers (HCWs) are at higher risk of contracting severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) infection. Information regarding co‐infection of SARS‐CoV‐2 with vector‐borne diseases (malaria and dengue) is crucial especially for the countries wherein malaria and dengue are endemic. The objective was to study the prevalence, demographic, clinical presentations among HCWs with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) and to compare the viral clearance in HCWs with COVID‐19 and co‐infection of malaria and dengue. This retrospective study was conducted at a dedicated COVID‐19 hospital, BYL Nair Charitable Hospital (NH), Mumbai, India April 6th–October 31st 2020. The SARS‐CoV‐2 infection in HCWs was confirmed by reverse transcription‐plymerase chain reaction. Out of 491 HCWs infected with SARS‐CoV‐2, analysis of viral clearance was carried out in 467 HCWs over seven month periods, The prevalence of SARS‐CoV‐2 infection in HCWs was 13% (491 out of 3711). Out of the HCWs with COVID‐19, prevalence of SARS‐CoV‐2 infection was higher among security guards (25%) with 1% mortality. The co‐infection of malaria or dengue was reported in 31 HCWs (6.3%). The mean duration of virus clearance was longer (12 days) in symptomatic HCWs as compared to asymptomatic (8 days, p < .005). The recovery of SARS‐CoV‐2 infection in HCWs was faster (mean 8 days) with co‐infection of malaria than without malaria (p < .005). We recommend universal testing of HCWs, to optimize staffing levels during the current pandemic as HCWs are the most precious resource. There is a need to effectively implement standard protocols for prevention of vector‐borne diseases, especially in the hospital settings.
Zeolitic imidazolate frameworks in analytical sample preparation
Authors: Rodas Melisa , Fikarová Kateřina , Pasanen Finnian , Horstkotte Burkhard , Maya Fernando 
Published: December 2020

AbstractZeolitic imidazolate frameworks are a class of metal–organic frameworks that are topologically isomorphic with zeolites. Zeolitic imidazolate frameworks are composed of tetrahedrally coordinated metal ions connected by imidazolate linkers and have a high porosity and chemical stability. Here, we summarize the progress made in the application of zeolitic imidazolate frameworks in sample preparation for analytical purposes. This review is focused on analytical methods based on liquid chromatography, gas chromatography, or capillary electrophoresis, where the use of zeolitic imidazolate frameworks has contributed to increasing the sensitivity and selectivity of the method. While bulk zeolitic imidazolate frameworks have been directly used in analytical sample preparation protocols, a variety of strategies for their magnetization or their incorporation into sorbent particles, monoliths, fibers, stir bars, or thin films, have been developed. These modifications have facilitated the handling and application of zeolitic imidazolate frameworks for a number of analytical sample treatments including magnetic solid‐phase extraction, solid‐phase microextraction, stir bar sorptive extraction, or thin film microextraction, among other techniques.
Impact of Pre‐operative Multidisciplinary Evaluation on Laryngotracheal Reconstruction Outcomes
Authors: Wertz Aileen , Ryan Matthew , Jacobs Ian , Piccione Joseph 
Published: December 2020

Objective/HypothesisDetermine if diagnostic findings from pre‐operative multidisciplinary evaluations are associated with single surgery or overall success rates in pediatric laryngotracheal reconstruction (LTR).Study DesignRetrospective cohort.MethodsRetrospective cohort study of patients undergoing LTR at a tertiary care children's hospital between January 01, 2008 and December 31, 2017. Success is defined as decannulation rate if tracheostomy present, and resolution of symptoms if tracheostomy not present. Cohorts compared were those who did and did not receive pulmonary and gastrointestinal preoperative testing. Multivariate, logistic regression, and Kaplan Meier analyses performed.ResultsAbout 165 children were included in the study. Median age was 3 years at the time of surgery; 73% of LTRs were double‐stage procedures. Single surgery and overall success rates were 75% and 87%, respectively. After adjusting for severity of stenosis and surgical approach, performing esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) and normal gross appearance on EGD were associated with increased single surgery (P = .01, .005) and overall success (P = .005, .0003). Performing pH probe and normal EGD biopsy results was associated with increased overall success (P = .03, .007). Asthma and musculoskeletal comorbidities, postoperative complications, and need for postoperative balloon dilation were associated with decreased success. No other comorbidities evaluated impacted success.ConclusionsAerodigestive comorbidities are common in children undergoing LTR, and preoperative multidisciplinary workup often results in changes in management. After adjusting for grade and level of stenosis and staged approach, performing EGD and pH/impedance probe as well as normal gross and microscopic EGD findings was independently associated with increased LTR surgical success.Level of Evidence4 (retrospective cohort study) Laryngoscope, 131:E2356–E2362, 2021
Impact of air gap, range shifter, and delivery technique on skin dose in proton therapy
Authors: Kern A. , Bäumer C. , Kröninger K. , Wulff J. , Timmermann B. 
Published: December 2020

