bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The protein N-terminal acetyltransferase A complex contributes to yeast mitophagy via promoting expression and phosphorylation of Atg32
Authors: Kubota Mitsutaka , Okamoto Koji 
Published: June 2021

Abstract
Mitophagy is an evolutionarily conserved catabolic process that selectively degrades damaged or superfluous mitochondria via autophagy. Although mitophagy is considered to be critical to maintain cellular homeostasis, detailed mechanisms of mitophagy remain largely unknown. In the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the protein N-terminal acetyltransferase A (NatA) complex is important for transcriptional induction of the pro-mitophagic factor Atg32 and efficient degradation of mitochondria under prolonged respiratory conditions. Overexpression of Atg32 only partially recovers mitophagy in cells lacking NatA, raising the possibility that NatA may contribute to mitophagy via additional mechanisms. Here, we demonstrate that Atg32 phosphorylation, which is required for facilitating mitophagy, is altered in respiring NatA-deficient cells. Hyperphosphorylation of Atg32 partially rescues mitophagy in cells lacking NatA. Notably, mitophagy is mostly restored in NatA-null cells overexpressing hyperphosphorylated Atg32. Loss of NatA does not impair the interaction of phosphorylated Atg32 with Atg11, a scaffold protein critical for selective autophagy, suggesting that NatA-dependent Atg32 phosphorylation promotes mitophagy independently of Atg32–Atg11 interactions. We propose that NatA-mediated protein N-terminal acetylation acts in Atg32 expression and phosphorylation to drive mitophagy.
Synergistic Effects of Quercetin-Modified Silicone Gel Sheet in Scar Treatment
Authors: Jin Jian , Tang Tao , Zhou Hao , Hong Xu-Dong , Fan Hao , Zhang Xu-Dong , Chen Zheng-Li , Ma Bing , Zhu Shi-Hui , Wang Guang-Yi , Xia Zhao-Fan 
Published: June 2021

Abstract
Both silicone gel and quercetin are effective in scar treatment but have different action mechanisms. Quercetin is mainly applied in the gel form and can lead to poor adhesion of silicone gel sheet; therefore, they cannot be combined in clinical use. In this study, a silicone gel sheet that releases quercetin in a sustained manner for 48 hours was successfully developed. Four round scars (Ø: 1 cm) were made in the ears of New Zealand albino rabbits (n = 10). After scar healing, the rabbits were divided into four groups: blank control group with no treatment, silicone gel sheet group with dressing change every 2 days, quercetin group with dressing change three times daily, and combination treatment group with dressing change every 2 days. Scar assessment was performed 3 months later. Transepidermal water loss showed no difference between the combination treatment group and the silicone gel sheet group, but was lower than that in the quercetin group and the blank control group. Immunohistochemistry of CD 31 and proliferating cell nuclear antigen showed the following results: combination treatment group &lt; silicone gel sheet group = quercetin group &lt; blank control group. Polymerase chain reaction results showed that the expression of type-I and type-III collagen in the combination treatment group and the quercetin group was significantly lower than that in the other two groups. Thus, quercetin-modified silicone gel sheet combines the advantages of the two treatments and is more effective at inhibiting cell proliferation in scar tissue than either of the two treatments alone.
Evaluating the Quality of Ecoinformatics Data Derived From Commercial Agriculture: A Repeatability Analysis of Pest Density Estimates
Authors: Rosenheim Jay A 
Published: June 2021

AbstractEach year, consultants and field scouts working in commercial agriculture undertake a massive, decentralized data collection effort as they monitor insect populations to make real-time pest management decisions. These data, if integrated into a database, offer rich opportunities for applying big data or ecoinformatics methods in agricultural entomology research. However, questions have been raised about whether or not the underlying quality of these data is sufficiently high to be a foundation for robust research. Here I suggest that repeatability analysis can be used to quantify the quality of data collected from commercial field scouting, without requiring any additional data gathering by researchers. In this context, repeatability quantifies the proportion of total variance across all insect density estimates that is explained by differences across populations and is thus a measure of the underlying reliability of observations. Repeatability was moderately high for cotton fields scouted commercially for total Lygus hesperus Knight densities (R = 0.631) and further improved by accounting for observer effects (R = 0.697). Repeatabilities appeared to be somewhat lower than those computed for a comparable, but much smaller, researcher-generated data set. In general, the much larger sizes of ecoinformatics data sets are likely to more than compensate for modest reductions in measurement precision. Tools for evaluating data quality are important for building confidence in the growing applications of ecoinformatics methods.
A rapid aneurysmal formation after late open conversion of endovascular abdominal aortic repair with complete endograft explant
Authors: Tamagawa Yuki , Kawamura Masashi , Ryugo Masahiro , Monta Osamu , Tsutsumi Yasushi 
Published: June 2021

