bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Paid Sick Leave and Employee Absences
Authors: Scognamiglio Annalisa 
Published: December 2019

AbstractThis paper studies the response of sickness absences to changes in the replacement rate for sick leave. In June 2008, a national law modified both the strength of monitoring and the monetary cost of sick leaves for public sector employees in Italy. Focusing on the National Health Service, which accounts for 21 per cent of the Italian public administration, first, I show that absences largely decreased following the reform. Second, using a difference‐in‐differences strategy that exploits variation in changes to the replacement rate for sick leave, I estimate that a 1 per cent point decrease in the replacement rate reduces absences by 1 per cent.
Lineage‐specific adaptation to climate involves flowering time in North American Arabidopsis lyrata
Authors: Walden Nora , Lucek Kay , Willi Yvonne 
Published: December 2019

AbstractAdaptation to local climatic conditions is commonly found within species, but whether it involves the same intraspecific genomic variants is unknown. We studied this question in North American Arabidopsis lyrata, whose current distribution is shaped by post‐glacial range expansion from two refugia, resulting in two distinct genetic clusters covering comparable climatic gradients. Using pooled whole‐genome sequence data of 41 outcrossing populations, we identified loci associated with three niche‐determining climatic variables in the two clusters and compared these outliers. Little evidence was found for parallelism in climate adaptation for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and for genes with an accumulation of outlier SNPs. Significantly increased selection coefficients supported them as candidates of climate adaptation. However, the fraction of gene ontology (GO) terms shared between clusters was higher compared to outlier SNPs and outlier genes, suggesting that selection acts on similar pathways but not necessarily the same genes. Enriched GO terms involved responses to abiotic and biotic stress, circadian rhythm and development, with flower development and reproduction being among the most frequently detected. In line with GO enrichment, regulators of flowering time were detected as outlier genes. Our results suggest that while adaptation to environmental gradients on the genomic level are lineage‐specific in A. lyrata, similar biological processes seem to be involved. Differential loss of standing genetic variation, probably driven by genetic drift, can in part account for the lack of parallel evolution on the genomic level.
The obesity paradox for outcomes in atrial fibrillation: Evidence from an exposure‐effect analysis of prospective studies
Authors: Liu Xiao , Guo Linjuan , Xiao Kaiwen , Zhu Wengen , Liu Menglu , Wan Rong , Hong Kui 
Published: December 2019

SummaryThe impact of obesity on the prognosis of atrial fibrillation (AF) remains controversial. We conducted an exposure‐effect meta‐analysis of prospective studies to clarify the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and outcomes in patients with AF. The Cochrane Library, PubMed, and Embase databases were searched through May 1, 2019. Summary relative risks (RRs) were calculated using random‐effects models. Nonlinear associations were explored using restricted cubic spline models. Twenty publications involving 161,922 individuals were included. Categorical variable analysis showed that underweight was associated with an increased risk of all‐cause mortality (RR: 2.6), cardiovascular death (RR: 2.91), major bleeding (RR: 1.57), stroke or systemic embolism (RR: 1.62), and a composite endpoint (RR: 2.23). In exposure‐effect analysis, the risk per 5 BMI increase was reduced for adverse outcomes (RR=0.86, 95% CI: 0.80‐0.92 for all‐cause death; RR=0.82, 95% CI: 0.71‐0.95 for cardiovascular death; RR=0.89, 95% CI: 0.84‐0.95 for stroke or systemic embolism; and RR=0.78, 95% CI: 0.67‐0.92 for a composite endpoint). There was a significant “U”‐shaped exposure‐effect relationship with all‐cause death, and the nadir of the curve was observed at a BMI of approximately 28. Our results showed that underweight is associated with a worse prognosis, but that overweight and obesity are associated with improved adverse outcomes in patients with AF.
Left atrial appendage isolation during ablation in the interatrial septum: Rapid recognition by continuous monitoring of appendage electrograms
Authors: Elbatran Ahmed I. , Leung Lisa W.M. , Gallagher Mark M. 
Published: December 2019

