bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Assessment of Knowledge, Attitude, Perception and Practices on Rabies Disease in the GA East Municipality, Ghana
Authors: Vetsi Oscar , Gyamfi Eric , Sarfo-Twerefour Emmanuel Yaw 
Published: March 2021

Background: Rabies is one of the neglected tropical zoonotic diseases caused by a virus. It belongs to the Rhabdoviridae [1]. It is a disease that is commonly found in animals but can easily effect human [2]. Where there are animal reservoirs, rabies is commonly spread. The general objective of this study to evaluate differences in knowledge, attitude and perception about rabies, among the residence in Ga East.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was used in this study using purposive sampling technique. Data was collected by interviewing study participants using OKD Collection and also STATA version14.2 was used for data analysis
Results: A total of 475 respondents were involved in the study with 354 (74.53%) males and 121(25.47%) as females. Of this, majority of the participants (93.47%) own a dog against 6.53% who did not own a dog. Dog is own in the community basically for security purposes (77.25%). Few own dog for leisure. The study document less than 50% of the respondents [186 (39.16%)] resort to local drug stores drug store for first aid following a dog bit. Seeking veterinary attention (12.84%) and properly clearing of wound (8.84%) was not a common practice. Participants were of the opinion that tetanus vaccination should be done first (29.05%). Most of the participants have heard about rabies (96.42%) and showed various degree of knowledge on source of rabies, common animals associated with rabies, symptoms of rabies. Among some other practices, any identified rabid dog is killed as indicated by majority of the participants (52.63%). Most participants (71.58%) knew that rabies vaccination serves as preventive measures against rabies and further perceived all dogs must be vaccinated (38.32%). Of the total respondents, most (63.74%) never sent their dog for routine medical check-up nor vaccinated their dogs (70.95%).
Conclusion: The study revered that dog owners do not provide adequate care for their dogs. In addition to low coverage of dog vaccination and human anti rabies vaccination in the community which poses a greater threat to the lives community, the potential for increased spread of the diseases is high due to inadequate level of knowledge, poor perceptions, and attitudes towards rabies.
Impacts of Quarrying Activities on Human Health in Boki Area Cross River State Nigeria
Authors: Egesi N. 
Published: March 2021

Field investigation, trace elements geochemistry, borehole and groundwater data were employed to determine the level of contamination or pollution of heavy and trace elements in abandoned quarrying, agricultural sites and its adjourning communities which are leads and other parts of Boki Local Government Area which have massive basement rocks as prospects for quarry establishment. This preliminary study on geosphere-biosphere becomes useful in medical geology as rock-soil-water-human interactions, and relationships are important and obvious. The mining pits depths range from 30.5 m to 50.0 m, while the boreholes depths is 41.0 m to 45.0 m and the thickness of regolith soil weathered Feralsols soil and less weathered Acrisols soil, varies from 22.0 m to 35.0 m in places. The Geochemical data obtained indicates Ba, Th, Ce, Zn, Zr are high in all rocks while Cr and Ni are generally low. In the water samples, some borehole values for the faecal pollution are high and indicates the water is contaminated, CaCO₃, Mg are high, while NO₂, F are low, when compared with established data from WHO standards, they indicates anomalies. The high Ba contents in a previous laboratory animals study shows it can cause nephropathy, but not carcinogenic or genotoxic. The identified boreholes water that are contaminated should be disinfected before use. For a sustainable quarry development in the area, there should be an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) with a clear baseline data, reclamation, remedial and rehabilitation procedures before abandonment at the end of the life of the quarries.
Seismic reinforcement of a linac installation
Authors: Szegedi Martin , Sarkar Vikren , Paxton Adam , Rassiah Prema , Salter Bill J. 
Published: March 2021

