bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Slug and Vimentin Downregulation at the Metastatic Site is Associated with Skip-N2 Metastasis of Lung Adenocarcinoma
Authors: Saygideger Yasemin , AVCI Alper , BAGIR Emine , Demir Burcu Saygıdeğer , SEZAN Aycan , EKICI Mucahit , BAYDAR Oya , ERKIN Özgür Cem 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
Objective: Lung cancer displays heterogeneity both in the tumor itself and in its metastatic regions. One interesting behavior of the tumor is known as Skip N2 metastasis, which N2 lymph nodes contain tumor cells while N1 are clean. In this study, mRNA levels of epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) related genes in skip N2 and normal N2 involvements of non-small cell lung cancer tissues were investigated to evaluate the possible molecular background that may contribute to the pathogenesis of Skip N2 metastasis. Materials and Methods: Eighty-three surgically resected and paraffin embedded lymph node samples of lung cancer patients were analyzed in this study, which 40 of them were Skip N2. N2 tissues were sampled from 50% tumor containing areas and total RNA was extracted. mRNA levels for 18S, E-cadherin, Vimentin, ZEB1 and SLUG were analyzed via qPCR and E-cadherin and vimentin protein levels via immunohistochemistry (IHC). Bioinformatic analysis were adopted using online datasets to evaluate significantly co-expressed genes with SLUG in lung cancer tissue samples.Results: Skip-N2 patients who had adenocarcinoma subtype had better survival rates. Comparative analysis of PCR results indicated that Skip N2 tumor tissues had increased E-Cadherin/Vimentin ratio and ZEB1 mRNA expression, and significantly decreased levels of SLUG. E-cadherin IHC staining were higher in Skip N2 and Vimentin were in Non-Skip N2. TP63 had a strong correlation with SLUG expression in the bioinformatics analyses.Conclusion: The results indicate that, at molecular level, Skip N2 pathogenesis has different molecular background and regulation of SLUG expression may orchestrate the process.
The Association Between Falls and Physical and Psychological Conditions in Physically Disabled Elderly People: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Chen Zhengquan , Mao Lin , Li Yanyan , Chen Nan , Du Qing 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
Background

Falling in physically disabled people is a worldwide social issue and associated with declined physical and psychological health. This study aimed to clarify the physical and psychological conditions in physically disabled people and to explore whether those conditions are the risk factors of falls.
Methods

One hundred and forty-six physically disabled people were recruited (age 64.2 ± 5.7, ranging from 43 to 77). Their demographic information, psychological status, musculoskeletal conditions, and history of falls in the past year were collected, and mobility was evaluated. A logistic regression analysis was used to clarify the risk factors of falls with the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve exploring the effectiveness of the regression model on fall diagnosis via area under the curve (AUC). A subgroup analysis was done between the disabled participants with and without poliomyelitis (polio).
Results

The cause of disability (polio or no-polio), gender, disability grade, and functional gait assessment were significantly associated with falls (all p < 0.05, Nagelkerke R2 = 0.320), and ROC curve indicated that AUC of this model was 0.805 (p < 0.001, 95% CI 0.735–0.876, Youden Index = 0.502). The subgroup analysis showed that the polio group (75 of the 146 participants) had a longer history of disability (t = 12.360, p < 0.001) than the no-polio disabled group while there were no significant differences in the other demographic information (all p > 0.05). The proportion of moderate anxiety in the no-polio participants was significantly higher than that in the polio group (p < 0.001) but the polio group had more musculoskeletal conditions. In the mobility test, the polio participants walked slower in the timed-up-and-go test (t = 2.050, p = 0.042) and had a higher rate of recurrent falls (χ2 = 14.916, p < 0.001) than the no-polio disabled group.
Conclusions

The disabled people with a high risk of falling can be identified through a 10-minute screening (cause of disability, gender, disability grade, and gait stability testing). The physical conditions of the polio disabled people were relatively more affected.
