bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Analysis of the Salivary Microbiome in the Periodontal Disease Patients with Hypertension and Non-hypertension
Authors: Li Suhua , Zaker Rexidan , Chu Xueqian , Asihati Reyida , Li Chong , Guo Xin , Jila Palidan , Sang Xiaohong 
Published: August 2020

Background:
An improved comprehension of the oral microbiota function in the pathogenesis
of disease will contribute to the diagnosis and treatment of both hypertension and periodontal
disease. In our study, a comparison of the salivary microbiome between hypertension and
Non-hypertension cohorts was designed to reveal microbial signatures.

Methods:
Patients were divided into four sub-groups: Gingivitis, and Periodontitis (stage 2, 3, and
4). Then, hypertension and non-hypertension cohorts were split into periodontal health and periodontitis
subgroups. The salivary samples were processed for DNA extraction (n=246). The V3-V4
hypervariable regions of microbiome 16S rRNA genes were amplified. Finally, sequencing libraries
were constructed and subjected to bioinformatics and statistical analyses.

Results:
The oral microbial diversity decreased in both hypertension and periodontal disease
groups compared to the healthy ones. At the genus level, the diversity showed 100 different operational
taxonomic units (OTUs) for differential abundance testing. The first trend showed OTUs decreased
in relative abundance with increasing periodontal disease, as well as hypertension and nonhypertensive
groups. For this trend, OTUs comprise of a mix of primarily anaerobic commensals
and potential acute diarrhea pathogens. The second trend was that the diversity of genera was decreased
in the hypertension group relative to the non-hypertension group, including other anaerobic
bacteria related to periodontal disease.

Conclusion:
Microbiota diversity decreased in the hypertension group and different stages of
periodontal disease groups. However, Neisseria and Solobacterium genera increased in the coexisting
hypertension and periodontal disease group. Certainly, these findings indicate that the
abundance of genera continues to change due to additional stresses caused by co-existing conditions.
Transcriptome Analysis Reveals Possible Virulence Factors of Paragonimus proliferus
Authors: Li Sheng-Hao , Li Shu-De , Wu Kun-Li , Li Jun-Yi , Li Hong-Juan , Wang Wei-Qun , Yang Li-Jun , Xu Jing-Jing , Chang Guo-Ji , Zhang Yan-Ling , Shu Qiu-Hong , Zhuang Shan-Shan , Ma Zhi-Qiang , He Shu-Meiqi , Zhu Min , Wang Wen-Lin , Huang Hong-Li 
Published: August 2020

Objective:
To identify the possible virulence factors (VFs) of P. proliferus.

Methods:
By Illumina HiSeq 4000 RNA-Seq platform, transcriptomes of adult P. proliferus
worms were sequenced to predict VFs via screening the homologues of traditional VFs of parasites
based on the annotations in the functional databases. Homology analysis was also performed to
screen homologous genes between P. proliferus and other four Paragonimus species (i.e., P.
kellicotti, P. skrjabini, P. miyazakii and P. westermani) whose transcriptomes were downloaded
from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) database, and then the
differential-expressed homologous genes (DEHGs) were screened via comparisons of P. proliferus
and P. kellicotti, P. skrjabini, P. miyazakii and P. westermani, respectively. Finally, an overlap of
the predicted VFs and DEHGs was performed to identify possible key VFs that do not only belong
to the predicted VFs but also DEHGs.

Results:
A total of 1,509 genes of P. proliferus homologous to traditional VFs, including surface
antigens (SAGs), secreted proteins (SPs), ATP-Binding Cassette (ABC) Transporters, actin-related
proteins (ARPs), aminopeptidases (APases), glycoproteins (GPs), cysteine proteases (CPs), and
heat shock proteins (HSPs), were identified. Meanwhile, homology analysis identified 6279
DEHGs among the five species, of which there were 48 DEHGs being mutually differentialexpressed
among the four pairs of comparisons, such as MRP, Tuba 3, PI3K, WASF2, ADK,
Nop56, DNAH1, PFK-2/FBPase2, Ppp1r7, SSP7. Furthermore, the overlap between the predicted
VFs and DEHGs showed 97 genes of the predicted VFs that simultaneously belonged to DEHGs.
Strikingly, of these 97 genes, only 26, including Chymotrypsin, Leucine APases, Cathepsin L, HSP
70, and so on, were higher expressed in P. proliferus while all the remaining were lower expressed
than in the four other species.

