bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A decision analysis comparing 3 active surveillance protocols for the treatment of patients with low‐risk prostate cancer
Authors: White Craig , Nimeh Tony , Gazelle G. Scott , Weinstein Milton C. , Loughlin Kevin R. 
Published: December 2018

AbstractBackgroundActive surveillance (AS) is a viable management option for approximately 50% of men who are newly diagnosed with prostate cancer. To the authors’ knowledge, no direct comparisons between the different variants of AS protocols have been conducted to date. The authors developed a microsimulation decision model to evaluate which of 3 alternative AS protocols is optimal for men with low‐risk prostate cancer, and compared each of these with immediate treatment.MethodsMen who were diagnosed with low‐risk prostate cancer at age 65 years were modeled as having been treated with either immediate therapy or via each of 3 AS protocols. Modeled AS protocols represent those in the literature; a modified AS protocol was included in a sensitivity analysis. Immediate therapy included radical prostatectomy, external‐beam radiotherapy, or brachytherapy. Outcome measures were quality‐adjusted life‐years (QALYs) and costs. Cost‐effectiveness analysis and deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed.ResultsImmediate therapy produced fewer QALYs than all variants of AS. Of the AS protocols evaluated, biennial biopsy was found to be the only efficient option, with an incremental cost‐effectiveness ratio of $3490 per QALY compared with immediate therapy. It delayed the need for curative therapy by a mean of 56 months, and was found to be preferred in >86.9% of cases in probabilistic sensitivity analysis. A modified version of low‐intensity AS dominated all other options.ConclusionsFor a 65‐year‐old man with low‐risk prostate cancer, AS with biennial biopsy appears to be highly cost‐effective compared with common alternatives. An AS protocol using triennial biopsy was found to dominate all other strategies and should be considered for men who are comfortable with a longer period between biopsies. The optimal strategy depends on a patient’s tolerance for periodic biopsies and comfort with delaying radical treatment. Physicians should incorporate these patient preferences into decision making.
The who, when, and why of primary adrenal malignancies: Insights into the epidemiology of a rare clinical entity
Authors: Chandrasekar Thenappan , Goldberg Hanan , Klaassen Zachary , Wallis Christopher J. D. , Woon Dixon T. S. , Herrera‐Caceres Jaime O. , Kulkarni Girish S. , Fleshner Neil E. 
Published: December 2018

BackgroundPrimary malignancies of the adrenal glands are rare. Epidemiologic assessment of primary adrenal malignancies is lacking and has been limited to case reports and series. Population‐level data can provide a better understanding of the incidence, distribution, and prognostic factors associated with these rare malignancies.MethodsThe Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database (1973‐2013) was queried for all patients who were diagnosed with primary adrenal malignancies, categorized in 5 histologic groups: adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC), pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma (PH), neuroblastoma (NE), non‐Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), and sarcoma (SA). Age‐adjusted incidence, distribution trends, and cancer‐specific survival (CSS) for each group were analyzed.ResultsIn total, 4695 patients with primary adrenal malignancies were identified, including 2057 with ACC, 512 with PH, 1863 with NE, 202 with NHL, and 61 with SA. The age‐adjusted incidence of all 5 histologic subtypes was rising. Age at presentation differed substantially by histologic group: NE was the most prevalent during the first decade of life, whereas ACC predominated after age 30 years, and NHL outnumbered PH after age 70 years. Patient‐specific factors were not associated with advanced disease at the time of presentation. The 5‐year CSS rate for each histologic subtype was 38% for ACC, 69% for PH, 64% for NE, 38% for NHL, and 42% for SA. Survival outcomes for patients with ACC, NHL, PH and SA remained unchanged over the 40‐year study period. Multimodal therapy was associated with higher CSS in patients with NE.ConclusionsThis first population‐level analysis of all primary adrenal malignancies provides important initial data regarding presentation and clinical outcomes. Notably, except for patients with NE, the survival of patients with these rare cancers has not improved over the past 40 years.
Transcriptomics reveals complex kinetics of dorsal–ventral patterning gene expression in the mandibular arch
Authors: Sharma Praveer P. , MacLean Adam L. , Meinecke Lina , Clouthier David E. , Nie Qing , Schilling Thomas F. 
Published: December 2018

