bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
An epidemiological approach to the analysis of cribra orbitalia as an indicator of health status and mortality in medieval and post‐medieval London under a model of parasitic infection
Authors: Godde Kanya , Hens Samantha M. 
Published: February 2021

AbstractObjectivesMany individuals living in medieval and post‐medieval London suffered issues with sanitation, food insecurity, infectious disease, and widespread exposure to parasites from a multitude of sources, causing increased risk of death for many inhabitants. We examine this stressful environment and its relationship with various demographic and temporal dimensions, using cribra orbitalia (CO) as an indicator of stress, to model an increased risk of dying under the expectations of our proposed parasitic model of infection.Materials and methodsWe analyze the relationship between CO and mortality across seven medieval and post‐medieval cemeteries from London by the covariates of sex, status, and age‐at‐death. A survival analysis (Cox regression) and a binomial logit estimated hazard and odds ratios of dying with CO across age‐at‐death, sex, status, and time‐period within single statistical models. In addition, we provide new Bayesian age‐at‐death estimates for post‐medieval samples.ResultsThe models show the rate of CO decreased over time and age‐at‐death, regardless of sex or status; post‐medieval individuals were ~72% less likely to die with lesions than their medieval counterparts. Further, individuals with CO had ~1% decrease in risk of dying with CO per year of age.DiscussionThese results suggest increased mortality risk for those with lesions indicative of anemia (CO), and selective mortality of younger individuals during the medieval period. Despite sex‐specific nutritional and occupational hazards, and status‐based access to resources, the prevalence of CO was similar across sex and status, which suggests living with parasitic infection that caused anemia was an everyday reality for medieval and post‐medieval Londoners.
A Fully Conjugated 3D Covalent Organic Framework Exhibiting Band‐like Transport with Ultrahigh Electron Mobility
Authors: Wang Shitao , Da Ling , Hao Jinsong , Li Jin , Wang Mao , Huang Yan , Li Zexu , Liu Zhiping , Cao Dapeng 
Published: February 2021

AbstractAlthough π‐conjugated two dimensional (2D) covalent organic frameworks (COFs) have been extensively reported, developing fully π‐conjugated 3D COFs is still an extremely difficult problem due to the lack of fully π‐conjugated 3D linkers. We synthesize a fully conjugated 3D COF (BUCT‐COF‐1) by designing a saddle‐shaped building block of aldehyde‐substituted cyclooctatetrathiophene (COThP)‐CHO. As a consequence of the fully conjugated 3D network, BUCT‐COF‐1 demonstrates ultrahigh Hall electron mobility up to ≈3.0 cm2 V−1 s−1at room temperature, which is one order of magnitude higher than the current π‐conjugated 2D COFs. Temperature‐dependent conductivity measurements reveal that the charge carriers in BUCT‐ COF‐1 exhibit the band‐like transport mechanism, which is entirely different from the hopping transport phenomena observed in common organic materials. The findings indicate that fully conjugated 3D COFs can achieve electron delocalization and charge‐transport pathways within the whole 3D skeleton, which may open up a new frontier in the design of organic semiconducting materials.
A Superstrong and Reversible Ionic Crystal‐Based Adhesive Inspired by Ice Adhesion
Authors: Liu Lili , Liu Ziyang , Ren Yongyuan , Zou Xiuyang , Peng Wansu , Li Weizheng , Wu Yiqing , Zheng Sijie , Wang Xiaoliang , Yan Feng 
Published: February 2021

AbstractIn this study, we developed a superstrong and reversible adhesive, which can possess a high bonding strength in the “adhesive” state and detach with the application of heating. An ionic crystal (IC) gel, in which an IC was immobilized within a soft‐polymer matrix, were synthesized via in situ photo‐crosslinking of a precursor solution composed of N, N‐dimethyl acrylamide (DMAA) and a melted IC. The obtained IC gel is homogenous and transparent at melt point. When cooled to the phase transition temperature of the IC, the gel turns into the adhesive with the adhesion strength of 5.82 MPa (on glasses), due to the excellent wetting of melted gel and a thin layer of crystalline IC with high cohesive strength formed on the substrates. The synergistic effects between IC, polymer networks and substrates were investigated by solid state 1H NMR and molecular dynamics simulation. Such an adhesive layer is reversable and can be detached by heating and subsequent re‐adhesion via cooling. This study proposed the new design of removable adhesives, which can be used in dynamic and complex environments.
Crystallization of a nonreplicating rotavirus vaccine candidate
Authors: Hong Moo Sun , Kaur Kawaljit , Sawant Nishant , Joshi Sangeeta B. , Volkin David B. , Braatz Richard D. 
Published: February 2021

