bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Burn Images Segmentation Based on Burn-GAN
Authors: Dai Fei , Zhang Dengyi , Su Kehua , Xin Ning 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Burn injuries are severe problems for human. Accurate segmentation for burn wounds in patient surface can improve the calculation precision of %TBSA (total burn surface area), which is helpful in determining treatment plan. Recently, deep learning methods have been used to automatically segment wounds. However, owing to the difficulty of collecting relevant images as training data, those methods cannot often achieve fine segmentation. A burn image-generating framework is proposed in this paper to generate burn image datasets with annotations automatically. Those datasets can be used to increase segmentation accuracy and save the time of annotating. This paper brings forward an advanced burn image generation framework called Burn-GAN. The framework consists of four parts: Generating burn wounds based on the mainstream Style-GAN network; Fusing wounds with human skins by Color Adjusted Seamless Cloning (CASC); Simulating real burn scene in three-dimensional space; Acquiring annotated dataset through three-dimensional and local burn coordinates transformation. Using this framework, a large variety of burn image datasets can be obtained. Finally, standard metrics like precision, Pixel Accuracy (PA) and Dice Coefficient (DC) were utilized to assess the framework. With nonsaturating loss with R2 regularization (NSLR2) and CASC, the segmentation network gains the best results. The framework achieved precision at 90.75%, PA at 96.88% and improved the DC from 84.5 to 89.3%. A burn data-generating framework have been built to improve the segmentation network, which can automatically segment burn images with higher accuracy and less time than traditional methods.
Medical costs of Japanese lung cancer patients during end-of-life care
Authors: Awano Nobuyasu , Izumo Takehiro , Inomata Minoru , Kuse Naoyuki , Tone Mari , Takada Kohei , Muto Yutaka , Fujimoto Kazushi , Kimura Hitomi , Miyamoto Shingo , Igarashi Ataru , Kunitoh Hideo 
Published: December 2020

Abstract

Objective
The medical costs associated with cancer treatment have increased rapidly in Japan; however, little data exist on actual costs, especially for end-of-life care. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the medical costs of lung cancer patients during the last 3 months before death and to compare the costs with those of initial anticancer treatment.

Methods
We retrospectively evaluated all patients who died from lung cancer at the Japanese Red Cross Medical Center between 1 January 2008 and 31 August 2019. Patients were classified into three cohorts (2008–2011, 2012–2015 and 2016–2019) according to the year of death; the medical costs were evaluated for each cohort. Costs were then divided into outpatient and inpatient costs and calculated per month.

Results
Seventy-nine small cell lung cancer and 213 non-small cell lung cancer patients were included. For small cell lung cancer and non-small cell lung cancer patients, most end-of-life medical costs were inpatient costs across all cohorts. The median monthly medical costs for the last 3 months among both small cell lung cancer and non-small cell lung cancer patients did not differ significantly among the cohorts, but the mean monthly costs for non-small cell lung cancer tended to increase. The monthly medical costs for the last 3 months were significantly higher than those for the first year in SCLC (P = 0.013) and non-small cell lung cancer (P &lt; 0.001) patients and those for the first 3 months in non-small cell lung cancer patients (P = 0.005).

