bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Accuracy and Influencing Factors of Doppler Echocardiography in Estimating Pulmonary Artery Systolic Pressure: Comparison With Right Heart Catheterization : A Retrospective Cross-sectional Study
Authors: Lv Guangjie , Li Aili , Tao Xincao , Zhai Yanan , Zhang Yu , Lei Jieping , Gao Qian , Xie Wanmu , Zhai Zhenguo 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
Background: Noninvasive assessment of pulmonary artery systolic pressure by Doppler echocardiography (sPAPECHO) has been widely adopted to screen for pulmonary hypertension (PH). But high proportion of overestimation or underestimation of sPAPECHO still remained. So we aimed to explore the accuracy and influencing factors of sPAPECHO with right heart catheterization (RHC) as reference. Methods: A total of 218 highly suspected pulmonary hypertension (PH) patients who underwent RHC and echocardiography within 7 days were included. The correlation and consistency between tricuspid regurgitation (TR) derived parameters and RHC results were tested by Pearson and Bland-Altaman methods. With mPAP ≥25mmHg measured by RHC as the standard diagnostic criteria of PH, ROC curve was used to compared the diagnostic efficacy of sPAPECHO with other TR related methods. The ratio of (sPAPECHO-sPAPRHC)/sPAPRHC was calculated and divided into three groups, namely, the underestimation group, accurate group and overestimation group by ±10% as the boundary. The influencing factors of sPAPECHO were analyzed by ordinal regression analysis.Results: sPAPECHO had the greatest correlation coefficient (r=0.781, P<0.001), best diagnostic efficiency (AUC=0.98) and lowest bias (mean bias= 0.07mmHg, 95% limits of agreement: -32.08 to +32.22mmHg) compared with other TR related methods. Ordinal regression analysis showed that TR signal quality, PAWP and sPAPRHC level affected the accuracy of sPAPECHO (P < 0.05). The OR value of PAWP was 0.94 (95%CI: 0.89, 0.99). Compared with high sPAPRHC level, the OR value of low and medium sPAPRHC level were 21.56 (95%CI: 9.57, 48.55) and 5.13 (95%CI: 2.55, 10.32) , respectively. Relative to the signal quality of type A, the OR value of type B and C signal quality were 0.26 (95%CI: 0.14, 0.48) and 0.23 (95%CI: 0.07, 0.73), respectively. While TR severity and right ventricular systolic function had no significant effect on the accuracy of sPAPECHO. Conclusions: sPAPECHO was superior to other TR-related methods in PH screening, and was often overestimated in patients with pre-capillary PH at low sPAPRHC level, even with good TR signal quality.Trial registration: This is a retrospectively registered study.
Perceptions on Preventative Care During the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Survey Using Clinical Scenarios
Authors: Boldt Christopher , Boldt Clare , Chow Emilie , Mukamel Dana , Pang Jonathan 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
One significant side effect of the Covid-19 pandemic is the decline in preventative healthcare services. The reduction in inpatient and outpatient visits has been attributed to fears of contracting the virus. Our study utilized a cross sectional survey of adults to determine patient risk assessment for receiving preventative care during the pandemic, specifically mammography, colonoscopy, and immunizations, through clinical scenarios (ranked high, medium, or low risk). Based on the scenario, the respondent indicated whether they would schedule their appointment for the relevant procedure within the next month. We hypothesized that more people would choose to seek care as their symptomatic severity and risk factors increased including increased age, outweighing their Covid-19 fears against the urgency of their clinical presentation. Consistent with the hypothesis, there were statistically significant differences to increasing scenario intensity for all procedures (mammography, immunization, colonoscopy). Regarding age, low risk immunization respondents 65 years and older were more likely to get their flu shot than those in the 18-49 or 50-64 age brackets, whereas no significant differences were found for colonoscopy and mammography among eligible age groups. These empirical results epidemiologically support proposed projection models stating there will likely be an increased incidence in late-stage cancers and immunization preventable disease due to missed/unscheduled appointments attributed to the pandemic. Thus, physicians should strongly encourage their patients to receive missed preventative care.