AbstractThe local building requirements to secure medical equipment in seismically active areas in the United States are based on recommendations of the American Society of Civil Engineers. In our institution we have recently acquired new linear accelerators, one of which had to be installed in an existing vault and one in a new vault. Since we are in a seismic active area, changes in the local code required us to start placing the new linacs seismically stable. Here, we describe the necessary steps taken to ensure a seismically sound installation of our linacs. For the linac installation to be seismically stable, the linac base frame has to be seismically fixed into the vault floor. The installation of a new linac into an existing vault requires verification of a structurally sound base frame. Knowledge of the previously applied fixation of such is needed and exploratory removal of grouted floor helped in the verification. Understanding the additional load requirements for the locality allows to account for the existing fixation and can potentially reduce the work needed to achieve seismic fixation requirements. For a prospective seismic installation the new linac base frame can be directly installed with the necessary strength. In addition the actual workflow is straight forward and vendor recommendations can be used. In both cases the vendor provided seismic calculations serve as baseline from which a facility should be work from. It is the facilities task to verify the correct installation of a linac in their specific location. An understanding of the seismic landscape can facilitate an appropriate installation at minimal additional cost.
Scaffold Fabrication Technologies and Structure/Function Properties in Bone Tissue Engineering
Authors: Collins Maurice N. , Ren Guang , Young Kieran , Pina S. , Reis Rui L. , Oliveira J. Miguel 
Published: March 2021

AbstractBone tissue engineering (BTE) is a rapidly growing field aiming to create a biofunctional tissue that can integrate and degrade in vivo to treat diseased or damaged tissue. It has become evident that scaffold fabrication techniques are very important in dictating the final structural, mechanical properties, and biological response of the implanted biomaterials. A comprehensive review of the current accomplishments on scaffold fabrication techniques, their structure, and function properties for BTE is provided herein. Different types of biomaterials ranging from inorganic biomaterials to natural and synthetic polymers and related composites for scaffold processing are presented. Emergent scaffolding techniques such as electrospinning, freeze‐drying, bioprinting, and decellularization are also discussed. Strategies to improve vascularization potential and immunomodulation, which is considered a grand challenge in BTE scaffolding, are also presented.
Single Cell Trapping by Superhydrophobic/Superhydrophilic Microarrays
Authors: Raittinen Paavo , Elomaa Pinja , Saavalainen Päivi , Jokinen Ville 
Published: March 2021

AbstractSingle cell trapping is demonstrated on superhydrophobic–superhydrophilic patterned microarrays. Superhydrophilic spots that are twice the size of the cells to be trapped are found to be optimal for obtaining single cell trapping. The single cell trapping is based on size exclusivity instead of heavy dilution of the cell suspension and relying on Poisson statistics. The superhydrophobic areas of the array are found to be very resistant toward unwanted adhesion of the cells and thus cleaning steps are not needed after deposition. Based on these properties, 20 μm superhydrophilic spots are utilized for trapping two types of immune cells, primary peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and THP‐1 cells. The cells are trapped from a 10 μl cell suspension droplet dragged across the surface with different velocities. Single cell trapping efficiencies in the range of 10–30% are shown based on the cell type, the spot type, the seeding velocity and the cell suspension concentration.
MRI‐Compatible and Conformal Electrocorticography Grids for Translational Research
Authors: Fallegger Florian , Schiavone Giuseppe , Pirondini Elvira , Wagner Fabien B. , Vachicouras Nicolas , Serex Ludovic , Zegarek Gregory , May Adrien , Constanthin Paul , Palma Marie , Khoshnevis Mehrdad , Van Roost Dirk , Yvert Blaise , Courtine Grégoire , Schaller Karl , Bloch Jocelyne , Lacour Stéphanie P. 
Published: March 2021

AbstractIntraoperative electrocorticography (ECoG) captures neural information from the surface of the cerebral cortex during surgeries such as resections for intractable epilepsy and tumors. Current clinical ECoG grids come in evenly spaced, millimeter‐sized electrodes embedded in silicone rubber. Their mechanical rigidity and fixed electrode spatial resolution are common shortcomings reported by the surgical teams. Here, advances in soft neurotechnology are leveraged to manufacture conformable subdural, thin‐film ECoG grids, and evaluate their suitability for translational research. Soft grids with 0.2 to 10 mm electrode pitch and diameter are embedded in 150 µm silicone membranes. The soft grids are compatible with surgical handling and can be folded to safely interface hidden cerebral surface such as the Sylvian fold in human cadaveric models. It is found that the thin‐film conductor grids do not generate diagnostic‐impeding imaging artefacts (<1 mm) nor adverse local heating within a standard 3T clinical magnetic resonance imaging scanner. Next, the ability of the soft grids to record subdural neural activity in minipigs acutely and two weeks postimplantation is validated. Taken together, these results suggest a promising future alternative to current stiff electrodes and may enable the future adoption of soft ECoG grids in translational research and ultimately in clinical settings.
To Close or to Collapse: The Role of Charges on Membrane Stability upon Pore Formation
Authors: Lira Rafael B. , Leomil Fernanda S. C. , Melo Renan J. , Riske Karin A. , Dimova Rumiana 
Published: March 2021