Conclusions
The medical costs during the end-of-life period for lung cancer were high and surpassed those for initial treatment.
The Importance of Oversight and Agency Capacity in Enhancing Performance in Public Service Delivery
Authors: Drolc Cody A , Keiser Lael R 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Government agencies often encounter problems in service delivery when implementing public programs. This undermines effectiveness and raise questions about accountability. A central component of responsiveness and performance management is that agencies correct course when problems are identified. However, public agencies have an uneven record in responding to problems. In this article, we investigate whether, and to what extent, capacity both within the agency and within institutions performing oversight improves agency responsiveness to poor-performance indicators. Using panel data on eligibility determinations in the Social Security Disability program from US state agencies from 1991 to 2015 and fixed effects regression, we find that indicators of agency and oversight capacity moderate the relationship between poor performance and improvement. Our results suggest that investments in building capacity not only within agencies, but also within elected institutions, are important for successful policy implementation. However, we find evidence that while agency capacity alone can improve responsiveness to poor performance, the effect of oversight capacity on improving performance requires high agency capacity.
The Lost Works of Thomas Becon
Authors: Reimer Jonathan 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
This article attributes four lost works to the literary corpus of the English clergyman and bestselling Tudor devotional author Thomas Becon (1512–1567): The Shelde of Saluacion, An Heauenly Acte, Christen Prayers and Godly Meditacions, and The Resurreccion of the Masse. It ascribes these texts to Becon in light of three types of corroborating evidence: contemporary attribution, parallels of content, and early publication history. These four lost works not only furnish a fuller picture of his literary output, but also provide new insights into his career, rhetoric, and theology. As Becon was the most popular evangelical devotional author writing in English during the sixteenth century, this analysis of his hitherto unattributed books makes a valuable contribution to the bibliography of Tudor England, especially during the transformative years of the Henrician, Edwardine, Marian, and Elizabethan Reformations.
What Freedom in a Deterministic World Must Be
Authors: Looper Brian 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Contrary to Lewis (1981) and Vihvelin (2013), I argue that free will in a deterministic world is an ability to break a law of nature or to change the remote past. Even if it were true, as Lewis and Vihvelin think, that an agent who is predetermined to perform a particular act might not break a law or change the remote past by doing otherwise, it would nevertheless be true that he is able to do otherwise only if he is able to break a law or to change the remote past.
Thick disc molecular gas fraction in NGC 6946
Authors: Patra Narendra Nath 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Several recent studies reinforce the existence of a thick molecular disc in galaxies along with the dynamically cold thin disc. Assuming a two-component molecular disc, we model the disc of NGC 6946 as a four-component system consisting of stars, H i, thin disc molecular gas, and thick disc molecular gas in vertical hydrostatic equilibrium. Following, we set up the joint Poisson-Boltzmann equation of hydrostatic equilibrium and solve it numerically to obtain a three-dimensional density distribution of different baryonic components. Using the density solutions and the observed rotation curve, we further build a three-dimensional dynamical model of the molecular disc and consecutively produce simulated CO spectral cubes and spectral width profiles. We find that the simulated spectral width profiles distinguishably differ for different assumed thick disc molecular gas fractions. Several CO spectral width profiles are then produced for different assumed thick disc molecular gas fractions and compared with the observed one to obtain the best fit thick disc molecular gas fraction profile. We find that the thick disc molecular gas fraction in NGC 6946 largely remains constant across its molecular disc with a mean value of 0.70 ± 0.09. We also estimate the amount of extra-planar molecular gas in NGC 6946. We find $\sim 50\%$ of the total molecular gas is extra-planar at the central region, whereas this fraction reduces to ∼ 15% at the edge of the molecular disc. With our method, for the first time, we estimate the thick disc molecular gas fraction as a function of radius in an external galaxy with sub-kpc resolution.
Webs of Meaning in John Corigliano’s Tarantellas
Authors: Stroud Cara 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
The final movement of John Corigliano’s Gazebo Dances (1972)—a light-hearted suite for two pianos—and the second movement of his Symphony No. 1 (1988)—dedicated to friends lost to AIDS—use the same tarantella refrain as their main thematic material, revealing opposing associations possible with tarantellas. Corigliano’s earlier work exemplifies the witty virtuosity of what I describe as a “humorous” tarantella, while the later work forefronts associations with mental illness and death in what I describe as a “crisis” tarantella. The symphonic movement conveys a process of thematic disintegration that resonates with theories of narrative and irony.
Characterizing and circumventing sequence restrictions for synthesis of circular RNA in vitro
Authors: Rausch Jason W , Heinz William F , Payea Matthew J , Sherpa Chringma , Gorospe Myriam , Le Grice Stuart F J 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Just as eukaryotic circular RNA (circRNA) is a product of intracellular backsplicing, custom circRNA can be synthesized in vitro using a transcription template in which transposed halves of a split group I intron flank the sequence of the RNA to be circularized. Such permuted intron–exon (PIE) constructs have been used to produce circRNA versions of ribozymes, mimics of viral RNA motifs, a streptavidin aptamer, and protein expression vectors for genetic engineering and vaccine development. One limitation of this approach is the obligatory incorporation of small RNA segments (E1 and E2) into nascent circRNA at the site of end-joining. This restriction may preclude synthesis of small circRNA therapeutics and RNA nanoparticles that are sensitive to extraneous sequence, as well as larger circRNA mimics whose sequences must precisely match those of the native species on which they are modelled. In this work, we used serial mutagenesis and in vitro selection to determine how varying E1 and E2 sequences in a thymidylate synthase (td) group I intron PIE transcription template construct affects circRNA synthesis yield. Based on our collective findings, we present guidelines for the design of custom-tailored PIE transcription templates from which synthetic circRNAs of almost any sequence may be efficiently synthesized.
Microbial single-strand annealing proteins enable CRISPR gene-editing tools with improved knock-in efficiencies and reduced off-target effects
Authors: Wang Chengkun , Cheng Jason K W , Zhang Qianhe , Hughes Nicholas W , Xia Qiong , Winslow Monte M , Cong Le 
Published: December 2020

