bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Use of disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs and the subsequent risk of herpes zoster in older adults
Authors: Qian Jiahui , Lassere Marissa Nichole , Heywood Anita Elizabeth , Liu Bette 
Published: September 2021

Abstract

Objectives
To examine the association between DMARD use and subsequent risk of herpes zoster in a large, heterogeneous and prospective population-based cohort.

Methods
Using data from a cohort of adults (45 and Up Study) recruited between 2006 and 2009 and linked to pharmaceutical, hospital and death data (2004–2015), the effect of DMARD use on zoster risk was analysed using Cox proportional hazards models, adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, comorbidities and corticosteroid use.

Results
Among 254 065 eligible participants, over 1 826 311 person-years follow-up, there were 6295 new DMARD users and 17 024 incident herpes zoster events. Compared with non-users, the risk of zoster was higher in those who used biologic (b)DMARDs, either alone or in combination with conventional synthetic (cs)DMARDs than in those who only used csDMARDs (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 2.53 [95% CI: 2.03, 3.16]) for bDMARDs vs 1.48 [95% CI: 1.33, 1.66] for csDMARDs, P-heterogeneity &lt; 0.001; reference: non-users). Among users of csDMARDs, compared with non-users, zoster risks were highest in those using exclusively cyclophosphamide (aHR 2.69 [95% CI: 1.89, 3.83]), more moderate in those using azathioprine (aHR 1.57 [95% CI: 1.07, 2.30]) and hydroxychloroquine (aHR 1.43 [95%CI: 1.11, 1.83]) and not elevated in users of methotrexate (aHR 1.24 [95% CI: 0.98, 1.57]), sulfasalazine (aHR 1.00 [95% CI: 0.71, 1.42]) and leflunomide (aHR 0.41 [95% CI: 0.06, 2.88]).

Conclusions
The risk of zoster was high among bDMARD and cyclophosphamide users. Also, the risk was increased in those using hydroxychloroquine alone and in combination with methotrexate but not methotrexate alone. Preventative strategies such as zoster vaccination or antiviral therapies should be considered in these populations if not contraindicated.
Clinical and Radiological Features of Intramuscular Orbital Amyloidosis: A Case Series and Literature Review
Authors: Tong Jessica Y. , Juniat Valerie , McKelvie Penelope A. , O’Donnell Brett A. , Hardy Thomas G. , McNab Alan A. , Selva Dinesh 
Published: September 2021

Purpose:
Orbital amyloidosis of the extraocular muscles (EOMs) is a rare condition, and its clinicoradiological features are not well elucidated. This study describes the characteristic clinical signs, MRI features, and potential treatment options.

Methods:
Retrospective multicenter case series and literature review of EOM amyloidosis.

Results:
Five cases were identified for inclusion. Common clinical findings were diplopia, ophthalmoplegia, and proptosis. Systemic amyloidosis was more likely to present with multiple muscle involvement, but no particular pattern was observed with localized disease. On MRI, amyloid deposition was characterized as a heterogeneous intramuscular mass with T2 hypointensity and post contrast enhancement. Management is dependent on the extent of disease and functional impairment; options include surgical debulking and radiation therapy.

Conclusion:
EOM amyloidosis is uncommon. The combination of clinical and radiologic findings described in this study should lead to its clinical suspicion.
Examining Wage Disparities by Race and Ethnicity of Health Care Workers
Authors: Frogner Bianca K. , Schwartz Malaika 
Published: September 2021

Background:
Prior studies demonstrated that wage disparities exist across race and ethnicity within selected health care occupations. Wage disparities may negatively affect the industry’s ability to recruit and retain a diverse workforce throughout the career ladder.

Objective:
To determine whether wage disparities by race and ethnicity persist across health care occupations and whether disparities vary across the skill spectrum.

Research Design:
Retrospective analysis of 2011–2018 data from the Current Population Survey using Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition regression methods to identify sources of variation in wage disparities. Separate models were run for 9 health care occupations.

Subjects:
Employed individuals 18 and older working in health care occupations, categorized by race/ethnicity.

Measures:
Annual wages were predicted as a function of race/ethnicity, age, sex, marital status, having a child under 5 in the household, living in a metro area, highest education attained, and usual hours worked.

