bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Gender Representation in Fellowship Program Director Positions in ACGME-Accredited Chronic Pain and Acute Pain Fellowship Programs
Authors: D’Souza Ryan S , Langford Brendan , Moeschler Susan 
Published: February 2021

AbstractObjectiveWe quantified the representation of female program directors (PDs) and assessed their respective demographics, academic metrics, and program-related characteristics in chronic pain and acute pain medicine fellowship programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).MethodsWe identified chronic and acute pain PDs on the ACGME website on November 15, 2020. We abstracted data from public databases and performed comparisons of demographics, academic metrics, and program-related characteristics between female and male PDs.ResultsWe identified 111 chronic pain programs and 35 acute pain programs. Overall, there were 35 (31.5%) chronic pain programs with a female PD and 76 (68.5%) chronic pain programs with a male PD. Female chronic pain PDs published fewer peer-reviewed articles (4.0 publications, interquartile range [IQR] = 2.0–12.0) compared with male chronic pain PDs (9.0 publications, IQR = 4.0–27.0; P = 0.050), although there was no difference in the H-index score (3.0 vs 4.0 publications, respectively; P = 0.062) or senior academic rank status (57.1% vs 50.0%, respectively; P = 0.543). There were 10 (28.6%) acute pain programs with a female PD and 25 (71.4%) acute pain programs with a male PD. Similar to the chronic pain cohort, there was no difference in senior academic rank status based on gender in acute pain PDs (50.0% vs 24.0%, respectively; P = 0.227).ConclusionOur study highlights gender differences in the PD role in ACGME-accredited chronic and acute pain fellowships. Female PDs remain underrepresented and have fewer peer-reviewed publications. Senior academic rank status was similar across genders, contradicting the current evidence in academic medicine.
Effect of Virtual Reality Gait Training on Participation in Survivors of Subacute Stroke: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: de Rooij Ilona J M , van de Port Ingrid G L , Punt Michiel , Abbink-van Moorsel Pim J M , Kortsmit Michiel , van Eijk Ruben P A , Visser-Meily Johanna M A , Meijer Jan-Willem G 
Published: February 2021

Abstract

Objective
After stroke, people experience difficulties with walking that lead to restrictions in participation in daily life. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of virtual reality gait training (VRT) compared to non–virtual reality gait training (non-VRT) on participation in community-living people after stroke.

Methods
In this assessor-blinded, randomized controlled trial with 2 parallel groups, people were included between 2 weeks and 6 months after stroke and randomly assigned to the VRT group or non-VRT group. Participants assigned to the VRT group received training on the Gait Real-time Analysis Interactive Lab (GRAIL), and participants assigned to the non-VRT group received treadmill training and functional gait exercises without virtual reality. Both training interventions consisted of 12 30-minute sessions during 6 weeks. The primary outcome was participation measured with the restrictions subscale of the Utrecht Scale for Evaluation of Rehabilitation-Participation (USER-P) 3 months postintervention. Secondary outcomes included subjective physical functioning, functional mobility, walking ability, dynamic balance, walking activity, fatigue, anxiety and depression, falls efficacy, and quality of life.

Results
Twenty-eight participants were randomly assigned to the VRT group and 27 to the non-VRT group, of whom 25 and 22 attended 75% or more of the training sessions, respectively. No significant differences between the groups were found over time for the USER-P restrictions subscale (1.23; 95% CI = −0.76 to 3.23) or secondary outcome measures. Patients’ experiences with VRT were positive, and no serious adverse events were related to the interventions.

Conclusions
The effect of VRT was not statistically different from non-VRT in improving participation in community-living people after stroke.

Impact
Although outcomes were not statistically different, treadmill-based VRT was a safe and well-tolerated intervention that was positively rated by people after stroke. VR training might, therefore, be a valuable addition to stroke rehabilitation.

