bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Spatial information from the odour environment in mammalian olfaction
Authors: Marin Alina Cristina , Schaefer Andreas T , Ackels Tobias 
Published: January 2021

AbstractThe sense of smell is an essential modality for many species, in particular nocturnal and crepuscular mammals, to gather information about their environment. Olfactory cues provide information over a large range of distances, allowing behaviours ranging from simple detection and recognition of objects, to tracking trails and navigating using odour plumes from afar. In this review, we discuss the features of the natural olfactory environment and provide a brief overview of how odour information can be sampled and might be represented and processed by the mammalian olfactory system. Finally, we discuss recent behavioural approaches that address how mammals extract spatial information from the environment in three different contexts: odour trail tracking, odour plume tracking and, more general, olfactory-guided navigation. Recent technological developments have seen the spatiotemporal aspect of mammalian olfaction gain significant attention, and we discuss both the promising aspects of rapidly developing paradigms and stimulus control technologies as well as their limitations. We conclude that, while still in its beginnings, research on the odour environment offers an entry point into understanding the mechanisms how mammals extract information about space.
Using Classical Test Theory to Determine the Psychometric Properties of the Deglutition Handicap Index
Authors: Speyer Renée , Cordier Reinie , Bouix Clara , Gallois Yohan , Woisard Virginie 
Published: January 2021

AbstractThe Deglutition Handicap Index (DHI) is a self-report measure for patients at risk of oropharyngeal dysphagia on deglutition-related aspects of functional health status (FHS) and health-related quality of life (HR-QoL). The DHI consists of 30 items which are subsumed within the Symptom, Functional and Emotional subscales. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the DHI using Classic Test Theory according to the COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) criteria. A total of 453 patients with dysphagia with different aetiologies were recruited concurrently at two academic hospitals. Dysphagia was confirmed by fiberoptic endoscopic and/or videofluoroscopic evaluation of swallowing. In addition, a healthy control group of 132 participants were recruited. Structural validity was determined using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses and internal consistency by calculating Cronbach’s alpha coefficients. Hypothesis testing was evaluated using Mann–WhitneyU-tests, linear regression analysis and correlations analysis. Diagnostic performance and receiver operating characteristic curves analysis were calculated. Factor analyses indicated that the DHI is a unidimensional measure. The DHI has good internal consistency with some indication of item redundancy, weak to moderate structural validity and strong hypothesis testing for construct validity. The DHI shows high diagnostic performance as part of criterion validity. These findings support that the DHI is an appropriate choice as a patient self-report measure to evaluate FHS and HR-QoL in dysphagia. Ongoing validation to assess the measure for possible item redundancy and to examine the dimensionality of the DHI using item response theory is recommended.
Respond of the different human cranial bones to pin-type head fixation device
Authors: Visentin Alissa , van Dooren Kristina , Mertens Jan , Brina Olivier , Schaller Karl 
Published: January 2021

Abstract
Background
At this juncture, there is no consensus in the literature for the use and the safety of pin-type head holders in cranial procedures.

Methods
The present analysis of the bone response to the fixation of the instrument provides data to understand its impact on the entire skull as well as associated complications. An experimental study was conducted on fresh-frozen human specimens to analyze the puncture hole due to the fixation of each single pin of the pin-type head holder. Cone-beam CT images were acquired to measure the diameter of the puncture hole caused by the instrument according to several parameters: the pin angle, the clamping force, and different neurosurgical approaches most clinically used.

Results
The deepest hole, 2.67 ± 0.27 mm, was recorded for a 35° angle and a clamping force of 270 N at the middle fossa approach. The shallowest hole was 0.62 ± 0.22 mm for the 43° angle with a pinning force of 180 N in the pterional approach. The pterional approach had a significantly different effect on the depth of the puncture hole compared with the middle fossa craniotomy for 270 N pinning at 35° angle. The puncture hole measured with the 43° angle and 180 N force in prone position is significantly different from the other approaches with the same force.

Conclusions
These results could lead to recommendations about the use of the head holder depending on the patient’s history and cranial thickness to reduce complications associated with the pin-type head holder during clinical applications.
Botulinum toxin dosing in arm muscles: contextual factors
Authors: Dressler Dirk , Kopp Bruno , Adib Saberi Fereshte 
Published: January 2021