AbstractSeveral existing technologies enable short genomic alterations including generating indels and short nucleotide variants, however, engineering more significant genomic changes is more challenging due to reduced efficiency and precision. Here, we developed RecT Editor via Designer-Cas9-Initiated Targeting (REDIT), which leverages phage single-stranded DNA-annealing proteins (SSAP) RecT for mammalian genome engineering. Relative to Cas9-mediated homology-directed repair (HDR), REDIT yielded up to a 5-fold increase of efficiency to insert kilobase-scale exogenous sequences at defined genomic regions. We validated our REDIT approach using different formats and lengths of knock-in templates. We further demonstrated that REDIT tools using Cas9 nickase have efficient gene-editing activities and reduced off-target errors, measured using a combination of targeted sequencing, genome-wide indel, and insertion mapping assays. Our experiments inhibiting repair enzyme activities suggested that REDIT has the potential to overcome limitations of endogenous DNA repair steps. Finally, our REDIT method is applicable across cell types including human stem cells, and is generalizable to different Cas9 enzymes.
A Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Mystery: Persistent Fevers and Leukocytosis in a Patient With Severe COVID-19
Authors: Sasson Arielle , Aijaz Amna , Chernyavsky Svetlana , Salomon Nadim 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Short-course glucocorticosteroids are being used and tocilizumab (TCZ) had been used to treat patients with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease. These agents, when administered individually, have been associated with tuberculosis (TB) during chronic use. We report a case of TB in a 44-year-old male with diabetes and severe COVID-19 who received high-dose short-course glucocorticosteroids and a single dose of TCZ. The clinical presentation was atypical with unresolving fevers and leukocytosis, progressive lower lobe cavities, and hilar adenopathy. Delayed diagnosis led to prolonged hospitalization and extensive antibiotic use.
Incidence and Severity of Drug Interactions Before and After Switching Antiretroviral Therapy to Bictegravir/Emtricitabine/Tenofovir Alafenamide in Treatment-Experienced Patients
Authors: Schafer Jason J , Pandit Neha S , Cha Agnes , Huesgen Emily , Badowski Melissa , Sherman Elizabeth M , Cocohoba Jennifer , Shimada Ayako , Keith Scott W 
Published: December 2020

