bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cytotoxic withanolides from Datura innoxia
Authors: Maldonado Emma , Ramírez-Apan Teresa , Martínez Mahinda 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Chemical investigation of the aerial parts (except fruits) of the medicinal, hallucinogen and toxic plant Datura innoxia Mill. [Solanaceae] led to the isolation of the new withanolide, dinnoxolide A (1), along with the known compounds 21,27-dihydroxy-1-oxowitha-2,5,24-trienolide (2), daturamalakin B (3) and withametelin (4). Their structures were established by analysis of their spectroscopic data, including 1D and 2D NMR experiments and MS. Compounds 2 and 3 were isolated as natural products for the first time and the name dinnoxolide B was given to compound 2. The four withanolides showed in vitro cytotoxic activity against U251 (glioblastoma) and SK-LU-1 (lung adenocarcinoma) human cancer cell lines, with IC50 values ranging from 1.2 to 19.6 µM, and also against the noncancerous monkey kidney cell line (COS-7), with IC50 values ranging from 5.0 to 19.7 µM. Compound 4 was two times more active than the reference compound, etoposide, against lung adenocarcinoma cells.
Pelvic Organ Prolapse Surgery and Health-Related Quality of Life: A Follow-up Study.
Authors: Belayneh Tadesse , Gebeyehu Abebaw , Adefris Mulat , Rortveit Guri , Gjerde Janne Lillelid , Awoke Tadesse 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Background Symptomatic prolapse impairs quality of life. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is considered an important outcome of pelvic organ prolapse (POP) surgery. However, it is rarely reported, and measures are inadequately used. Thus, studies reporting patient-reported surgical outcomes in low-income contexts are needed. This study aims to evaluate the effect of prolapse surgery on patient HRQoL and determine the predictive factors for change in HRQoL. Methods A total of 215 patients who had prolapse stage III or IV were enrolled. Patients underwent vaginal native tissue repair, and their HRQoL was evaluated at baseline, 3 and 6 months postoperatively. Effect of surgery on subjective outcomes were measured using validated Prolapse Quality of Life (P-QoL-20), Prolapse Symptom Score (POP-SS), Body Image in Prolapse (BIPOP), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and Patient Global Index of Improvement (PGI-I) tools. A linear mixed-effect model was used to compare pre- and postoperative P-QoL scores and investigate potential predictors of the changes in P-QoL scores. Results In total, 193 (89.7%) patients were eligible for analysis at 3 months, and 185 (86.0%) at 6 months. Participant’s mean age was 49.3±9.4 years. The majority of patients had prolapse stage III (81.9%) and underwent vaginal hysterectomy (55.3%). All domains of P-QoL improved significantly after surgery. Altogether more than 72% of patients reported clinically meaningful improvement in condition-specific quality of life measured with P-QoL-20 at 6 months. An improvement in POP-SS, BIPOP, and the PHQ-9 scores were also observed during both follow-up assessments. At 6 months after surgery, only 2.7% of patients reported the presence of bulge symptoms. A total of 97.8% of patients had reported improvement in comparison to the preoperative state, according to PGI-I. The change in P-QoL score after surgery was associated with the change in POP-SS, PHQ, BIPOP scores and marital status (p < 0.001). However, age, type of surgery, and prolapse stage were not associated with the improvement of P-QoL scores. Conclusions Surgical repair for prolapse effectively improves patient’s HRQoL, and patient satisfaction is high. The result could be useful for patient counselling on the expected HRQoL outcomes of surgical treatment. Surgical service should be accessible for patients suffering from POP to improve HRQoL.