SummaryThe mandibular or first pharyngeal arch forms the upper and lower jaws in all gnathostomes. A gene regulatory network that defines ventral, intermediate, and dorsal domains along the dorsal–ventral (D–V) axis of the arch has emerged from studies in zebrafish and mice, but the temporal dynamics of this process remain unclear. To define cell fate trajectories in the arches we have performed quantitative gene expression analyses of D–V patterning genes in pharyngeal arch primordia in zebrafish and mice. Using NanoString technology to measure transcript numbers per cell directly we show that, in many cases, genes expressed in similar D–V domains and induced by similar signals vary dramatically in their temporal profiles. This suggests that cellular responses to D‐V patterning signals are likely shaped by the baseline kinetics of target gene expression. Furthermore, similarities in the temporal dynamics of genes that occupy distinct pathways suggest novel shared modes of regulation. Incorporating these gene expression kinetics into our computational models for the mandibular arch improves the accuracy of patterning, and facilitates temporal comparisons between species. These data suggest that the magnitude and timing of target gene expression help diversify responses to patterning signals during craniofacial development.
Do replicates of independent guppy lineages evolve similarly in a predator‐free laboratory environment?
Authors: Gotanda Kiyoko M. , Pack Amy , LeBlond Caroline , Hendry Andrew P. 
Published: December 2018

AbstractThe Trinidadian guppy is emblematic of parallel and convergent evolution, with repeated demonstrations that predation regime is a driver of adaptive trait evolution. A classic and foundational experiment in this system was conducted by John Endler 40 years ago, where male guppies placed into low‐predation environments in the laboratory evolved increased color in a few generations. However, Endler's experiment did not employ the now typical design for a parallel/convergent evolution study, which would employ replicates of different ancestral lineages. We therefore implemented an experiment that seeded replicate mesocosms with small founding populations of guppies originating from high‐predation populations of two very different lineages. The different mesocosms were maintained identically, and male guppy color was quantified every four months. After one year, we tested whether male color had increased, whether replicates within a lineage had parallel phenotypic trajectories, and whether the different lineages converged on a common phenotype. Results showed that male guppy color generally increased through time, primarily due to changes in melanic color, whereas the other colors showed inconsistent and highly variable trajectories. Most of the nonparallelism in phenotypic trajectories was among mesocosms containing different lineages. In addition to this mixture of parallelism and nonparallelism, convergence was not evident in that the variance in color among the mesocosms actually increased through time. We suggest that our results reflect the potential importance of high variation in female preference and stochastic processes such as drift and founder effects, both of which could be important in nature.
When lack of control enhances closeness to others: The case of unemployment and economic threat
Authors: Bukowski Marcin , de Lemus Soledad , Rodríguez‐Bailón Rosa , Willis Guillermo B. , Alburquerque Abraham 
Published: December 2018

AbstractWhen personal control is threatened, people often turn to their own group and show negativity towards others. In three studies, we tested an alternative prediction that the salient lack of personal control (vs. control) experienced in the context of unemployment can lead to connectedness and more positive perception of similar others (e.g., members of groups affected by unemployment or the economic crisis). In two European countries, we found experimental (Study 1: Poland) and correlational (Study 2: Spain) evidence that a lowered sense of control of unemployed people was related to more favorable intergroup evaluations. Furthermore, when lack of control related to unemployment threat was experimentally induced, participants perceived a Greek outgroup more positively, and this effect was mediated by identification with and similarity to this group (Study 3). We discuss the role of the shared experience of collective uncontrollability in promoting positive intergroup relations.
Dual‐energy CT iodine quantification for characterizing focal thyroid lesions
Authors: Lee Do Hyung , Lee Young Hen , Seo Hyung Suk , Lee Ki Yeol , Suh Sang‐il , Ryoo Inseon , You Sung‐Hye , Kim Byungjun , Yang Kyung‐Sook 
Published: December 2018