Prevalence of Significant and Advanced Hepatic Fibrosis in Metabolic Dysfunction Associated Fatty Liver Disease (MAFLD)
Authors: Kim Mimi , Yoon Eileen Laurel , Cho Seon , Lee Chul-min , Kang Bo Kyeong , Jun Dae Won , Nah Eun-Hee 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
Background: There are several reports on the prevalence of metabolic dysfunction associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) in the general population. But the fibrosis burden of MAFLD in general population is largely unknown. We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of significant and advanced fibrosis associated with MAFLD in a health check-up cohort.Materials and methods: Participants who underwent magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) at nationwide thirteen health check-up centers were included in this cross-sectional study. Fatty liver was evaluated using ultrasonography. Significant (≥F2) and advanced (≥F3) hepatic fibrosis were defined by MRE thresholds of 3.0 kPa (range: 2.99–3.65 kPa) and 3.6 kPa (range: 3.4–3.9 kPa), respectively. The sex- and age-standardized prevalence of MAFLD and hepatic fibrosis were estimated.Results: Total 6,775 health check-up adults included analysis. The sex- and age-standardized prevalence of MAFLD was 33.9%. Prevalence of MAFLD was higher in males than in females, and increased with age. The prevalence of diabetes in MAFLD was 13.3%, and 73.6% of subjects with diabetes had MAFLD. The sex- and age-standardized prevalence of significant (≥F2) and advanced hepatic fibrosis (≥F3) was 9.7% (range: 3.0–9.8%) and 3.0% (range: 2.6–4.6%), respectively, in MAFLD subjects. The prevalence of advanced hepatic fibrosis in diabetic with MAFLD 9.5% (range: 7.5–12.7%).Conclusion: The sex- and age-standardized prevalence of advanced fibrosis was 3.0% (range: 2.6–4.6%) in subjects with MAFLD, respectively.
Higher Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte Ratio is Association with an Increased Risk of Fatal Stroke Occurrence in Older Chinese
Authors: Hu Zhi-bing , Lu Ze-xiong , Zhu Feng 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
Background: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) has linked to a mortality risk of coronary heart disease. However, it is unclear whether the NLR is related to the risk of fatal stroke in a relatively healthy elderly population.Aims: To evaluate the association between the NLR and the risk of fatal stroke in elderly populations.Methods: In total, 27811 participants without a stroke history at baseline were included and followed up for a mean of 11.5 (standard deviation=2.3) years. After review of available records, 503 stroke deaths (ischaemic 227, haemorrhagic 172 and unclassified 104) were recorded. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to assess the relationship between the NLR and future risk of fatal stroke, fatal ischaemic stroke or fatal haemorrhagic stroke.Results: (1) Compared with those in the 1st quartile and after adjustments for a series of factors, those in the highest neutrophil (NEUT) quartile had a 45% and a 65% increased risk of fatal stroke (adjusted hazard ratio (aHR)=1.45, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.10-1.89, P=0.008) and fatal ischaemic stroke (aHR=1.65, 95% CI 1.10-2.47, P=0.02), respectively; while no significant relationship was obtained between the lymphocyte (LYM) and the risk of fatal stroke. (2) The restricted cubic splines showed an increased trend of relationship between the NLR and the risk of fatal stroke occurrence. Compared with those in the lowest quartile (≤ 1.39), the participants with the highest NLR (≥ 2.24) had a 76% and a 115% increased risk of fatal stroke (aHR=1.76, 95% CI 1.33-2.32) and fatal ischaemic stroke (aHR=2.15, 95% CI 1.41-3.28), respectively; Similar associations for stroke and ischaemic stroke were obtained after further adjustment for C-reactive protein. (3) Compared with those in NLR ≤ 1.75, the participants in NLR > 1.75 had a 57% and a 91% increased risk of fatal stroke (aHR=1.57, 95%CI 1.20-2.06) and fatal ischaemic stroke (aHR=1.91, 95%CI 1.27-2.88), respectively. (3) As a continuous variable, the NLR presented an increased risk of fatal stroke (aHR=1.11 95%CI 1.06-1.17) and fatal ischaemic stroke (aHR=1.15 95%CI 1.09-1.21), respectively.Conclusions: Higher NLR was associated with an increased risk of fatal stroke and fatal ischaemic stroke occurrence in a relatively healthy elderly population.The clinicians should pay more attention to asymptomatic inflammatory characteristics in relatively healthy older population.