Genetic diversity among queen bee, worker bees and larvae in terms of retrotransposon movements
Authors: Mercan Levent , Bulbul Cihat Erdem , Marakli Sevgi 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
Objective
Honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) is a model organism, contributing significant effect on global ecology by pollination and examining due to its social behaviour.
Methods
In this study, barley-specific Sukkula and Nikita retrotransposons were analysed using IRAP (Inter-Retrotransposon Amplification Polymorphism) marker technique, and the relationships between retrotransposon movements and development were also investigated in three different colonies of the Caucasian bee (Apis mellifera caucasica). Furthermore, transposon sequences belonging to Apis mellifera, Bombus terrestris, Triticum turgidum and Hordeum vulgare were also examined to figure out evolutionary relationships.
Results
For this purpose, a queen bee, five worker bees, and five larvae from each colony were studied. Both retrotransposons were found in all samples in three colonies with different polymorphism ratios (0-100% for Nikita and 0-67% for Sukkula). We also determined polymorphisms in queen-worker (0-83% for Nikita, 0-63% for Sukkula), queen-larvae (0-83% for Nikita, 0-43% for Sukkula) and worker-larvae comparisons (0-100% for Nikita, 0-63% for Sukkula) in colonies. Moreover, close relationships among transposons found in plant and insect genomes as a result of in silico evaluations to verify experimental results.
Conclusion
This work could be one of the first studies to analyse plant-specific retrotransposons’ movements in honeybee genome. Results are expected to understand evolutionary relationships in terms of horizontal transfer of transposons among kingdoms.
MTHFD2 Expression Association with Bladder Cancer and Screening of its Potential Inhibitor
Authors: Asif Maleeha , Ilyas Muhammad , Zafar Muhammad , Elahi Muhammad Affan , Bostan Nazish , Tariq Aamira 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
BackgroundBladder cancer is the most common urological malignancy. Genes of folate mediated 1 carbon metabolism are found to be highly up regulated in tumor cells and promotes tumor cell proliferation. Rationale and aim of the studyThe aim of the current study was to determine the expression of MTHFD2 gene and the impact of intronic SNP rs1667627 on MTHFD2 expression Furthermore, determination of potential ligand based inhibitors against MTHFD2. Methods & ResultsSemi-quantitative expression analysis and sanger sequencing were used for this purpose. Moreover, structure based virtual ligand library screening in order to find plausible inhibitors.MTHFD2 expression was significantly increased with tumor stage progression both in low and high-grade bladder cancer. However, the relative fold change difference in low grade bladder cancer in correlation with the tumor stage progression was more dramatic. Contrary to the TCGA dataset analysis, increased MTHFD2 expression was observed in papillary bladder cancer tumor. G to A transition in the intronic variant rs1667627 SNP was determined in tumor tissues as compared to control. Virtual ligand based library screening against the three dimensional MTHFD2 protein lead to identification of a plausible inhibitor MCULE-8027924848 that displayed lower binding free energy as compared to already documented LY345899. ConclusionMTHFD2 might be used as low-grade bladder cancer biomarker since its expression level changes drastically with tumor progression. Further, experimental studies are required to establish the potential mode of inhibition of MCULE-8027924848 ligand.
Radon Transport from Soil to Air and Monte-Carlo Simulation
Authors: Muhammad Ahmad , Külahcı Fatih 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
The exhalation of geochemical entities from soil to air is significant to understand Lithosphere-Atmospheric relationships. Some of these geochemical entities are capable of modifying the lower atmosphere, and they are employed in various studies. Radon is one of the geochemical gasses widely recognized as a dominant ionization source in near ground regions of the troposphere. The steady state Rn transport equation is considered in many cases for estimating Rn migration from soil to air on the condition that the time evolution is ignored. A method is proposed for estimating radon space-time transport from soil to air. This is achieved by solving the radon transport equation in soil with special boundary conditions. Similar results are obtained with some experimented models, as well as reported radon values in literature for some set of parameter combinations. Strengths and limitations of the method are discussed. The model is useable to study Lithosphere-Atmosphere relationships. It can also be significant in other studies like the Global Electric Circuit or Seismo-Ionospheric studies.