AbstractExtensive atrial ablation in the setting of atrial fibrillation (AF) and atrial tachycardia (AT) can affect interatrial connections. A 76‐year‐old man with a history of tachycardia‐induced cardiomyopathy and nine ablation procedures for AF/AT over 15 years presented with highly symptomatic recurrent AT. Previous ablation lesions included pulmonary vein isolation, left atrial posterior wall isolation, mitral isthmus line, cavotricuspid isthmus line, and the ablation of areas of fractionated electrograms.Electroanatomical mapping found the pulmonary veins and the left atrial posterior wall to be silent, as was the posterior interatrial septum and the mitral isthmus area. Activation mapping showed progression of electrograms in the left atrial appendage (LAA) from the septal aspect posteriorly, and in the coronary sinus from proximal to distal; implying the existence of a septal circuit, where extensive fractionation was noted. This was targeted, while monitoring conduction into the LAA using a multielectrode catheter. Ablation led to prompt termination of tachycardia and simultaneous LAA isolation. Immediate cessation of ablation led to recovery of conduction into LAA. Additional lesions in the interatrial septum were required to render the tachycardia noninducible, accompanied by temporary isolation of LAA. The ablation lesion sets employed while ablating AF and left AT can block many interatrial pathways, rendering conduction dependent on muscle bundles in the interatrial septum and, therefore, vulnerable to block by lesions in this area. LAA isolation has been associated with high incidence of LAA thrombus formation and stroke despite oral anticoagulation. Continuous observation of LAA electrograms during ablation can help to avoid this complication.
Over‐accumulation of abscisic acid in transgenic tomato plants increases the risk of hydraulic failure
Authors: Lamarque Laurent J. , Delzon Sylvain , Toups Haley , Gravel Anne‐Isabelle , Corso Déborah , Badel Eric , Burlett Régis , Charrier Guillaume , Cochard Hervé , Jansen Steven , King Andrew , Torres‐Ruiz José M. , Pouzoulet Jérôme , Cramer Grant R. , Thompson Andrew J. , Gambetta Gregory A. 
Published: December 2019

AbstractClimate change threatens food security, and plant science researchers have investigated methods of sustaining crop yield under drought. One approach has been to overproduce abscisic acid (ABA) to enhance water use efficiency. However, the concomitant effects of ABA overproduction on plant vascular system functioning are critical as it influences vulnerability to xylem hydraulic failure. We investigated these effects by comparing physiological and hydraulic responses to water deficit between a tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) wild type control (WT) and a transgenic line overproducing ABA (sp12). Under well‐watered conditions, the sp12 line displayed similar growth rate and greater water use efficiency by operating at lower maximum stomatal conductance. X‐ray microtomography revealed that sp12 was significantly more vulnerable to xylem embolism, resulting in a reduced hydraulic safety margin. We also observed a significant ontogenic effect on vulnerability to xylem embolism for both WT and sp12. This study demonstrates that the greater water use efficiency in the tomato ABA overproducing line is associated with higher vulnerability of the vascular system to embolism and a higher risk of hydraulic failure. Integrating hydraulic traits into breeding programmes represents a critical step for effectively managing a crop's ability to maintain hydraulic conductivity and productivity under water deficit.
A brief history of periodontics in the United States of America: Pioneers and thought‐leaders of the past, and current challenges
Authors: Armitage Gary C. 
Published: December 2019

AbstractThis paper summarizes historical events in periodontology in the United States over the past 200 years. The contributions of some of the key thought‐leaders of the past are highlighted. Throughout the 20th century, the evolution of thought, leading to the views currently held regarding the pathogenesis and treatment of periodontal diseases, was significantly influenced by: (1) major changes in health‐care education; (2) the emergence of periodontics as a specialty of dentistry; (3) the publication of peer‐reviewed journals with an emphasis on periodontology; (4) formation of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR); and (5) expansion of periodontal research programs by the NIDCR. The two major future challenges facing periodontal research are development of a better understanding of the ecological complexities of host‐microbial interactions in periodontal health and disease, and identification of the relevant mechanisms involved in the predictable regeneration of damaged periodontal tissues.
Current trends and new developments in HIV research and periodontal diseases
Authors: Ryder Mark I. , Shiboski Caroline , Yao Tzy‐Jyun , Moscicki Anna‐Barbara 
Published: December 2019