AbstractBackgroundTo determine the usefulness of dual‐energy CT (DECT) iodine quantification to classify the focal thyroid lesions.MethodsWe retrospectively enrolled a total of 76 cytopathologically confirmed focal thyroid lesions (mean size: 1.9 cm). After drawing a region of interest on the DECT‐derived iodine maps, the obtained iodine concentration values of thyroid nodules (IC_N) and normalized IC_N were compared between 3 groups: papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), benign nodule, and cyst.ResultsFrom all lesions, 46, 17, and 13 were assigned to the PTC, benign nodule, and cyst groups. IC_N was the highest in the benign nodule, lower in the PTC, and the lowest in the cyst (median [interquartile range]: 4.3 [3.13‐5.48], 3.15 [2.29‐4.01], 0.60 [0.33‐0.88], all P < .001). Similarly, the normalized IC_N values were all statistically different from each other (P < .05).The multi‐class area under the curves using the optimal cutoff values were 0.931 for IC_N and 0.918, 0.920 for normalized IC, respectively.ConclusionDECT iodine quantification could be helpful to classify the focal thyroid lesions.
Encoding of 3D head direction information in the human brain
Authors: Kim Misun , Maguire Eleanor A. 
Published: December 2018

AbstractHead direction cells are critical for navigation because they convey information about which direction an animal is facing within an environment. To date, most studies on head direction encoding have been conducted on a horizontal two‐dimensional (2D) plane, and little is known about how three‐dimensional (3D) direction information is encoded in the brain despite humans and other animals living in a 3D world. Here, we investigated head direction encoding in the human brain while participants moved within a virtual 3D “spaceship” environment. Movement was not constrained to planes and instead participants could move along all three axes in volumetric space as if in zero gravity. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) multivoxel pattern similarity analysis, we found evidence that the thalamus, particularly the anterior portion, and the subiculum encoded the horizontal component of 3D head direction (azimuth). In contrast, the retrosplenial cortex was significantly more sensitive to the vertical direction (pitch) than to the azimuth. Our results also indicated that vertical direction information in the retrosplenial cortex was significantly correlated with behavioral performance during a direction judgment task. Our findings represent the first evidence showing that the “classic” head direction system that has been identified on a horizontal 2D plane also seems to encode vertical and horizontal heading in 3D space in the human brain.
Monitoring turbidity from above: Deploying small unoccupied aerial vehicles to image in‐stream turbidity
Authors: Ehmann Karyn , Kelleher Christa , Condon Laura E. 
Published: December 2018

AbstractSmall unoccupied aerial systems (sUASs) are increasingly applied to study hydrologic processes and water quality. Here, we evaluate a novel application of sUAS to stream turbidity monitoring, with the goal of extending analyses implemented with satellite remote sensing to enable high resolution, rapid collection of turbidity imagery along smaller waterbodies. To accomplish this, we collected multispectral imagery using two sUAS platforms under a range of environmental conditions along a local creek in Syracuse, NY. In addition, we collected in situ turbidity observations immediately after each flight along several transects along the creek, as well as within a clear plume created by a natural spring entering the main channel of the creek. The in situ turbidity values were compared with the mean and standard deviation of several single‐band and multiband indices extracted along similar transects from the sUAS flights. On the basis of data collected across several flights, we found optical metrics obtained from multispectral imagery correlated well with in situ turbidity measurements. Though many optical metrics yielded strong relationships considering only values within the main channel, values associated with the red band were strongly related to turbidity estimates from the main channel as well as lower turbidity values observed in the spring plume. Although there are still limitations of this approach associated with variable field conditions, results from this proof of concept analysis show that sUASs offer a promising avenue for cost‐effective turbidity monitoring.
Deza graphs with parameters and
Authors: Goryainov Sergey , Haemers Willem H. , Kabanov Vladislav V. , Shalaginov Leonid 
Published: December 2018

AbstractA Deza graph with parameters is a ‐regular graph with vertices, in which any two vertices have or () common neighbours. A Deza graph is strictly Deza if it has diameter , and is not strongly regular. In an earlier paper, the two last authors et al characterised the strictly Deza graphs with and , where is the number of vertices with common neighbours with a given vertex. Here, we start with a characterisation of Deza graphs (not necessarily strictly Deza graphs) with parameters . Then, we deal with the case and , and thus complete the characterisation of Deza graphs with . It follows that all Deza graphs with , and can be made from special strongly regular graphs, and in fact are strictly Deza except for . We present several examples of such strongly regular graphs. A divisible design graph (DDG) is a special Deza graph, and a Deza graph with is a DDG. The present characterisation reveals an error in a paper on DDGs by the second author et al. We discuss the cause and the consequences of this mistake and give the required errata.
Isolation of the Hg(II)‐volatilizing Bacillus sp. strain DC‐B2 and its potential to remediate Hg(II)‐contaminated soils
Authors: Chen Jinquan , Dong Jia , Shen Shili , Mei Jian , Chang Junjun 
Published: December 2018