Results:
Non-Hispanics consistently made more than Hispanic licensed practical/vocational nurses (LPNs/LVNs), aides/assistants, technicians, and community-based workers. Asian/Pacific Islanders consistently made more than Black, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Multiracial individuals across occupations except physicians, advanced practitioners, or therapists. Asian/Pacific Islanders only made significantly less when compared with White physicians, but more than White advanced practitioners, registered nurses, LPNs/LVNs, and aides/assistants. Based on observed attributes, Black registered nurses, LPNs/LVNs, and aides/assistants were predicted to make more than their White peers, but unexplained variation negated these gains.

Conclusions:
Many wage gaps remained unexplained based on measured factors warranting further study. Addressing wage disparities is critical to advance in careers and reduce job turnover.
Massilia puerhi sp. nov., isolated from soil of Pu-erh tea cellar
Authors: Yang Ruijuan , Zhou De , Wang Qiaomei , Peng Wenshu , Gong Wanying , Zhao Miaomiao , Ji Aibing , Wang Xuanjun , Yan Liang , Lv Jie , Sheng Jun 
Published: September 2021

A Gram-reaction-negative, yellow-pigmented, non-spore-forming rod, aerobic, motile bacterium, designated SJY3T, was isolated from soil samples collected from a Pu-erh tea cellar in Bolian Pu-erh tea estate Co. Ltd. in Pu'er city, Yunnan, south-west China. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that the isolate belonged to the genus

Massilia

. The closest phylogenetic relative was

Massilia arenae

CICC 24458T (99.5 %), followed by

M. timonae

CCUG45783T (97.9 %),

M. oculi

CCUG43427AT (97.8 %), and

M. aurea

DSM 18055T (97.8 %). The major fatty acids were C16 : 0 and C16 : 1
ω7c and/or C16 : 1
ω6c. The major respiratory quinone was ubiquinone Q-8 and the major polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylglycerol, and phosphatidylethanolamine. Genome sequencing revealed a genome size of 5.97 M bp and a G+C content of 65.4 mol%. Pairwise determined whole genome average nucleotide identity (gANI) values and digital DNA–DNA hybridization (dDDH) values were all below the threshold. Although the 16S rRNA gene similarity of stain SJY3T and

Massilia arenae

CICC 24458T was more than 99 %, the gANI, dDDH values and genomic tree clearly indicated that they were not of the same species. In summary, strain SJY3T represents a new species, for which we propose the name Massilia puerhi sp. nov. with the type strain SJY3T (=CGMCC 1.17158T=KCTC 82193T).
In silico, In vitro Screening of Plant Extracts for Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Activity and Evaluation of Their Acute and Sub-Acute Toxicity
Authors: Damle Latha , Damle Hrishikesh , Ganju Shiban , Chandrashekar C , Bharath BR 
Published: September 2021

AbstractBackgroundIn the absence of a specific drug for COVID 19, treatment with plant extracts could be an option worthy of further investigation.PurposeTo screen the phytochemicals for Anti-SARS-CoV-2 in silico and evaluate their safety and efficacy in vitro and in vivo.MethodThe phytochemicals for Anti-SARS-CoV-2 were screened in silico using molecular docking. The hits generated from in silico screening were subjected for extraction, isolation and purification. The anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of plant extracts of Z. piperitum (ATRI-CoV-E1), W. somnifera (ATRI-CoV-E2), C. inophyllum (ATRI-CoV-E3), A. paniculata (ATRI-CoV-E4), and C. Asiatica (ATRI-CoV-E5). The in vitro safety and anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of plant extracts were performed in VeroE6 cells using Remdesivir as positive control. The acute and sub-acute toxicity study was performed in Wistar male and female rats.ResultsThe percentage of cell viability for ATRI-COV-E4, ATRI-COV-E5 and ATRI-COV-E2 treated VeroE6 cells were remarkably good on the 24th and 48th hour of treatment. The in vitro anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity of ATRI-COV-E4, ATRI-COV-E5 and ATRI-COV-E2 were significant for both E gene and N gene. The percentage of SARS-CoV-2 inhibition for ATRI-COV-E4 was better than Remdesivir. For E gene and N gene, Remdesivir showed IC50 of 0.15 µM and 0.11 µM respectively, For E gene and N gene, ATRI-CoV-E4 showed IC50 of 1.18 µg and 1.16 µg respectively. Taking the clue from in vitro findings, the plant extracts A. paniculata (ATRI-COV-E4), W. somnifera extract (ATRI-COV-E5) and C. asiatica extract (ATRI-COV-E2) were combined (ATRICOV 452) and evaluated for acute and sub-acute toxicity in Wistar male and female rats. No statistically significant difference in haematological, biochemical and histopathological parameters were noticed.ConclusionThe study demonstrated the Anti-SARS-CoV-2 activity in vitro and safety of plant extracts in both in vitro and in vivo experimental conditions.
Off-target expression of Cre-dependent adeno-associated viruses in wild type C57BL/6J mice
Authors: Botterill Justin J. , Khlaifia Abdessattar , Walters Brandon J. , Brimble Mark A. , Scharfman Helen E. , Arruda-Carvalho Maithe 
Published: September 2021