Abstract
Late open conversion (LOC) after endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Standard surgical technique of LOC has not been established. This report presents a rapid aneurysmal formation in the unreplaced infrarenal aorta after LOC with complete endograft explantation without suprarenal fixations. A 76-year-old man presented with a left common iliac artery aneurysm (CIAA), for which he underwent EVAR to embolize the left internal iliac artery. Although his aneurysmal sac size initially showed a reduction, computed tomography at the 3-year interval post-EVAR demonstrated an increased sac size. Thus, he underwent open aortic repair of the CIAA. Though the postoperative course was uneventful, the size of the unreplaced infrarenal aorta showed a significant increase one year after open conversion. Reoperation was performed, but vascular prosthesis infection occurred as a complication and the patient died on the 196th postoperative day.
A precise photometric ratio via laser excitation of the sodium layer – I. One-photon excitation using 342.78 nm light
Authors: Albert Justin E , Budker Dmitry , Chance Kelly , Gordon Iouli E , Pedreros Bustos Felipe , Pospelov Maxim , Rochester Simon M , Sadeghpour H R 
Published: June 2021

ABSTRACT
The largest uncertainty on measurements of dark energy using type Ia supernovae (SNeIa) is presently due to systematics from photometry; specifically to the relative uncertainty on photometry as a function of wavelength in the optical spectrum. We show that a precise constraint on relative photometry between the visible and near-infrared can be achieved at upcoming survey telescopes, such as at the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, via a laser source tuned to the 342.78 nm vacuum excitation wavelength of neutral sodium atoms. Using a high-power laser, this excitation will produce an artificial star, which we term a ‘laser photometric ratio star’ (LPRS) of de-excitation light in the mesosphere at wavelengths in vacuum of 589.16, 589.76, 818.55, and 819.70 nm, with the sum of the numbers of 589.16 and 589.76 nm photons produced by this process equal to the sum of the numbers of 818.55 and 819.70 nm photons, establishing a precise calibration ratio between, for example, the r and $z$ filters of the LSST camera at the Rubin Observatory. This technique can thus provide a novel mechanism for establishing a spectrophotometric calibration ratio of unprecedented precision for upcoming telescopic observations across astronomy and atmospheric physics; thus greatly improving the performance of upcoming measurements of dark energy parameters using type SNeIa. The second paper of this pair describes an alternative technique to achieve a similar, but brighter, LPRS than the technique described in this paper, by using two lasers near resonances at 589.16 and 819.71 nm, rather than the single 342.78 nm on-resonance laser technique described in this paper.
Tumor-selective, antigen-independent delivery of a pH sensitive peptide-topoisomerase inhibitor conjugate suppresses tumor growth without systemic toxicity
Authors: Gayle Sophia , Aiello Robert , Leelatian Nalin , Beckta Jason M , Bechtold Jane , Bourassa Patricia , Csengery Johanna , Maguire Robert J , Marshall Dan , Sundaram Ranjini K , Van Doorn Jinny , Jones Kelli , Moore Hunter , Lopresti-Morrow Lori , Paradis Timothy , Tylaska Laurie , Zhang Qing , Visca Hannah , Reshetnyak Yana K , Andreev Oleg A , Engelman Donald M , Glazer Peter M , Bindra Ranjit S , Paralkar Vishwas M 
Published: June 2021

