bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Physiological changes in pregnancy and their influence on the endocrine investigation
Authors: Morton Adam , Teasdale Stephanie 
Published: November 2021

AbstractBackgroundPhysiological changes in pregnancy may result in significant alterations in endocrine hormone profiles, serum and urine electrolytes and endocrine gland morphology on imaging. Pregnancy‐specific pathophysiological processes may also affect the results for endocrine tests. Investigation of endocrine disorders in pregnancy requires knowledge of these changes and awareness of the safety of dynamic hormone testing and imaging for the mother and foetus.ObjectiveThis review seeks to outline the important physiological changes in pregnancy affecting reference intervals of basal and dynamic endocrine tests in pregnancy and the scenarios in which these changes are clinically significant, the pregnancy‐specific disorders that may affect the investigation of endocrine disorders, and the safety of dynamic testing and imaging.ConclusionAwareness of the effect of physiological changes, and the potential impact of pregnancy‐specific disorders of endocrine tests, and the safety of imaging is crucial to the management of endocrine disorders in pregnancy.
Predictors of geographic range size in Australian skinks
Authors: Barter Mahalia , Bonifacio Luke R. , Duran Andressa , Goulet Celine T. , Tingley Reid , Shea Glenn M. , Meiri Shai , Chapple David G. 
Published: November 2021

AbstractAimGeographic range size varies greatly across species. Climate, along with aspects of a species’ biology, may influence its spatial extent. We investigate intrinsic and extrinsic predictors of range size in Australian skinks. We predicted that larger body size, longer limbs, and larger clutch sizes would be associated with larger ranges, and that ranges would be larger in colder, more arid, and more seasonal climates.LocationMainland Australia.TaxonSkinks (Scincidae).MethodsWe test for climatic and geographic correlates of range size of Australian skink species (417 of 462 described species), as well as investigate the effects of body size and clutch size (259 species). We compare detailed morphological measurements of 1,324 specimens across nine pairs of widespread and narrow‐ranged congeneric species to investigate the roles of intrinsic (body size, clutch size, morphology) and extrinsic (mean temperature and precipitation) factors in determining range size.ResultsIn the broader analysis, large range sizes were associated with the presence of fully developed limbs, low precipitation seasonality, high temperatures, and high precipitation. Ranges of species traversing the Great Dividing Range are larger by an order of magnitude than those east of the range, with western ranges being intermediate. Affinity to specific biomes explained less variation than climatic variables. For the nine species pairs, wide‐ranging species share similar morphologies and clutch sizes with overlapping narrow‐ranging congeners, but generally inhabit more arid regions.Main conclusionsWe found several extrinsic, but few intrinsic, factors were correlated with range size. The narrow mesic belts in Australia compared with the extensive expanse of arid and semi‐arid regions may explain why desert species have larger ranges. This interpretation agrees with the notion that the size of the domain, here a climatic domain rather than a physical one, may exert strong influence on species’ range sizes.
Properties and estimation of mullite thermal insulators prepared by gelation–freezing with alumina nanofibers
Authors: Fukushima Manabu , Ohji Tatsuki 
Published: November 2021

AbstractThermal insulators were fabricated by freezing gelatin gels containing calcined kaolinite with alumina nanofibers, followed by sintering. The resultant porosity could be varied from 81.0% to 89.8% by solid loadings in the initial slurry. The relationship among porosity, microstructure, compressive strength, and thermal conductivity was examined. The compressive strength and thermal conductivities of the insulators prepared with initial solid loadings from 3 to 6 vol% ranged from 11.6 to 56.7 MPa and from .25 to .46 W/mK, respectively. Those properties were also estimated by simulation using modeling of overall pore morphology, resulting in good agreement.
Constrained nursing: Nurses’ and assistant nurses’ experiences working in a child and adolescent psychiatric ward
Authors: Söderberg Anja , Ejneborn Looi Git‐Marie , Gabrielsson Sebastian 
Published: November 2021