Lay Summary
VRT is feasible and was positively experienced by people after stroke. However, VRT was not more effective than non-VRT for improving walking ability and participation after stroke.
Inflating Away the Public Debt? An Empirical Assessment
Authors: Hilscher Jens , Raviv Alon , Reis Ricardo 
Published: February 2021

Abstract
This paper proposes a new method for measuring the impact of inflation on the real value of public debt. The distribution of debt debasement is based on two inputs: the distribution of privately held nominal debt by maturity, for which we provide new estimates, and the distribution of risk-adjusted inflation dynamics, for which we provide a novel copula estimator using options data. We find that inflation by itself is unlikely to lower the U.S. fiscal burden significantly because debt is concentrated at short maturities and perceived inflation shocks have little short-run persistence and are small.
COVID-19, hydroxychloroquine and the importance of disease progression
Authors: Budny John A 
Published: February 2021

Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic struck swiftly and forcefully. The medical response both commercial and clinical achieved what it could with the resources it had. In addition, society changed old habits and developed new behavior patterns. It is appropriate to identify what lessons were learned from COVID-19 for the future. The most important observation for managing SARS-CoV-2 infections was the identification, but not necessarily appreciation, of the manner in which the virus acts over time in the host that it infects. Based on population densities, the ease with which people are mobile and the way that SARS-CoV-2 infected humans, other infectious diseases can easily become pandemics in the future. This review is not focused on a xenobiotic and its toxicant properties. Rather, the review describes the relationship between a therapeutic (hydroxychloroquine) and the progression of a disease (SARS-CoV-2) along with the timing and sequence of the various pathologies that the disease causes. While at first glance, this may appear to beyond the scope of toxicology, it is not. Toxicology is capable to address disease-induced pathologies because it can use the same skills and tools that it uses for pathologies that xenobiotics cause. Assessing the pathology caused by a disease concurrently with the pathology caused by the drug used to treat the disease, puts toxicology in a position to make a greater contribution to drug development. Repurposing toxicology, just as drugs were repurposed for the COVID-19 pandemic, will avoid missing or misusing a useful therapeutic agent just because the disease-initiated pathology was ignored or unappreciated.
Too Old for Agility? Employee Age and Readiness for Change Toward Scrum—The Moderating Roles of Age Climate and Subjective Age
Authors: Drazic Ivana , Schermuly Carsten C 
Published: February 2021

AbstractWhile demographic change is leading to an aging workforce in many parts of the world, more and more companies are implementing agile forms of collaboration. These enable better adaptation to change through constant, iterative learning but require a corresponding mindset from the employees. According to meta-analytical findings, willingness to learn is negatively correlated with employee age, whereas willingness to change is not. We examined the relationship between employee age and readiness for change toward Scrum—the predominant framework of agile project management—focusing on moderating effects. We hypothesized that readiness for Scrum does not decrease with employee age per se, but that it depends on age climate and subjective age. Using an animated explainer video, we created a scenario in which Scrum gets implemented in the participants’ work area. We tested our hypotheses using two studies with age-heterogeneous samples (N1 = 146, N2 = 198), differing in their mean ages (M1 = 36.9, M2 = 41.6). Across studies, and consistent with expectations, readiness for Scrum increased with age when employees reported lower levels of subjective age. Regarding age climate, the results were mixed: In Study 1, readiness for Scrum increased with age when participants perceived a more negative age climate, whereas in Study 2, it increased in a more positive age climate. Results of the three-way interaction in Study 1 suggest a complex interplay between age identity and age climate. We interpret these results in light of existing theory and discuss possible implications for research and practice.
BurnNet: An Efficient Deep Learning Framework for Accurate Dermal Burn Classification
Authors: Bhansali Rohan , Kumar Rahul 
Published: February 2021

AbstractBurns are the fourth most prevalent unintentional injury around the world, and when left untreated can become permanent and sometimes fatal. An important aspect of treating burn injuries is accurate and efficient diagnosis. Classifying the three primary types of burns – superficial dermal, deep dermal, and full thickness – is essential in determining the necessity of surgery, which is often critical to the afflicted patient’s survival. Unfortunately, reconstructive burn surgeons and dermatologists are merely able to diagnose these types of burns with approximately 50-75% accuracy. As a result, we propose the use of an eight-layer convolutional neural network, BurnNet, for rapid and precise burn classification with 99.87% accuracy. We applied affine transformations to artificially augment our dataset and found that our model attained near perfect metrics across the board, demonstrating the high propensity of deep learning architectures in burn classification.
Trends in Technology Usage for Parkinson’s Disease Assessment: A Systematic Review
Authors: Deb Ranadeep , Bhat Ganapati , An Sizhe , Shill Holly , Ogras Umit Y. 
Published: February 2021

AbstractParkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurological disorder with complicated and disabling motor and non-motor symptoms. The complexity of PD pathology is amplified further due to its dependency on patient diaries and the neurologist’s subjective assessment of clinical scales. This challenge can be addressed by the advances in mobile technology, which can enable objective, accurate, and continuous patient monitoring. Indeed, a significant amount of recent work explores new cost-effective and subjective assessment methods of PD symptoms. For example, smart technologies, such as wearable sensors, have been used to analyze a PD patients’ symptoms to assess their disease progression and even to detect signs in their nascent stage for early diagnosis of PD.This review focuses on the use of modern wearable and mobile equipment for PD applications in the last decade. Four significant fields of research were identified: Assistance to Diagnosis, Prognosis or Monitoring of Symptoms and their Severity, Predicting Response to Treatment, and Assistance to Therapy or Rehabilitation. This study starts with 31,940 articles published between January 2008 and December 2019 in the following four databases: Pubmed Central, Science Direct, IEEE Xplore and MDPI. A total of 976 papers are manually investigated and included in this review after removing unrelated articles, duplicate entries, publications in languages other than English, and other articles that did not fulfill the selection criteria. Our analysis shows that the numbers of published papers every year has increased at a constant rate from 2008 to 2015, while the rate of increase has significantly grown from 2016 to 2019. Majority of the papers (62%) were published in the last four years, and 21% papers in just 2019. In terms of the symptoms, gait and tremor are two major ones that researchers have focused on. The trend shows the growing interest in assessing Parkinson’s Disease with wearable devices in the last decade, particularly in the last 4 years. Our automated script makes the review easily reproducible for publications published in the future.
Performance of a Computational Phenotyping Algorithm for Sarcoidosis Using Diagnostic Codes in Electronic Medical Records: A Pilot Study from Two Veterans Affairs Medical Centers
Authors: Seedahmed Mohamed I , Mogilnicka Izabella , Zeng Siyang , Luo Gang , McCulloch Charles , Koth Laura , Arjomandi Mehrdad 
Published: February 2021

ABSTRACTBackgroundThe accuracy of identifying sarcoidosis cases in electronic medical records (EMR) using diagnostic codes is unknown.MethodsTo estimate the statistical performance of using diagnostic codes, ICD-9 and ICD-10 diagnostic codes in identifying sarcoidosis cases in EMR, we searched the San Francisco and Palo Alto Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers EMR and randomly selected 200 patients coded as sarcoidosis. To further improve diagnostic accuracy, we developed an “index of suspicion” algorithm to identify probable sarcoidosis cases based on clinical and radiographic features. We then determined the positive predictive value (PPV) of diagnosing sarcoidosis by two computational methods using ICD only and ICD plus the “index of suspicion” against the gold standard developed through manual chart review based on the American Thoracic Society (ATS) practice guideline. Finally, we determined healthcare providers’ adherence to the guidelines using a new scoring system.ResultsThe PPV of identifying sarcoidosis cases in VA EMR using ICD codes only was 71% (95%CI=64.7%-77.3%). The inclusion of our construct of “index of suspicion” along with the ICD codes significantly increased the PPV to 90% (95%CI=85.2%-94.6%). The care of sarcoidosis patients was more likely to be classified as “Fully” or “Substantially” adherent with the ATS practice guideline if their managing provider was a specialist (45% of primary care providers vs. 74% of specialists; P=0.008).ConclusionsAlthough ICD codes can be used as reasonable classifiers to identify sarcoidosis cases within EMR, using computational algorithms to extract clinical and radiographic information (“index of suspicion”) from unstructured data could significantly improve case identification accuracy.HighlightsIdentifying sarcoidosis cases using diagnostic codes in EMR has low accuracy.“Unstructured data” contain information useful in identifying cases of sarcoidosis.Computational algorithms could improve the accuracy and efficiency of case identification in EMR.We introduce a new scoring system for assessing healthcare providers’ compliance with the American Thoracic Society (ATS) practice guideline.Compliance scoring could help automatically assess sarcoidosis patients’ care delivery.
Molecular diagnosis and prognosis of cancers of unknown-primary (CUPs): progress from a microRNA-based droplet digital PCR assay
Authors: Laprovitera Noemi , Riefolo Mattia , Porcellini Elisa , Durante Giorgio , Garajova Ingrid , Vasuri Francesco , Aigelsreiter Ariane , Dandachi Nadia , Benvenuto Giuseppe , Agostinis Federico , Sabbioni Silvia , Berindan-Neagoe Ioana , Romualdi Chiara , Ardizzoni Andrea , Trerè Davide , Pichler Martin , D’Errico Antonia , Ferracin Manuela 
Published: February 2021