AbstractWith the advent of combined antiretroviral therapies, the face of HIV infection has changed dramatically from a disease with almost certain mortality from serious comorbidities, to a manageable chronic condition with an extended lifespan. In this paper we present the more recent investigations into the epidemiology, microbiology, and pathogenesis of periodontal diseases in patients with HIV, and the effects of combined antiretroviral therapies on the incidence and progression of these diseases both in adults and perinatally infected children. In addition, comparisons and potential interactions between the HIV‐associated microbiome, host responses, and pathogenesis in the oral cavity with the gastrointestinal tract and other areas of the body are presented. Also, the effects of HIV and combined antiretroviral therapies on comorbidities such as hyposalivation, dementia, and osteoporosis on periodontal disease progression are discussed.
Epigenetic reprogramming in periodontal disease: Dynamic crosstalk with potential impact in oncogenesis
Authors: Barros Silvana P. , Fahimipour Farahnaz , Tarran Robert , Kim Steven , Scarel‐Caminaga Raquel Mantuaneli , Justice Anne , North Kari 
Published: December 2019

AbstractPeriodontitis is a chronic multifactorial inﬂammatory disease associated with microbial dysbiosis and characterized by progressive destruction of the periodontal tissues. Such chronic infectious inflammatory disease is recognized as a major public health problem worldwide with measurable impact in systemic health. It has become evident that the periodontal disease phenotypes are not only determined by the microbiome effect, but the extent of the tissue response is also driven by the host genome and epigenome patterns responding to various environmental exposures. More recently there is mounting evidence indicating that epigenetic reprogramming in response to combined intrinsic and environmental exposures, might be particularly relevant due its plasticity and potential application towards precision health. The complex epigenetic crosstalk is reflected in the prognosis and progress of periodontal diseases and may also lead to a favorable landscape for cancer development. This review discusses epigenomics modifications focusing on the role of DNA methylation and pathways linking microbial infection and inflammatory pathways, which are also associated with carcinogenesis. There is a more clear vision whereas 'omics' technologies applied to unveil relevant epigenetic factors could play a significant role in the treatment of periodontal disease in a personalized mode, evidencing that public health approach should coexist with precision individualized treatment.
The relationship of trauma exposure to heart rate variability during wake and sleep in midlife women
Authors: Thurston Rebecca C. , Carson Mary Y. , Koenen Karestan C. , Chang Yuefang , Matthews Karen A. , von Känel Roland , Jennings J. Richard 
Published: December 2019

AbstractTraumatic experiences are common and linked to cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, yet the mechanisms underlying these relationships is less well understood. Few studies have examined trauma exposure and its relation to autonomic influence over cardiac function, a potential pathway linking trauma exposure to CVD risk. Investigating autonomic influence over cardiac function during both wake and sleep is critical, given particular links of sleep autonomic function to cardiovascular health. Among midlife women, we tested whether trauma exposure would be related to lower high frequency heart rate variability (HF‐HRV), an index of vagal influence over cardiac function, during wake and sleep. Three hundred and one nonsmoking midlife women completed physical measures, a 24‐hr electrocardiogram, actigraphy sleep measurement, and questionnaires about trauma (Brief Trauma Questionnaire), childhood abuse (Child Trauma Questionnaire [CTQ]), mood, demographics, and medical/psychiatric history. Relations between trauma and HF‐HRV were assessed in linear mixed effects models adjusting for covariates (age, race, education, body mass index, blood pressure, psychiatric history, medication use, sleep, mood, childhood abuse history). Results indicated that most women had experienced trauma. Any trauma exposure as well as a greater number of traumatic experiences were associated with lower HF‐HRV during wake and particularly during sleep. Relations were not accounted for by covariates. Among midlife women, trauma exposure was related to lower HF‐HRV during wake and sleep. Trauma may have an important impact on vagal influence over the heart, particularly during sleep. Decreased vagal influence over cardiac function may be a key mechanism by which trauma is associated with CVD risk.
Prevalence and severity of groin problems in Spanish football: A prospective study beyond the time‐loss approach
Authors: Esteve Ernest , Clausen Mikkel Bek , Rathleff Michael Skovdal , Vicens‐Bordas Jordi , Casals Martí , Palahí‐Alcàcer Albert , Hölmich Per , Thorborg Kristian 
Published: December 2019

