bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Acute moderate‐intensity aerobic exercise promotes purinergic and inflammatory responses in sedentary, overweight and physically active subjects
Authors: Moritz Cesar Eduardo Jacintho , Boeno Franccesco Pinto , Vieira Alexandra Ferreira , Munhoz Samuel Vargas , Scholl Juliete Nathali , de Fraga Dias Amanda , Pizzato Pauline Rafaela , Figueiró Fabrício , Battastini Ana Maria Oliveira , Reischak‐Oliveira Alvaro 
Published: February 2021

New Finding

What is the central question of this study?
How does moderate‐intensity aerobic exercise affect the behaviour of purinergic enzymes in sedentary, overweight and physically active subjects? What is the relationship between purinergic and inflammatory responses triggered by exercise?

What is the main finding and its importance?
Moderate‐intensity aerobic exercise modifies the activity of purinergic enzymes and the levels of nucleotides and nucleosides. These results are similar in subjects with different biological characteristics. 5′‐Nucleotidase activity and adenosine levels are associated with inflammatory responses. This study suggests that a purinergic pathway is related to the inflammatory responses triggered by exercise.

AbstractPurinergic signalling is a mechanism of extracellular communication that modulates events related to exercise, such as inflammation and coagulation. Herein, we evaluated the effects of acute moderate‐intensity exercise on the activities of purinergic enzymes and plasma levels of adenine nucleotides in individuals with distinct metabolic characteristics. We analysed the relationship between purinergic parameters, inflammatory responses and cardiometabolic markers. Twenty‐four healthy males were assigned to three groups: normal weight sedentary (n = 8), overweight sedentary (n = 8) and normal weight physically active (n = 8). The volunteers performed an acute session of moderate‐intensity aerobic exercise on a treadmill at 70% of ; blood samples were drawn at baseline, immediately post‐exercise and at 1 h post‐exercise. Immediately post‐exercise, all subjects showed increases in ATP, ADP, AMP and p‐nitrophenyl thymidine 5′‐monophosphate hydrolysis, while AMP hydrolysis remained increased at 1 h after exercise. High‐performance liquid chromatography analysis demonstrated lower levels of ATP and ADP at post‐ and 1 h post‐exercise in all groups. Conversely, adenosine and inosine levels increased at post‐exercise, but only adenosine remained augmented at 1 h after exercise in all groups. With regard to inflammatory responses, the exercise protocol increased tumour necrosis factor α (TNF‐α) and interleukin 8 (IL‐8) concentrations in all subjects, but only TNF‐α remained elevated at 1 h after exercise. Significant correlations were found between the activity of 5′‐nucleotidase, adenosine levels, , triglyceride, TNF‐α and IL‐8 levels. Our findings suggest a purinergic signalling pathway that participates, at least partially, in the inflammatory responses triggered by acute moderate‐intensity exercise. The response of soluble nucleotidases to acute moderate exercise appears to be similar between subjects of different biological profiles.
Intermediate Dynamic Compression and Decreased Posterior Tilt With Interlocked Pins in Femoral Neck Fixation in Synthetic Bone
Authors: Brattgjerd Jan Egil , Niratisairak Sanyalak , Steen Harald , Strømsøe Knut 
Published: February 2021

Abstract
Fixation failure with resulting non-union is the key complication after femoral neck fixation. It can be avoided by permitting dynamic compression and reducing rotation and posterior tilt of the femoral head. To achieve this, a novel implant that features an interlocking plate with three hook-pins (The Hansson Pinloc® System) was developed from the original two hook-pins. Only an enhanced torsional fixation by the implant modification is reported. The purpose was to compare the biomechanical compressive and bending stability of the original and modified implant in femoral neck fixation. To analyze the contribution of both modified components, three individual pins were included, although not in regular use. Forty-eight synthetic femurs with mid-cervical wedge osteotomies were fixated by two pins or identical triangular pin patterns with or without the plate. Eight specimens of each group were loaded cyclically in compression with an inferior wedge to simulate stance and anteroposterior bending with a posterior wedge to imitate sitting down. The clinically relevant stability measurements were stiffness and deformation. Fissure formation defined failure. The novel implant improved bending stability by 30% increased stiffness, 44% reduced deformation, and less frequent posterior neck fissure formation (p &lt; 0.001) while increased compressive stability was only evident with 25% reduced deformation and less frequent inferior neck fissures (p &lt; 0.001). These impacts were mainly mediated by the third pin, while the plate prevented a lateral fissure in compression (p &lt; 0.001). The clinical stability was improved by dynamic compression and decreased posterior tilt by implant modification.
In Vitro Mechanical Characterization and Modeling of Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue: A Comprehensive Review
Authors: Sun Zhaonan , Gepner Bronislaw D. , Cottler Patrick S. , Lee Sang-Hyun , Kerrigan Jason R. 
Published: February 2021