AbstractAdeno-associated viruses (AAVs) are a commonly used tool in neuroscience to efficiently label, trace, and/or manipulate neuronal populations. Highly specific targeting can be achieved through recombinase-dependent AAVs in combination with transgenic rodent lines that express Cre-recombinase in specific cell types. Visualization of viral expression is typically achieved through fluorescent reporter proteins (e.g., GFP or mCherry) packaged within the AAV genome. Although non-amplified fluorescence is usually sufficient to observe viral expression, immunohistochemical amplification of the fluorescent reporter is routinely used to improve viral visualization. In the present study, Cre-dependent AAVs were injected into the hippocampus and cortex of wild-type C57BL/6J mice. While we observed weak but consistent non-amplified off-target DIO expression in C57BL/6J mice, antibody amplification of the GFP or mCherry reporter revealed extensive Cre-independent viral expression. Off-target expression of DIO constructs in wild-type C57BL/6J mice occurred independent of vendor, AAV serotype or promoter. We also evaluated whether Cre-independent expression had functional effects via Designer Receptors Exclusively Activated by Designer Drugs (DREADDs). The DREADD agonist C21 had no effect on contextual fear conditioning or cFos expression in DIO-hM3Dq-mCherry+ cells of C57BL/6J mice. Taken together, our results indicate that DIO constructs have considerable off-target expression in wild type subjects. Our findings are particularly important for the design of experiments featuring sensitive systems and/or quantitative measurements that could be negatively impacted by off-target expression.Significance StatementAdeno-associated viruses (AAV) are widely used in neuroscience because of their safety and ease of use. Combined with specific promoters, Cre/loxP, and stereotaxic injections, highly specific targeting of cells and circuits within the brain can be achieved. In the present study we injected Cre-dependent AAVs into wild-type C57BL/6J mice and found considerable Cre-independent viral expression of AAVs encoding mCherry, GFP, or hM3Dq following immunohistochemical amplification of the fluorescent reporter protein. Importantly, we observed no functional effects of the Cre-independent expression in the hippocampus, as C21 had no detectable effect on DIO-hM3Dq-mCherry infected neurons in C57BL/6J mice. Given the widespread use of DIO rAAVs by the neuroscience community, our data supports careful consideration when using DIO constructs in control animals.
A CRISPR-Cas assisted shotgun mutagenesis method for evolutionary genome engineering
Authors: Zhao Ming , Gao Miaomiao , Xiong Liangbin , Liu Yongjun , Tao Xinyi , Gao Bei , Liu Min , Wang Feng-Qing , Wei Dongzhi 
Published: September 2021

AbstractGenome mutagenesis drives the evolution of organisms. Here, we developed a CRISPR-Cas assisted random mutation (CARM) technology for whole genome mutagenesis. The method leverages an entirely random gRNA library and SpCas9-NG to randomly damage genomes in a controllable shotgun-like manner that then triggers diverse and abundant mutations via low-fidelity repair. As a proof-of-principle, CARM was applied to evolve the capacity of Saccharomyces cerevisiae BY4741 to produce β-carotene. After seven rounds of iterative evolution over two months, a β-carotene hyper-producing strain, C7-143, was isolated with a 10.5-fold increase in β-carotene production and 857 diverse genomic mutants that comprised indels, duplications, inversions, and chromosomal rearrangements. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that the expression of 2,541 genes of strain C7-143 were significantly altered, suggesting that the metabolic landscape of the strain was deeply reconstructed. In addition, CARM was applied to evolve the industrially relevant Saccharomyces cerevisiae CEN.PK2-1C, the S-adenosyl-L-methionine production of which was increased to 2.28 times after just one round. Thus, CARM is a user-friendly and practical strategy for genetic remodeling and reverse engineering to investigate complicated organismal metabolism.
Cigarette smoke preferentially induces full length ACE2 exposure in primary human airway cells but does not alter susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection
Authors: Porter Linsey M , Guo Wenrui , Crozier Thomas WM , Greenwood Edward JD , Ortmann Brian , Kottmann Daniel , Nathan James A , Mahadeva Ravindra , Lehner Paul J , McCaughan Frank 
Published: September 2021