AbstractThe role of nurses and nursing in CAP inpatient care is unclear, and nurses are at risk of moral distress due to having to deal with complex demands while lacking organizational support. This study aimed to describe nurses’ and assistant nurses’ experiences working in child and adolescent psychiatric inpatient care. Eight nurses and seven assistant nurses working in a child and adolescent ward in Sweden participated in the study. Data were collected in 2019 using semi‐structured qualitative interviews and subject to qualitative content analysis. Results describe nurses’ and assistant nurses’ experiences of child and adolescent psychiatric inpatient care in one theme, Constrained nursing, and four categories: Striving to be there for children and parents; Finding a way to manage work; Depending on others; Lacking nursing leadership. Findings suggest that good, person‐centred and recovery‐oriented nursing practice can exist in CAP inpatient care but remain unrecognized and lacking support due to unclear roles and responsibilities and lack of nursing leadership. This study is reported in accordance with the COREQ guidelines.
Natural inactivation of MS2, poliovirus type 1 and Cryptosporidium parvum in an anaerobic and reduced aquifer
Authors: Lisle John T. , Lukasik George 
Published: November 2021

AbstractAimsThe study of microbial inactivation rates in aquifer systems has most often been determined in aerobic and oxidized systems. This study examined the inactivation (i.e. loss of infectivity) of MS2, poliovirus type 1 (PV1) and Cryptosporidium parvum in an anaerobic and reduced groundwater system that has been identified as storage zones for aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) facilities.Methods and ResultsAnaerobic and reduced (ORP &lt; −250 mV) groundwater from an artesian well was diverted to an above-ground, flow-through mesocosm that contained diffusion chambers filled with MS2, PV1 or Cryptosporidium parvum. The respective infectivity assays were performed on microorganisms recovered from the diffusion chambers during 30- to 58-day experiments. The net reduction in infectivity was 5.73 log10 over 30 days for MS2, 5.00 log10 over 58 days for PV1 and 4.07 log10 over 37 days for C. parvum. The best fit inactivation model for PV1 was the log-linear model and the Weibull model for MS2 and C. parvum, with respective inactivation rates (95% confidence interval) of 0.19 (0.17–0.21) log10 day−1, 0.31 (0.19–0.89) log10 day−1 and 0.20 (0.14–0.37) log10 day−1.ConclusionsThe groundwater geochemical conditions in this aquifer enhanced the inactivation of MS2, PV1, and C. parvum at rates approximately 2.0–5.3-fold, 1.2–17.0-fold, and 4.5–5.6-fold greater, respectively, than those from published studies that used diffusion chambers in aerobic-to-anoxic groundwater systems, with positive redox potentials.Significance and Impact of the StudyGeochemical conditions like those in the aquifer zone in this study can naturally and significantly reduce concentrations of microbial indicators and pathogens of human health concern in injected surface water. Appropriate storage times for injected surface water could complement above-ground engineered processes for microorganism removal and inactivation (e.g. filtration, disinfection) by naturally increasing overall microorganism log-inactivation rates of ASR facilities.
Aquaculture production of hatchling Hawaiian Bobtail Squid (Euprymna scolopes) is negatively impacted by decreasing environmental microbiome diversity
Authors: Murphy Trevor R. , Xiao Rui , Brooks Marjorie L. , Rader Bethany A. , Hamilton-Brehm Scott D. 
Published: November 2021

Abstract

Aims
The Hawaiian Bobtail Squid (Euprymna scolopes) is a model organism for investigating host–symbiont relationships. The current scientific focus is on the microbiome within E. scolopes, while very little is known about the microbiome of the tanks housing E. scolopes. We examined the hypothesis that bacterial communities and geochemistry within the squid tank environment correlate with the production of viable paralarval squid.