ObjectiveSide effects of radiation therapy may include skin damage. The surface dose is of great interest and contains the buildup effect. In particular, the proton therapy community requires further experimental data to quantify doses in the surface region. This specification includes the skin dose, which is defined according to ICRU Report No. 39 at 70 μm water equivalent depth. The aim of this study is to gather more knowledge of the skin dose by varying key parameters defined by the patient treatment plan. This consists of clinical aspects such as the influence of the air gap, the application of a range shifter (RS), or the proton delivery technique.Material/methodsSkin doses were determined with a PTW 23391 extrapolation chamber with three thin Kapton® entrance windows operated as a conventional ionization chamber. The impact on the skin dose for quasi‐monoenergetic pencil beam scanning (PBS) proton beams was evaluated for clinical air gaps between 3.5 and 51.1 cm. The differences in skin dose were assessed by irradiating equivalent fields with an RS of 51 mm water equivalent thickness (RS51) and without. Furthermore, the delivery techniques PBS, uniform scanning (US), and double scattering (DS) were compared by defining a spread‐out Bragg peak (SOBP). TOPAS (V.3.1.2) was used to model an IBA nozzle with PBS and to score dose to water at the surface of a water phantom.ResultsFor the monoenergetic fields without the application of the RS the skin dose was constant down to an air gap of 6.2 cm. A lower air gap of 3.5 cm showed a variation in skin dose by up to 2.4% compared to the results obtained with larger air gaps. With the inserted RS51 an increase in the skin dose was found for air gaps smaller than 11.3 cm. Experimentally, a dose difference of 1.4% was recorded for an air gap of 6.2 cm by inserting an RS and none. With the Monte Carlo calculations the largest dose increase was observed at the air gap of 3.5 cm with 1.7% and 4.0% relative to the skin dose results without the RS and to the largest evaluated air gap of 51.1 cm, respectively. The SOBP comparison of the beam modalities at the measuring plane at the isocenter revealed higher skin doses without RS (including RS) by up to +1.9% (+1.5%) for DS and +1.3% (+1.1%) for US compared to PBS. For all three techniques an approx. 2% rise in skin dose was observed for the largest evaluated air gap of 37.7 cm to an air gap of 6.2 cm when using an RS51.ConclusionThe study investigated aspects of skin dose of a water equivalent phantom by varying key parameters of a proton treatment plan. Parameters like the RS, the air gap, and the delivery modality have an impact on the order of 4.0% for the skin dose at the depth of 70 μm. The increases in skin dose are the effects of the contribution of the increased electron fluence at small air gaps and the emitted hadronic particles produced by the RS.
Trucks and drones cooperation in the last‐mile delivery process
Authors: Di Puglia Pugliese Luigi , Macrina Giusy , Guerriero Francesca 
Published: December 2020

AbstractWe address the problem of routing a fleet of trucks equipped with unmanned aerial vehicles, commonly known as drones, to perform deliveries in last‐mile delivery process. The customers can be served by either a truck or a drone within the respective time window of each. Each capacitated truck carries drones that can be launched to perform deliveries. The drone takes off from a truck located either at a customer or at the depot and it must land on the same truck after visiting a customer to be served. The aim is to serve all customers at minimum cost, under time window, capacity, and flying endurance constraints. We formulate the problem as a mixed integer linear program (MILP) and develop a heuristic procedure where a two‐phase strategy is embedded in a multi‐start framework. The computational results are carried out on instances generated by starting from vehicle routing problem with time windows benchmarks. We analyze the behavior of the considered transportation system by mean of the solutions provided by the MILP. The proposed formulation is able to solve instances with up to 15 customers. The solutions of the MILP are used as benchmark to assess the effectiveness of the proposed heuristic procedure.
Impact of Cultivar and Growing Conditions on Alpha‐Amylase Properties in Wheat
Authors: Aljabi Hanadi Riyad , Pawelzik Elke 
Published: December 2020