Does Disability Increase Households’ Health Financial Risk: Evidence From The Uganda Demographic and Health Survey
Authors: GUETS Wilfried , Behera Deepak Kumar Kumar 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
Background: In the last few years, there has been a worldwide commitment to protect the vulnerable individuals from higher financial risk through out-of-pocket (OOP) health expenditure and provide a platform for universal access to healthcare through a pre-payment insurance mechanism. In a developing country like Uganda, OOP spending represents a significant component of health expenditure. Financial risk protection strategy for the vulnerable is always a debatable issue in these economies. Therefore, this study examines the influence of disability and socio-demographic factors on households’ health financial risks in Uganda.Methods: We used cross-sectional, nationally representative data from the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey (UDHS) collected in 2016 by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) in Uganda. We measured Financial risk (households’ health expenditure) by money paid for health care services. We estimated the “probit” model to investigate the effect of disability on health financial risk.Results: A total of 19,305 households were included in this study. Almost 33% of households paid money for health care services access, among which 32% paid through out-of-pocket. Almost 41% of household heads were affected by disability. The majority (73%) of families went to the public sector for health care services. The mean age was 45 years (SD±15). We find that disability significantly increases the probability of household financial risk (p < 0.01). The private sector’s choice for health care services is likely to increase the financial risk compared to the public sector (p < 0.01). The wealthier the household was, the more money paid for health service was (p < 0.01).Conclusion: Our results indicated that disability and household socio-demographic characteristics were associated with health financial risk in Uganda. Identifying families with disability and experiencing difficult living conditions constitute an entry point for health authorities to enhance health coverage progress in low – middle-income countries.JEL Classification: J14; I14; J1; I32; J71; C83
Construction of Full-length Infectious cDNA Clones of Two Korean Isolates of Turnip Mosaic Virus Breaking Resistance in Brassica Napus
Authors: Song Zheng-Xing , Seo Eun-Young , Hu Wen-Xing , Jeong Jong-Hyeon , Moon Jae Sun , Kim Kang-Hee , Eom Won-Seob , Cho In-Sook , Hammond John , Lim Hyoun-Sub 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
In this work, two new Turnip mosaic virus (TuMV) strains (Canola-12 and Canola-14) overcoming resistance in canola (Brassica napus) were isolated from a B. napus sample which showed typical TuMV-like symptoms and was collected from Gimcheon city, South Korea in 2020. Complete genomes and infectious clones of each isolate were obtained. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the strains isolated from canola belonged to the World-B group. Both infectious clones which were driven by 35S and T7 promoters induced systemic symptoms on Nicotiana benthamiana and B. napus. To our knowledge, this is the first report of TuMV infecting B. napus in South Korea.
Epigenomic Regulatory Mechanism of Flowering in Apple Demonstrated in Two Varieties with Contrasted Flowering Behaviors
Authors: Zhou Hua , Zhang Chenguang , Wang Mengxue , Zhang Wei , Ma Juanjuan , Qi Siyan , Wang Shujin , Xing Libo 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
Background: Flowering is the necessary condition and yield basis for woody fruits in their life cycle. Although there has been considerable interest in the regulatory mechanisms underlying floral induction and flowering, the associated epigenetic modifications remain relatively uncharacterized. Results: We identified the genome-wide of DNA methylation changes and the transcriptional responses in axillary bud of ‘Qinguan’ (QA) and ‘Fuji’ (FA) varieties with contrasted flowering behaviors. The DNA methylations were19.35%, 62.96% and 17.68% for FA, and 19.64%, 62.49% and 17.86% for QA in the CG, CHG and CHH contexts, respectively. Number of hypermethylated or hypomethylated DMRs in different regions were contributed to significantly up/downregulated gene expression. DNA methylation can positively or negatively regulate gene expression based on the CG, CHG and CHH contexts in different regions. Additionally, the huge differences in transcription of MIKCc-Type MADS-box genes, and multiple flowering genes in multiple flowering pathways (i.e., light, age, GA and sugar) by changing DNA methylation, contributed to contrasted flowering behaviors in both QA and FA. Specifically, the floral meristem identify genes (i.e., FT, LEAFY, AP1 and SOC1) were significantly higher expression in QA than FA, but the floral repressor (i.e., SVP, AGL15, and AGL18) had an opposite result. Significant differences in multiple hormone levels were due to DEGs and their DMRs in their synthesis pathways, leading to both contrasted axillary bud outgrowth and flowering behaviors. Conclusions: The whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (BS) libraries of QA and FA with diverse flowering capabilities have been constructed for finding whole-genome cytosine methylation profiles. The RNA sequencing of QA and FA and diverse flowering capabilities have been combined together to identify the gene expression patterns and the correlation with their methylation states so that we can better understand the epigenetic regulation mechanisms of floral induction and formation in apple.