Conclusions:
This work provides a fundamental context for further studies of the pathogenicity of
P. proliferus. Most of the predicted VFs which simultaneously belonged to DEHGs were lower
expressed in P. proliferus.
A Constrained Probabilistic Matrix Decomposition Method for Predicting miRNA-disease Associations
Authors: Lu Xinguo , Gao Yan , Zhu Zhenghao , Ding Li , Wang Xinyu , Liu Fang , Li Jinxin 
Published: August 2020

Background:
MicroRNA is a type of non-coding RNA molecule whose length is about
22 nucleotides. The growing evidence shows that microRNA makes critical regulations in the
development of complex diseases, such as cancers, and cardiovascular diseases. Predicting
potential microRNA-disease associations can provide a new perspective to achieve a better scheme
of disease diagnosis and prognosis. However, there is a challenge to predict some potential
essential microRNAs only with few known associations.

Objective:
In this paper, we propose a novel method, named as a constrained strategy for
predicting microRNA-disease associations called CPMDA, which can predict some potential
essential microRNAs only with few known associations.

Methods:
We firstly construct a disease similarity network and microRNA similarity network to
preprocess the microRNAs with none available associations. Then, we apply probabilistic
factorization to obtain two feature matrices of microRNA and disease. Meanwhile, we formulate a
similarity feature matrix as constraints in the factorization process. Finally, we utilize obtained
feature matrixes to identify potential associations for all diseases.

Result and Conclusion:
The results indicate that CPMDA is superior over other methods in
predicting potential microRNA-disease associations. Moreover, the evaluation shows that CPMDA
has a strong effect on microRNAs with few known associations. In case studies, CPMDA also
demonstrated the effectiveness to infer unknown microRNA-disease associations for those novel
diseases and microRNAs.
Bio-analytical Identification of Key Genes that Could Contribute to the Progression and Metastasis of Osteosarcoma
Authors: Wang Fei , Qin Guoqing , Liu Junzhi , Wang Xiunan , Ye Baoguo 
Published: August 2020

Background:
Osteosarcoma (OS) is one of the most common primary malignant bone
tumors in children and adolescents. OS metastasis has been a challenge in the treatment of OS. The
present study screened progression related genes in OS by analyzing a public dataset GSE42352,
and identified 691 up-regulated and 945 down-regulated genes in advanced stage OS compared to
early-stage OS samples.

Methods:
Protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks were further employed to reveal the
interaction among these genes. Bioinformatics analysis showed that progression related differently
expressed genes (DEGs) were significantly associated with the regulation of cell proliferation and
metabolisms.

Results:
This study revealed that progression related DEGs were dysregulated in metastatic OS
compared to non-metastatic OS samples. Further analysis showed CSF1R, CASP1, CD163,
AP1B1, LAPTM5, PEX19, SLA, STAB1, YWHAH, PLCB2, and GPR84 were associated with the
metastasis-free survival time in patients with OS.

Conclusions:
These findings provided novel information for us to understand the mechanisms
underlying the progression and metastasis of OS.
The Factor Structure of the Mood Disorder Questionnaire in Tunisian Patients
Authors: Ouali Uta , Jouini Lamia , Zgueb Yosra , Jomli Rabaa , Omrani Adel , Nacef Fethi , Preti Antonio , Carta Mauro Giovanni 
Published: August 2020

Background:The Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) is a frequently used screening tool for the early detection of Bipolar Disorder (BD), which is often unrecognized or misdiagnosed at its onset. In this study, data from Tunisia has been used to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Arabic MDQ.Methods:The sample included 151 patients with a current major depressive episode. The Arabic adapted version of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR was used to formulate a diagnosis, yielding 62 patients with BD and 89 with unipolar Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Principal component analysis with parallel analysis was used to establish the spontaneous distribution of the 13 core items of the MDQ. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was used to check the available factor models. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to assess the capacity of the MDQ to distinguish patients with BD from those with MDD.Results:Cronbach’s α in the sample was 0.80 (95%CI: 0.75 to 0.85). Ordinal α was 0.88. Parallel analysis suggested two main components, which explained 59% of variance in the data. CFA found a good fit for the existing unidimensional, the two-factor, and the three-factor models. ROC analysis showed that at a threshold of 7, the MDQ was able to distinguish patients with BD from those with MDD with extraordinary negative predictive value (0.92) and a positive diagnostic likelihood ratio of 3.8.Conclusion:The Arabic version of the MDQ showed good measurement properties in terms of reliability, factorial validity and discriminative properties.
Suicidal Behavior in the Mediterranean Countries
Authors: Eskin Mehmet 
Published: August 2020