Abstract
Mechanical models of adipose tissue are important for various medical applications including cosmetics, injuries, implantable drug delivery systems, plastic surgeries, biomechanical applications such as computational human body models for surgery simulation, and blunt impact trauma prediction. This article presents a comprehensive review of in vivo experimental approaches that aimed to characterize the mechanical properties of adipose tissue, and the resulting constitutive models and model parameters identified. In particular, this study examines the material behavior of adipose tissue, including its nonlinear stress–strain relationship, viscoelasticity, strain hardening and softening, rate-sensitivity, anisotropy, preconditioning, failure behavior, and temperature dependency.
Grooving of Metals by High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound-Assisted Water-Confined Laser Micromachining
Authors: Liu Ze , Wu Benxin , Xu Rong , Zhao Kejie 
Published: February 2021

Abstract
Laser grooving (i.e., the production of surface grooves through laser machining) has several advantages and many current or potential industrial applications. However, conventional laser grooving in air may often suffer from quality defects such as debris depositions. A new machining process, with the name “ultrasound-assisted water-confined laser micromachining” (UWLM), was previously proposed by the corresponding author. In UWLM, in situ ultrasound is applied during laser machining of a water-immersed workpiece surface region to improve the machining quality and/or efficiency. If the ultrasound is applied using a high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) transducer, the process can be called “HIFU-based UWLM.” Despite previous investigations on UWLM, to the authors' best knowledge, experimental studies on surface grooving using a HIFU-based UWLM process have been rarely reported in any paper. Such a study has been presented in this paper (for the first time in a paper to the authors' best knowledge). In this work, surface grooves are produced through the ablation of a moving workpiece immersed in water by laser pulses fired at a pulse repetition rate of 1 kHz or 3 kHz. Each laser pulse is followed by a focused ultrasound pulse (from a HIFU transducer) that reaches the workpiece surface approximately 30 µs later. The laser spot on the workpiece surface is approximately at the same location as the geometrical focal point of the HIFU transducer. Under the conditions investigated, it has been found that typically the grooves produced by the HIFU-based UWLM process appear much cleaner and have much smaller amounts of debris particles and recast material than those produced by laser ablation in air, and they typically have much larger depths than those by laser ablation in water without ultrasound. Some related fundamental physical mechanisms have been discussed. The study suggests that the HIFU-based UWLM process has a great potential to provide a new surface grooving technology with competitive performance.
Sleep Characteristics of Elite Youth Athletes: A Clustering Approach to Optimize Sleep Support Strategies
Authors: Suppiah Haresh T. , Swinbourne Richard , Wee Jericho , Tay Vanes , Gastin Paul 
Published: February 2021

Purpose: Elite athletes experience chronic sleep insufficiency due to training and competition schedules. However, there is little research on sleep and caffeine use of elite youth athletes and a need for a more nuanced understanding of their sleep difficulties. This study aimed to (1) examine the differences in sleep characteristics of elite youth athletes by individual and team sports, (2) study the associations between behavioral risk factors associated with obstructive sleep apnea and caffeine use with sleep quality, and (3) characterize the latent sleep profiles of elite youth athletes to optimize the sleep support strategy. Methods: A group (N = 135) of elite national youth athletes completed a self-administered questionnaire consisting of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and questions pertaining to obstructive sleep apnea, napping behavior, and caffeine use. K-means clustering was used to characterize unique sleep characteristic subgroups based on PSQI components. Results: Athletes reported 7.0 (SD = 1.2) hours of sleep. Out of the total group, 45.2% of the athletes had poor quality sleep (PSQI global >5), with team-sport athletes reporting significantly poorer sleep quality than individual-sport athletes. Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that sport type significantly correlated with poor sleep quality. The K-means clustering algorithm classified athletes’ underlying sleep characteristics into 4 clusters to efficiently identify athletes with similar underlying sleep issues to enhance interventional strategies.Conclusion: These findings suggest that elite youth team-sport athletes are more susceptible to poorer sleep quality than individual-sport athletes. Clustering methods can help practitioners characterize sleep-related problems and develop efficient athlete support strategies.
Antimicrobial Potential of the Alkalophilic Fungus Sodiomyces alkalinus and Selection of Strains–Producers of New Antimicotic Compound
Authors: Kuvarina A. E. , Georgieva M. L. , Rogozhin E. A. , Kulko A. B. , Gavryushina I. A. , Sadykova V. S. 
Published: February 2021