Abstract
Topoisomerase inhibitors are potent DNA damaging agents which are widely used in oncology, and they demonstrate robust synergistic tumor cell killing in combination with DNA repair inhibitors, including poly(ADP)-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitors. However, their use has been severely limited by the inability to achieve a favorable therapeutic index due to severe systemic toxicities. Antibody-drug conjugates address this issue via antigen-dependent targeting and delivery of their payloads, but this approach requires specific antigens and yet still suffers from off-target toxicities. There is a high unmet need for a more universal tumor targeting technology to broaden the application of cytotoxic payloads. Acidification of the extracellular milieu arises from metabolic adaptions associated with the Warburg effect in cancer. Here we report the development of a pH-sensitive peptide-drug conjugate to deliver the topoisomerase inhibitor, exatecan, selectively to tumors in an antigen-independent manner. Using this approach, we demonstrate potent in vivo cytotoxicity, complete suppression of tumor growth across multiple human tumor models, and synergistic interactions with a PARP inhibitor. These data highlight the identification of a peptide-topoisomerase inhibitor conjugate for cancer therapy that provides a high therapeutic index, and is applicable to all types of human solid tumors in an antigen-independent manner.
The use of external control data for predictions and futility interim analyses in clinical trials
Authors: Ventz Steffen , Comment Leah , Louv Bill , Rahman Rifaquat , Wen Patrick Y , Alexander Brian M , Trippa Lorenzo 
Published: June 2021

Abstract

Background
External control (EC) data from completed clinical trials and electronic health records can be valuable for the design and analysis of future clinical trials. We discuss the use of EC data for early stopping decisions in randomized clinical trials (RCTs).

Methods
We specify interim analyses (IAs) approaches for RCTs, which allow investigators to integrate external data into early futility stopping decisions. IAs utilize predictions based on early data from the RCT, possibly combined with external data. These predictions at IAs express the probability that the trial will generate significant evidence of positive treatment effects. The trial is discontinued if this predictive probability becomes smaller than a prespecified threshold. We quantify efficiency gains and risks associated with the integration of external data into interim decisions. We then analyze a collection of glioblastoma (GBM) data sets, to investigate if the balance of efficiency gains and risks justify the integration of external data into the IAs of future GBM RCTs.

Results
Our analyses illustrate the importance of accounting for potential differences between the distributions of prognostic variables in the RCT and in the external data to effectively leverage external data for interim decisions. Using GBM data sets, we estimate that the integration of external data increases the probability of early stopping of ineffective experimental treatments by up to 25% compared to IAs that do not leverage external data. Additionally, we observe a reduction of the probability of early discontinuation for effective experimental treatments, which improves the RCT power.

Conclusion
Leveraging external data for IAs in RCTs can support early stopping decisions and reduce the number of enrolled patients when the experimental treatment is ineffective.
Clinical Predictors Impacting Cryptococcal Dissemination and Poor Outcome in Patients With Cirrhosis
Authors: Cheng Jia-Hui , Yip Ching-Wan , Jiang Ying-Kui , Zhou Ling-Hong , Que Chun-Xing , Luo Yu , Wang Xuan , Zhao Hua-Zhen , Zhu Li-Ping 
Published: June 2021

Abstract

Background
Cirrhosis is an end-stage liver disease and is reported as an independent risk factor for cryptococcosis. Information about cryptococcosis in patients with cirrhosis remains sparse.

Methods
Human immunodeficiency virus–uninfected patients with cryptococcosis and cirrhosis admitted to Huashan Hospital from July 2005 to June 2020 were reviewed. Efficacy and safety of antifungal treatments, clinical outcome, and prognostic factors of mortality were evaluated.