AbstractCigarette smoking has multiple serious negative health consequences. However, the epidemiological relationship between cigarette smoking and SARS-CoV-2 infection is controversial; and the interaction between cigarette smoking, airway expression of the ACE2 receptor and the susceptibility of airway cells to infection is unclear. We exposed differentiated air-liquid interface cultures derived from primary human airway stem cells to cigarette smoke extract (CSE) and infected them with SARS-CoV-2. We found that CSE increased expression of full-length ACE2 (flACE2) but did not alter the expression of a Type I-interferon sensitive truncated ACE2 that lacks the capacity to bind SARS-CoV-2 or a panel of interferon-sensitive genes. Importantly, exposure to CSE did not increase viral infectivity despite the increase in flACE2. Our data are consistent with epidemiological data suggesting current smokers are not at excess risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection. This does not detract from public health messaging emphasising the excess risk of severe COVID-19 associated with smoking-related cardiopulmonary disease.
A systematic analysis of diet-induced nephroprotection reveals overlapping and conserved changes in cysteine catabolism
Authors: Koehler Felix C. , Fu Chun-Yu , Späth Martin R. , Hoyer-Allo K. Johanna R. , Bohl Katrin , Göbel Heike , Lackmann Jan-Wilm , Grundmann Franziska , Osterholt Thomas , Gloistein Claas , Steiner Joachim D. , Antebi Adam , Benzing Thomas , Schermer Bernhard , Schwarz Günter , Burst Volker , Müller Roman-Ulrich 
Published: September 2021

AbstractCaloric Restriction (CR) extends lifespan and augments cellular stress-resistance from yeast to primates, making CR an attractive strategy for organ protection in the clinic. Translation of CR to patients is complex, due to problems regarding adherence, feasibility and safety concerns in frail patients. Novel tailored dietary regimens, which modulate the dietary composition of macro- and micronutrients rather than reducing calorie intake promise similar protective effects and increased translatability. However, a direct head-to-head comparison to identify the most potent approach for organ protection as well as overlapping metabolic consequences has not been performed. We systematically analyzed six dietary preconditioning protocols - fasting mimicking diet (FMD), ketogenic diet (KD), dietary restriction of branched chained amino acids (BCAA), two dietary regimens restricting sulfur-containing amino acids (SR80/100) and CR - in a rodent model of renal ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) to quantify diet-induced resilience in kidneys. Of the administered diets, FMD, SR80/100 and CR efficiently protect from kidney damage after IRI. Interestingly, these approaches show overlapping changes in oxidative and hydrogen sulfide (H2S)-dependent cysteine catabolism as a potential common mechanism of organ protection. Importantly, these metabolic changes can be recapitulated in patients preconditioned by a diet limiting sulfur-containing amino acids indicating conserved diet-induced mechanisms of stress-resistance that may ultimately lead to clinical application.
SARS-CoV-2 triggers DNA damage response in Vero E6 cells
Authors: Victor Joshua , Deutsch Jamie , Whitaker Annalis , Lamkin Erica N. , March Anthony , Zhou Pei , Botten Jason W. , Chatterjee Nimrat 
Published: September 2021