Monocyte to High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Ratio (MHR) and Serum Uric Acid in Chinese Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study
Authors: Li Yuexi , Liu Xiaoqin , Luo Yuhan 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
Background: Previous studies have shown the monocyte to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) ratio (MHR) is a predictor of various diseases such as coronary heart disease, diabetic microangiopathy, and metabolic syndrome. However, there are few scientific reports on the correlation between MHR and serum uric acid. The objective of this report is to explore the interrelation between MHR and serum uric acid in Chinese.Methods: This study is a cross-sectional study. A total of 646 participants in the southwest of China received a health examination at the Health Management Center of Deyang People's Hospital. The examination included blood pressure, blood routine examination, lipids, fasting glucose, serum transaminases, serum uric acid, and various standardized questionnaires. Generalized additive model (GAM) and smoothed curve fitting were used to explore the relationship between MHR and serum uric acid. Then, subgroup analyses were performed to investigate the robustness of this relationship.Results: After adjusted confounders (age, sex, BMI, SBP, DBP, AST, ALT, fasting glucose, TC, LDL, smoking, drinking, and exercise status), MHR was positively correlated with serum uric acid(p<0.001). As shown in the smoothing curve, there was an approximately linear correlation between MHR and serum uric acid, and the linear correlation coefficient was 146.74 (95% CI: 96.16 ~ 197.33, P <0.0001). Subgroup analyses showed the effect of MHR on serum uric acid was smaller in occasional smokers and smokers compared to nonsmokers (P = 0.0194).Conclusion: MHR was significantly and positively correlated with serum uric acid. Additionally, the effect of MHR on serum uric acid was rather less in people who smoked more.
Expression of Phenylalanine Ammonia Lyases in Synechocystis Sp. PCC 6803 and Subsequent Improvements of Sustainable Production of Phenylpropanoids
Authors: Kukil Kateryna , Lindberg Pia 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
Background
Phenylpropanoids represent a diverse class of industrially important secondary metabolites, synthesized in plants from phenylalanine and tyrosine. Cyanobacteria have a great potential for sustainable production of phenylpropanoids directly from CO2, due to their photosynthetic lifestyle with a fast growth compared to plants, and the ease of generating genetically engineered strains. This study focuses on photosynthetic production of the first compounds in the phenylpropanoid pathway, trans-cinnamic acid and p-coumaric acid, in the unicellular cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 (Synechocystis). This was achieved firstly via heterologous overexpression of a selected set of phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) enzymes from different organisms in Synechocystis. The resulting strains were evaluated for productivity to find the best performing candidate. Secondly, in order to further improve the titer of target compounds, we evaluated the use of stronger expression cassettes for increasing PAL protein levels, as well as knock-out of the laccase gene slr1573, as this was previously reported to prevent degradation of the target compounds in the cell. Finally, to investigate the effect of growth conditions on the production of trans-cinnamic acid and p-coumaric acid from Synechocystis, cultivation conditions promoting rapid, high density growth were tested.
Results
Results of comparative expression of PALs showed that the highest specific titer was achieved for the strain AtC, expressing a PAL from Arabidopsis thaliana, while a subsequent increase of protein level did not improve the productivity. In contrast to previous reports, the production of target compounds in strains where the slr1573 laccase had been knocked out was found to be lower compared to strains with wild type background. Additionally, the Δslr1573 strains exhibited a strong phenotype of slower growth rate and lower pigment content. The application of a high-density cultivation system for the growth of production strains allowed reaching the highest total titers of trans-cinnamic acid and p-coumaric acid reported so far, at around 0.8 and 0.4 g/L, respectively, after 4 days.
Conclusions
The production of trans-cinnamic acid, unlike that of p-coumaric acid, is not limited by the protein level of heterologously expressed PAL in Synechocystis. High density cultivation led to higher titres of both products, while knocking out slr1573 did not have a positive effect on production. This work contributes to capability of exploiting the primary metabolism of cyanobacteria for sustainable production of plant phenylpropanoids.