Results
A total of 49 cryptococcosis patients with cirrhosis were included. Sites of infection involved central nervous system (n = 38), lung (n = 21), bloodstream (n = 11), skin (n = 1), and bone (n = 1). Nine patients (18.4%) had pulmonary cryptococcosis alone. Viral hepatitis B infection (57.1%) was the most common cause of cirrhosis. Patients with decompensated cirrhosis (Child-Pugh class B and C) were more likely to have extrapulmonary cryptococcosis than those with compensated cirrhosis (90.7% vs 64.7%; P = .049). In patients with cryptococcal meningitis (CM), 7 were treated with amphotericin B with/without flucytosine, 5 with amphotericin B plus fluconazole with/without flucytosine, and 12 with fluconazole with/without flucytosine. Fluconazole (&gt;400 mg/day) was well tolerated and only 1 patient had a mild adverse drug reaction. At 1-year follow-up, all patients treated with fluconazole with or without flucytosine survived, whereas the mortality rate was 14.3%–20.0% in the remaining groups. In addition, Child-Pugh class C cirrhosis (hazard ratio [HR], 7.555 [95% confidence interval {CI}, 1.393–40.971]) and time to diagnosis &gt;120 days (HR, 18.619 [95% CI, 2.117–163.745]) were independent factors for 1-year mortality in patients with CM.

Conclusions
Severity of cirrhosis was associated with developing extrapulmonary cryptococcosis and mortality in CM. Early diagnosis and intervention of cryptococcosis are key for outcome.
Effects of Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation on Quadriceps Muscle Strength and Mass in Healthy Young and Older Adults: A Scoping Review
Authors: Rahmati Masoud , Gondin Julien , Malakoutinia Fatemeh 
Published: June 2021

AbstractObjectiveAlthough neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) has been used as a safe and relevant complement to voluntary resistance training, its effectiveness in increasing quadriceps femoris muscle strength and mass in healthy young and older adults has not been determined. The aim of this scoping review was to assess the effects of NMES on quadriceps muscle strength and mass in healthy young and older adults.MethodsCENTRAL, Pedro, MEDLINE, and PubMed were searched from inception to September 2019. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compared NMES with control group or voluntary resistance training for healthy young and older adults were included. Study characteristics, primary and secondary outcome parameters, and details of the NMES intervention were extracted by 2 reviewers. Only studies for which full text was available in English were included.ResultsThirty-two RCTs including 796 healthy participants were identified as being eligible for young adults, and 5 RCTs including 123 healthy participants were identified as being eligible for older adults. The available evidence strongly suggests that NMES improves quadriceps muscle strength compared with a control group in young adults, but its efficacy seems lower than that of voluntary resistance training. The available limited evidence regarding the effects of NMES on quadriceps muscle mass compared with control in young adults is inconclusive, with 3 RCTs showing positive effects and 3 RCTs not showing positive effects. The very limited available evidence from 5 RCTs in older adults suggests that NMES might be beneficial for increasing quadriceps muscle strength and mass.ConclusionOverall, the evidence indicates that NMES is an efficacious method for increasing quadriceps muscle strength in young adults, whereas its impact on muscle mass requires further investigations. In addition, the effectiveness of NMES needs to be confirmed in older adults on the basis of more high-quality RCTs with larger sample sizes.ImpactThis scoping review of 37 RCTs including 919 people is the first study, to the authors’ knowledge, to show that the use of NMES increases quadriceps muscle strength in young adults and might improve quadriceps muscle strength compared with control interventions in older adults. In both young and older adults, the effects of NMES on quadriceps muscle mass are still unclear.
The Role of Virtual Physical Therapy in a Post–Pandemic World: Pearls, Pitfalls, Challenges, and Adaptations
Authors: Grundstein M Jake , Fisher Charles , Titmuss Matthew , Cioppa-Mosca JeMe 
Published: June 2021

Abstract

Objective
To keep patients healthy and safe during the pandemic, payers and the federal government temporarily relaxed restrictions, expanded the eligible provider list for providing telehealth services, and developed a reimbursement structure. Physical therapists were uniquely challenged during the pandemic, requiring a reassessment of techniques and strategies in order to best support patients. The purpose of this case report is to describe a musculoskeletal institution’s experience with implementing telehealth physical therapy.

Methods
Previous telehealth experience enabled the infrastructure of a wide-scale adoption across institutions to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, to fill in training gaps for Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) outpatient physical therapists, HSS Rehabilitation developed a robust education and implementation program. This training was influenced by clinician and patient surveys as well as the development of a published HSS Rehabilitation telehealth guide. Prior to performing telehealth physical therapist visits, clinicians were required to complete all training material to ensure comfortability and confidence.