AbstractNonreplicating rotavirus vaccine (NRRV) candidates are being developed with the aim of serving the needs of developing countries. A significant proportion of the cost of manufacturing such vaccines is the purification in multiple chromatography steps. Crystallization has the potential to reduce purification costs and provide new product storage modality, improved operational flexibility, and reduced facility footprints. This communication describes a systematic approach for the design of the crystallization of an NRRV candidate, VP8 subunit proteins fused to the P2 epitope of tetanus toxin, using first‐principles models and preliminary experimental data. The first‐principles models are applied to literature data to obtain feasible crystallization conditions and lower bounds for nucleation and growth rates. Crystallization is then performed in a hanging‐drop vapor diffusion system, resulting in the nucleation and growth of NRRV crystals. The crystals obtained in a scaled‐up evaporative crystallization contain proteins truncated in the P2 region, but have no significant differences with the original samples in terms of antibody binding and overall conformational stability. These results demonstrate the promise of evaporative crystallization of the NRRV.
Eggshell membrane as a bioactive agent in polymeric nanotopographic scaffolds for enhanced bone regeneration
Authors: Kim Daun , Gwon Yonghyun , Park Sunho , Kim Woochan , Yun Kwidug , Kim Jangho 
Published: February 2021

AbstractA bone regeneration scaffold is typically designed as a platform to effectively heal a bone defect while preventing soft tissue infiltration. Despite the wide variety of scaffold materials currently available, such as collagen, critical problems in achieving bone regeneration remain, including a rapid absorption period and low tensile strength as well as high costs. Inspired by extracellular matrix protein and topographical cues, we developed a polycaprolactone‐based scaffold for bone regeneration using a soluble eggshell membrane protein (SEP) coating and a nanotopography structure for enhancing the physical properties and bioactivity. The scaffold exhibited adequate flexibility and mechanical strength as a biomedical platform for bone regeneration. The highly aligned nanostructures and SEP coating were found to regulate and enhance cell morphology, adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation in vitro. In a calvaria bone defect mouse model, the scaffolds coated with SEP applied to the defect site promoted bone regeneration along the direction of the nanotopography in vivo. These findings demonstrate that bone‐inspired nanostructures and SEP coatings have high potential to be applicable in the design and manipulation of scaffolds for bone regeneration.
Fostering study time outside class using gamification strategies: An experimental study at tertiary‐level database courses
Authors: Zorrilla Pantaleón Marta Elena , García‐Saiz Diego , de la Vega Alfonso 
Published: February 2021

AbstractThe application of game principles to nongame contexts has proven to be a powerful pedagogical strategy in the educational area to motivate, engage, and improve learners' performance. In this study, gamification is applied to increase the time and the effort that learners spend in carrying out outside‐class activities, as well as to modify a quite common study pattern of working at the last minute, that is, near exams or deadlines. Our aim was to motivate students to work weekly on the contents of the subject by carrying out practical exercises that led to a deeper knowledge acquisition, development of skills, and the achievement of the learning outcomes gathered in the subject teaching guide. We describe here the gamification strategies applied to two tertiary database courses in two consecutive academic years, following, in one case, a ranking‐based strategy, that is, achieving points by performing different activities; and, in the other one, a strategy based on earning badges and experience points. Next, we analyze the student log activity data along with deadlines and exam information, to assess at what extent gamification helped fulfill our goal. Likewise, we discuss the results of an anonymous survey carried out at the end of the semester to gather the students' opinion. We can conclude that the gamification activities are well appreciated by the learners, especially those that take little time to complete and can be repeated many times to prepare their final exams.
Production of the Carboxylate Reductase from Nocardia otitidiscaviarum in a Soluble, Active Form for in vitro Applications
Authors: Weber Douglas , Patsch David , Neumann Annika , Winkler Margit , Rother Dörte 
Published: February 2021