Distribution Characteristics of Antibiotic Resistance Bacteria and Related Genes in Urban Recreational Lakes Replenished by Different Supplementary Water Source
Authors: Li Yongqiang , Zhang Chong-Miao , Mou Xiao , Zhang Peipei , Liang Jie , Wang Zhen 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
The objective of this study was to investigate the distribution characteristics of antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in urban recreational water with different water supply sources, 2 lakes as XQ and FQ which represented as surface water and reclaimed water were selected for the study. Water samples were collected from April to November in 2018 to investigate aspects including 8 physical and chemical indexes of waters, resistance degree of 5 different kinds of antibiotics, antimicrobial resistance heterotrophic bacteria content, resistance phenotype, antibiotic resistance gene types and antibiotic resistance strains of species distribution. The results showed that the changes of antibiotic resistance rate of heterotrophic bacteria in 2 lakes to 5 kinds of antibiotics were synchronous with time, and it would reach its maximum in autumn. The detection of 10 ARGs and intⅠ gene in 80 strains screened out from 125 strains of heterotrophic bacteria showed that the detection rate of tetG and tetA genes was relatively high, especially intI, with the rate as high as 90%. In the detection of resistance spectrum, 51.25% of the resistance bacteria were double-resistance to AMP-CTX. The 80 isolate strains were of 9 genera and 19 species, among which Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli, Aeromonas veronii, Aeromonas caviae and Raoultella ornithinolytica were the common ARB species in FQ and XQ. There was no relatively large differences in the content of ARB, detection rate, and identification of ARGs in 2 lakes. Correlation analysis was used to evaluate the association between the change of water quality indexes and the content of antibiotic resistance bacteria in 2 lakes, and it was found that the water temperature was significantly correlated with the content of ARB in Sulfamethoxazole and Cefotaxime (p<0.05), while there were no other correlations between the changes of other water quality indexes and the content of ARB (p>0.05).
Treatment of Coal Fly Ash And Its Environmentally Friendly Use In Rubber And Plastic Industry
Authors: Hussain Zawar , Lizhen Gao , Haitao Wang , Ayaz Tehreem , Khan Amir Zeb 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
Coal power plants are the major contributor of electricity but these power plants are also producing waste in the form of coal fly ash (CFA). However, it can cause high risk of environmental pollution and pulmonary diseases in humans. Plastic waste is also a problematic waste for many countries in terms of its reuse and recycling. Therefore, this study aims to reuse the waste product (CFA) of coal power plants in rubber conveyer belt instead of calcium carbonate or talcum powder and in recycling of plastic propylene as bonding filler material instead of barium sulfate to increase the durability of plastic products and reduce cost, CFA waste and plastic waste. For this purpose, CFA was treated by different pulverization techniques for the production of conveyor belt. The study found that the most favorable technique was shear based pulverization technique. Application of CFA with rubber was compared with two different chemicals (calcium carbonate and talcum powder) and found that the elongation at break of conveyor belt was 35% increased and abrasion volume was 64% reduced by using treated CFA. Furthermore, CFA was used in molten mass of plastic instead of barium sulfate and the results showed that the use of CFA has improved the dimensional stability of plastic material reducing the cost per ton by 2410 CNY. The study concluded that the performance was increased by applying CFA with a reduction in price as compared to other chemicals.
