bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Unraveling the antitrypanosomal mechanism of benznidazole and related 2‐nitroimidazoles: From prodrug activation to DNA damage
Authors: Dattani Ambika , Drammeh Isatou , Mahmood Aishah , Rahman Mahbubur , Szular Joanna , Wilkinson Shane R. 
Published: June 2021

AbstractNitroheterocycles represent an important class of compound used to treat trypanosomiasis. They often function as prodrugs and can undergo type I nitroreductase (NTR1)‐mediated activation before promoting their antiparasitic activities although the nature of these downstream effects has yet to be determined. Here, we show that in an NTR1‐dependent process, benznidazole promotes DNA damage in the nuclear genome of Trypanosoma brucei, providing the first direct link between activation of this prodrug and a downstream trypanocidal mechanism. Phenotypic and protein expression studies revealed that components of the trypanosome’s homologous recombination (HR) repair pathway (TbMRE11, γH2A, TbRAD51) cooperate to resolve the benznidazole‐induced damage, indicating that the prodrug‐induced lesions are most likely double stand DNA breaks, while the sequence/recruitment kinetics of these factors parallels that in other eukaryotes HR systems. When extended to other NTR1‐activated 2‐nitroimidazoles, some were shown to promote DNA damage. Intriguingly, the lesions induced by these required TbMRE11 and TbCSB activities to fix leading us to postulate that TbCSB may operate in systems other than the transcription‐coupled nucleotide excision repair pathway. Understanding how existing trypanosomal drugs work will aid future drug design and help unlock novel reactions/pathways that could be exploited as targets for therapeutic intervention.
Immuno‐genetic importance of Th17 in susceptibility to TB
Authors: Rapolu Bhagya Laxmi , Pullagurla Ashwini , Ganta Soujanya , Komaravalli Prasanna Latha , Gaddam Suman Latha 
Published: June 2021

AbstractTuberculosis is a highly infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb) which is infecting around one‐third of the world population. The majority of individuals develop latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI), but only 10% of LTBI individuals develop active TB. Household contacts (HHC) of TB patients are 10‐60 times more likely to develop the disease than non exposed individuals. Dendritic cells strengthen the immune response against M. tb through the stimulation of CD4+T cells, which differentiate into different types of T helper cells (Th) such as Th1, Th2 and Th17 lineages. Th17 cells play an important role in coordinating pulmonary immune defence and enhance the expression of cytokines (IL‐17A, IL‐17F, IL‐21 and IL‐22), chemokines and antimicrobial peptides that lead to phagocytosis of M. tb. Previous studies have reported that Th17 polymorphisms are associated with TB susceptibility. In this review, we focused on the immuno‐genetic importance of Th17 in TB and screening the HHCfor Th17 genetic variants may help for the early detection of TB infection in individuals who are at risk.
Time-Optimal Interception of a Moving Target by a Dubins Car
Authors: Buzikov M. E. , Galyaev A. A. 
Published: June 2021

Abstract
The problem of intercepting a target moving along a prescribed trajectory by a Dubins car
is stated and formalized as a time-optimal control problem with an arbitrary car velocity direction
at the interception. The conditions available in the literature under which the optimal trajectory
is a geodesic line drawn from the initial position of the car to the interception point are refined.
Algebraic equations for calculating the optimal interception time are obtained. The optimal
control is synthesized based on these equations. A software module is developed for constructing
the optimal car trajectories for various target trajectories.
Relationship of Depression, Anxiety, and Rumination Scores with EEG Connectivity of Resting State Networks
Authors: Bocharov A. V. , Knyazev G. G. , Savostyanov A. N. , Saprygin A. E. , Proshina E. A. , Tamozhnikov S. S. 
Published: June 2021