AbstractAccessing aldehydes from carboxylate moieties is often a challenging task. In this regard, carboxylate reductases (CARs) are promising catalysts provided by nature that are able to accomplish this task in just one step, avoiding over‐reduction to the alcohol product. However, the heterologous expression of CARs can be quite difficult due to the excessive formation of insoluble protein, thus hindering further characterization and application of the enzyme. Here, the heterologous production of the carboxylate reductase from Nocardia otitidiscaviarum (NoCAR) was optimized by a combination of i) optimized cultivation conditions, ii) post‐translational modification with a phosphopantetheinyl transferase and iii) selection of an appropriate expression strain. Especially, the selection of Escherichia coli tuner cells as host had a strong effect on the final 110‐fold increase in the specific activity of NoCAR. This highly active NoCAR was used to reduce sodium benzoate to benzaldehyde, and it was successfully assembled with an in vitro regeneration of ATP and NADPH, being capable of reducing about 30 mM sodium benzoate with high selectivity in only 2 h of reaction.
Mechanistic effects of arsenic trioxide on acute promyelocytic leukemia and other types of leukemias
Authors: Yousefnia Saghar 
Published: February 2021

AbstractAcute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), a subtype of acute myeloid leukemia characterized with a translocation between promyelocytic leukemia gene (PML) on chromosome 15 and retinoic acid receptor alpha gene (RARα) on chromosome 17. Transcription of this fusion gene results in PML/RARα fusion protein blocking expression of critical genes involved in differentiation of myeloid cells through interaction with RAR element. PML/RARα fusion protein prevents normal function of PML and RARα as well as inhibiting apoptosis. Arsenic trioxide (ATO) is an important agent for the treatment of relapsed and newly diagnosed APL. ATO induces apoptosis, autophagy, and partial cellular differentiation as well as inhibiting cell growth and angiogenesis. Recognition of signaling pathways and molecular mechanisms induced by ATO can be effective for discovering novel treatment strategies to target leukemia cells. Also, it can be developed for the treatment of a variety of cancer cells. This review provides a perspective on anticancerous effects of ATO on APL and leukemia cells.
Comparisons in perception of facial skin brightness, as influenced by differences in skin color: Asian observers
Authors: He Yuanyuan , Mikami Taiga , Tanaka Suguru , Kikuchi Kumiko , Mizokami Yoko 
Published: February 2021

AbstractHuman skin color is one of the most common colors that we see and perceive in everyday life. Previous research on skin color distribution in young Japanese women has revealed that yellowish skin has higher lightness than reddish skin. Furthermore, reddish skin appears brighter than yellowish skin when both have the same lightness (Yoshikawa et al., 2012). Despite these findings, it is unclear how brightness perception of facial skin color is influenced by the diversity of skin colors and observers. The present study investigated the perception of facial skin color among observers in three Asian countries. A young Japanese female face was used, and test faces of four skin color shades were prepared, corresponding to the average skin colors of Japanese, Thai, Caucasian, and African individuals. A test image (with constant lightness but different hue angles) and a scale image (with the original hue but varying lightness) were presented side‐by‐side on a color‐calibrated tablet display, and observers adjusted the brightness of the facial skin of the scale image to match that of the test image. The findings indicated that Japanese observers showed a trend in which reddish skin was perceived as brighter than yellowish skin; however, Thai and Chinese observers did not show this trend. This implies the potential influence of ethnicities or environments on brightness perception of facial skin.
TRACTOR: Traffic‐aware and power‐efficient virtual machine placement in edge‐cloud data centers using artificial bee colony optimization
Authors: Nabavi Sayyid Shahab , Gill Sukhpal Singh , Xu Minxian , Masdari Mohammad , Garraghan Peter 
Published: February 2021

