bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
From Plasmodium vivax outbreak to elimination: lessons learnt from a retrospective analysis of data from Guantang
Authors: Yang Guo-Jing , Liu Ying , Shang Le-Yuan , Zhang Hong-Wei , Zhou Xiao-Nong , Penny Melissa A. , Smith Thomas A. 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
Background : Malaria was once a serious public health problem in China with Plasmodium vivax the major species responsible for more than 90% of local transmission. Following significant integrated malaria control and elimination programs, malaria burden declined, and by 2017 China recorded no indigenous cases. To understand the historical malaria transmission patterns and epidemic characteristics in China and insights useful to guide P. vivax malaria control and elimination elsewhere, a retrospective study was carried out.Materials and Methods: Historical data from a pilot study conducted in Guantang, Luyi in central China from 1971-1995, were digitised. The data included monthly numbers of reported cases, febrile cases, parasite carriage rates, the neonatal infection rate, and entomological data from Anopheles sinensis.Results: Following 25 years of continuous integrated malaria control activities, malaria incidence in Guantang decreased from 4,333 cases per 10,000 in 1970 before integrated implementation to 0.23 cases per 10,000 in 1991, and no cases in 1992-1995. Some fluctuations in incidence were observed between 1977 and 1981. During the period parasite rates, antibody levels and the neonatal infection rate also decreased. The pattern of seasonality confirmed that P. vivax in Henan Province was primarily of long incubation type (temperate) during non-transmission period. The findings retrospectively provide a scientific basis for the implementation of mass campaigns of liver stage hypnozoite clearance. Entomological studies indicated that An. sinensis was the only vector, and it preferred bovine to human hosts, predominantly biting and resting outdoors . Mosquito densities declined between 1971 and 1984.Conclusion: The integrated malaria control approach in Guantang effectively controlled malaria and achieved elimination. Analysis of the effectiveness of the program can provide guidance to other regions or countries with similar ecological settings aiming to move from malaria control to elimination. There is a potential challenge in the maintenance of non-transmission status owing to imported cases and the long dormancy of liver stage hypnozoites.
Mutations in domain V of Mycoplasma pneumoniae 23S rRNA are not associated with clinical characteristics of M. pneumoniae pneumonia in children: a case control study
Authors: Deng Huan , Zhu Yifan , Zhang Jiamin , Rong Qiangquan , Quan Yao , Tang Heng , Zhao Deyu 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
Background Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) is a common agent of community-acquired pneumonia in children and young adults that can lead to refractory or persistent Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (MPP). Macrolide-resistant MP harbors point mutations in domain V of 23S ribosomal Ribonucleic Acid (rRNA) with substitutions detected at positions 2063, 2064, 2067 and 2617. This study’s purpose is to investigate the prevalence and clinical characteristics of mutations in domain V of MP 23S rRNA. Methods We sequenced the 23S rRNA domain V of MP strains collected from children with MPP. Clinical and laboratory data were also obtained, including gender, age, duration of fever, duration of fever after the start of macrolide therapy, MP-Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) load at enrollment, leukocyte count, neutrophil count, and lymphocyte count, immunomodulators treatment and pulmonary complications.Results Of 276 strains, 255 (92.39 %) harbored A to G transition at the position 2063 (A2063G), and 21 (7.61 %) were not mutated. There were no significant differences in gender, age, duration of fever, duration of fever after the start of macrolide therapy, MP-DNA load at enrollment, hospitalization days, lymphocyte count and pulmonary complications when patients were stratified based on the presence or absence of domain V mutations. We also found that children with refractory MPP experienced higher MP-DNA load than the non-refractory MPP, but the prevalence of domain V mutations was comparable.Conclusions We found that clinical MP strains harbored very high mutation rate in 23S rRNA domain V, especially A2063G mutation. However, these mutations were not associated with clinical symptoms, laboratory results, pulmonary complications and development of refractory pneumonia. Instead, MP-DNA load was significantly different between refractory and non-refractory MPP.