Abstract
The aim of the research was to study the effect of depression, anxiety, and rumination scores on the balance of activity of the default mode network and attention networks revealed in the resting state EEG records. Forty-five healthy volunteers (24 men aged from 18 to 25 years) participated in the resting state EEG recording. The participants filled in the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI II), Ruminative Responses Scale, and Eysenck Personality Profiler. The connectivity measures of resting state networks were calculated in EEG data. The networks were detected by the “seed” method. The effects of depressive symptoms, anxiety, and rumination on the connectivity of the networks were analyzed by the regression method. The depressive symptom scores and the rumination scores were correlated with the dominance of the default mode network over attention networks in the right temporal cortex. The depression scores and the anxiety scores were correlated with the dominance of attention networks over the default mode network in the anterior cingulate cortex. It could be suggested that rumination processes are specific for depressive symptoms and are reflected in the dominance of the default mode network in brain structures associated with the processing of emotional introspection. Common to depressive and anxious symptoms is a state of alertness, which is reflected in the dominance of attention networks in brain structures associated with decision-making.
ST8Sia6 Promotes Tumor Growth in Mice by Inhibiting Immune Responses
Authors: Friedman David J. , Crotts Sydney B. , Shapiro Michael J. , Rajcula Matthew , McCue Shaylene , Liu Xin , Khazaie Khashayarsha , Dong Haidong , Shapiro Virginia Smith 
Published: June 2021

AbstractMany tumors exhibit increased incorporation of sialic acids into cell-surface glycans, which impact the tumor microenvironment. Sialic acid immunoglobulin-like lectins (Siglec) are receptors that recognize sialic acids and modulate immune responses, including responses to tumors. However, the roles of individual sialyltransferases in tumorigenesis and tumor growth are not well understood. Here, we examined the sialyltransferase ST8Sia6, which generated α2,8-linked disialic acids that bind to murine Siglec-E and human Siglec-7 and -9. Increased ST8Sia6 expression was found on many human tumors and associated with decreased survival in several cancers, including colon cancer. Because of this, we engineered MC38 and B16-F10 tumor lines to express ST8Sia6. ST8Sia6-expressing MC38 and B16-F10 tumors exhibited faster growth and led to decreased survival, which required host Siglec-E. ST8Sia6 expression on tumors also altered macrophage polarization toward M2, including upregulation of the immune modulator arginase, which also required Siglec-E. ST8Sia6 also accelerated tumorigenesis in a genetically engineered, spontaneous murine model of colon cancer, decreasing survival from approximately 6 months to 67 days. Thus, ST8Sia6 expression on tumors inhibits antitumor immune responses to accelerate tumor growth.
Natural History of Patients With Ischemia and No Obstructive Coronary Artery Disease
Authors: Reynolds Harmony R. , Picard Michael H. , Spertus John A. , Peteiro Jesus , Lopez Sendon Jose Luis , Senior Roxy , El-Hajjar Mohammad C. , Celutkiene Jelena , Shapiro Michael D. , Pellikka Patricia A. , Kunichoff Dennis F. , Anthopolos Rebecca , Alfakih Khaled , Abdul-Nour Khaled , Khouri Michel , Bershtein Leonid , De Belder Mark , Poh Kian Keong , Beltrame John F. , Min James K. , Fleg Jerome L. , Li Yi , Maron David J. , Hochman Judith S. 
Published: June 2021

Background:
Ischemia with no obstructive coronary artery disease (INOCA) is common and has an adverse prognosis. We set out to describe the natural history of symptoms and ischemia in INOCA.

Methods:
CIAO-ISCHEMIA (Changes in Ischemia and Angina over One Year in ISCHEMIA Trial Screen Failures With INOCA) was an international cohort study conducted from 2014 to 2019 involving angina assessments (Seattle Angina Questionnaire) and stress echocardiograms 1 year apart. This was an ancillary study that included patients with a history of angina who were not randomly assigned in the ISCHEMIA trial. Stress-induced wall motion abnormalities were determined by an echocardiographic core laboratory blinded to symptoms, coronary artery disease status, and test timing. Medical therapy was at the discretion of treating physicians. The primary outcome was the correlation between the changes in the Seattle Angina Questionnaire angina frequency score and changes in echocardiographic ischemia. We also analyzed predictors of 1-year changes in both angina and ischemia, and we compared CIAO participants with ISCHEMIA participants with obstructive coronary artery disease who had stress echocardiography before enrollment, as CIAO participants did.