SummaryTechnology providers heavily exploit the usage of edge‐cloud data centers (ECDCs) to meet user demand while the ECDCs are large energy consumers. Concerning the decrease of the energy expenditure of ECDCs, task placement is one of the most prominent solutions for effective allocation and consolidation of such tasks onto physical machine (PM). Such allocation must also consider additional optimizations beyond power and must include other objectives, including network‐traffic effectiveness. In this study, we present a multi‐objective virtual machine (VM) placement scheme (considering VMs as fog tasks) for ECDCs called TRACTOR, which utilizes an artificial bee colony optimization algorithm for power and network‐aware assignment of VMs onto PMs. The proposed scheme aims to minimize the network traffic of the interacting VMs and the power dissipation of the data center's switches and PMs. To evaluate the proposed VM placement solution, the Virtual Layer 2 (VL2) and three‐tier network topologies are modeled and integrated into the CloudSim toolkit to justify the effectiveness of the proposed solution in mitigating the network traffic and power consumption of the ECDC. Results indicate that our proposed method is able to reduce power energy consumption by 3.5% while decreasing network traffic and power by 15% and 30%, respectively, without affecting other QoS parameters.
Reef‐wide evidence that the presence of sharks modifies behaviors of teleost mesopredators
Authors: Lester E. K. , Langlois T. J. , Simpson S. D. , McCormick M. I. , Meekan M. G. 
Published: February 2021

AbstractThe idea that the presence of sharks impacts the behavior of mesopredatory reef fishes is controversial and lacks clear evidence at reef‐wide scales. We compared the abundance and behavior of these reef fishes in response to the presence of reef sharks using Baited Remote Underwater Video System (BRUVS) deployments in two adjacent reef systems where sharks have either been exclusively targeted by fishing or protected by a no‐take marine reserve. For a subset of videos, we also compared the behavior of mesopredatory reef fishes immediately before and after the appearance of sharks in the video. On reefs where sharks were more abundant, mesopredatory fishes spent less time swimming in midwater (i.e., away from shelter) and guarding bait compared to reefs where sharks have been selectively removed. The same responses occurred after the appearance of sharks in the video. Reactions to sharks varied both in strength and type among species of mesopredator and were mediated by the availability of shelter on the reef and, for one species, by the levels of activity of the reef sharks. In contrast, we did not find that the presence of sharks influenced the abundance of mesopredators at either reef system across hour‐long videos or immediately before and after a shark appeared in the video. Collectively, our findings show that the presence of sharks reduces the propensity of mesopredatory fish to engage in potentially risk‐prone behaviors over large spatial scales and that these interactions are mediated by the behavioral characteristics of both predators and prey, and the environment in which they co‐occur. Our results are consistent with the idea that sharks as predators or larger competitors initiate changes in the behavior of mesopredatory reef fishes likely to affect trophic structuring within coral reef ecosystems.
Association of recent hospitalisation with antidepressant initiation among community dwellers with Alzheimer's disease
Authors: Tarvainen Anniina , Hartikainen Sirpa , Taipale Heidi , Tanskanen Antti , Koponen Marjaana , Tolppanen Anna‐Maija 
Published: February 2021

AbstractObjectivesAntidepressant are commonly prescribed to persons with cognitive disorders to treat depressive and other neuropsychiatric symptoms despite the inconclusive evidence on their effectiveness on this indication. We studied whether recent hospitalisation was associated with antidepressant initiation in people with Alzheimer's disease (AD).MethodsThe register‐based Finnish nationwide Medication use and Alzheimer's disease cohort includes community‐dwelling persons diagnosed with AD during 2005–2011 in Finland (n = 70,718). This study was restricted to people who initiated antidepressant use after AD diagnosis and had no active cancer treatment and schizophrenia or bipolar disorder diagnoses. We performed a nested case‐control study with antidepressant initiators as cases. A matched noninitiator (sex, age and AD duration), was identified for each initiator (15,360 matched pairs). Recent hospitalisation was defined as hospital discharge within the past 14 days of initiation.ResultsAntidepressant initiators were four times more likely (adjusted odds ratio: 4.41, 95% confidence interval: 4.06–4.80) to have been hospitalised within the past 2 weeks before initiation (21.2%, n = 3250) than matched noninitiators (5.4%, n = 831) and the duration of hospital stay was significantly longer among initiators. Dementia was the most common main discharge diagnosis among both initiators (43.8%, n = 1423) and noninitiators (24.8%, n = 206).ConclusionRecent hospitalisation was strongly associated with antidepressant initiation in persons with AD. Further studies are needed to investigate whether this is due to neuropsychiatric symptoms leading to hospital admission, inpatient care triggering or worsening neuropsychiatric symptoms or other indications. Nonpharmacological treatments for neuropsychiatric symptoms should be prioritised and the threshold for prescribing antidepressants should be high.
T cell counts and IL-6 concentration in blood of North African COVID-19 patients are two independent prognostic factors for severe disease and death
Authors: Belaid Brahim , Lamara Mahammad Lydia , Mihi Belgacem , Rahali Sarah Yasmine , Djidjeli Asma , Larab Zineb , Berkani Lilya , Berkane Ismahane , Sayah Wafa , Merah Fatma , Lazli Nouzha Zhor , Kheddouci Lylia , Kadi Ahmed , Ouali Mourad , Khellafi Rachida , Mekideche Dalila , Kheliouen Assia , Ayoub Soraya , Hamidi Réda Malek , Derrar Fawzi , Gharnaout Merzak , Allam Ines , Djidjik Réda 
Published: February 2021