AbstractResealing of membrane pores is crucial for cell survival. Membrane surface charge and medium composition are studied as defining regulators of membrane stability. Pores are generated by electric field or detergents. Giant vesicles composed of zwitterionic and negatively charged lipids mixed at varying ratios are subjected to a strong electric pulse. Interestingly, charged vesicles appear prone to catastrophic collapse transforming them into tubular structures. The spectrum of destabilization responses includes the generation of long‐living submicroscopic pores and partial vesicle bursting. The origin of these phenomena is related to the membrane edge tension, which governs pore closure. This edge tension significantly decreases as a function of the fraction of charged lipids. Destabilization of charged vesicles upon pore formation is universal—it is also observed with other poration stimuli. Disruption propensity is enhanced for membranes made of lipids with higher degree of unsaturation. It can be reversed by screening membrane charge in the presence of calcium ions. The observed findings in light of theories of stability and curvature generation are interpreted and mechanisms acting in cells to prevent total membrane collapse upon poration are discussed. Enhanced membrane stability is crucial for the success of electroporation‐based technologies for cancer treatment and gene transfer.
Targeted Repolarization of Tumor‐Associated Macrophages via Imidazoquinoline‐Linked Nanobodies
Authors: Bolli Evangelia , Scherger Maximilian , Arnouk Sana M. , Pombo Antunes Ana Rita , Straßburger David , Urschbach Moritz , Stickdorn Judith , De Vlaminck Karen , Movahedi Kiavash , Räder Hans Joachim , Hernot Sophie , Besenius Pol , Van Ginderachter Jo A. , Nuhn Lutz 
Published: March 2021

AbstractTumor‐associated macrophages (TAMs) promote the immune suppressive microenvironment inside tumors and are, therefore, considered as a promising target for the next generation of cancer immunotherapies. To repolarize their phenotype into a tumoricidal state, the Toll‐like receptor 7/8 agonist imidazoquinoline IMDQ is site‐specifically and quantitatively coupled to single chain antibody fragments, so‐called nanobodies, targeting the macrophage mannose receptor (MMR) on TAMs. Intravenous injection of these conjugates result in a tumor‐ and cell‐specific delivery of IMDQ into MMRhigh TAMs, causing a significant decline in tumor growth. This is accompanied by a repolarization of TAMs towards a pro‐inflammatory phenotype and an increase in anti‐tumor T cell responses. Therefore, the therapeutic benefit of such nanobody‐drug conjugates may pave the road towards effective macrophage re‐educating cancer immunotherapies.
Water use and biomass yield of bioenergy crops in the North Carolina Piedmont
Authors: Stephenson Thomas D. , Carvalho Henrique D. R. , Castillo Miguel S. , Crozier Carl R. , Smyth Thomas J. , Heitman Joshua L. 
Published: March 2021

AbstractCrops grown for bioenergy purposes are a potential alternative to traditional row crops and pasture–hay systems in the North Carolina (NC) Piedmont, but there is limited information available about their biomass yields and water requirements in this region. The goal of this study was to evaluate biomass yield and water‐use efficiency of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.), giant miscanthus (Miscanthus × giganteus Greef et Deu.), biomass sorghum (Sorghum bicolor spp.), silage corn (Zea mays L.) and tall fescue (Lolium arundinacea Schreb.). The perennial systems were established in 2012 while annuals were planted each spring. Crop water use was evaluated for the 2016 and 2017 growing seasons using a water balance approach. Giant miscanthus had the highest 2‐yr average biomass yield (29.1 ± 0.8 Mg ha–1) followed by corn (23.6 ± 0.6 Mg ha–1) and biomass sorghum (22.0 ± 1.8 Mg ha–1). Switchgrass and tall fescue had the lowest biomass yields, 14.2 ± 1.9 and 12.5 ± 1.2 Mg ha–1, respectively. Fescue had the highest season‐long water use in both years of the study. Perennial grasses giant miscanthus and switchgrass had similar seasonal water use, but giant miscanthus had higher water‐use efficiency due to greater biomass yields. The annual crops corn and sorghum used less water than the perennial systems because of their shorter growing season, and, consequently, had higher water‐use efficiencies. This information can aid growers when making management decisions about converting land into bioenergy crops.
Changes in leaf optical properties during tomato, common lamb's‐quarters, and redroot pigweed plant development
Authors: Ma Li , Upadhyaya Mahesh K 
Published: March 2021