The time‐loss definition of injury is commonly adopted in epidemiological groin‐injury studies in football, with a significant risk of underestimating the impact of these injuries. This study investigated the extent of groin problems, beyond the time‐loss approach, over a full Spanish football season. Players from 17 amateur male teams were followed over 39 consecutive weeks. Groin‐injury time loss and self‐reported groin pain, irrespective of time loss, were combined to calculate the average weekly prevalence of all groin problems with or without time loss. A subscale measuring hip‐ and groin‐related sporting function from the Copenhagen Hip and Groin Outcome Score questionnaire (HAGOS, Sport/Rec) was registered every 4 weeks. In total, 407 players participated in the study. The average (range) weekly prevalence of all groin problems was 11.7% (7.2%‐20.8%); 1.3% with time loss (0.0%‐3.2%) and 10.4% without time loss (6.3%‐17.6%). Players with groin problems reported lower scores (mean difference) on the HAGOS, Sport/Rec subscale compared with players without (−19.5 [95% CI: −20.7 to −18.4]), while there was no difference between players reporting groin problems with and without time loss (4.0 [95% CI: −1.1 to 9.1]). The traditional time‐loss measure only captured 10% of all groin problems. Hip‐ and groin‐related sporting function was not different between players reporting groin problems with or without time loss, suggesting the reason for continuing to play is not only related to the severity of symptoms. These findings question the judicious use of the time‐loss approach in overuse conditions, such as groin pain in footballers.
Ros‐NET: A deep convolutional neural network for automatic identification of rosacea lesions
Authors: Binol Hamidullah , Plotner Alisha , Sopkovich Jennifer , Kaffenberger Benjamin , Niazi Muhammad Khalid Khan , Gurcan Metin N. 
Published: December 2019