AbstractBotulinum toxin (BT) has been successfully used for many years to treat various muscle hyperactivity disorders including dystonia and spasticity. Its dosing is guided by dosing tables describing target muscles and dose ranges. To refine the BT dosing, we wanted to analyse how contextual factors may influence the injector's final dosing decision.In a retrospective review of real-life data of 1170 BT treatments, we studied the influence of various contextual factors on the BT doses in 21 arm muscles of 252 patients receiving BT therapy for different muscle hyperactivity disorders.We found that BT arm doses are significantly higher in treatment of spasticity than in treatment of dystonia. We also found that spontaneous arm dystonia requires higher BT doses in a proximal application pattern, whereas task specific writer's cramp requires considerably reduced BT doses with a distal application pattern. Injections of non-arm muscles influence the BT dosing in arm muscles only marginally.Our study demonstrates that BT dosing does not only depend on the particularities of the individual target muscle injected, such as its volume and its static or phasic function. BT dosing and its application pattern rather depend on additional contextual factors such as the aetiology and pathophysiology of the muscle hyperactivity treated. These contextual factors need to be included in dosing tables and may improve the outcome of BT therapy.
Different effects of reward value and saliency during bumblebee visual search for multiple rewarding targets
Authors: Nityananda Vivek , Chittka Lars 
Published: January 2021

AbstractSeveral animals, including bees, use visual search to distinguish targets of interest and ignore distractors. While bee flower choice is well studied, we know relatively little about how they choose between multiple rewarding flowers in complex floral environments. Two factors that could influence bee visual search for multiple flowers are the saliency (colour contrast against the background) and the reward value of flowers. We here investigated how these two different factors contribute to bee visual search. We trained bees to independently recognize two rewarding flower types that, in different experiments, differed in either saliency, reward value or both. We then measured their choices and attention to these flowers in the presence of distractors in a test without reinforcement. We found that bees preferred more salient or higher rewarding flowers and ignored distractors. When the high-reward flowers were less salient than the low-reward flowers, bees were nonetheless equally likely to choose high-reward flowers, for the reward and saliency values we used. Bees were also more likely to attend to these high-reward flowers, spending higher inspection times around them and exhibiting faster search times when choosing them. When flowers differed in reward, we also found an effect of the training order with low-reward targets being more likely to be chosen if they had been encountered during the more immediate training session prior to the test. Our results parallel recent findings from humans demonstrating that reward value can attract attention even when targets are less salient and irrelevant to the current task.
Near future climate change projections with implications for the agricultural sector of three major Mediterranean islands
Authors: Varotsos Konstantinos V. , Karali Anna , Lemesios Giannis , Kitsara Gianna , Moriondo Marco , Dibari Camilla , Leolini Luisa , Giannakopoulos Christos 
Published: January 2021

AbstractThe paper presents the analysis of a sub-set of high-resolution bias-adjusted simulations from the EURO-CORDEX initiative, in order to examine the changes in the mean climate and the extremes in three Mediterranean islands, namely, Sicily, Crete and Cyprus, in the near future (2031–2060) compared to the present climate (1971–2000), under two future scenarios, i.e. RCP4.5 and RCP8.5. The analysis entails commonly used climatic indices of interest related to the islands’ agricultural sector. The results indicate robust increases for both the mean maximum and minimum temperatures on a seasonal basis, as well as for the temperature related extremes under both climate scenarios. On the contrary, the changes in precipitation are less pronounced as the changes in the seasonal precipitation are not found statistically significant for the three islands under both scenarios. The projected warming combined with the projected unchanged precipitation pattern in the future, especially in spring and summer, might expose the crops to conditions with a negative impact on the plants’ phenology, leading to implications on crop production and quality. The results presented here might be the basis for the development of an adaptation strategy specifically targeted on the three islands but also replicable to other Mediterranean islands.
Stress fibers of the aortic smooth muscle cells in tissues do not align with the principal strain direction during intraluminal pressurization
Authors: Sugita Shukei , Mizuno Naoto , Ujihara Yoshihiro , Nakamura Masanori 
Published: January 2021

AbstractStress fibers (SFs) in cells transmit external forces to cell nuclei, altering the DNA structure, gene expression, and cell activity. To determine whether SFs are involved in mechanosignal transduction upon intraluminal pressure, this study investigated the SF direction in smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in aortic tissue and strain in the SF direction. Aortic tissues were fixed under physiological pressure of 120 mmHg. First, we observed fluorescently labeled SFs using two-photon microscopy. It was revealed that SFs in the same smooth muscle layers were aligned in almost the same direction, and the absolute value of the alignment angle from the circumferential direction was 16.8° ± 5.2° (n = 96, mean ± SD). Second, we quantified the strain field in the aortic tissue in reference to photo-bleached markers. It was found in the radial-circumferential plane that the largest strain direction was − 21.3° ± 11.1°, and the zero normal strain direction was 28.1° ± 10.2°. Thus, the SFs in aortic SMCs were not in line with neither the largest strain direction nor the zero strain direction, although their orientation was relatively close to the zero strain direction. These results suggest that SFs in aortic SMCs undergo stretch, but not maximal and transmit the force to nuclei under intraluminal pressure.
Population size estimation based upon zero-truncated, one-inflated and sparse count data
Authors: Böhning Dankmar , Friedl Herwig 
Published: January 2021