Abstract
The ability of alkalophilic micromycetes of the species Sodiomyces alkalinus to produce antimicrobial compounds was studied. As a result of the determination of the spectrum and yield of antibiotic compounds, a promising producer of the antimycotics Sodiomyces alkalinus was selected from the most active strains 8KS17-10. The producer exhibited antifungal activity against opportunistic fungi, as well as pathogenic clinical isolates of molds and yeasts—pathogens of systemic mycoses. The isolated active compound can be attributed to the group of antimicrobial glycopeptides based on the totality of the identified structural features (molecular weight, absorption ratio at certain wavelengths).
Gastrointestinal mucosal damage in patients with COVID-19 undergoing endoscopy: an international multicentre study
Authors: Vanella Giuseppe , Capurso Gabriele , Burti Cesare , Fanti Lorella , Ricciardiello Luigi , Souza Lino Andre , Boskoski Ivo , Bronswijk Michiel , Tyberg Amy , Krishna Kumar Nair Govind , Angeletti Stefano , Mauro Aurelio , Zingone Fabiana , Oppong Kofi W. , de la Iglesia-Garcia Daniel , Pouillon Lieven , Papanikolaou Ioannis S. , Fracasso Pierluigi , Ciceri Fabio , Rovere-Querini Patrizia , Tomba Carolina , Viale Edi , Eusebi Leonardo Henry , Riccioni Maria Elena , van der Merwe Schalk , Shahid Haroon , Sarkar Avik , Yoo Jin Woo (Gene) , Dilaghi Emanuele , Speight R. Alexander , Azzolini Francesco , Buttitta Francesco , Porcari Serena , Petrone Maria Chiara , Iglesias-Garcia Julio , Savarino Edoardo V. , Di Sabatino Antonio , Di Giulio Emilio , Farrell James J. , Kahaleh Michel , Roelandt Philip , Costamagna Guido , Artifon Everson Luiz de Almeida , Bazzoli Franco , Testoni Per Alberto , Greco Salvatore , Arcidiacono Paolo Giorgio 
Published: February 2021

BackgroundAlthough evidence suggests frequent gastrointestinal (GI) involvement during coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), endoscopic findings are scarcely reported.AimsWe aimed at registering endoscopic abnormalities and potentially associated risk factors among patients with COVID-19.MethodsAll consecutive patients with COVID-19 undergoing endoscopy in 16 institutions from high-prevalence regions were enrolled. Mann-Whitney U, χ2or Fisher’s exact test were used to compare patients with major abnormalities to those with negative procedures, and multivariate logistic regression to identify independent predictors.ResultsBetween February and May 2020, during the first pandemic outbreak with severely restricted endoscopy activity, 114 endoscopies on 106 patients with COVID-19 were performed in 16 institutions (men=70.8%, median age=68 (58–74); 33% admitted in intensive care unit; 44.4% reporting GI symptoms). 66.7% endoscopies were urgent, mainly for overt GI bleeding. 52 (45.6%) patients had major abnormalities, whereas 13 bled from previous conditions. The most prevalent upper GI abnormalities were ulcers (25.3%), erosive/ulcerative gastro-duodenopathy (16.1%) and petechial/haemorrhagic gastropathy (9.2%). Among lower GI endoscopies, 33.3% showed an ischaemic-like colitis.Receiver operating curve analysis identified D-dimers >1850 ng/mL as predicting major abnormalities. Only D-dimers >1850 ng/mL (OR=12.12 (1.69–86.87)) and presence of GI symptoms (OR=6.17 (1.13–33.67)) were independently associated with major abnormalities at multivariate analysis.ConclusionIn this highly selected cohort of hospitalised patients with COVID-19 requiring endoscopy, almost half showed acute mucosal injuries and more than one-third of lower GI endoscopies had features of ischaemic colitis. Among the hospitalisation-related and patient-related variables evaluated in this study, D-dimers above 1850 ng/mL was the most useful at predicting major mucosal abnormalities at endoscopy.Trial registration numberClinicalTrial.gov (ID:NCT04318366).
Separate and combined relationships for cardiorespiratory fitness and muscular strength with visceral fat and insulin sensitivity in adolescents with obesity
Authors: Lee SoJung , Pooni Rubin , Arslanian Silva , Han Minsub , Kuk Jennifer L. 
Published: February 2021