Application of the thermal time model for different Typha domingensis populations
Authors: León Fanny Mabel Carhuancho , Cortijo Pedro Luis Aguado , Izquierdo María del Carmen Morató , Moncho María Teresa Castellanos 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
BackgroundTypha domingensis Pers. is a perennial emergent plant that in comparison to other Typha species, produces more biomass. This species is used in Green Floating Filters (GFFs), one of the most innovative systems of wastewater treatment to bioremediate eutrophic waters and produce biomass as biofuel feedstocks. The establishment of a GFF depends on the seed germination and plant responses under conditions of a new habitat. This study analysed the germination response of four different populations of T. domingensis through a thermal time model to determine which population would have the fastest germination for establishment in a GFF.ResultsSeeds from the Badajoz (Ba), Cuenca (Cu), Madrid (Ma) and Seville (Se) populations were exposed to different thermal regimes (constant and alternating temperatures between 15 and 30°C) and photoperiods (0, 3, 5, 7,10 and 20 days in darkness) to determine the parameters of the thermal model. Regardless of other parameters, no germination occurred in total darkness (20 days). The mean value of the base temperature (Tb) was 16.4±0.2°C in all treatments. The optimum temperature (To) values in Ma and Ba were 25°C, and those in Cu and Se were 22.5°C. The germination response decreased when the temperature approached Tb and increased when it was close to To. In comparison to temperatures with a ΔT= 5°C or 10°C, those with a ΔT= 15°C or ΔT= 0°C had the highest germination response and lowest thermal time (θT(50)). The photoperiod had a relationship with θT(50), but it was not proportional. The populations also affected germination; Cu had the highest values of To and germination response but had a lower θT(50). which coincides with the lowest mean ambient temperatures.Conclusion According to these results, the germination response of T. domingensis under optimal conditions was high in all populations but was affected to a greater or lesser extent depending on thermal regimes, photoperiods, and population. The thermal time model allowed us to determine that in comparison to other populations, Cu is the best population for establishment in a GFF due to its high germination response under the conditions tested.
Study on the Color-Compensation Effect of Hybrid Orange-Red Quantum Dots in WLED Application
Authors: Hu Xiaoyue , Xie Yangyang , Geng Chong , Xu Shu , Bi Wengang 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
Quantum dots (QDs) as emerging light-converting materials show the advantage of enhancing color quality of white light-emitting diode (WLED). However, WLEDs employing narrow-emitting monochromic QDs usually present unsatisfactory color rendering in the orange region. Herein, orange-red emitting polychromic hybrid QDs (hybrid-QDs) are developed through mixing CdSe/ZnS based orange QDs (O-QDs) and red QDs (R-QDs) to compensate the orange-red light for WLEDs. We investigated the effect of self-absorption and fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) process in hybrid-QDs on the spectral controllability and fluorescent quenching in WLEDs. The concentration and donor/acceptor ratios were also taken into account to analyze the FRET efficiency and help identify suitable hybrid-QDs for color compensation in the orange-red light region. As the result, the optimized hybrid-QDs effectively improve the color rendering index of the WLED compared with monochromatic QDs at the same color coordinates.
Power Control for SISO Interference Channel Networks Based on Successive Convex Approximation
Authors: Mao Ruina , Yu Jiguo , Dong Anming , Wang Yue , Huang Baogui 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
Interference channel (IC) is a classical model used to characterize the effect of interference for many real-life communication systems. In this paper, we consider a sum rate maximization problem subject to maximum power restriction at each transmitter for a single-input single-output (SISO) IC network. The considered power control problem is typically a nonconvex problem which is hard to solve directly. We propose a solving algorithm for this power control problem based on successive convex approximation (SCA). Specifically, we first reformulate the original nonconvex objective function as the difference of two concave (D.C.) functions near a given point in the feasible region of the solution space. After that, we construct a convex substitute function for the D.C. objective by approximating its second concave function with the one-order Taylor expansion. The problem is further reformulated as an unconstrained problem by transforming the constraints as a barrier function. This unconstrained problem is then solved iteratively using Newton's method. We update the substitute function given the newly obtained solution, near which the one-order Taylor expansion is performed again. This process is then repeated until a smooth point is reached. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed SCA-based power control algorithm.