Methods and Results
Total DNA was extracted from sediment and filtered water samples from ‘productive’ squid cohorts with high embryonic survival and paralarval hatching, ‘unproductive’ cohorts with low embryonic survival and paralarval hatching. As a control total DNA was extracted from environmental marine locations where E. scolopes is indigenous. Comparative analysis of the bacterial communities by the 16S rRNA gene was performed using next generation sequencing. Thirty-eight differentially abundant genera were identified in the adult tank waters. The majority of the sequences represented unclassified, candidate or novel genera. The characterized genera included Aquicella, Woeseia and Ferruginibacter, with Hyphomicrobium and Rhizohapis were found to be more abundant in productive adult tank water. In addition, nitrate and pH covaried with productive cohorts, explaining 67% of the bacterial populations. The lower abundance of nitrate-reducing bacteria in unproductive adult tank water could explain detected elevated nitrate levels.

Conclusions
We conclude that microbiome composition and water geochemistry can negatively affect E. scolopes reproductive physiology in closed tank systems, ultimately impacting host-microbe research using these animals.

Significance and Impact of study
These results identify the tight relationship between the microbiome and geochemistry to E. scolopes. From this study, it may be possible to design probiotic counter-measures to improve aquaculture conditions for E. scolopes.
Occult Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and challenges for hepatitis elimination: A literature review
Authors: de Almeida Nathália Alves Araujo , de Paula Vanessa Salete 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
Occult hepatitis B infection (OBI) is characterized by the detection of hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA in serum or liver but negativity for hepatitis B surface antigen. OBI, which is thought to be maintained by host, immunological, viral and/or epigenetic factors, is one of the most challenging clinical features in the study of viral hepatitis. Currently, there is no validated detection test for OBI. It is believed that OBI is widely distributed throughout the world, with a higher prevalence in populations at high-risk HBV, but the detailed worldwide prevalence patterns are unknown. We conducted a survey of recently published studies on OBI rates across all continents. High prevalence rates of OBI are observed in some specific groups, including patients with hepatitis C virus, human immunodeficiency virus co-infection or hepatocellular carcinoma. In 2016, the World Health Organization adopted strategies to eliminate viral hepatitis by 2030, but the difficulties in detecting and treating OBI currently challenge this goal. Subjects with OBI can transmit HBV, and episodes of reactivation can occur. Further studies to understanding the mechanisms that drive the development of OBI are needed and can contribute to efforts at eliminating viral hepatitis.
Growth of invasive pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) at sea assessed by scale analysis
Authors: Paulsen Tora , Sandlund Odd Terje , Østborg Gunnel , Thorstad Eva B. , Fiske Peder , Muladal Rune , Tronstad Stig 
Published: November 2021

AbstractInvasive pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) has been present in variable, but low, numbers in Norwegian waters since c. 1960, but beginning in 2017 their numbers have exploded in rivers in northern Norway, with considerable numbers also recorded in rivers in southern Norway and other countries bordering the North Atlantic. Analysis of pink salmon scales from two rivers draining to the western Barents Sea showed declining growth during the first weeks after entering the sea, and some individuals even showed a pronounced growth arrest, based on detailed scale circulus analyses. This was followed by a period of growth increase and stability during late summer and autumn, which may reflect a transition to better food sources, as the fish migrate from coastal waters to the open ocean, and as they grow larger and can eat larger and more energy efficient food items. Growth declined to a minimum during winter. Fish body size at spawning was positively correlated with the distance from scale focus to the last winter circulus, as well as with the number of circuli. When dividing scale growth into three periods, better growth during the first period at sea was related to increased fish body length at spawning, but this early growth explained only a minor part (6%) of the variation in final body length. The reason for this may be large individual variation in growth combined with large mortality during the first weeks at sea. If mortality is selective, removing fish with poor growth may reduce a correlation between early growth and body size at spawning. Scale growth during late summer and early autumn explained more of the variation in fish length at spawning (27%). Hence, late summer and early autumn was likely an important period for marine growth and survival in the invasive pink salmon.
Kinetics of hepatitis B surface antigen in pregnant women with and without tenofovir disoproxil fumarate
Authors: Chang Huai‐Lung , Wen Wan‐Hsin , Lee Chien‐Nan , Chiu Yu‐En , Liu Chun‐Jen , Chang Mei‐Hwei , Lin Lung‐Huang , Chen Huey‐Ling 
Published: November 2021

AbstractTenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) is the preferred treatment to prevent mother‐to‐infant transmission in highly viremic HBV‐infected women. Data on hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) levels in pregnant women are lacking. We aimed to investigate prepartum and postpartum HBsAg kinetics and its correlation with HBV DNA in pregnant women. HBV‐infected mothers with HBV DNA ≥7.5 log10 IU/ml were tested for HBsAg and HBV DNA from baseline to 6 months postpartum. Of the 186 pregnant women with comparable baseline HBsAg and HBV DNA, 101 received TDF from the third trimester until 1 month postpartum. At delivery, TDF group had mildly lower HBsAg (4.32 ± 0.47 vs. 4.54 ± 0.35 log10 IU/ml, p = .0004) and markedly lower HBV DNA (4.26 ± 0.97 vs. 8.11 ± 0.70 log10 IU/ml, p < .0001) than the control group. In the TDF group, mean reduction of HBsAg and HBV DNA from baseline to delivery were 0.22 ± 0.38 and 3.96 ± 0.93 log10 IU/ml. HBsAg reduction had a positive correlation (r = .309; p = .0017) with HBV DNA reduction, and was predictive of HBV DNA reduction ≥3 log10 IU/ml (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, 0.67; 95% confidence interval, 0.50–0.82). At 6 months postpartum, TDF and control group had comparable HBsAg and HBV DNA. In conclusion, HBsAg decreased slightly at delivery in pregnant women receiving TDF. For monitoring the effect of antiviral therapy during pregnancy, HBV DNA is a better marker than HBsAg. Our data provided valuable information regarding monitoring HBV‐infected pregnant women using antiviral therapy.
Political dynasties and democracy in contemporary Mexico
Authors: Behrend Jacqueline 
Published: November 2021

AbstractThe existence of political families is a well‐known fact in Mexican politics. Since the early 20th century, national and subnational politicians in Mexico have been related to other politicians. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Mexico initiated a democratization process that opened the political system to greater contestation, participation, and enforcement of electoral rules. Yet, 30 years after the onset of democratization and the demise of single‐party rule, political families and dynasties continue to be important in Mexican politics. It is even more noticeable at the subnational level, where governors with blood or marital links to other politicians have governed in 27 of the 32 states (84%) since 1989. The aim of this article is to map the existence of subnational political dynasties in Mexico since the transition to democracy and to analyze some possible explanations of this phenomenon. The article makes three main contributions. First, it provides a comprehensive overview of the family relations of all governors elected to the 32 federal entities (states and the autonomous Mexico City) since 1989. Next, it explores some of the explanations advanced by the literature and analyses them in the Mexican case. Finally, it analyses the 2021 gubernatorial elections and the role that family politics played in these elections.
(+)‐Catechin, epicatechin and epigallocatechin gallate are important inducible defensive compounds against Ectropis grisescens in tea plants
Authors: Li Xiwang , Zhang Jin , Lin Songbo , Xing Yuxian , Zhang Xin , Ye Meng , Chang Yali , Guo Huawei , Sun Xiaoling 
Published: November 2021

AbstractThe tea plant, Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze, is an economically important, perennial woody plant rich in catechins. Although catechins have been reported to play an important role in plant defences against microbes, their roles in the defence of tea plants against herbivores remain unknown. In this study, we allowed the larvae of Ectropis grisescens, a leaf‐feeding pest, to feed on the plants, and alternatively, we wounded the plants and then treated them with E. grisescens oral secretions (WOS). Both approaches triggered jasmonic acid‐, ethylene‐ and auxin‐mediated signalling pathways; as a result, plants accumulated three catechin compounds: (+)‐catechin, epicatechin and epigallocatechin. Not only was the mass of E. grisescens larvae fed on plants previously infested with E. grisescens or treated with WOS significantly lower than that of larvae fed on controls, but also artificial diet supplemented with epicatechin, (+)‐catechin or epigallocatechin gallate reduced larval growth rates. In addition, the exogenous application of jasmonic acid, ethylene or auxin induced the biosynthesis of the three catechins, which, in turn, enhanced the resistance of tea plants to E. grisescens, leading to the coordination of the three signalling pathways. Our results suggest that the three catechins play an important role in the defences of tea plants against E. grisescens.
Growth temperature affects O2 consumption rates and plasticity of respiratory flux to support shoot growth at various growth temperatures
Authors: Inoue Tomomi , Yamada Yusuke , Noguchi Ko 
Published: November 2021