Introduction:Suicidal behavior is a serious public health problem worldwide and shows large intersocietal variation. This study aimed at comparatively investigating the aspects of suicidal behavior in 22 countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea.Methods:The study was conducted with official data retrieved from several sources. The suicidal mortality data were collected from World Health Organization’s data repository. Descriptive statistics, group comparison, correlational and regression statistical analyses were used to summarize the data.Results:The average age standardized suicide rates in the Mediterranean countries are lower than the world average. Except in Morocco, more men kill themselves than women. Suicide rates are lower in Mediterranean Muslim than in Mediterranean Christian countries. Slovenia, France and Croatia have the highest suicide mortality rates. Greatest percentages of suicidal ideation are seen in Croatia, Turkey and Slovenia and the greatest percentages of suicidal attempts are seen in Palestine, Cyprus, Greece and Slovenia. According to the results of the multiple regression analyses, the coefficient of human inequality index was associated with lower both-sex and male suicide rates. Greater percentages of people saying religion is unimportant in daily life in a country were found to be related to higher female suicide rates.Conclusion:The findings from the study have shown that the prevalence of suicidal deaths, thoughts and attempts vary between the Mediterranean countries. Lower suicide rates are observed in the Muslim Mediterranean nations than in the Judeo-Christian ones. However, the rates of suicide mortality in non-Arab Muslim nations being comparable to the rates in non-Muslim countries confirm the concerns over mis/underreporting of suicidal behavior in Arab Muslim countries due to religio-cultural stigma attached to suicide. The average suicidal mortality rates are lower in Mediterranean countries than the world average. Generally, more men than women kill themselves. Results from the multivariate analysis revealed that as the level of human inequality increases the rates for both-sex and male suicidal mortality decreases. Religion seem to be protective against female suicides. The study has also shown that more research is needed about suicidal behavior in the Mediterranean countries.
Principal Component Analysis of the Well-Being at Work and Respect for Human Rights Questionnaire (WWRRR) in the Mediterranean Region
Authors: Husky Mathilde , Zgueb Yosra , Ouali Uta , A. Gonzalez Cesar I. , Piras Martina , Testa Giorgia , Maleci Alberto , Mulas Alfredo , Montisci Alessandro , Nujedat Samih , Kalcev Goce , Teodorov Iskren , Preti Antonio , Angermeyer Matthias , Carta Mauro Giovanni 
Published: August 2020

Background:
The Well-Being at Work and Respect for human Rights Questionnaire (WWRR) was conceived based on the hypothesis that the perception of respect for users' rights is an essential element of well-being in the workplace in healthcare. The objective of the study is to examine the principal components of the WWRR.

Methods:
A random sample representative of a set of professionals working in three different healthcare networks in Tunisia, North-Macedonia, and Italy was enrolled (n=426). Each professional completed a questionnaire on sociodemographic data and the WWRR. The WWRR consists of six items on beliefs about: satisfaction at work, users’ satisfaction, organization at work, respect of users’ and staff human rights, adequacy of resources. A seventh item assesses the perceived needs of personnel. Correlation between the items was evaluated by analysing the principal components with Varimax rotation and Kaiser normalization (which included all components with an Eigen value> 1).

Results:
A single factor covered over 50% of the variance, all the items of the questionnaire were closely related and compose a single factor. Tunisia presented some differences regarding the item about the human rights of staff.

Conclusion:
Satisfaction with the respect for the rights of users is strongly correlated with the other factors that are part of the concept of the organizational well-being of health care providers. The WWRR provides a means of measuring this important and often neglected dimension.
Implementing WHO-Quality Rights Project in Tunisia: Results of an Intervention at Razi Hospital
Authors: Carta Mauro Giovanni , Ghacem Rym , Milka Myriam , Moula Olfa , Staali Nidhal , Uali Uta , Bouakhari Ghassene , Mannu Monica , Refrafi Rym , Yaakoubi Souha , Moro Maria Francesca , Baudel Marie , Vasseur-Bacle Simon , Drew Natalie , Funk Michelle 
Published: August 2020