AbstractThe immune system plays a crucial role in the response against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 with significant differences among patients. The study investigated the relationships between lymphocyte subsets, cytokines, and disease outcomes in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The measurements of peripheral blood lymphocytes subsets and cytokine levels were performed by flow cytometry for 57 COVID-19 patients. Patients were categorized into two groups according to the severity of the disease (nonsevere vs. severe). Total lymphocytes, T cells, CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, B cells, and natural killer cells were decreased in COVID-19 patients and statistical differences were found among different severity of illness and survival states (P ˂ 0.01). The levels of IL-6 and IL-10 were significantly higher in severe and death groups and negatively correlated with lymphocyte subsets counts. The percentages of Th17 in the peripheral blood of patients were higher than those of healthy controls whereas the percentages of Th2 were lower. For the severe cases, the area under receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of IL-6 was the largest among all the immune parameters (0.964; 95% confidence interval: 0.927–1.000, P &lt; 0.0001). In addition, the preoperative IL-6 concentration of 77.38 pg/ml was the optimal cutoff value (sensitivity: 84.6%, specificity: 100%). Using multivariate logistic regression analysis and ROC curves, IL-6 &gt; 106.44 pg/ml and CD8+ T cell counts &lt;150 cells/μl were found to be associated with mortality. Measuring the immune parameters and defining a risk threshold can segregate patients who develop a severe disease from those with a mild pathology. The identification of these parameters may help clinicians to predict the outcome of the patients with high risk of unfavorable progress of the disease.
Gastroenterology manifestations and COVID‐19 outcomes: A meta‐analysis of 25,252 cohorts among the first and second waves
Authors: Elshazli Rami M. , Kline Adam , Elgaml Abdelaziz , Aboutaleb Mohamed H. , Salim Mohamed M. , Omar Mahmoud , Munshi Ruhul , Mankowski Nicholas , Hussein Mohammad H. , Attia Abdallah S. , Toraih Eman A. , Settin Ahmad , Killackey Mary , Fawzy Manal S. , Kandil Emad 
Published: February 2021

AbstractA meta‐analysis was performed to identify patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) presenting with gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms during the first and second pandemic waves and investigate their association with the disease outcomes. A systematic search in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and EMBASE was performed up to July 25, 2020. The pooled prevalence of the GI presentations was estimated using the random‐effects model. Pairwise comparison for the outcomes was performed according to the GI manifestations' presentation and the pandemic wave of infection. Data were reported as relative risk (RR), or odds ratio and 95% confidence interval. Of 125 articles with 25,252 patients, 20.3% presented with GI manifestations. Anorexia (19.9%), dysgeusia/ageusia (15.4%), diarrhea (13.2%), nausea (10.3%), and hematemesis (9.1%) were the most common. About 26.7% had confirmed positive fecal RNA, with persistent viral shedding for an average time of 19.2 days before being negative. Patients presenting with GI symptoms on admission showed a higher risk of complications, including acute respiratory distress syndrome (RR = 8.16), acute cardiac injury (RR = 5.36), and acute kidney injury (RR = 5.52), intensive care unit (ICU) admission (RR = 2.56), and mortality (RR = 2.01). Although not reach significant levels, subgroup‐analysis revealed that affected cohorts in the first wave had a higher risk of being hospitalized, ventilated, ICU admitted, and expired. This meta‐analysis suggests an association between GI symptoms in COVID‐19 patients and unfavorable outcomes. The analysis also showed improved overall outcomes for COVID‐19 patients during the second wave compared to the first wave of the outbreak.