Results:

INOCA participants in CIAO were more often female (66% of 208 versus 26% of 865 ISCHEMIA participants with obstructive coronary artery disease,
P
<0.001), but the magnitude of ischemia was similar (median 4 ischemic segments [interquartile range, 3–5] both groups). Ischemia and angina were not significantly correlated at enrollment in CIAO (
P
=0.46) or ISCHEMIA stress echocardiography participants (
P
=0.35). At 1 year, the stress echocardiogram was normal in half of CIAO participants, and 23% had moderate or severe ischemia (≥3 ischemic segments). Angina improved in 43% and worsened in 14%. Change in ischemia over 1 year was not significantly correlated with change in angina (ρ=0.029).

Conclusions:
Improvement in ischemia and angina were common in INOCA but not correlated. Our INOCA cohort had a degree of inducible wall motion abnormalities similar to concurrently enrolled ISCHEMIA participants with obstructive coronary artery disease. Our results highlight the complex nature of INOCA pathophysiology and the multifactorial nature of angina.

Registration:

URL:
https://www.clinicaltrials.gov
. Unique identifier: NCT02347215.
Thematic Reanalysis in the Left Posterior Parietal Sulcus: A TMS Study
Authors: Finocchiaro Chiara , Cattaneo Luigi , Lega Carlotta , Miceli Gabriele 
Published: June 2021

Abstract
Understanding who does what to whom is at the core of sentence comprehension. The actors that contribute to the verb meaning are labeled thematic roles. We used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to verify the possible impact of verb semantics on the thematic role encoding process that has been shown to involve the posterior portion of the left posterior parietal sulcus (PPS; Finocchiaro et al., 2015). Sixteen participants underwent TMS and sham stimulation sessions while performing an agent-decision task, in which they had to decide by key press which of the two arguments was the agent of visually presented sentences or pseudo-sentences. The (pseudo)sentences were all reversible and were presented in the active or passive diathesis. Double pulse TMS was delivered to the posterior part of the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) in an event-related fashion, at two different time windows: 200–400 ms (T1) or 600–800 ms (T2) time-locked to the presentation of the (pseudo)sentence. Results showed that TMS increased accuracy on passive sentences and pseudo-sentences as compared to active sentences and to the baseline, sham condition. Indeed, the presence of a verb with a full semantic representation was not a necessary precondition for the TMS-induced facilitation of passive (pseudo)sentences. Stimulation timing had no effect on accuracy for sentences vs. pseudo-sentences. These observations support the idea that the posterior parietal site is recruited when the correct interpretation of a sentence requires reanalysis of temporarily encoded thematic roles (as in reversible passive sentences) even when the verb is not an entry in the lexicon and hence does not have a semantic representation. Results are consistent with previous evidence and deserve further investigation in larger experimental samples. Increasing the number and variety of stimulus sentences, and administering TMS to additional control sites will be key to further articulate the conclusions allowed by these initial findings.
Effects of balance training on functionality, ankle instability, and dynamic balance outcomes in people with chronic ankle instability: Systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Mollà-Casanova Sara , Inglés Marta , Serra-Añó Pilar 
Published: June 2021

Aim: To identify the effects of balance and strength training on function, ankle instability and dynamic balance in people with chronic ankle instability. Method: The search was conducted on randomized controlled trials that investigated the effects of balance training or strength training in people with chronic ankle instability compared to a control group. Therefore, a systematic electronic search was performed until April 2021 in Pubmed/MEDLINE, Cochrane, and Embase databases. Moreover, an additional search was further performed checking the reference lists of the selected articles. The main outcomes were ankle instability, functionality, and dynamic balance. Finally, a qualitative and quantitative synthesis was performed. Results: Fifteen randomized controlled trials with 457 volunteers were included. Compared to regular exercise, balance training demonstrated to be more effective in terms of improving functionality (0.81 (0.48, 1.14)), ankle instability (0.77 (0.27, 1.26)), and dynamic balance (0.83 (0.57, 1.10)) outcomes. However, when compared to strength training, the effectiveness of balance training was only greater in terms of the functionality outcome (0.49 (0.06, 0.92)), since no differences were found for instability (0.43 (0.00, 0.85)) and dynamic balance (0.21 (−0.15, 0.58)). Conclusions: Based on fair-to-high quality evidence, balance training significantly improves functionality, instability, and dynamic balance outcomes in people with chronic ankle instability Moreover, results of the comparison between balance training versus strength training suggest that the former achieves greater benefits for functionality, but not for instability and dynamic balance. Systematic review registration number: CRD42021224179.
Laparoscopic adrenalectomy for suspected adrenal mass in lung cancer: ganglioneuroma
Authors: Gokten Ozgur Elvan 
Published: June 2021