AbstractEstimating the size of a hard-to-count population is a challenging matter. In particular, when only few observations of the population to be estimated are available. The matter gets even more complex when one-inflation occurs. This situation is illustrated with the help of two examples: the size of a dice snake population in Graz (Austria) and the number of flare stars in the Pleiades. The paper discusses how one-inflation can be easily handled in likelihood approaches and also discusses how variances and confidence intervals can be obtained by means of a semi-parametric bootstrap. A Bayesian approach is mentioned as well and all approaches result in similar estimates of the hidden size of the population. Finally, a simulation study is provided which shows that the unconditional likelihood approach as well as the Bayesian approach using Jeffreys’ prior perform favorable.
Quality control of long-term mass-reared Aedes albopictus for population suppression
Authors: Li Yongjun , Zhang Meichun , Wang Xiaohua , Zheng Xiaoying , Hu Zhiyong , Xi Zhiyong 
Published: January 2021

AbstractThe endosymbiotic bacterium Wolbachia is being developed as a tool to suppress mosquito populations and their transmitted pathogens, with successful field trials in multiple countries having resulted in efforts to scale up the capacity to mass-produce mosquitoes for release. However, major challenges exist to achieving this goal, including concerns that mass-reared mosquitoes will adapt to laboratory conditions during long-term maintenance and experience inbreeding depression, resulting in poor performance of the released mosquitoes in the field. Here, we assessed the performance of the Aedes albopictus HC line infected with a triple-strain Wolbachia after mass-rearing at scaled-up densities of up to 15 million mosquitoes per week for over 50 generations. In comparison with the wild-type GUA line, the HC mosquitoes had desirable characteristics for mass-rearing and release, including robust male mating competitiveness, high female reproductive capacity, reduced vector competence for dengue virus, and increased Wolbachia density. Although the larval survival rate of the HC and GUA lines was similar, the HC larvae developed significantly faster, possibly because of up-regulation of the molting hormone 20-hydroxyecdysone-related gene E75 in the HC larvae. Our results indicate that over many generations mass-reared mosquito lines can retain their quality if large effective population sizes with sufficient genetic heterogeneity are maintained under optimized rearing conditions and demonstrate the long-term feasibility of deploying Wolbachia-based approaches for area-wide management of mosquito vectors for disease control.
The strong simple connectedness of tame algebras with separating almost cyclic coherent Auslander–Reiten components
Authors: Malicki Piotr 
Published: January 2021

AbstractWe study the strong simple connectedness of finite-dimensional tame algebras over an algebraically closed field, for which the Auslander–Reiten quiver admits a separating family of almost cyclic coherent components. As the main application we describe all analytically rigid algebras in this class.
Patterns and predictors of soil organic carbon storage across a continental-scale network
Authors: Nave L. E. , Bowman M. , Gallo A. , Hatten J. A. , Heckman K. A. , Matosziuk L. , Possinger A. R. , SanClements M. , Sanderman J. , Strahm B. D. , Weiglein T. L. , Swanston C. W. 
Published: January 2021

AbstractThe rarity of rapid campaigns to characterize soils across scales limits opportunities to investigate variation in soil carbon stocks (SOC) storage simultaneously at large and small scales, with and without site-level replication. We used data from two complementary campaigns at 40 sites in the United States across the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), in which one campaign sampled profiles from closely co-located intensive plots and physically composited similar horizons, and the other sampled dozens of pedons across the landscape at each site. We demonstrate some consistencies between these distinct designs, while also revealing that within-site replication reveals patterns and predictors of SOC stocks not detectable with non-replicated designs. Both designs demonstrate that SOC stocks of whole soil profiles vary across continental-scale climate gradients. However, broad climate patterns may mask the importance of localized variation in soil physicochemical properties, as captured by within-site sampling, especially for SOC stocks of discrete genetic horizons. Within-site replication also reveals examples in which expectations based on readily explained continental-scale patterns do not hold. For example, even wide-ranging drainage class sequences within landscapes do not duplicate the clear differences in profile SOC stocks across drainage classes at the continental scale, and physicochemical factors associated with increasing B horizon SOC stocks at continental scales frequently do not follow the same patterns within landscapes. Because inferences from SOC studies are a product of their context (where, when, how), this study provides context—in terms of SOC stocks and the factors that influence them—for others assessing soils and the C cycle at NEON sites.
The increasing importance of histologic grading in tailoring adjuvant systemic therapy in 30,843 breast cancer patients
Authors: van Dooijeweert C. , Baas I. O. , Deckers I. A. G. , Siesling S. , van Diest P. J. , van der Wall E. 
Published: January 2021

Abstract
Purpose
The large variation in histologic grading of invasive breast cancer (IBC) that has been reported likely influences tailoring adjuvant therapy. The role of grading in therapeutic decision-making in daily practice, was evaluated using the Dutch national guidelines for IBC-management.