Dynamic changes in the immune response correlate with disease severity and outcomes during infection with SARS-CoV-2
Authors: Zheng Fang , Chen Ruochan , Yao Run , Huang Yaxiong , Li Ning , Liu Jiyang , Xie Yuanlin 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Background:The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has rapidly spread throughout China and all over the world. Little is known about the dynamic changes in the patient immune responses to SARS-CoV-2, and how different responses are correlated with disease severity and outcomes.Method:74 patients with confirmed COVID-19 were enrolled in this prospective research. The demographic information, medical history, symptoms, signs and laboratory results were analyzed and compared between severe and non-severe patients. The leukocytes, lymphocyte subsets and inflammatory cytokines were longitudinally collected.Results:Of the 74 patients included, 17 suffered from severe disease. The severe patients tended be older (65.29 ± 12.33 years vs. 45.37 ± 18.66 years), and had a greater degree of underlying disease (41.18% vs. 24.56%) , lower baseline lymphocytes counts (0.69 ± 0.36 × 10⁹ vs. 1.46 ± 0.75 × 10⁹) , higher neutrophil-lymphocyte-ratios (NLRs; 3.76 (3.15–5.51) vs. 2.07 (1.48–2.93)) and lower baseline eosinophil counts (0.01 ± 0.01 × 10⁹ vs. 0.05 ± 0.07 × 10⁹), than that in non-severe patients. The baseline helper T (Th) cells (335.47 vs. 666.46/mL), suppressor T(Ts) cells (158 vs. 334/mL), B cells (95 vs. 210/mL), and natural killer (NK) cells (52 vs. 122/mL) were significantly decreased in severe cases compared to that in non-severe cases. In addition, the baseline neutrophils and B cells were positively correlated with the severity of COVID-19 and the baseline lymphocytes and Th cells were negatively correlated with the severity of COVID-19. The dynamic change of T cells, Th cells and IFN-γ in the severe cases were parallel to the amelioration of the disease.Conclusions:Collectively, our study provides novel information on the kinetics of the immune responses in a cohort of COVID-19 patients with different disease severities. Furthermore, our study indicates that both innate and adaptive immune responses correlate with better clinical outcomes.
Fetal sex and maternal postpartum depressive symptoms: findings from two prospective pregnancy cohorts
Authors: Cowell Whitney , Colicino Elena , Askowitz Talia , Nentin Farida , Wright Rosalind 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Background: Fetal sex is known to modify the course and complications of pregnancy, with recent evidence of sex-differential fetal influences on the maternal immune and endocrine systems. In turn, heightened inflammation and surges in reproductive hormone levels associated with pregnancy and parturition have been linked with the development of perinatal depression. Here, we examined whether there is an association between fetal sex and maternal depression assessed during the prenatal and postnatal periods.Methods: The study included two multi-ethnic, prospective pregnancy cohorts that enrolled women from prenatal clinics in the Northeastern United States between 2001 and 2018. Maternal depressive symptoms were measured during the prenatal and postnatal periods using the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale (EPDS) and newborn sex was reported by the mother following delivery. We used logistic regression to examine associations between fetal sex and maternal depressive symptoms (EPDS>10) during the prenatal period only, postnatal period only, or both periods versus no depressive symptoms during either period. We considered both unadjusted models and models adjusted for a core set of sociodemographic and lifestyle variables.Results: In adjusted models using PRISM data (N=528), women pregnant with a male versus female fetus had significantly greater odds of depressive symptoms during the postnatal period compared to women without depressive symptoms during either period (odds ratio [OR] = 5.24, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.93, 14.21). The direction of results was consistent in the ACCESS cohort, although the findings did not reach statistical significance (OR = 2.05, 95% CI = 0.86, 4.93). Significant associations were not observed in either cohort among women with prenatal symptoms only or women with prenatal and postnatal symptoms.Conclusions: Male fetal sex was associated with the onset of depressive symptoms during the postnatal period.