Results
The adoption of telehealth among clinicians was born out of necessaity; however, the speed with which HSS Rehabilitation pivoted was critical to avoid lapses in care. In a 4-week period after the New York City shelter in-place orders, 173 therapists were trained and performing virtual visits. HSS Rehabilitation determined telehealth physical therapy had quicker access to care, similar patient satisifaction, and increased geographical outreach compared with in-person care.

Conclusion
The transition to telehealth physical therapy included a multi-step process that provided clinician training, established protocols and guidelines, and obtained a better understanding of the patient experience. Telehealth physical therapy has shown early benefits such as improving patient access to care and better continuity of care for traveling patients. Even after the current public health emergency, there is a place for high-value telehealth physical therapy in caring for patients with musculoskeletal conditions.
Are schools drivers of COVID-19 infections—an analysis of outbreaks in Colorado, USA in 2020
Authors: Lakha F , King A , Swinkels K , Lee A C K 
Published: June 2021

Abstract

Background
The impact of school closures/reopening on transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in the wider community remains contested.

Methods
Outbreak data from Colorado, USA (2020), alongside data on implemented public health measures were analyzed.

Results
There were three waves (n = 3169 outbreaks; 61 650 individuals). The first was led by healthcare settings, the second leisure/entertainment and the third workplaces followed by other settings where the trajectory was equally distributed amongst essential workplaces, non-essential workplaces, schools and non-essential healthcare.
Non-acute healthcare, essential and non-essential workplace experienced more outbreaks compared to education, entertainment, large-group-living and social gatherings.
Schools experienced 11% of identified outbreaks, yet involved just 4% of total cases. Conversely, adult-education outbreaks (2%) had disproportionately more cases (9%).

Conclusion
Our findings suggest schools were not the key driver of the latest wave in infections. School re-opening coinciding with returning to work may have accounted for the parallel rise in outbreaks in those settings suggesting contact-points outside school being more likely to seed in-school outbreaks than contact points within school as the wave of outbreaks in all other settings occurred either prior to or simultaneously with the schools wave.
School re-opening is a priority but requires mitigation measures to do so safely including staggering opening of different settings whilst maintaining low levels of community transmission.
The occurrence, severity degree, and associated risk factors of dental fluorosis among the 12-year-old schoolchildren in Jilin, China
Authors: Liu Jin-Zhong , Bao Rui , Chen Chong , Wang Rui 
Published: June 2021

Abstract
This study aims to describe the occurrence, severity degree, and correlated risk factors of dental fluorosis among the 12-year-old schoolchildren of Jilin, China.
We conducted a cross-sectional, observational, and descriptive study among 960 12-year-old schoolchildren in Jilin. The Dean index was utilized to evaluate the severity degree of dental fluorosis. A questionnaire was sent to the guardians of children. Community fluorosis index was measured to estimate the importance of enamel fluorosis for the whole population's public health. The logistic regression analysis was also utilized to identify the correlation between fluorotic teeth and the independent variables.
Nine hundred sixty children were assessed. Among them, 480 (50%) were female. 30.5% of subjects had dental fluorosis, 7.19% had very mild dental fluorosis, 10.73% experienced mild dental fluorosis, 9.58% suffered moderate dental fluorosis, and 3.02% encountered severe dental fluorosis. The overall community fluorosis index was 0.73. The results of logistic regression showed that schoolchildren who brushed teeth more frequently (OR: 2.012, 95% CI 1.767–2.342), deficiency of parental supervision (OR: 4.219, 95% CI 3.887–4.573), and lived in rural areas (OR: 2.776, 95% CI 2.163–3.489) were more correlated with enamel fluorosis. Moreover, schoolchildren whose mothers or fathers were of high education level (OR: 0.336, 95% CI 0.217–0.413 and 0.346, 95% CI 0.113–0.512) and only child (OR: 0.378, 95% CI 0.213–0.415) were protective factors for dental fluorosis.
In the Jilin province of China, the risk indicators for dental fluorosis include rural areas, more frequency of brushing, low educational background of parents, and deficiency of parental supervision.