Nanotwin-assisted nitridation in FeNi nanopowders for synthesis of rare-earth-free magnets
Authors: Wang Jian , Hirayama Yusuke , Liu Zheng , Suzuki Kazuyuki , Yamaguchi Wataru , Park Kwangjae , Takagi Kenta , Kura Hiroaki , Watanabe Eiji , Ozaki Kimihiro 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
L10-ordered FeNi alloy (tetrataenite), a promising candidate for rare-earth-free and low-cost permanent magnet applications, is attracting increasing attention from academic and industrial communities. Highly ordered single-phase L10-FeNi is difficult to synthesis efficiently because of its low chemical order-disorder transition temperature (200–320 ℃). A non-equilibrium synthetic route utilizing a nitrogen topotactic reaction has been considered a valid approach, although the phase transformation mechanism is currently unknown. Herein, we investigated the basis of this reaction, namely the formation mechanism of the tetragonal FeNiN precursor phase during the nitridation of FeNi nanopowders. Detailed microstructure analysis revealed that the FeNiN precursor phase could preferentially nucleated at the nanotwinned region during nitridation and subsequently grew following a massive transformation, with high-index irrational orientation relationships and ledgewise growth motion detected at the migrating phase interface. This is the first report of a massive phase transformation detected in an Fe-Ni-N system and provides new insights into the phase transformation during the nitriding process. This work is expected to promote the synthetic optimization of fully ordered FeNi alloys for various magnetic applications.
Distributed Arithmetic Coding Over Binary Erasure Channel
Authors: Wang Xianyu , Li Cong , Tan Jinlin , Zhang Rui , Liang Zhifeng , Wang Hai 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
In this paper, the Binary Erasure Channel (BEC) is researched by Distributed Arithmetic Coding (DAC) based on Slepian-Wolf coding framework. The source and side information are modelled as a virtual BEC. The DAC decoder uses maximum a posteriori (MAP) as the criterion to recover the source. A deep residual network is used to boost the DAC decoding process. The experimental results show that our algorithm nearly achieves the same performance with LT codes under different erasure probabilities.
Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy in South Korea Based on Data From the National Health Insurance Database: Corticosteroid Use and Bone Health Management
Authors: Yoon Jin A , Park Ho Eun , Kim Jinmi , Shin Yong Beom , Son Jungmin 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
Background
This study aimed to determine the current corticosteroid use and bone health management status of patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) in South Korea.
Methods
Data from the Korean National Health Insurance Database regarding bone status, spine radiography findings, bone mineral density, and laboratory test results were obtained, as well as the proportion of patients with spine and lower limb prostheses, occurrence of scoliosis, and age at scoliosis surgery.
Results
Deflazacort dose in the ambulant group (aged <15 years old) increased by age and year. The maintenance dose of prednisolone and deflazacort for the 15–19 group decreased by year. Among the patients, 12.47% underwent spine radiography, 23.11% underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, and 22.7% underwent vitamin D tests. Moreover, 40.9% of the patients were prescribed vitamin D at a mean age of 14.6 ± 6.1 years, while 10.22% were prescribed bisphosphonate at 17.92 ± 3.4 years. Further, 16.1% patients underwent posterior spinal instrumentation and fusion at 14.4 ± 2.3 years and 5.3% underwent anterior spinal instrumentation and fusion at 14.4 ± 2.3 years. Ankle-foot orthosis and spine orthosis prescriptions were noted in 4.91% and 1.84% of patients, respectively.
Conclusions
The current status of clinical practice for patients with DMD in South Korea have been presented. It is expected that the findings of this study will contribute to raising awareness on the necessity of establishing a domestic registry in the country for patients with DMD.