AbstractThe temperature dependence of respiration rates and their acclimation to growth temperature vary among species/ecotypes, but the details remain unclear. Here, we compared the temperature dependence of shoot O2 consumption rates among Arabidopsis thaliana ecotypes to clarify how the temperature dependence and their acclimation to temperature differ among ecotypes, and how these differences relate to shoot growth. We examined growth analysis, temperature dependence of O2 consumption rates, and protein amounts of the respiratory chain components in shoots of twelve ecotypes of A. thaliana grown at three different temperatures. The temperature dependence of the O2 consumption rates were fitted to the modified Arrhenius model. The dynamic response of activation energy to measurement temperature was different among growth temperatures, suggesting that the plasticity of respiratory flux to temperatures differs among growth temperatures. The similar values of activation energy at growth temperature among ecotypes suggest that a similar process may determine the O2 consumption rates at the growth temperature in any ecotype. These results suggest that the growth temperature affects not only the absolute rate of O2 consumption but also the plasticity of respiratory flux in response to temperature, supporting the acclimation of shoot growth to various temperatures.
Drought effects on volatile organic compound emissions from Scots pine stems
Authors: Rissanen Kaisa , Aalto Juho , Gessler Arthur , Hölttä Teemu , Rigling Andreas , Schaub Marcus , Bäck Jaana 
Published: November 2021

AbstractTree stems have been identified as sources of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that play important roles in tree defence and atmospheric chemistry. Yet, we lack understanding on the magnitude and environmental drivers of stem VOC emissions in various forest ecosystems. Due to the increasing importance of extreme drought, we studied drought effects on the VOC emissions from mature Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) stems. We measured monoterpenes, acetone, acetaldehyde and methanol emissions with custom‐made stem chambers, online PTR‐MS and adsorbent sampling in a drought‐prone forest over the hot‐dry summer of 2018 and compared the emission rates and dynamics between trees in naturally dry conditions and under long‐term irrigation (drought release). The pine stems were significant monoterpene sources. The stem monoterpene emissions potentially originated from resin, based on their similar monoterpene spectra. The emission dynamics of all VOCs followed temperature at a daily scale, but monoterpene and acetaldehyde emission rates decreased nonlinearly with drought over the summer. Despite the dry conditions, large peaks of monoterpene, acetaldehyde and acetone emissions occurred in late summer potentially due to abiotic or biotic stressors. Our results highlight the potential importance of stem emissions in the ecosystem VOC budget, encouraging further studies in diverse environments.
Zero‐contrast PTRA and stenting for child with TRAS: A case report
Authors: Xie Yang , He Xingwei , Qiu Liru , Zeng Hesong 
Published: November 2021

AbstractBackgroundKidney transplantation is often complicated by TRAS, and PTRA can effectively treat it. However, PTRA is not appropriate for patients with CKD because iodinated contrast agent may induce nephropathy.MethodsThis article reports about a 14‐year‐old boy with a history of kidney transplantation complicated by RAS. He initially underwent percutaneous balloon dilation to relieve the stenosis. One and half a year after dilation, he received zero‐contrast PTRA and stenting under the guidance of external and IVUS with reference to previous PAG image.ResultsAfter successful stent implantation, the cross‐sectional area of the renal artery lumen was significantly increased.The blood pressure and level of creatinine also decreased and kept stable during follow‐up.ConclusionThis report suggests the feasibility of external ultrasound and IVUS guided, zero‐contrast PTRA in patients with poor renal function or iodinated contrast allergy.