Coculture with hemicellulose-fermenting microbes reverses inhibition of corn fiber solubilization by Clostridium&nbsp;thermocellum at elevated solids&nbsp;loadings
Authors: Beri Dhananjay , Herring Christopher D , Blahova Sofie , Poudel Suresh , Giannone Richard , Hettich Robert , Lynd Lee R 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
BackgroundThe cellulolytic thermophile Clostridium thermocellum is an important biocatalyst due to its ability to solubilize lignocellulosic feedstocks without the need for pretreatment or exogenous enzyme addition. At low concentrations of substrate, C. thermocellum can solubilize corn fiber >95% in 5 days, but solubilization declines markedly at substrate concentrations higher than 20 g/L. This differs for model cellulose like Avicel, on which the maximum solubilization rate increases in proportion to substrate concentration. The goal of this study was to examine fermentation at increasing corn fiber concentrations and investigate possible reasons for declining performance.ResultsThe rate of growth of C. thermocellum on corn fiber, inferred from CipA scaffoldin levels measured by LC-MS/MS, showed very little increase with increasing solids loading. To test for inhibition, we evaluated the effects of spent broth on growth and cellulase activity. The liquids remaining after corn fiber fermentation were found to be strongly inhibitory to growth on cellobiose, a substrate that does not require cellulose hydrolysis. Additionally, the hydrolytic activity of C. thermocellum cellulase was also reduced to less than half by adding spent broth. Noting that >15 g/L hemicellulose oligosaccharides accumulated in the spent broth of a 40 g/L corn fiber fermentation, we tested the effect of various model carbohydrates on growth on cellobiose and Avicel. Some compounds like xylooligosaccharides caused a decline in cellulolytic activity and a reduction in the maximum solubilization rate on Avicel. However, there were no relevant model compounds that could replicate the strong inhibition by spent broth on C. thermocellum growth on cellobiose. Cocultures of C. thermocellum with hemicellulose consuming partners - Herbinix spp. strain LL1355 and Thermoanaerobacterium thermosaccharolyticum –exhibited lower levels of unfermented hemicellulose hydrolysis products, a doubling of the maximum solubilization rate, and final solubilization increased from 67% to 93%. ConclusionsThis study documents inhibition of C. thermocellum with increasing corn fiber concentration and demonstrates inhibition of cellulase activity by xylooligosaccharides, but further work is needed to understand why growth on cellobiose was inhibited by corn fiber fermentation broth. Our results support the importance of hemicellulose-utilizing coculture partners to augment C. thermocellum in the fermentation of lignocellulosic feedstocks at high solids loading.
Patents on Violacein: A Compound with Great Diversity of Biological Activities and Industrial Potential
Authors: Durán Nelson , Fávaro Wagner J. , Brocchi Marcelo , Justo Giselle Z. , Castro Guillermo R. , Durán Marcela , Nakazato Gerson 
Published: December 2020

Background:
This review outlines the current impact of violacein-derivative
materials in several technological areas through patents.

Methods:
A comprehensive examination of patent databases on violacein demonstrated
the relevance of this pigment, as well as the pertinent topics related to its technological
development in order to obtain adaptable new pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and new quality
fiber materials, together with other applications of violacein in different areas.

Results:
At present, there is no efficient and economical technique for violacein preparation
at the industrial scale. Many attempts have been made, but none have overcome the
challenge of being an effective and inexpensive process. However, some potential applications
of violacein in fields such as biomedicine make the pigment worthy of continuous
investigation. In particular, violacein patents covering biosynthesis for different applications
have been reported recently.

Conclusion:
Violacein has been used as a unique pigment in distinct specialty areas,
such as in medical and industrial fields. This review of patents provides an update on violacein
innovations that are useful for researchers working in the expanding and interesting
field of biotechnology with natural pigments.
Fire Blight Management: Physiological Assessment of Cultural Control By Pruning in Pear Orchards
Authors: Mendes Rafael J. , Mariz-Ponte Nuno , Correia Cristiana V. , Dias Maria Celeste , De Sousa Miguel Leão , Tavares Fernando , Santos Conceição 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
The aim of this work was to evaluate the photosynthetic performance of Pear trees (cv. ‘Rocha’) infected with Erwinia amylovora, three months after suffering a pruning of infected branches (P-trees) compared with asymptomatic trees (C-trees) of the same orchard. Three months after pruning, P-trees looked healthy and were negative for the presence of E. amylovora. In September of 2018, fully expanded leaves of both P- and C- trees were sampled and analysed for photosynthetic parameters related to chlorophyll a fluorescence and gas exchange, alongside with pigments, total soluble sugars, starch, and ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCO) contents. No significant differences were found in chlorophyll and carotenoids levels, but anthocyanins significantly decreased in P-trees. Also, despite the maximum quantum yield (Fv/Fm) significantly decreased in P-trees, the effective quantum yield of the PSII was maintained, paralleled with no changes in gas exchange parameters (PN, gs, Ci, E, iWUE, PN/gs), nor in RuBisCO relative content. Finally, the maintenance of the levels of total soluble sugars and starch also supports that the photosynthetic performance of P-trees, three months after pruning, reached values similar to those of the C-trees, contributing to the normal development and ripening of the fruit. Data support that pruning represents a reliable control measure against this quarantine pathogen. This work is the first evaluation of pruning in fire blight management regarding carbon metabolism in P. communis trees.