AbstractThe novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus responsible for the current COVID-19 pandemic and has now infected more than 200 million people with more than 4 million deaths globally. Recent data suggest that symptoms and general malaise may continue long after the infection has ended in recovered patients, suggesting that SARS-CoV-2 infection has profound consequences in the host cells. Here we report that SARS-CoV-2 infection can trigger a DNA damage response (DDR) in African green monkey kidney cells (Vero E6). We observed a transcriptional upregulation of the Ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3 related protein (ATR) in infected cells. In addition, we observed enhanced phosphorylation of CHK1, a downstream effector of the ATR DNA damage response, as well as H2AX. Strikingly, SARS-CoV-2 infection lowered the expression of TRF2 shelterin-protein complex, and reduced telomere lengths in infected Vero E6 cells. Thus, our observations suggest SARS-CoV-2 may have pathological consequences to host cells beyond evoking an immunopathogenic immune response.
Livestock online marketplace “Pashushala.com”: standardizing unstandardized operating procedures
Authors: Sharma Aasha Jayant , Bhat Shashank 
Published: September 2021

Learning outcomes
It enables students to understand and design a business model canvas, design standard operating procedure (SOP) for very unorganized business operations and also devise base pricing for vendor negotiation.

Case overview/synopsis
Mr Gaurav Chaudhary, chief executive officer and Founder of Pashushala.com, established a first-ever Livestock online marketplace in India, leveraging the penetration of internet users in 2019. Pashsuhala.com evolved as an all-inclusive ecosystem that offered an innovative business model by bundling financial aid, logistics, veterinary and insurance solutions to its buyers and sellers. While every other aspect seemed to have had fallen in place, Gaurav was not convinced with the everyday handling of the cattle especially during transportation. Transporting cattle was the most challenging task tempered with issues such as changing weather conditions, stock density, lack of training on handling cattle while loading and unloading, long journey hours, feeding and watering procedures and many more for which Gaurav had to depend on the logistics partners. Gaurav was in a dilemma whether to have his own fleet armed with trained personnel for transporting the cattle or to streamline the existing operating procedures into SOP to be followed by logistics partners. If he continued with logistics partners he also had to work on standard costs i.e. fixed and variable costs incurred during the transportation of livestock. The case deals with business concepts such as supply chain risk management in the livestock sector, SOPs for a very unstructured and unpredictable ecosystem, pricing strategies and business model canvas.

Complexity academic level
Masters in business administration (MBA) and Executive MBA level.

Supplementary materials
Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.

Subject code
CSS 9: Operations and Logistics.
Effect of data packet size on the performance of RIP and OSPF routing protocols in hybrid networks
Authors: Jain Neha , Payal Ashish , Jain Aarti 
Published: September 2021

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to calculate the effect of different packet sizes 256, 512, 1,024 and 2,048 bytes on a large-scale hybrid network and analysis and identifies which routing protocol is best for application throughput, application delay and network link parameters for different packet sizes. As the routing protocol is used to select the optimal path to transfer data packets from source to destination. It is always important to consider the performance of the routing protocol before the final network configuration. From the literature, it has been observed that RIP (Routing Information Protocol) and OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) are the most popular routing protocols, and it has always been a challenge to select between these routing protocols, especially for hybrid networks. The efficiency of routing protocol mainly depends on resulting throughput and delay. Also, it has been observed that data packet size also plays an essential role in determining the efficiency of routing protocol.Design/methodology/approachTo analyse the effect of different packet sizes using two routing protocols, routing information protocol (RIP) and open shortest path first (OSPF) on the hybrid network, require detailed planning. Designing the network for simulate and then finally analysing the results requires proper study. Each stage needs to be understood well for work accomplishment. Thus, the network’s simulation and evaluation require implementing the proposed work step by step, saving time and cost. Here, the proposed work methodology is defined in six steps or stages.FindingsThe simulation results show that both routing protocols – RIP and OSPF are equally good in terms of network throughput for all different packet sizes. However, OSPF performs better in terms of network delay than RIP routing protocol in different packet size scenarios.Research limitations/implicationsIn this paper, a fixed network of 125 objects and only RIP and OSPF routing protocol have been used for analysis. Therefore, in the future, a comparison of different network sizes can be considered by increasing or decreasing the number of objects in the proposed network. Furthermore, the other routing protocols can be used for performance evaluation on the same proposed network.Originality/valueThe analysis can be conducted by simulation of the network, enabling us to develop a network environment without restricting the selection of parameters as it minimizes cost, network deployment overhead, human resources, etc. The results are analysed, calculated and compared for each packet size on different routing protocol networks individually and the conclusion is made.