AbstractBackgroundSwitching antiretroviral therapy (ART) in people with HIV (PWH) can influence their risk for drug–drug interactions (DDIs). The purpose of this study was to assess changes in the incidence and severity of DDIs among PWH who switched their ART to bictegravir/emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide (BIC/FTC/TAF).MethodsThis was a multicenter retrospective cohort study of PWH on ART and at least 1 concomitant medication (CM) who switched to BIC/FTC/TAF between 3/2018 and 6/2019. Using the University of Liverpool’s HIV Drug Interaction Database, 2 DDI analyses were performed for each patient. The first assessed patients’ preswitch ART regimens with their CM list. The second assessed the same CM list with BIC/FTC/TAF. Each ART-CM combination was given a score of 0 (no or potential weak interaction), 1 (potential interaction), or 2 (contraindicated interaction). A paired t test analyzed changes in total DDI scores following ART switches, and linear regression examined factors contributing to DDI score reductions.ResultsAmong 411 patients, 236 (57%) had at least 1 DDI present at baseline. On average, baseline DDI scores (SD) were 1.4 (1.8) and decreased by 1 point (95% CI, –1.1 to –0.8) after patients switched to BIC/FTC/TAF (P &lt; .0001). After adjusting for demographics, baseline ART, and CM categories, switching to BIC/FTC/TAF led to significant DDI score reductions in patients receiving CMs for cardiovascular disease, neurologic/psychiatric disorders, chronic pain, inflammation, gastrointestinal/urologic conditions, and conditions requiring hormonal therapy.ConclusionsTreatment-experienced PWH eligible to switch their ART may experience significant declines in number and severity of DDIs if switched to BIC/FTC/TAF.
Does Integration Change Gender Attitudes? The Effect of Randomly Assigning Women to Traditionally Male Teams
Authors: Dahl Gordon B , Kotsadam Andreas , Rooth Dan-Olof 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
We examine whether integrating men and women in a traditionally male-dominated environment can change men's attitudes about mixed-gender productivity, gender roles, and gender identity. Our context is the military in Norway, where we randomly assigned female recruits to some squads but not others during boot camp. We find that living and working with women for eight weeks causes men to have more egalitarian attitudes. There is a 14 percentage point higher fraction of men who think mixed-gender teams perform as well or better than same-gender teams, an 8 percentage point increase in men who think household work should be shared equally, and a 14 percentage point increase in men who do not completely disavow feminine traits. Moreover, men in mixed-gender teams are more likely to choose military occupations immediately after boot camp that have a higher fraction of women in them. But these effects do not persist once treatment stops. Treated men’s attitudes converge to those of the controls in a six-month follow-up survey, and there is no long-term effect on choosing fields of study, occupations, or workplaces with a higher fraction of women after military service ends. Contrary to the predictions of many policy makers, we do not find that integrating women into squads hurt male recruits’ performance or satisfaction with service, either during boot camp or their subsequent military assignment. These findings provide evidence that even in a highly gender-skewed environment, gender stereotypes are malleable and can be altered by integrating members of the opposite sex. But they also suggest that without continuing intensive exposure, effects are unlikely to persist.
How Much Information Is Incorporated into Financial Asset Prices? Experimental Evidence
Authors: Page Lionel , Siemroth Christoph 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
We investigate the informational content of prices in financial asset markets. To do so, we use a large number of market experiments in which the amount of information held by traders is precisely observed. We derive a new method to estimate how much of this information is incorporated into market prices. We find that public information is almost completely reflected in prices but that surprisingly little private information—less than 50%—is incorporated into prices. Our estimates therefore suggest that, while semistrong informational efficiency is consistent with the data, financial market prices may be very far from strong-form efficiency.
Bank Lending in the Knowledge Economy
Authors: Dell’Ariccia Giovanni , Kadyrzhanova Dalida , Minoiu Camelia , Ratnovski Lev 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
We study the composition of bank loan portfolios during the transition of the real sector to a knowledge economy where firms increasingly use intangible capital. Exploiting heterogeneity in bank exposure to the compositional shift from tangible to intangible capital, we show that exposed banks curtail commercial lending and reallocate lending to other assets, such as mortgages. We estimate that the substantial growth in intangible capital since the mid-1980s explains around 30% of the secular decline in the share of commercial lending in banks’ loan portfolios. We provide suggestive evidence that this reallocation increased the riskiness of banks’ mortgage lending.
Propofol-Associated Hypertriglyceridemia in Coronavirus Disease 2019 Versus Noncoronavirus Disease 2019 Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
Authors: Kenes Michael T. , McSparron Jakob I. , Marshall Vincent D. , Renius Karl , Hyzy Robert C. 
Published: December 2020

Objectives:
To characterize the incidence and characteristics of propofol-associated hypertriglyceridemia in coronavirus disease 2019 versus noncoronavirus disease 2019 acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Design:
Single-center prospective, observational cohort study.

Setting:
Medical ICU and regional infectious containment unit.

Patients:
Patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome admitted from April 7, 2020, to May 15, 2020, requiring continuous propofol administration.