Background:The aims were: 1) to measure the attitudes of learners (and future trainers) before and after a course on WHO-Quality Rights (QR); 2) to evaluate a psychiatric ward, by previously trained staff on QR, comparing it with a previous evaluation and discussing an improvement plan.Methods:1) Training sample: 19 subjects (8 males), 41.4±10.6 years, including jurists/lawyers, health professionals, and experts.The QR team developed the 26-item tool to assess the knowledge and attitudes of participants.2) Evaluation of quality of care and respect for human rights in the ward was carried out on 20 staff representatives, 20 family members and 20 users with QRToolkit.Results:1) Learning in QR has partially changed the knowledge and attitudes of trained people.2) The evaluation shows significant delays in the implementation of the rights advocated by the United Nations Convention on the Human Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). In Themes 1, 3, 4 and 5, the evaluation shows no differences compared to 2014, but in Theme 2, the level was lower than four years before.Conclusion:The scarcity of resources due to the economic crisis that Tunisia is going through, cannot be considered the only cause of the delays highlighted. However, it is likely that in a context of uncertainty for the future, scarcity of resources and a decrease in staff (i.e., professionals dedicated to psychosocial intervention) may have demotivated the team towards recovery. The improvement in knowledge and attitudes of many staff members after the training may open future positive scenarios.
Genomics and Pharmacogenomics of Rhinosinusitis
Authors: Guerra Joaquin , Carril Juan Carlos , Alcaraz Margarita , Santiago Marcos , Corzo Lola , Cacabelos Ramon 
Published: August 2020

Background:
Polymorphisms of selected inflammatory and metabolic genes
have been described in the etiology of chronic rhinosinusitis, and these effects can be explained
on a pharmacogenetic basis.

Objective:
The purpose of this study was to examine whether there is an association between
inflammatory factors and some of these alleles, by associating these genetic variables
with each other.

Methods:
CYP1A2, CYP2D6, CYP2C19, CYP2C9, CYP3A4, CYP3A5, G6PD, NAT2,
UGT1A1, VKORC1, ABCB1, SLCO1B1, APOE, TNF, IL1B, IL6 and IL6R gene polymorphisms
were analyzed by PCR. Drug-metabolizing enzymes were classified according to
their phenotype. Blood cell counts and biochemical parameters were also considered.

Results:
Significant differences were found in the CYP1A2 phenotype, with fewer
CYP1A2 normal metabolizers (NMs) expressing sinusitis (14.3% vs 30%) and a greater
number of CYP1A2 ultra-rapid-metabolizers (UMs)(85% vs 69%); and in TNF, affecting
TNF-A/A (4% vs 2%) and TNF-G/G (78% vs 66%) compared with TNF-G/A (19% vs
32%) carriers. 96% of patients with CRS had at least one G allele. When trigenic variables
involved in sinusitis were analyzed, statistical differences were found in SLCO1B1-TNFCYP1A2,
with a higher proportion of subjects with 1/1-GG-UM (44.3%); and IL1B-TNFCYP1A2
with CC-GG-UM (26%), CT-GG-UM (19.8%) and CC-GG-NM (13.7%) genophenotypes,
respectively. Subjects with sinusitis had a higher eosinophil count (308.80
cel/mcL vs 263.14 cel/mcL) and lower HDL levels (265.34 vs 297.85 mg/dL).

Conclusion:
SLCO1B1-TNF-CYP1A2 and IL1B-TNF-CYP1A2 trigenic clusters may condition
the chronicity of sinusitis. Eosinophilia and HDL are factors involved in inflammation,
and thus in the development of CRS.
Isolation and Characterization of Dillenia Fruit Mucilage: A Novel Polymer for Microspheric Delivery of Losartan Potassium
Authors: Chakraborty Santanu , Khandai Madhusmruti , Dhibar Manami , Yadav Shikha , Kumari Honey 
Published: August 2020

Objective:
The present investigation was aimed to isolate, characterize and establish a natural
polymer obtained from partially ripe and fresh fruits of Dillenia indica and its utility to deliver losartan
potassium in a sustained manner from microspheric macromolecular dosage form.

Methods:
All the microspheres were prepared by ionotropic gelation technique and investigated for various
physico-chemical parameters along with in-vitro drug release studies to optimize the concentration
of algino-Dillenia polymeric blend required to develop twice daily sustained release dosage form of
losartan potassium.

Results:
The functional characteristic studies and rheological behavior analysis suggested that extracted
polysaccharide can be used as a viscosity modifying agent as well as sustain release ingredient. All the
microsphere formulations exhibited excellent mucoadhesion properties and site-specific drug release.
In-vitro studies revealed that the optimum concentration of algino-Dillenia polymeric blend is suitable
to deliver losartan potassium in a sustained manner for a prolonged period of time. SEM study revealed
that the microspheres were spherical in shape with a smooth outer surface having small cracks. XRD
and DSC studies revealed that losartan potassium is present as an amorphous form in the prepared optimized
microsphere formulation.