AbstractBackgroundRosacea is one of the most common cutaneous disorder characterized primarily by facial flushing, erythema, papules, pustules, telangiectases, and nasal swelling. Diagnosis of rosacea is principally done by a physical examination and a consistent patient history. However, qualitative human assessment is often subjective and suffers from a relatively high intra‐ and inter‐observer variability in evaluating patient outcomes.Materials and MethodsTo overcome these problems, we propose a quantitative and reproducible computer‐aided diagnosis system, Ros‐NET, which integrates information from different image scales and resolutions in order to identify rosacea lesions. This involves adaption of Inception‐ResNet‐v2 and ResNet‐101 to extract rosacea features from facial images. Additionally, we propose to refine the detection results by means of facial‐landmarks–based zones (ie, anthropometric landmarks) as regions of interest (ROI), which focus on typical areas of rosacea occurrence on a face.ResultsUsing a leave‐one‐patient‐out cross‐validation scheme, the weighted average Dice coefficients, in percentages, across all patients (N = 41) with 256 × 256 image patches are 89.8 ± 2.6% and 87.8 ± 2.4% with Inception‐ResNet‐v2 and ResNet‐101, respectively.ConclusionThe findings from this study support that pre‐trained networks trained via transfer learning can be beneficial in identifying rosacea lesions. Our future work will involve expanding the work to a larger database of cases with varying degrees of disease characteristics.
Parametric Resonances of a Three-Blade-Rotor System With Reference to Wind Turbines
Authors: Acar Gizem D. , Acar Mustafa A. , Feeny Brian F. 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
Coupled blade-hub dynamics of a coupled three-blade-rotor system with parametric stiffness, which is similar to a horizontal-axis wind turbine, is studied. Blade equations have parametric and direct excitation terms due to gravity and are coupled through the hub equation. For a single degree-of-freedom blade model with only in-plane transverse vibrations, the reduced-order model shows parametric resonances. A small parameter is established for large blades, which enables us to treat the effect of blade motion as a perturbation on the rotor motion. The rotor speed is not constant, and the cyclic variations cannot be expressed as explicit functions of time. Therefore, it is more convenient to use the rotor angle as the independent variable. By expressing the system dynamics in the rotor angle domain and assuming small variations in rotor speed, the blade equations are decoupled from the rotor equation. The interdependent blade equations constitute a three-degree-of-freedom system with periodic parametric and direct excitation. The response is analyzed by using a first-order method of multiple scales (MMS). The system has a superharmonic and a subharmonic resonances due to direct and parametric effects introduced by gravity. Amplitude-frequency relations and stabilities of these resonances are studied. The MMS solutions are compared with numerical simulations for verification.
Experimental and Numerical Assessment of Local Resonance Phenomena in 3D-Printed Acoustic Metamaterials
Authors: Roca D. , Pàmies T. , Cante J. , Lloberas-Valls O. , Oliver J. 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
The so-called locally resonant acoustic metamaterials (LRAMs) are a new kind of artificially engineered materials capable of attenuating acoustic waves. As the name suggests, this phenomenon occurs in the vicinity of internal frequencies of the material structure and can give rise to acoustic bandgaps. One possible way to achieve this is by considering periodic arrangements of a certain topology (unit cell), smaller in size than the characteristic wavelength. In this context, a computational model based on a homogenization framework has been developed from which one can obtain the aforementioned resonance frequencies for a given LRAM unit cell design in the sub-wavelength regime, which is suitable for low-frequency applications. Aiming at validating both the proposed numerical model and the local resonance phenomena responsible for the attenuation capabilities of such materials, a 3D-printed prototype consisting of a plate with a well selected LRAM unit cell design has been built and its acoustic response to normal incident waves in the range between 500 and 2000 Hz has been tested in an impedance tube. The results demonstrate the attenuating capabilities of the proposed design in the targeted frequency range for normal incident sound pressure waves and also establish the proposed formulation as the fundamental base for the computational design of 3D-printed LRAM-based structures.
A Spatial and Temporal Harmonic Balance Method for Obtaining Periodic Solutions of a Nonlinear Partial Differential Equation With a Linear Complex Boundary Condition
Authors: Wang Xuefeng , Zhu Weidong 
Published: December 2019

Abstract
A spatial and temporal harmonic balance (STHB) method is demonstrated in this work by solving periodic solutions of a nonlinear string equation with a linear complex boundary condition, and stability analysis of the solutions is conducted by using the Hill’s method. In the STHB method, sine functions are used as basis functions in the space coordinate of the solutions, so that the spatial harmonic balance procedure can be implemented by the fast discrete sine transform. A trial function of a solution is formed by truncated sine functions and an additional function to satisfy the boundary conditions. In order to use sine functions as test functions, the method derives a relationship between the additional coordinate associated with the additional function and generalized coordinates associated with the sine functions. An analytical method to derive the Jacobian matrix of the harmonic balanced residual is also developed, and the matrix can be used in the Newton method to solve periodic solutions. The STHB procedures and analytical derivation of the Jacobian matrix make solutions of the nonlinear string equation with the linear spring boundary condition efficient and easy to be implemented by computer programs. The relationship between the Jacobian matrix and the system matrix of linearized ordinary differential equations (ODEs) that are associated with the governing partial differential equation is also developed, so that one can directly use the Hill’s method to analyze the stability of the periodic solutions without deriving the linearized ODEs. The frequency-response curve of the periodic solutions is obtained and their stability is examined.