Association between Atherogenic Index of Plasma and Coronary Artery Calcification Progression in Korean Adults
Authors: Nam Ji Sun , Kim Min Kyung , Nam Joo Young , Park Kahui , Kang Shinae , Ahn Chul Woo , Park Jong Suk 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
Background Dyslipidemia is a well-known risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Recently, atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) has been proposed as a novel predictive marker for CVD, and there are few cross sectional studies that demonstrated a relationship between AIP and coronary artery disease. We investigated the association between AIP and the progression of coronary artery calcification (CAC) in Korean adults without CVD. Methods A total of 1,124 participants who had undergone CAC measurement at least twice by multi-detector CT in a health care center were enrolled. Anthropometric profiles and multiple cardiovascular risk factors were assessed. The AIP was defined as the base 10 logarithm of the ratio of the concentration of TG to HDL-C. The CAC progression was defined as either incident CAC in a CAC-free population at baseline or an increase of ≥ 2.5 units between the square roots of the baseline and follow-up coronary artery calcium scores (CACS) among subjects with detectable CAC at baseline Results CAC progression was observed in 290 subjects (25.8%) during the mean 4.2 years of follow-up. All subjects were stratified into three groups according to AIP. There were significant differences in cardiovascular parameters among the groups at baseline. The follow-up CAC and the incidence of CAC progression increased gradually with the rising AIP tertiles. In the logistic regression analysis, the odds ratio for CAC progression was 2.27 when comparing the highest to the lowest tertile of the AIP (95% CI: 1.61-3.19; P for trend <0.01). However, this association was attenuated after adjustment for multiple risk factors (P for trend = 0.67). Conclusions There is a significant correlation between AIP and CAC and its progression in subjects without CVD, but AIP is not an independent predictor of CAC progression.
Supporting breastfeeding at work in a public sector setting: A qualitative exploratory study among managers and employed mothers
Authors: Mabaso Prudence Bongekile , Jaga Ameeta , Doherty Tanya 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
Background: Return to employment is a major barrier to breastfeeding continuation, globally and in the Southern African context. The Lancet breastfeeding series revealed an explicit need for research exploring breastfeeding as a workplace issue in low- and middle-income countries. A dearth of research on workplace breastfeeding in South Africa, and limited awareness about legislation to protect breastfeeding employees, calls for attention to this topic. Methods: This qualitative study explored experiences of workplace breastfeeding amongst employed mothers and senior managers in two provincial government departments in South Africa. Twelve in-depth interviews were conducted with senior managers ( n = 4) and employed mothers ( n = 8). Results: Thematic analysis of the data revealed findings important to understanding mothers’ decisions about breastfeeding at work, across three critical maternity periods: 1) During pregnancy: poor knowledge about comprehensive maternity benefits and an absence of a conversation on infant feeding plans with managers meant mothers were disempowered to make informed choices about breastfeeding at work; 2) During maternity leave: stress from anticipated work-family conflict and logistical considerations influenced mothers’ decisions to wean infants; and 3) Upon return to work: mothers experienced a lack of workplace infrastructural support for breastfeeding. Conclusion: Our study contributions emphasise that breastfeeding support from managers should begin prior to the mother taking maternity leave. Immediate supervisors were found to be an important but overlooked agent to enforce legislation and provide breastfeeding support. Implications for management for advancing support for breastfeeding at work in the public sector are presented.