Background: Adrenalectomy is the gold standard for the treatment of primary adrenal ganglioneuroma. Preoperative differential diagnosis of ganglioneuroma is difficult and histopathologic examination is required to confirm the diagnosis. Patient: A 61-year-old woman, who was followed and treated by the medical oncology department because of lung carcinoma pathology squamous cell T4N0Mx, presented to our clinic due to a 15×8-mm nodule with a calculated relative wash-out rate of 40% in the right adrenal gland lateral edge, which was observed on computed tomography examination. Conclusion: Adrenal ganglioneuroma is a rarely seen, hormonally inactive, benign tumor. Final diagnosis can be made with histopathologic examination. Adrenalectomy is the standard treatment preferred for ganglioneuroma. Knowing the clinical appearance and good pathologic specialization are important adjunct matters in diagnosis. Laparoscopic adrenalectomy has become the gold standard in most patients with adrenal tumors.
Comparison of three different modalities for the treatment of bladder calculi by size
Authors: Yıldız Ali , Anıl Hakan , Erol İbrahim , Karamık Kaan , Erçil Hakan 
Published: June 2021

Purpose: Treatment recommendations for kidney or ureteral stones are based on stone size; however, this is uncertain for bladder stones. This study aims to determine the best approach to bladder stones based on their size. Materials and methods: We retrospectively analyzed 401 patients with bladder stones. Patients were divided into three different groups according to stone size (11–20 mm, 21–30 mm, 31–40 mm as groups 1, 2, and 3 respectively). Patients had transurethral cystolithotripsy (TUCL), percutaneous cystolithotripsy (PCCL), and open cystolithotomy (OCL) performed. Results: Stone fragments were removed completely in all patients. When catheter time, postoperative stay, and hematocrit decrease values were compared, the results were significantly higher for OCL in all three groups ( p: 0.001). When the relationship between stone sizes and operation time is evaluated, TUCL had shorter operation times (34.1 ± 10.6 min) in group 1. However, TUCL had longer operation times in group 2 and group 3 compared to OCL and PCCL. Conclusion: TUCL may be preferable due to better postoperative outcomes and shorter operative time for ⩽2 cm stones. As the stone size increases, PCCL is more favorable in terms of operation time.
Experimental investigation on the performance degradation of helicopter rotor due to ice accretion
Authors: Huang Mingqi , Yuan Honggang , Wang Liangquan , Peng Xianmin , Liu Qinglin 
Published: June 2021

Helicopter rotor performance can be significantly altered by ice accretion which directly degrades the handling qualities and safety during flight. To obtain understanding into the effect of ice accretion on a helicopter rotor in forward flight under different icing environments, an experimental campaign was conducted in an icing wind tunnel using a rotor model with diameter at 2 m. Research was emphasized on revealing effect of liquid water content and static temperature on the rotor performance degradation. The dynamic thrust and torque of the rotor were measured by a six-component balance. Ice shape of the airfoils at specific rotor blade spanwise locations was obtained through the ice cutting process; meanwhile, the entire ice topology on the blade was scanned by means of the three-dimensional scanning technique. Results showed that ice was mainly accreted on the leading edge and lower surface of the blade. The static temperature of a icing cloud has a noticeable effect on the regime of accreted ice. The ice formation was transparent glaze at −8°C and transformed to milky rime when changed the static temperature to −20°C. Comparing to rime ice, the glaze ice on the blade is more influential to the rotor performance degradation. Particular attention is given to the fact that under extreme icing conditions, over 30% degradation of transient rotor thrust was observed.
Corneal densitometry in patients with keratoconus undergoing intrastromal Ferrara ring implantation
Authors: Rodrigues Pablo Felipe , Moscovici Bernardo Kaplan , Ferrara Guilherme , Lamazales Luciano , Freitas Marcela Mara Silva , Torquetti Leonardo , Ambrósio Renato , Gomes José Alvaro Pereira 
Published: June 2021