AbstractAlpha amylase (α‐amylase) is an endo‐amylolytic enzyme that plays an important role in the starch metabolism in developing wheat grains. However, excessive enzyme activity in post‐harvest wheat grains has adverse effects on grain quality. Therefore, the objective of the study is to determine the influence of cultivars with different growth habits (spring vs winter) and weather conditions on the characterization of native α‐amylase. The results show that winter wheat cultivar (cv.) Cubus show a lower α‐amylase activity than those of spring wheat cv. Amaretto, by escaping the humid weather before harvest. Grains exposed to higher temperatures in Gladebeck have lower enzyme activity in the later stages of ripening than the grains in Torland. On the other hand, wheat α‐amylases from both cultivars have similar properties. They show thermal inactivation at 30 °C and acid lability at increasing pH values. The results indicate that a better understanding of the α‐amylase properties could be helpful to develop a suitable management to avoid quality losses in wheat.
Cold‐Season Arctic Amplification Driven by Arctic Ocean‐Mediated Seasonal Energy Transfer
Authors: Chung Eui‐Seok , Ha Kyung‐Ja , Timmermann Axel , Stuecker Malte F. , Bodai Tamas , Lee Sang‐Ki 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThe Arctic warming response to greenhouse gas forcing is substantially greater than the rest of the globe. It has been suggested that this phenomenon, commonly referred to as Arctic amplification, and its peak in boreal fall and winter result primarily from the lapse‐rate feedback, which is associated with the vertical structure of tropospheric warming, rather than from the sea‐ice albedo feedback, which operates mainly in summer. However, future climate model projections show consistently that an overall reduction of sea‐ice in the Arctic region leads to a gradual weakening of Arctic amplification, thereby implying a key role for sea‐ice albedo feedback. To resolve this apparent contradiction, we conduct a comprehensive analysis using atmosphere/ocean reanalysis data sets and a variety of climate model simulations. We show that the Arctic Ocean acts as a heat capacitor, storing anomalous heat resulting from the sea‐ice loss during summer, which then gets released back into the atmosphere during fall and winter. Strong air‐sea heat fluxes in fall/winter in sea‐ice retreat regions in conjunction with a stably stratified lower troposphere lead to a surface‐intensified warming/moistening, augmenting longwave feedback processes to further enhance the warming. The cold‐season surface‐intensified warming/moistening is found to virtually disappear if ocean‐atmosphere‐sea ice interactions are suppressed, demonstrating the importance of ice insulation effect and ocean heat uptake/release. These results strongly suggest that the warm‐season ocean heat recharge and cold‐season heat discharge link and integrate the warm and cold season feedbacks, and thereby effectively explain the predominance of the Arctic amplification in fall and winter.
Explosive Submarine Eruptions: The Role of Condensable Gas Jets in Underwater Eruptions
Authors: Cahalan R. C. , Dufek J. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractIn explosive submarine eruptions, volcanic jets transport fragmented tephra and exsolved gases from the conduit into the water column. Upon eruption the volcanic jet mixes with seawater and rapidly cools. This mixing and associated heat transfer ultimately determines whether steam present in the jet will completely condense or rise to breach the sea surface and become a subaerial hazard. We develop a multiphase model with subgrid calculations for in situ steam condensation to explore the relationship between eruption conditions (e.g., water depth, mass eruption rate, and eruption temperature) and the produced steam jet height and breach potential. We find that mass eruption rate is the predominant control of jet height, more so than vent width. We present a series of parameter maps predicting the limits of eruption breach for water depths of 200, 500, and 1,000 m. We demonstrate the relationship between subsurface jets and sea surface temperature anomalies, and sea surface displacement. Lastly, we evaluate the role of dispersed ash on volcanic jet development by comparing jets with particles of different size and density, as well as differing eruption conditions with particles.
Dynamic event‐based dissipative asynchronous control for singular Markov jump LPV systems with general transition rates
Authors: Xing Ming Qi , Wang Yan Qian , Zhuang Guang Ming , Chen Fu 
Published: December 2020

AbstractIn this article, the dissipative asynchronous control is investigated for a series of continuous‐time singular Markov jump linear parameter‐varying (SMJLPV) systems under a dynamic event‐triggered scheme, in which the system parameters depend on the measured parameters in real time. The dynamic event‐triggered scheme (DES) is used to bring down the channel congestion caused by the limited bandwidth and raise the utilisation ratio of network resources. Then, the Markov chains of SMJLPV systems with partially known transition rates are discussed, which can further reduce the conservatism to some extent. Specifically, since the controller cannot accurately receive the modes information of the system in real time, the hidden Markov model is established to depict the asynchronous phenomenon. Next, in the light of the parameter‐dependence Lyapunov functional, the criteria of stochastically admissible for the considered SMJLPV systems with the given dissipative performance is obtained. In such context, parameter‐dependent linear matrix inequalities are obtained and a cooperative design method of asynchronous controller and the weighting matrix of the DES is proposed. Finally, numerical examples under two different event‐triggered schemes are given to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method.
On robust stability of switched homogeneous systems
Authors: Yang Hao , Zhao Dong , Jiang Bin , Ding Shihong 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThis paper analyses the robust stability of a class of homogeneous systems where a relation among the high‐order term, the decay rate and the domain of attraction of the system is explicitly established. Such a new observation helps to establish several robust stability conditions for switched homogeneous systems with high‐order terms. Several domains of attraction related to asymptotical and finite‐time stability properties are also provided. The new results are further applied to supervisory control of spacecraft attitude system with high‐order uncertainties to illustrate their efficiency and applicability.