AbstractLeaf optical properties influence the red/far‐red light ratio (a signal of potential inter‐plant interaction) in plant canopies, which could alter inter‐plant interactions among species. Differences in leaf optical properties of species comprising a mixed population have significant implications for plant–plant interaction. Leaf optical properties at red (660 nm) and far‐red (730 nm) lights for the third true leaf of tomato (Solanum lycopersicon L.) and its two weeds common lamb's‐quarters (Chenopodium album L.) and redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus L.) were compared during plant development. The results showed that optical properties of the third true leaf at 660 and 730 nm changed with plant development in common lamb's‐quarters, redroot pigweed, and tomato, and the three species differed in this regard. Red/far‐red ratios of reflected (Rratio) and transmitted (Tratio) lights also changed with plant development in all species. Rratio and Tratio were greater in redroot pigweed compared to common lamb'squarters and tomato. These ratios significantly related with chlorophyll content and leaf mass per area. These differences, usually neglected, could influence growth and intra‐ and/or inter‐species interactions in plant communities comprising these species. These results provide valuable information for understanding eco‐physiology and function of vegetation cover and could help in development of effective weed management strategies.
Marginally reduced maternal hepatic and splenic ferroportin under severe nutritional iron deficiency in pregnancy maintains systemic iron supply
Authors: Mazgaj Rafał , Lipiński Paweł , Edison Eunice Sindhuvi , Bednarz Aleksandra , Staroń Robert , Haberkiewicz Olga , Lenartowicz Małgorzata , Smuda Ewa , Jończy Aneta , Starzyński Rafał R. 
Published: March 2021

AbstractThe demand for iron is high in pregnancy to meet the increased requirements for erythropoiesis. Even pregnant females with initially iron‐replete stores develop iron‐deficiency anemia, due to inadequate iron absorption. In anemic females, the maternal iron supply is dedicated to maintaining iron metabolism in the fetus and placenta. Here, using a mouse model of iron deficiency in pregnancy, we show that iron recycled from senescent erythrocytes becomes a predominant source of this microelement that can be transferred to the placenta in females with depleted iron stores. Ferroportin is a key protein in the molecular machinery of cellular iron egress. We demonstrate that under iron deficiency in pregnancy, levels of ferroportin are greatly reduced in the duodenum, placenta and fetal liver, but not in maternal liver macrophages and in the spleen. Although low expression of both maternal and fetal hepcidin predicted ferroportin up‐regulation in examined locations, its final expression level was very likely correlated with tissue iron status. Our results argue that iron released into the circulation of anemic females is taken up by the placenta, as evidenced by high expression of iron importers on syncytiotrophoblasts. Then, a substantial decrease in levels of ferroportin on the basolateral side of syncytiotrophoblasts, may be responsible for the reduced transfer of iron to the fetus. As attested by the lowest decrease in iron content among analyzed tissues, some part is retained in the placenta. These findings confirm the key role played by ferroportin in tuning iron turnover in iron‐deficient pregnant mouse females and their fetuses.
Congenital polyvalvular disease expands the cardiac phenotype of the RASopathies
Authors: Matalon Dena R. , Stevenson David A. , Bhoj Elizabeth J. , Santani Avni B. , Keena Beth , Cohen Meryl S. , Lin Angela E. , Sheppard Sarah E. , Zackai Elaine H. 
Published: March 2021

AbstractThe RASopathies are a group of similar genetic syndromes with cardiovascular abnormalities, characteristic facial features, short stature, abnormalities of the skin and musculoskeletal system, and variable neurodevelopmental challenges. The most common cardiovascular abnormalities include pulmonary valvular stenosis and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Congenital polyvalvular disease (CPVD) refers to congenital dysplasia of two or more cardiac valves. We diagnosed a RASopathy in two individuals with CPVD and noted that CPVD in RASopathies has rarely been reported in the literature. Thus, we performed a retrospective chart review and literature review to investigate the association and characterize the phenotype of CPVD in the RASopathies. CPVD was present in 2.5% (n = 6/243) of individuals in our RASopathy cohort. Involvement of two cardiac valves, commonly the aortic and pulmonic valves, was seen in the majority of individuals (6/8; 75%) in our cohort, but only 27% (3/11) of reported CPVD and RASopathy cases in the literature. CPVD should be considered an associated cardiovascular phenotype of the RASopathies, which has implications for diagnosis and management.
Accurate error control in high‐dimensional association testing using conditional false discovery rates
Authors: Liley James , Wallace Chris 
Published: March 2021