AbstractMetastasis is responsible for the majority of cancer-related deaths. Particularly challenging is the management of metastatic cancer of unknown primary site (CUP), whose tissue-of-origin (TOO) remains undetermined even after expensive investigations. CUP therapy is rather unspecific and poorly effective. Molecular approaches developed to identify CUPs’ potential tissue-of-origin, can overcome some of these issues. In this study, we applied a pre-determined set of microRNAs (miRNAs) to infer the TOO of 53 metastatic cancers of unknown or uncertain origin. We designed a molecular assay to quantify 89 miRNAs at the copy number level, using EvaGreen-based Droplet Digital PCR. We assessed miRNA expression in 159 samples including primary tumors from 17 tumor classes (reference set), metastases of known and unknown origin. We applied two different statistical models for class prediction to obtain CUP’s most probable TOOs. Specifically, we used the shrunken centroids using PAMR (Prediction Analysis of Microarrays for R) and the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) models. The molecular test was successfully applied to FFPE samples and provided a site-of-origin identification within one-week from the biopsy procedure. The most frequently predicted origins were gastrointestinal, pancreas, breast and lung. The assay was applied to multiple metastases from the same CUP, collected from different metastatic sites: the molecular prediction revealed an impressive agreement in site-of-origin prediction, intrinsically validating our assay. The final prediction was compared with the clinico-pathological hypothesis of primary site. Moreover, a panel of 14 miRNAs proved to have prognostic value and being associated with overall survival. Our study demonstrated that miRNA expression profiling in CUP samples could be employed as diagnostic and prognostic test. Our molecular analysis can be performed on-request, concomitantly with standard diagnostic workup and in association with genetic profiling, to offer valuable indication about the possible primary site, thereby supporting treatment decisions.
Light spectra trigger divergent gene expression in barley cultivars
Authors: Monteagudo Arantxa , del Río Álvaro Rodríguez , Contreras-Moreira Bruno , Kiss Tibor , Mayer Marianna , Karsai Ildikó , Igartua Ernesto , Casas Ana M. 
Published: February 2021

AbstractLight spectra influence barley development, causing a diverse range of responses among cultivars that are poorly understood. Here, we exposed three barley genotypes with different light sensitivities to two light sources: fluorescent bulbs, over-representing green and red wavebands, and metal halide lamps, with a more balanced spectrum. We used RNA sequencing to identify the main genes and pathways involved in the different responses, and RT-qPCR to validate the expression values. Different grades of sensitivity to light spectra were associated with transcriptional reprogramming, plastid signals, and photosynthesis. The genotypes were especially divergent in the expression of genes regulated by transcription factors from MADS-box, WRKY, and NAC families, and in specific photoreceptors such as phytochromes and cryptochromes. Variations in light spectra also affected the expression of circadian clock, flowering time, and frost tolerance genes, among others, resembling plant responses to temperature. The relation betweenPPD-H1, HvVRN1, andHvFT1expression might explain genotypic differences. Light-sensitive genotypes experienced a partial reversion of the vernalization process and senescence-related stress under the less favorable light quality conditions. The observed light-quality sensitivities reveal a complex mechanism of adaptation to regions with specific light quality features and/or possible regulation of light spectra in plant development during early spring.HighlightDevelopment genes were affected by light quality in the barley varieties tested. Different grades of sensitivity were related to the expression of transcription factors, senescence, light signaling and cold-regulated genes.
Proteolysis of fibrillin-2 microfibrils is essential for normal skeletal development
Authors: Mead Timothy J. , Martin Daniel R. , Wang Lauren W. , Cain Stuart A. , Gulec Cagri , Cahill Elisabeth , Mauch Joseph , Reinhardt Dieter P. , Lo Cecilia W. , Baldock Clair , Apte Suneel S. 
Published: February 2021