Objective: Evaluation of central corneal densitometry changes following Ferrara corneal ring segment implantation in patients with keratoconus, especially the correlation between corneal densitometry and keratometry. Methods: Retrospective, non-comparative, interventional study based on the review of medical records of patients diagnosed with keratoconus who underwent Ferrara corneal ring segment implantation. Pre and post-operative corneal densitometry measurements obtained with Pentacam HR (Oculus, Wetzlar, Germany) were analyzed. The follow-up time was 3 months, and data comparison was made, using specific statistical analysis, with the data of 3 months postoperatively. Results: The study sample consisted of 43 eyes of 36 patients. The mean corrected visual acuity improved from 0.82 LogMAR preoperatively (SD ± 0.33) to 0.19 LogMAR (SD ± 0.13) postoperatively. The mean spherical equivalent varied from −4.63 (SD ± 3.94) preoperatively to −2.16 (SD ± 2.63) postoperatively. Asphericity varied from −0.69 (SD ± 0.32) preoperatively to −0.27 (SD ± 0.31) postoperatively. The mean maximum K was 54.01D (SD ± 3.38) preoperatively and 51.50D (SD ± 2.90) postoperatively. The mean anterior densitometric value was 18.26 (SD ± 2.03) preoperatively and 17.66 (SD ± 1.84) postoperatively. Conclusion: Corneal densitometry is an interesting technology that should be studied in keratoconus patients. Our results suggest that the corneal densitometry in the cornea’s anterior layer reduces after ICRS implantation and correlates with corneal keratometry. Further studies should be performed to increase the knowledge in this field.
Characteristics of Central Nervous System (CNS) Involvement in Children With Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL) and the Diagnostic Value of CSF Flow Cytometry in CNS Positive Disease
Authors: Huang Shuang , Jin Ling , Yang Jing , Duan Yanlong , Zhang Meng , Zhou Chunju , Zhang Yong-Hong 
Published: June 2021

Objective: To investigate the characteristics of central nervous system (CNS) involvement in children with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) and the value of flow cytometry (FC) in the diagnosis of CNS disease in pediatric NHL. Methods: The data of 56 newly diagnosed pediatric NHL patients with CNS involvement (CNS+/mass, CNS+/palsy, CNS+/CSF) were analyzed. The proportions and formats of CNS disease in different pathological types were compared. In addition, FC and conventional cytology (CC) of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were carried out in 383 newly diagnosed NHL cases. Results: A total of 383 children with NHL were enrolled. Among these patients, 56 (14.6%) were diagnosed with positive CNS involvement (CNS+), 33 had bulky disease (tumor diameter >10 cm), 32 had bone marrow invasion, 32 had lactate dehydrogenase levels >1000 U/L, and 25 had invasion of more than 4 organs at the time of diagnosis. There were 14 patients with T lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL), 9 with B lymphoblastic lymphoma (B-LBL), 26 with Burkitt’s lymphoma (BL), and 2 with Epstein-Barr virus-positive diffuse large B cell lymphoma (EBV + DLBCL). Among the 56 CNS+ patients, 35 were CSF-positive (CSF+); there were 2 patients who were CSF+ via CC detection and 35 who were CSF+ via FC detection. The difference between CC and FC was statistically significant ( P < 0.01). In the T-LBL group, 14 patients were CNS+/CSF, and in the B-LBL group, 8 were CNS+/mass. In the BL group, 22 patients were CNS+/mass and 15 were CNS+/CSF. In the anaplastic large-cell lymphoma group, 5 patients were CNS+/mass. Nine of the 56 CNS+ patients had events. The 2-year overall survival rate was 87% ± 0.046%, and the 2-year event-free survival rate was 76.2% ± 0.07%. Conclusion: CNS+ diagnoses were more common in pediatric NHL patients with bulky disease and/or bone marrow involvement and/or involvement of more than 4 organs at the time of diagnosis, and they were also common in the EBV + DLBCL and BL groups. FC of CSF showed important clinical significance in the diagnosis of CNS disease in pediatric NHL patients, and it can be used to significantly improve the CNS+ detection rate.