Effect of in vitro gastrointestinal digestion on phenolic compounds and the antioxidant activity of Aloe vera
Authors: Laib Imen , Kehal Farida , Haddad Nour Elyakine , Boudjemia Taous , Barkat Malika 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
The aim of this work is to study the effect of digestion on the total polyphenol content, flavonoids and the antioxidant activity of Aloe vera. Total polyphenol contents and flavonoid spectrophotometric methods: The evaluation of the antioxidant activity was carried out by three methods, DPPH, ABTS and CUPRAC. To confirm the results obtained we carried out an analysis by ATR-FTIR. The total phenol content found in the Aloe vera extract studied was 1.3638 mg EAG/100 g, while the content of flavonoids found in the Aloe vera extract studied was 0.690 mg EQ/100 g. The values of total polyphenols and flavonoids decreased under the effect of gastrointestinal digestion. The spectra obtained during the ATR-FTIR analysis show that Aloe vera is rich in phenolic compounds and flavonoids. Intense bands corresponding to O–H bonds, C=C bond, C–H, CO, CH3 and CH2 confirm the presence of these bioactive compounds. For both the DPPH and CUPRAC methods, Aloe vera extract reveals a strong antioxidant activity, which gradually decreases during the oral and gastric phase and then increases after the intestinal digestion. For the ABTS method, the antioxidant activity decreases during the oral phase, increases during the gastric phase and then decreases again during the intestinal phase.
Simply Finding Answers, or the Entirety of Inquiry While Standing on One Foot
Authors: Smith Nicholas 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
I argue that inquiry can be defined without reference to the attitudes inquirers have during inquiry. Inquiry can instead be defined by its aim: it is the activity that has the aim of answering a question. I call this approach to defining inquiry a “naive” account. I present the naive account of inquiry in contrast to a prominent contemporary account of inquiry most notably defended by Jane Friedman. According to this view of inquiry, which I call an attitude-centric view, inquiry is appropriately defined not by the aim of the activity but by the attitudes that inquirers have during inquiry. After developing the naive view, I defend it against the objection that it collapses into the attitude-centric view.
Geospatial assessment of land use and land cover dynamics in the mid-zone of Ghana
Authors: Koranteng Addo , Adu-Poku Isaac , Donkor Emmanuel , Zawiła-Niedźwiecki Tomasz 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Land use and land cover (LULC) terrain in Ghana has undergone profound changes over the past years emanating mainly from anthropogenic activities, which have impacted countrywide and sub-regional environment. This study is a comprehensive analysis via integrated approach of geospatial procedures such as Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) of past, present and future LULC from satellite imagery covering Ghana’s Ashanti regional capital (Kumasi) and surrounding districts. Multi-temporal satellite imagery data sets of four different years, 1990 (Landsat TM), 2000 (Landsat ETM+), 2010 (Alos and Disaster Monitoring Constellation-DMC) and 2020 (SENTINEL), spanning over a 30-year period were mapped. Five major LULC categories – Closed Forest, Open Forest, Agriculture, Built-up and Water – were delineated premised on the prevailing geographical settings, field study and remote sensing data. Markov Cellular Automata modelling was applied to predict the probable LULC change consequence for the next 20 years (2040). The study revealed that both Open Forest and Agriculture class categories decreased 51.98 to 38.82 and 27.48 to 20.11, respectively. Meanwhile, Built-up class increased from 4.8% to 24.8% (over 500% increment from 1990 to 2020). Rapid urbanization caused the depletion of forest cover and conversion of farmlands into human settlements. The 2040 forecast map showed an upward increment in the Built-up area up to 35.2% at the expense of other LULC class categories. This trend from the past to the forecasted future would demand that judicious LULC resolutions have to be made to keep Ghana’s forest cover, provide arable land for farming activities and alleviate the effects of climate change.