Interventions:
None.

Measurements and Main Results:
Of 50 patients enrolled, 54% had coronavirus disease 2019 acute respiratory distress syndrome. Median Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment scores were 35.5 (interquartile range, 30.2–41) and 8 (interquartile range, 6–9). Pao
2/Fio
2 ratio was 130.5 (interquartile range, 94.5–193.8). Patients with coronavirus disease 2019-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome experienced a higher rate of hypertriglyceridemia (triglyceride ≥ 500 mg/dL) than noncoronavirus disease 2019-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome (9 [33.3%] vs 1 [4.3%]; p = 0.014). Those with coronavirus disease 2019, compared with those without, received more propofol prior to becoming hypertriglyceridemic (median, 5,436.0 mg [interquartile range, 3,405.5–6,845.5 mg] vs 4,229.0 mg [interquartile range, 2,083.4–4,972.1 mg]; p = 0.027). After adjustment for propofol dose with logistic regression (odds ratio, 5.97; 95% CI, 1.16–59.57; p = 0.031) and propensity score matching (odds ratio, 8.64; 95% CI, 1.27–149.12; p = 0.025), there remained a significant difference in the development of hypertriglyceridemia between coronavirus disease 2019-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome and noncoronavirus disease 2019-associated acute respiratory distress syndrome. There was no difference between groups in time to hypertriglyceridemia (p = 0.063). Serum lipase was not different between those who did or did not develop hypertriglyceridemia (p = 0.545). No patients experienced signs or symptoms of pancreatitis.

Conclusions:
Patients with coronavirus disease 2019 acute respiratory distress syndrome experienced a higher rate of propofol-associated hypertriglyceridemia than noncoronavirus disease 2019 acute respiratory distress syndrome patients, even after accounting for differences in propofol administration.
Thromboembolism, Hypercoagulopathy, and Antiphospholipid Antibodies in Critically Ill Coronavirus Disease 2019 Patients: A Before and After Study of Enhanced Anticoagulation
Authors: van der Linden Jan , Almskog Lou , Liliequist Andreas , Grip Jonathan , Fux Thomas , Rysz Susanne , Ågren Anna , Oldner Anders , Ståhlberg Marcus 
Published: December 2020

Objectives:
To determine the prevalence of thrombotic events, functional coagulation tests, inflammatory biomarkers, and antiphospholipid antibodies before and after enhanced anticoagulation in critically ill coronavirus disease 2019 patients.

Design:
Retrospective.

Setting:
Tertiary intensive care unit.

Patients:
Two cross-sectional cohorts of ICU-treated coronavirus disease 2019 patients were included before (cohort 1, n = 12) and after (cohort 2, n = 14) enhanced prophylactic anticoagulation strategy.

Interventions:
Before and after study of enhanced anticoagulation.

Measurements and Main Results:
Thromboelastometry point-of-care coagulation tests were performed by thromboelastography (Tem International GmbH, Munich, Germany), standard blood tests were extracted from patient charts, and presence of antiphospholipid antibodies in plasma was measured. All patients were males on mechanical ventilation. In cohort 1 (low-molecular-weight heparin dose: 129 ± 53 U/kg/24 hr), 50% had pulmonary embolism, and thromboelastography analysis revealed hypercoagulation in a majority of patients and greater than 80% had detectable antiphospholipid antibodies. In the second cohort (enhanced low-molecular-weight heparin dose: 200 ± 82 U/kg/24 hr; p = 0.04 vs cohort 1), we found a nonsignificantly lower prevalence of pulmonary embolism (21%; p = 0.22), lower fibrinogen (6.3 ± 2.5 vs 8.7 ± 2.0; p = 0.02), reduced fibrinogen-dependent thromboelastography (p < 0.001), and lower inflammatory markers.

Conclusions:
In these two cross-sectional cohorts of ICU-treated coronavirus disease 2019 patients, thromboembolic complications, hypercoagulation, and antiphospholipid antibodies were common. A more aggressive anticoagulation regime was associated with a reduction in inflammatory biomarkers including plasma fibrinogen and a reduction in fibrinogen-dependent hypercoagulation, as indicated by thromboelastography analyses.