Methods
Synoptic reports of IBC resection-specimens, obtained between 2013 and 2016, were extracted from the nationwide Dutch Pathology Registry, and linked to treatment-data from the Netherlands Cancer Registry. The relevance of grading for adjuvant chemotherapy (aCT) was quantified by identifying patients for whom grade was the determinative factor. In addition, the relation between grade and aCT-administration was evaluated by multivariate logistic regression for patients with a guideline-aCT-indication.

Results
30,843 patients were included. Applying the guideline that was valid between 2013 and 2016, grade was the determinative factor for the aCT-indication in 7744 (25.1%) patients, a percentage that even increased according to the current guideline where grade would be decisive for aCT in 10,869 (35.2%) patients. Also in current practice, the indication for adjuvant endocrine therapy (aET) would be based on grade in 9173 (29.7%) patients. Finally, as patients with lower-grade tumors receive aCT significantly less often, grade was also decisive in tailoring aCT de-escalation.

Conclusions
In the largest study published so far we illustrate the increasing importance of histologic grade in tailoring adjuvant systemic breast cancer therapy. Next to playing a key-role in aCT-indication and de-escalation, the role of grading has expanded to the indication for aET. Optimizing histologic grading by pathologists is urgently needed to diminish the risk of worse patient outcome due to non-optimal treatment.
Children and the Child Welfare System: Problems, Interventions, and Lessons from Around the World
Authors: Przeperski Jarosław , Owusu Samuel A. 
Published: January 2021

AbstractSecuring the welfare of children and the family is an integral part of social work. Modern society has experienced enormous changes that present both opportunities and challenges to the practice of social work to protect the welfare of children. It is thus essential that we understand the experiences of social work practitioners in different parts of the world in order to adapt practice to the changing times. To help achieve this, we present a collection of papers from around the world that presents findings on various aspects of social work research and practice involving children and the potential for improved service delivery.
Patterns and tempo of PCSK9 pseudogenizations suggest an ancient divergence in mammalian cholesterol homeostasis mechanisms
Authors: van Asch Barbara , Teixeira da Costa Luís Filipe 
Published: January 2021

AbstractProprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) plays a central role in cholesterol homeostasis in humans as a major regulator of LDLR levels. PCSK9 is an intriguing protease in that it does not act by proteolysis but by preventing LDLR recirculation from endosomes to the plasma membrane. This, and the inexistence of any other proteolytic substrate but itself could suggest that PCSK9 is an exquisite example of evolutionary fine-tuning. However, the gene has been lost in several mammalian species, and null alleles are present (albeit at low frequencies) in some human populations without apparently deleterious health effects, raising the possibility that the PCSK9 may have become dispensable in the mammalian lineage. To address this issue, we systematically recovered, assembled, corrected, annotated and analysed publicly available PCSK9 sequences for 420 eutherian species to determine the distribution, frequencies, mechanisms and timing of PCSK9 pseudogenization events, as well as the evolutionary pressures underlying the preservation or loss of the gene. We found a dramatic difference in the patterns of PCSK9 retention and loss between Euarchontoglires—where there is strong pressure for gene preservation—and Laurasiatheria, where multiple independent events have led to PCSK9 loss in most species. These results suggest that there is a fundamental difference in the regulation of cholesterol metabolism between Euarchontoglires and Laurasiatheria, which in turn has important implications for the use of Laurasiatheria species (e.g. pigs) as animal models of human cholesterol-related diseases.
Weighted proximity search
Authors: Rodrigues Filipe , Agra Agostinho , Hvattum Lars Magnus , Requejo Cristina 
Published: January 2021

AbstractProximity search is an iterative method to solve complex mathematical programming problems. At each iteration, the objective function of the problem at hand is replaced by the Hamming distance function to a given solution, and a cutoff constraint is added to impose that any new obtained solution improves the objective function value. A mixed integer programming solver is used to find a feasible solution to this modified problem, yielding an improved solution to the original problem. This paper introduces the concept of weighted Hamming distance that allows to design a new method called weighted proximity search. In this new distance function, low weights are associated with the variables whose value in the current solution is promising to change in order to find an improved solution, while high weights are assigned to variables that are expected to remain unchanged. The weights help to distinguish between alternative solutions in the neighborhood of the current solution, and provide guidance to the solver when trying to locate an improved solution. Several strategies to determine weights are presented, including both static and dynamic strategies. The proposed weighted proximity search is compared with the classic proximity search on instances from three optimization problems: the p-median problem, the set covering problem, and the stochastic lot-sizing problem. The obtained results show that a suitable choice of weights allows the weighted proximity search to obtain better solutions, for 75$$\%$$
%
of the cases, than the ones obtained by using proximity search and for 96$$\%$$
%
of the cases the solutions are better than the ones obtained by running a commercial solver with a time limit.