AbstractHigh‐dimensional hypothesis testing is ubiquitous in the biomedical sciences, and informative covariates may be employed to improve power. The conditional false discovery rate (cFDR) is a widely used approach suited to the setting where the covariate is a set of p‐values for the equivalent hypotheses for a second trait. Although related to the Benjamini–Hochberg procedure, it does not permit any easy control of type‐1 error rate and existing methods are over‐conservative. We propose a new method for type‐1 error rate control based on identifying mappings from the unit square to the unit interval defined by the estimated cFDR and splitting observations so that each map is independent of the observations it is used to test. We also propose an adjustment to the existing cFDR estimator which further improves power. We show by simulation that the new method more than doubles potential improvement in power over unconditional analyses compared to existing methods. We demonstrate our method on transcriptome‐wide association studies and show that the method can be used in an iterative way, enabling the use of multiple covariates successively. Our methods substantially improve the power and applicability of cFDR analysis.
Solid state diffusion and amalgamating anionic exchange at a KNaSO4 phosphors activated with Eu3+, Dy3+ and Sm3+ rare earth ions to enhance w‐LED performance
Authors: Duragkar Arati , Dhoble Nirupama S. , Kohale Ritesh L. , Dhoble Sanjay J. 
Published: March 2021

AbstractIn present work, KNa(SO4) phosphors doped with different concentrations of rare earth Eu3+, Sm3+ and Dy3+ ions (0.05, 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 1 mol%) were synthesized using a solid‐state diffusion technique. Photoluminescence (PL) investigations were carried out for the whole range of Eu3+, Sm3+ and Dy3+‐doped phosphors; rare earth ions that retained maximum PL intensity were selected for advanced anionic exchange. In the present investigation, phosphors KNa(SO4):Eu3+ (1 mol%), KNa(SO4):Dy3 + (0.5 mol%) and KNa(SO4):Sm3+ (0.3 mol%) had the highest PL intensity, and were therefore selected for further anionic substitution of sulphate anions with different concentrations of vanadate, phosphate, and tungstate anions, such as KNa(SO4)1‐x(MO4)x: W (where W = Eu3+ 1 mol%, Dy3+0.5 mol% and Sm3+ 0.3 mol%; MO4 = PO4, VO4, WO4; and x = 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 1). Structural and molecular environments of the substituted phosphors were characterized individually using X‐ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. In‐depth morphological investigations of the prepared phosphors were undertaken using scanning electron microscopy. For the principal investigation on enhancement of white light‐emitting diode (w‐LED) performance, the PL properties of all the synthesized phosphors were studied analytically. Emission intensity ratios for KNa(SO4):Eu3+ 1 mol%, KNa(SO4)0(PO4)1:Eu 1 mol%, KNa(SO4)0.9(VO4)1:Eu 1 mol%, and KNa(SO4)0.9(WO4)0.1:Eu 1 mol% were 1:1.15:1.23:0.08. PL intensity ratios for the phosphors KNaSO4:Dy 0.5 mol% and KNa(SO4)0.9(PO4)0.1:Dy 0.5 mol% was 1:2. The ratio of PL intensity was 1:3.2:0.8 for KNa(SO4):Sm 1 mol%, KNa(SO4)0.5(PO4)0.5:Sm 0.3 mol%, and KNa(SO4)0.7(VO4)0.3:Sm 0.3 mol% phosphors, respectively. Chromaticity investigations were carried out using Commission Internationale de l'Éclairage colour co‐ordinate diagrams, which suggested that the prepared Eu3+‐doped and Sm3+‐doped phosphors would be prospective candidates for red and green LEDs, respectively, whereas Dy3+‐doped phosphors showed emission in the blue and yellow regions. The entire study indicated that amalgamation of anionic exchange at a KNaSO4 phosphor activated with Eu3+, Dy3+ and Sm3+ rare earth ions could generate and enhance white light emission.