Assessment of exercise-induced stress by automated measurement of salivary cortisol concentrations within the circadian rhythm in Japanese female long-distance runners
Authors: Ushiki Kazumi , Tsunekawa Katsuhiko , Shoho Yoshifumi , Martha Larasati , Ishigaki Hirotaka , Matsumoto Ryutaro , Yanagawa Yoshimaro , Nakazawa Asuka , Yoshida Akihiro , Nakajima Kiyomi , Araki Osamu , Kimura Takao , Murakami Masami 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
Background Overtraining syndrome, caused by prolonged excessive stress, results in reduced performance and cortisol responsiveness in athletes. It is necessary to collect saliva samples sequentially within circadian rhythm for assessing exercise stress by measuring cortisol concentrations, and automated cortisol measurements using electrochemiluminescence immunoassay (ECLIA) may be useful for measuring a large number of saliva samples. In this study, we evaluated the appropriate use of cortisol-based exercise stress assessment within the circadian rhythm, which may diagnose and prevent overtraining syndrome in athletes. Methods We collected saliva and sera from 54 healthy participants and analyzed the correlation between salivary cortisol concentrations measured by ECLIA and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) or serum cortisol analysis. We also collected saliva continuously from 12 female long-distance runners on 2 consecutive days involving different intensities and types of exercise early in the morning and in the afternoon and measured salivary cortisol concentrations using ECLIA. Each exercise intensity of runners was measured by running velocities, Borg Scale score, and rate of change in the pulse rate by exercise. Results ECLIA-based salivary cortisol concentrations correlated positively with those detected by ELISA (ρ = 0.924, p < 0.001) and serum cortisol (ρ = 0.591, p = 0.001). In long-distance runners, circadian rhythm of salivary cortisol including peak after waking and decrease promptly thereafter were detected on both days by continuous saliva sampling. The rates of change in salivary cortisol concentrations were significantly lower after an early morning exercise than after an afternoon exercise on both days (day 1, p = 0.002 and day 2, p = 0.003). In the early morning exercise, the rate of change in salivary cortisol concentration was significantly higher on day 1 than on day 2 ( p = 0.034), similar to significant difference in running velocities ( p = 0.001). Conclusions Our results suggest that automated ECLIA-based salivary cortisol measurements are able to detect the athletes' circadian rhythm and compare the exercise stress intensities at the same times on different days, even in the early morning, possibly leading to prevention of overtraining syndrome.
Systematic review and meta-analysis of efficacy and safety of silodosin in treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia patients with lower urinary tract symptoms
Authors: Yuan Chi , Jian Zhongyu , Ma Yucheng , Wang Menghua , Hu Qibo , Liu Linhu , He Yushi , Li Hong , Wang Kunjie 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
Background: Silodosin is a new high-selective α1A-adrenoceptors antagonist. A systematic review of literature and meta-analysis were performed to compare the clinical efficacy and safety outcomes of silodosin with placebo, tamsulosin, naftopidil and alfuzosin in treating benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) males with lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). Materials and Methods: We systematically searched literature among EMBASE, PubMed, Cochrane Library, ScienceDirect and Web of Science databases until April 2019. 18 related randomized controlled trials were included according to eligibility criteria. Random-effects model were applied for data analysis. Results: 5,985 patients were included in our study. Silodosin presented superiority to placebo in improving LUTS and better efficacy than tamsulosin and naftopidil in improving IPSS void subscore and post-void residual urine volume with statistically significance (all P values < 0.05). Greater QoL index improvement were found in silodosin than alfuzosin groups (MD = -0.44, 95%CI: [-0.83, -0.05], P = 0.03) while no differences in total IPSS score and Qmax changes between these two groups. Retrograde ejaculation was significantly frequent in silodosin than placebo, tamsulosin and naftopidil groups (all P values < 0.05). Besides, silodosin increased incidence of upper respiratory tract infection compared to tamsulosin groups (RR = 0.69, 95%CI: [0.50, 0.96], P = 0.03). A higher rate of nasal congestion (RR = 7.76, 95%CI: [1.80, 33.41], P = 0.006) were found in silodosin than placebo groups while no difference for nasopharyngitis ((RR = 1.16, 95%CI: [0.54, 2.47], P = 0.71). Prevalence of headache (RR = 0.54, 95%CI: [0.27, 1.06], P = 0.07) and postural hypotension (RR = 0.14, 95%CI: [0.03, 0.77], P = 0.02) were lower in silodosin than tamsulosin groups, although dizziness and vertigo was more frequent in silodosin than placebo (RR = 2.26, 95%CI: [1.21, 4.21], P = 0.009). Conclusions: Our study demonstrated silodosin’s possible superiority to placebo and naftopidil while noninferiority to tamsulosin and alfuzosin in LUTS improvement of BPH males. Better cardiovascular safety was in silodosin groups, although incidence of retrograde ejaculation and respiratory adverse events were higher.