Comparing the Ability of Regression Modeling and Bayesian Additive Regression Trees to Predict Costs in a Responsive Survey Design Context
Authors: Wagner James , West Brady T. , Elliott Michael R. , Coffey Stephanie 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
Responsive survey designs rely upon incoming data from the field data collection to optimize cost and quality tradeoffs. In order to make these decisions in real-time, survey managers rely upon monitoring tools that generate proxy indicators for cost and quality. There is a developing literature on proxy indicators for the risk of nonresponse bias. However, there is very little research on proxy indicators for costs and almost none aimed at predicting costs under alternative design strategies. Predictions of survey costs and proxy error indicators can be used to optimize survey designs in real time. Using data from the National Survey of Family Growth, we evaluate alternative modeling strategies aimed at predicting survey costs (specifically, interviewer hours). The models include multilevel regression (with random interviewer effects) and Bayesian Additive Regression Trees (BART).
The Relationship between Politics and Administration at the Flemish Local Level: Intermunicipal Differences Explained
Authors: Hennau Sofie 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
When it comes to political-administrative relations, New Public Management has aimed for a stronger differentiation between political and administrative matters and for an empowerment of the administration towards the political level.
This article investigates the perceived degree of administrative discretion at the municipal level in the Flemish region of Belgium. We use data from a survey with Flemish municipal CEOs from 2019.
The results suggest that the degree of administrative discretion in Flemish municipalities is relatively high during policy preparation. Nevertheless, during other phases of the policy cycle most municipal CEOs perceive a certain political impact on the functioning of their administration, which reaches further than steering on the main policy lines. Second, a majority identifies a lack of mutual trust between the executive board and the administrators.
Furthermore, administrative discretion increases with the size of the municipality and the assessed capacity of the administration. Also in municipalities where the key actors of political-administrative relationships remained unchanged for a longer period, the administration has more leeway to act. Lastly, the results nuance the impact of the municipal financial situation and the composition of the majority on the degree of administrative discretion.
Controlled Functional Encryption Revisited: Multi-Authority Extensions and Efficient Schemes for Quadratic Functions
Authors: Ambrona Miguel , Fiore Dario , Soriente Claudio 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
In a Functional Encryption scheme (FE), a trusted authority enables designated parties to compute specific functions over encrypted data. As such, FE promises to break the tension between industrial interest in the potential of data mining and user concerns around the use of private data. FE allows the authority to decide who can compute and what can be computed, but it does not allow the authority to control which ciphertexts can be mined. This issue was recently addressed by Naveed et al., that introduced so-called Controlled Functional encryption (or C-FE), a cryptographic framework that extends FE and allows the authority to exert fine-grained control on the ciphertexts being mined. In this work we extend C-FE in several directions. First, we distribute the role of (and the trust in) the authority across several parties by defining multi-authority C-FE (or mCFE). Next, we provide an efficient instantiation that enables computation of quadratic functions on inputs provided by multiple data-owners, whereas previous work only provides an instantiation for linear functions over data supplied by a single data-owner and resorts to garbled circuits for more complex functions. Our scheme leverages CCA2 encryption and linearly-homomorphic encryption. We also implement a prototype and use it to showcase the potential of our instantiation.
Characterization of Refuse Derived Fuel Production from Municipal Solid Waste: The Case Studies in Latvia and Lithuania
Authors: Âriņa Dace , Bendere Rūta , Denafas Gintaras , Kalnačs Jānis , Kriipsalu Mait 
Published: December 2020

Abstract
The authors determined the morphological composition of refuse derived fuel (RDF) produced in Latvia and Lithuania by manually sorting. The parameters of RDF (moisture, net calorific value, ash content, carbon, nitrogen, hydrogen, sulphur, chlorine, metals) was determined using the EN standards. Comparing obtained results with data from literature, authors have found that the content of plastic is higher but paper and cardboard is lower than typical values. Results also show that the mean parameters for RDF can be classified with the class codes: Net heating value (3); chlorine (3); mercury (1), and responds to limits stated for 3rd class of solid recovered fuel. It is recommended to separate biological waste at source to lower moisture and ash content and increase heating value for potential fuel production from waste.