AbstractThe embryonic extracellular matrix (ECM) undergoes transition to mature ECM as development progresses, yet specific transition mechanisms ensuring ECM proteostasis and their regulatory impact are poorly defined. Fibrillin microfibrils are macromolecular ECM complexes serving structural and regulatory roles. In mice,Fbn1andFbn2,encoding major microfibrillar components, are strongly expressed during embryogenesis, but fibrillin-1 is the major component observed in adult tissue microfibrils. Here, analysis of mouseAdamts6andAdamts10mutant embryos, lacking these homologous secreted metalloproteases individually and in combination, along with in vitro analysis of microfibrils, measurement of ADAMTS6-fibrillin affinities and N-terminomics identification of ADAMTS6-cleaved sites, demonstrates a transcriptionally adapted system for fibrillin-2 proteolysis that contributes to postnatal fibrillin-1 dominance. The lack of ADAMTS6, alone and in combination with ADAMTS10 led to excess fibrillin-2 in perichondrium, with impaired skeletal development resulting from a drastic reduction of aggrecan, cartilage link protein and impaired BMP, but not TGFβ signaling in cartilage. Although ADAMTS6 cleaves fibrillin-1 and fibrillin-2 as well as fibronectin, which provides the initial scaffold for microfibril assembly, primacy of the protease-substrate relationship between ADAMTS6 and fibrillin-2 was unequivocally established by reversal of these defects inAdamts6-/-embryos by genetic reduction ofFbn2, but notFbn1.
The promiscuous and highly mobile resistome of a superbug
Authors: Hernández-González Ismael , Mateo-Estrada Valeria , Castillo-Ramírez Santiago 
Published: February 2021

AbstractAntimicrobial resistance (AR) is a major global threat to public health. Understanding the population dynamics of AR is critical to restrain and control this issue. However, no study has provided a global picture of the resistome ofAcinetobacter baumannii, a very important nosocomial pathogen. Here we analyze 1450+ genomes (covering > 40 countries and > 4 decades) to infer the global population dynamics of the resistome of this species. We show that gene flow and horizontal transfer have driven the dissemination of AR genes inA. baumannii. We found considerable variation in AR gene content across lineages. Although the individual AR gene histories have been affected by recombination, the AR gene content has been shaped by the phylogeny. Furthermore, many AR genes have been transferred to other well-known pathogens, such asPseudomonas aeruginosaorKlebsiella pneumoniae. Finally, despite using this massive data set, we were not able to sample the whole diversity of AR genes, which suggests that this species has an open resistome. Ours results highlight the high mobilization risk of AR genes between important pathogens. On a broader perspective, this study gives a framework for an emerging perspective (resistome-centric) on the genome epidemiology (and surveillance) of bacterial pathogens.
Epigenetic therapy to enhance therapeutic effects of PD-1 inhibition in uveal melanoma
Authors: Sah Vasu R , Jespersen Henrik , Karlsson Joakim , Lindberg Mattias F , Nilsson Lisa M , Ny Lars , Nilsson Jonas A 
Published: February 2021

AbstractTargeted therapy and immunotherapy have revolutionized the treatment of metastatic skin melanoma but none of the treatments are approved for patients with metastatic uveal melanoma (UM). Here we hypothesized that the poor responses to immunotherapy of UM can be enhanced by epigenetic modulation using HDAC or BET inhibitors (BETi). Cultured uveal melanoma cells were treated with the HDAC inhibitor (HDACi) entinostat or BETi JQ1. Entinostat induced HLA expression and PD-L1, but JQ1 did not. A syngenic mouse model carrying B16-F10 melanoma cells were treated with PD-1 and CTLA-4 inhibitors, which was curative. Co-treatment with the bioavailable BETi iBET-726 impaired the immunotherapy effect. Monotherapy of a B16-F10 mouse model with anti-PD-1 resulted in a moderate therapeutic effect that could be enhanced by entinostat. Mice carrying PD-L1 knockout B16-F10 cells were also sensitive to entinostat. This suggests HDAC inhibition and immunotherapy could work in concert. Indeed, co-cultures of UM with HLA-matched melanoma-specific tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) resulted in higher TIL-mediated melanoma killing when entinostat was added. Further exploration of combined immunotherapy and epigenetic therapy in metastatic UM is warranted.