Conclusion:
Thus, the present studies demonstrated that Dillenia fruit mucilage has an interesting rheological
behavior which may be used as a viscosity modifying agent and exhibit promising properties of
a sustained release dosage form to deliver losartan potassium from its microspheric dosage form.
Antioxidant Constituents from the Stem and Leaf of Helicteres hirsuta Loureiro
Authors: Tra Nguyen Thanh , Cham Ba Thi , Ha Nguyen Thi Thu , Anh Le Thi Tu , Tuyen Nguyen Van , Son Ninh The 
Published: August 2020

Background::
Helicteres hirsuta has been used traditionally as a useful agent for hepatoprotective
treatment. The aim of the current study is to isolate chemical constituents from the
EtOAc extract of H. hirsuta stem and evaluate the capacity of the isolated compounds against hydroperoxide
damaged rat liver cells.

Methods::
Column chromatography was used for phytochemical isolation whereas MTT method was applied for intracellular antioxidative assay

Results::
Phytochemical analysis of the EtOAc extract of H. hirsuta stem led to the isolation and determination
of four triterpenoids betulin (1), bentulinic acid (2), alphitolic acid (3), and oleanolic
acid (4), together with two steroids stigmast-4-ene-6β-ol-3-one (5), and β-sitostenone (6), whereas
EtOAc extract of its leaf was composed of three steroids cucurbitacin D (11), cucurbitacin I (12),
and simiarenol (13), four flavonoids tiliroside (14), potengriffioside A (15), kaempferide (16), and
isokaempferide (17), along with two carotenoids lutelin (18), and β-carotene (19). Isolated compounds
3, 5, 6, 16, and 17 were found in genus Helicteres for the first time, while carotenoids 18,
and 19 were never isolated from family Sterculiaceae before. Phytochemicals derived H. hirsuta
species are also useful agents for antioxidative drugs, e.g, flavonol 17 induced the significant EC50
value of 22.24 ± 0.14 μg/mL, as compared with that of positive control curcumin (EC50 19.33 ±
0.77 μg/mL), against hydroperoxide damaged rat liver cells.

Conclusion::
Antioxidative activity of the EtOAc extract of H. hirsuta stem against hydroperoxide
is mostly based on the role of flavonoids.
Brain Segmentation Using Deep Neural Networks
Authors: Mohindru Vandana , Sharma Ashutosh , Mathur Apurv , Gupta Anuj Kumar 
Published: August 2020

Background:
The determination of the tumor extent is a major challenging task in
brain tumor planning and quantitative evaluation. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is one of
the non-intellectual technique that has emerged as a front-line diagnostic tool for a brain tumor
with non-ionizing radiation.

Objective:
In Brain tumors, Gliomas is the very basic tumor of the brain; they might be less aggressive
or more aggressive in a patient with a life expectancy of not more than 2 years. Manual
segmentation is time-consuming, therefore we use a deep convolutional neural network to increase
the performance, which is highly dependent on the operator's experience.

Methods:
This paper proposed a fully automatic segmentation of brain tumors using deep convolutional
neural networks. Further, it uses high-grade gliomas brain images from BRATS 2016 database.
The suggested work achieves brain tumor segmentation using tensor flow, in which, the
anaconda frameworks are used to execute high-level mathematical functions.

Results:
Hence, the research work segments brain tumors into four classes like edema, nonenhancing
tumor, enhancing tumor and necrotic tumor. Brain tumor segmentation needs to separate
healthy tissues from tumor regions, such as advancing tumor, necrotic core, and surrounding
edema. We have presented a process to segment 3D MRI image of a brain tumor including their
separate sub-areas. We have applied an SVM based classification. Categorization is complete using
a soft-margin SVM classifier.

Conclusion:
Deep convolutional neural networks have been used to present the brain tumor segmentation.
Outcomes of the BRATS 2016 online judgment method assure us to increase the performance,
accuracy, and speed with our best model. The fuzzy c-mean algorithm provides better
accuracy and trains the SVM based classifier. We can achieve the finest performance and accuracy
by using the novel two-pathway architecture, i.e.., encoder and decoder, as well as the modeling
local label that depends on stacking two CNN’s.