We examined the separate and combined associations for cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and muscular strength (MS) with total and regional fat, and insulin sensitivity (IS) in 204 adolescents (BMI ≥85th percentile, 12–18 years) at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. CRF was measured by maximum oxygen consumption during a graded treadmill test. MS was quantified by combining 1-repetition maximum test for the leg and bench press. Participants were stratified as having either high or low CRF and MS based on sex-specific median split. Both high CRF and high MS groups had lower (P < 0.05) total fat after adjustment for sex, Tanner stage and ethnicity than the low CRF and MS groups (Difference: 6.6, 2.6–9.6% and 5.4, 2.4–8.3%, respectively). High CRF, but not high MS, had lower visceral (67.5 versus 77.9 cm2, P < 0.01) and intermuscular fat (3.6 versus 4.0 kg, P = 0.01) than the low CRF groups. Differences by CRF remained significant after adjustment for MS. High CRF, but not high MS, was associated (P < 0.05) with lower fasting glucose and higher IS after accounting for sex, Tanner stage and ethnicity than the low CRF group, and high CRF remained associated with these markers after adjustment for MS. High CRF is associated with lower total and regional fat, and higher IS after adjustment for MS. Novelty: CRF is associated with lower total fat, visceral and intermuscular fat, and higher insulin sensitivity adjusting for muscular strength. Muscular strength is not associated with regional body fat and insulin sensitivity after accounting for CRF.
Adsorption and diffusion of Li/Na atom on blue phosphorene with defects by first-principles calculations
Authors: Zhang Ji , Liu Daojun 
Published: February 2021

Two-dimensional materials such as blue phosphorene (BlueP) as a substitute for conventional anode materials in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) have garnered significant attention recently because of their large surface areas, ultrafast intrinsic carrier mobilities, and shorter ion diffusion paths. In this study, the adsorption and diffusion properties of Li and Na ions on BlueP with defects are investigated through first-principles calculations. The calculations show that the adsorption energy increased from −0.64 to −1.50 eV for Li and from −0.72 to −1.61 eV for Na because of defects. Moreover, the defects resulted in middle bands in the density of states of BlueP, indicating enhanced electron localization. This may contribute to an increase in binding energies. However, it is discovered that Li and Na ion diffusion on the surface of BlueP with defects involves a larger migration energy barrier than Li and Na on pristine BlueP, which is disadvantageous to BlueP as a battery anode.
Metric Spaces with Expensive Distances
Authors: Kerber Michael , Nigmetov Arnur 
Published: February 2021

In algorithms for finite metric spaces, it is common to assume that the distance between two points can be computed in constant time, and complexity bounds are expressed only in terms of the number of points of the metric space. We introduce a different model, where we assume that the computation of a single distance is an expensive operation and consequently, the goal is to minimize the number of such distance queries. This model is motivated by metric spaces that appear in the context of topological data analysis. We consider two standard operations on metric spaces, namely the construction of a [Formula: see text]-spanner and the computation of an approximate nearest neighbor for a given query point. In both cases, we partially explore the metric space through distance queries and infer lower and upper bounds for yet unexplored distances through triangle inequality. For spanners, we evaluate several exploration strategies through extensive experimental evaluation. For approximate nearest neighbors, we prove that our strategy returns an approximate nearest neighbor after a logarithmic number of distance queries.
Association of Prediagnostic Blood Metabolomics with Prostate Cancer Defined by ERG or PTEN Molecular Subtypes
Authors: Feng Xiaoshuang , Zhou Cindy Ke. , Clish Clary B. , Wilson Kathryn M. , Pernar Claire H. , Dickerman Barbra A. , Loda Massimo , Finn Stephen P. , Penney Kathryn L. , Schmidt Daniel R. , Heiden Matthew G. Vander , Giovannucci Edward L. , Ebot Ericka M. , Mucci Lorelei A. 
Published: February 2021