Burden of Disease of Dietary Exposure to Four Chemical Contaminants in Denmark in 2019
Authors: Thomsen Sofie T. , Jakobsen Lea S. , Redondo Hernan G. , Outzen Malene , Fagt Sisse , Devleesschauwer Brecht , Hansen Max , Fabricius Freja A. , Pires Sara M. 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
Exposure to chemical contaminants found in foods has been associated with diverse adverse health effects. The aim of this study was to estimate the burden of disease associated with dietary exposure to four chemicals in Denmark in 2019: lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), methylmercury (MeHg) and inorganic arsenic (i-As). We collected national food consumption and chemical food monitoring data from Danish data bases, dose-response and severity data from the scientific literature, and disease incidence and population numbers from national statistics. We adopted a risk assessment approach to estimate disease burden, quantifying the incidence, mortality and Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) attributable to dietary exposure to the chemicals. In all models, we propagated uncertainty around the input parameters through the calculations using Monte Carlo simulation. We estimated that, among these chemicals, Pb and MeHg were responsible for the highest disease burden. MeHg led to the loss of nearly 600 healthy life years, or approximately 10 DALYs per 100,000 inhabitants. Dietary exposure to Pb was estimated to cause 383 to 1,261 DALYs, corresponding to 6.6 (lower bound) to 22 (upper bound) DALYs/100,000 per year. The foods contributing most to disease burden were fish (MeHg) and sweets, fruit, and bread and cereals (Pb). The burden attributed to dietary exposure to i-As (5 DALYs) and Cd (0.04 DALY) was substantially lower. These estimates are useful supplements to traditional risk assessment to guide food safety interventions and inform dietary guidelines for different population groups.
Genetic Heterogeneity in GJB2, COL4A3, ATP6V1B1 and EDNRB Variants Detected Among Hearing Impaired Families in Morocco
Authors: Aitraise Imane , Amalou Ghita , Charoute Hicham , Kandil Mostafa , Rouba Hassan , Snoussi Khalid , Abdelghaffar Houria , Bonnet Crystel , Petit Christine , Barakat Abdelhamid 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
Deafness has a very variable disease. It may occur as a result of external auditory canal involvement or a deficiency in the sound conduction mechanism (transmission deafness) or impairment of the cochlear, cochlear nerve or central auditory perception. Genetics is the most common cause, as approximately 70% of hearing disorders are of hereditary origin. 1/3 of hereditary deafness is syndromic (associated with other symptoms) and 2/3 are non-syndromic (isolated deafness). At this date, 173 loci of deafness gene have been reported in the literature (69 DFNA, 94 DFNB, 6 X-linked DFN, 2 DFNM, 1 DFNY and 1 AUNA1). For syndromic deafness, approximately 400 syndromes associated with hearing disorders are already described. Thus, the determination of causal mutations is a valuable aid for accurate and early diagnosis. This makes it possible to better guide the management since forms of deafness respond better to the cochlear implant than others. The correct diagnosis also gives an idea of ​​the evolutionary profile of deafness and whether it is a syndromic deafness requiring special surveillance. In this study, we have examined the genetic causes of sensorineural hearing loss in Moroccan patients through whole exome sequencing (WES) to identify candidate genes for six severely deaf Moroccan families. The results revealed four genetic variants in the genes GJB2, COL4A3, ATP6V1B1 and EDNRB, which are therefore common causes of syndromic and non-syndromic deafness.
Wireless Covert Channel With Polarized Dirty Constellation in Backscatter Communication
Authors: Qiao Sen , Liu Guangjie , Shi Jianfeng , Ji Xiaopeng , Liu Weiwei 
Published: August 2021

Abstract
Ambient backscatter communication has become a low-cost and green solution to next-generation Internet-of-Things (IoT). In this paper, we investigate a problem of wireless covert communication in backscatter communication system. The purpose of covert communication is to hide the process of communication and avoid being detected by eavesdropper. Covert messages are modulated into a random-like noise, and then superimposed on the carrier signal. Specially, we propose a wireless covert channel with polarization dirty constellation (WCC-PDC), which is polarized to solve the problem of low signal power in backscatter communication. Some methods are used to combine covert code block with carrier information block and increase the undetectability of covert communication. Additionally, successive-cancellation decoder and successive-cancellation list decoder are adopted to improve the reliability of WCC-PDC. Simulation results are finally provided to verify the improvement of undetectability and reliability with WCC-PDC.