Is There a Relationship Between Smoking and Stricture Recurrence After the Urethroplasty? a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Ma Yu-cheng , Wang Menghua , Jian Zhong-Yu , Li Hong , Wang Kunjie 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
Background Some retrospective studies have noted that smoking is a possible risk factor for recurrence of restenosis after urethroplasty, but not all of them are consistent. Therefore a meta-analysis is needed. Method Pubmed, Web of Science, Embase, Cochrane databases were searched with key words: “urethroplasty”, “buccal mucosa graft urethroplasty”, “oral mucosa graft urethroplasty”, “excision and primary anastomosis urethroplasty”, “urethral stricture recurrence” until Jan 30, 2020. The quality of included studies was assessed by Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) system. Hazard ratio (HR), odds ratio (OR), relative risk (RR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) were extracted or re-calculated from included studies. Meta-analysis was performed with Stata 15.0 based on univariate and multivariate data separately. Sensitivity analysis was performed to test stability of meta-analysis. I 2 was calculated to evaluate heterogeneity. Publication biases were assessed by egger’s and begg’s tests. Funnel plots of univariate analysis and multivariate analysis were also offered. Results 12 studies with 3443 patients were involved into this meta-analysis. The analysis results of two stages were consistent. In the univariate meta-analysis stage, 9 studies with 2279 patients were pooled and the result indicated that smoking might promote stricture recurrence (RR=1.46, 95%CI: 1.11-1.93, P=0.008). In the multivariate meta-analysis stage, based on adjusted estimate, 7 studies with 2074 patients were pooled and the result indicated that smoking might promote stricture recurrence (RR=1.39, 95%CI: 1.04-1.85, P=0.026). There was no significant heterogeneity in both univariate and multivariate stage. Conclusion This meta-analysis of current evidence indicates that smoking may prompt stricture recurrence after the urethroplasty. Quitting smoking may be a good option for patients undergoing urethroplasty surgery.
The stone density does not affect the stone-free rate of kidney pelvic stones (2-3 cm) treated with flexible ureterorenoscopy
Authors: Bai Yao , Hu Sheng , Dai Yuanqing , Chen Xiong , Zhang Xiaobo , Gu Jie 
Published: February 2020

Abstract
Objectives To compare the efficacy of retrograde flexible ureterorenoscopy (FURS) in the treatment of low-density stone (LDS) and high-density stone (HDS).Patients and Methods From January 2017 to March 2019, 241 patients with 2–3 cm kidney pelvic stones were treated with retrograde flexible ureterorenoscopy. The relevant study parameter for all patients, including patients age, body mass index (BMI), gender, stone density values (Hounsfield units [HU]), stone size, stone location, operative time, hospitalization time, stone free rate (SFR), complications were evaluated. The results were assessed one month after the FURS and the follow-up time is 6 months.Results Effectively, 241 patients finish the whole process and are divided into two groups (LDS and HDS). The postoperative hemoglobin (Hb) was 13.31±1.06 vs. 13.21±1.14 g/dL (p=0.50). The mean total operating time was 83.91±13.7 vs. 130.65±19.8 min (p<0.01), respectively. The hospitalization time was 3.4±1.1 vs 3.2±1.1 days (p=0.33), respectively. The free stone rate was 91.5% vs. 93.5% (p=0.54) and the street stone rate was 12(10%) vs. 3(2.4%) (χ2=6.173 a , p=0.01) in the LDS and HDS groups.Conclusions We concluded that FURS is safe and effective for the treatment of large renal pelvic stones 2-3 cm. There is no difference in the SFR between LDS and HDS group after the FURS operation. Density (as measured by non-contrast CT) of the renal calculus can help predict the treatment outcome before FURS. For appropriate patients, FURS should be chosen as a common approach in the treatment of renal pelvic calculus.