Abstract

Background:
The TMPRSS2:ERG gene fusion and PTEN loss are two of the most common somatic molecular alterations in prostate cancer. Here, we investigated the association of prediagnostic-circulating metabolomics and prostate cancer defined by ERG or PTEN status to improve understanding of these etiologically distinct molecular prostate cancer subtypes.

Methods:
The study was performed among 277 prostate cancer cases with ERG status, 211 with PTEN status, and 294 controls nested in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (HPFS) and the Physicians' Health Study (PHS). We profiled 223 polar and non-polar metabolites using LC-MS in prediagnostic plasma specimens. We applied enrichment analysis and multinomial logistic regression models to identify biological metabolite classes and individual metabolites associated with prostate cancer defined by ERG or PTEN status.

Results:
Compared with noncancer controls, sphingomyelin (P: 0.01), ceramide (P: 0.04), and phosphatidylethanolamine (P: 0.03) circulating levels were enriched among ERG-positive prostate cancer cases. Sphingomyelins (P: 0.02), ceramides (P: 0.005), and amino acids (P: 0.02) were enriched among tumors exhibiting PTEN-loss; unsaturated diacylglycerols (P: 0.003) were enriched among PTEN-intact cases; and unsaturated triacylglycerols were enriched among both PTEN-loss (P: 0.001) and PTEN-intact (P: 0.0001) cases. Although several individual metabolites identified in the above categories were nominally associated with ERG or PTEN-defined prostate cancer, none remained significant after accounting for multiple testing.

Conclusions:
The molecular process of prostate carcinogenesis may be distinct for men with different metabolomic profiles.

Impact:
These novel findings provide insights into the metabolic environment for the development of prostate cancer.
Rare Variants in the DNA Repair Pathway and the Risk of Colorectal Cancer
Authors: Matejcic Marco , Shaban Hiba A. , Quintana Melanie W. , Schumacher Fredrick R. , Edlund Christopher K. , Naghi Leah , Pai Rish K. , Haile Robert W. , Levine A. Joan , Buchanan Daniel D. , Jenkins Mark A. , Figueiredo Jane C. , Rennert Gad , Gruber Stephen B. , Li Li , Casey Graham , Conti David V. , Schmit Stephanie L. 
Published: February 2021

Abstract

Background:
Inherited susceptibility is an important contributor to colorectal cancer risk, and rare variants in key genes or pathways could account in part for the missing proportion of colorectal cancer heritability.

Methods:
We conducted an exome-wide association study including 2,327 cases and 2,966 controls of European ancestry from three large epidemiologic studies. Single variant associations were tested using logistic regression models, adjusting for appropriate study-specific covariates. In addition, we examined the aggregate effects of rare coding variation at the gene and pathway levels using Bayesian model uncertainty techniques.

Results:
In an exome-wide gene-level analysis, we identified ST6GALNAC2 as the top associated gene based on the Bayesian risk index (BRI) method [summary Bayes factor (BF)BRI = 2604.23]. A rare coding variant in this gene, rs139401613, was the top associated variant (P = 1.01 × 10–6) in an exome-wide single variant analysis. Pathway-level association analyses based on the integrative BRI (iBRI) method found extreme evidence of association with the DNA repair pathway (BFiBRI = 17852.4), specifically with the nonhomologous end joining (BFiBRI = 437.95) and nucleotide excision repair (BFiBRI = 36.96) subpathways. The iBRI method also identified RPA2, PRKDC, ERCC5, and ERCC8 as the top associated DNA repair genes (summary BFiBRI ≥ 10), with rs28988897, rs8178232, rs141369732, and rs201642761 being the most likely associated variants in these genes, respectively.

Conclusions:
We identified novel variants and genes associated with colorectal cancer risk and provided additional evidence for a role of DNA repair in colorectal cancer tumorigenesis.

Impact:
This study provides new insights into the genetic predisposition to colorectal cancer, which has potential for translation into improved risk prediction.