Electronic Polarizability and Optical Basicity of BaO-B2O3-TeO2 Glass System
Authors: Amat A. , Halimah M. K. , Ishak M. , Nazrin S. N. , Syamimi N. N. , Hasnimulyati L. 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
[(TeO2)0.7(B2O3)0.3]1-x (BaO)x, x = 0.00, 0.05, 0.10, 0.20, 0.25, 0.30 and 0.35 mol fraction glass series were successfully synthesized by conventional melt quenching method. Amorphous phase of all samples was confirmed through X-ray diffraction while optical properties were determined using UV-VIS spectrophotometer. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) analysis showed that the glass structure consisted of TeO3, TeO4, TeO6, BO3 and BO4 structural units. The optical band gap energy, Eopt which was calculated from Tauc’ plots decreased as the amount of BaO increases, whereas, the Urbach energy value increased. The increase in Urbach energy value was attributed to the increase of defects in glass structure. The refractive indices of glass were found to increase along with the increased amount of BaO, due to the high polarization and high density of host material and glass modifier. The molar polarizability, αm, oxide ion polarizability, αo2- and optical basicity, Λ of the glasses are calculated by Lorentz-Lorenz equation. The glasses were found to possess αm values between 8.106 – 8.489 Å3, and αo2- values between 3.303 to 4.772. Meanwhile, optical basicity increases from 0.115 to 0.893.
Incidence and risk factors of preoperative venous thromboembolism in patients with malignant musculoskeletal tumors: an analysis based on D-dimer screening and imaging
Authors: Hayashida Kenta , Kawabata Yusuke , Saito Keiju , Fujita Shintaro , Choe Hyonmin , Kato Ikuma , Takeyama Masanobu , Inaba Yutaka 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
Background: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a major complication in patients with malignant tumors and orthopedic disorders. ﻿Although it is known that patients undergoing surgery for orthopedic oncology are at an increased risk of thromboembolic events, only few studies have investigated this risk in detail. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the incidence and risk factors for preoperative VTE in orthopedic oncology patients.Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 270 patients who underwent surgical procedures, including biopsy for orthopedic oncology, have undergone measurements of preoperative D-dimer levels, and were subsequently screened for VTE by lower extremity venous ultrasonography and/or contrast-enhanced computed tomography scans. Statistical analyses were performed to examine the incidence and risk factors for VTE. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed to verify the D-dimer cutoff value for the diagnosis of VTE.Results: Overall, 199 patients (103 with primary soft tissue sarcomas, 38 with primary bone sarcomas, 46 with metastatic tumors, and 12 with hematologic malignancies) were included. D-dimer levels were high in 79 patients; VTE was detected in 19 patients (9.5%). Multivariate analysis indicated that age ≥60 years (P = 0.021) and tumor location in the lower limbs (P = 0.048) were independent risk factors for VTE. ROC analysis showed that the D-dimer cutoff value for the diagnosis of VTE was 1.53 µg/mL; the sensitivity and specificity were 89.5% and 79.4%, respectively.Conclusions: Our study indicated that age and tumor location in the lower limbs were independent risk factors for preoperative VTE in orthopedic oncology patients. D-dimer levels were not associated with VTE in the multivariate analysis, likely because they are affected by a wide variety of conditions, such as malignancy and aging. Patients with high D-dimer levels and the identified risk factors are at an increased risk of preoperative VTE, and additional ultrasonography should be considered.Trial registration: Our study was approved by the institutional review board. The registration number is B200600056. The registration date was July 13, 2020.
Design, Synthesis, and Evaluation of Functionalized 5-(4-arylpiperazin-1-yl)-N-Quinolinyl-p﻿entanamides as Selective Dopamine D3 Receptor Ligands
Authors: Blass Benjamin E , Chen Peng-Jen , Taylor Michelle , Griffin Suzy A , Gordon John C , Luedtke Robert R 
Published: November 2021

Abstract
Dopamine (1) plays a key role in normal physiological pathways in both the central nervous system and the periphery. The physiological impact of this neurotransmitter is mediated through its interaction with family of G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). These receptors are designated as D1, D2, D3, D4, and D5 and divided into two sub-families, the D1-like sub-family (D1 and D5) and D2-like sub-family (D2, D3 and D4) based on pharmacological properties, amino acid homology, and genetic organization. Aberrant D3 activity has been linked to multiple diseases and conditions such as depression, schizophrenia, substance use disorder, inflammatory diseases, and Parkinson’s disease (PD). As part of our on-going program focused on the identification of novel D3 ligands, we have identified a novel series of 5-(4-arylpiperazin-1-yl)-N-quinolinyl-pentanamides that are high affinity ligands for this receptor.