AbstractBACKGROUNDMercury (Hg) contamination is a major global environmental problem, and its remediation using environmentally friendly biotechnologies has attracted increasing attention. In this study, an Hg(II)‐resistant bacterial strain, Bacillus sp. DC‐B2, was isolated from a metal‐contaminated site, and its ability to remediate five types of Hg‐contaminated soils was investigated.RESULTSThe isolate DC‐B2 showed strong resistance to multiple metals and volatilized 91.6% of the Hg(II) in a culture with an initial Hg(II) concentration of 10 mg L−1 within 8 h. Microcosm experiments showed that the addition of DC‐B2 culture improved Hg(II) removal by 11.7–17.2% from four artificially Hg(II)‐spiked soil samples with initial Hg contents of approximately 100 mg kg−1 after incubating for 30 days under flooded conditions compared to the control treatment. For the field‐contaminated farmland soil containing 2.50 mg Hg kg−1, an Hg(II) elimination rate of 82.1% was achieved within 30 days with the DC‐B2 inoculation, relative to the 34.1% elimination rate observed for the uninoculated control. The amendment of peptone broth slightly inhibited Hg removal (2.2–8.7%). The remediation effectiveness was verified by observations of longer root and shoot lengths of lettuce plants grown in treated soils compared to those grown in the control soil.CONCLUSIONThe isolate Bacillus sp. DC‐B2 shows great potential to be developed as a bioagent for effective bioremediation of Hg‐contaminated soils. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry
Effect of Psyllium Fiber Supplementation on Diarrhea Incidence in Enteral Tube‐Fed Patients: A Prospective, Randomized, and Controlled Trial
Authors: Lertpipopmetha Korn , Kongkamol Chanon , Sripongpun Pimsiri 
Published: December 2018

AbstractBackgroundDiarrhea in enteral tube‐fed patients is not uncommon and can lead to unfavorable outcomes. Fiber in enteral nutrition (EN) formula might play a role in postfeeding diarrhea. Theoretically, soluble fiber is beneficial for both prevention and treatment of postfeeding diarrhea, but different types of soluble fiber may not provide the same effect. This study aims to determine whether supplementation with psyllium in standard EN reduces the incidence of diarrhea in tube‐fed patients.MethodsWe conducted a prospective, randomized, double‐blind, controlled study in general medical wards patients who were expected to receive EN for ≥5 days. Exclusion criteria were hemodynamic instability, known significant gastrointestinal problems, and recent pancreatitis. Eligible patients were randomized to receive either Mucilin SF (15.2 g/L)‐added Blendera (psyllium‐added formula: Psyllium group [PG]) or Blendera (fiber‐free formula: Control group [CG]). All patients were given EN for 10 days or until discharge/oral intake/death. Bowel movements (BMs) were monitored using King's Stool Chart.ResultsEighty‐three patients were enrolled, 42 in the PG and 41 in the CG. Baseline characteristics were similar. The proportion of patients with ≥1 day of diarrhea (King's stool score ≥15) was comparable (42.9% vs 31.7%; P = 0.41, in PG and CG, respectively). There were no significant differences in the frequency of daily BMs and the median diarrhea score between PG and CG (3 vs 2, P = 0.06 and 3.8 vs 2.4, P = 0.42, respectively).ConclusionSupplementation with psyllium showed no beneficial effect on reducing incidence of diarrhea in general medical patients receiving EN.This study was registered on Thai Clinical Trials Registry (http://www.clinicaltrials.in.th: TCTR identification number TCTR20170821004).
Enhancing the Stability of Hydrogels by Doubling the Schiff Base Linkages
Authors: Ding Xiaoya , Li Gao , Xiao Chunsheng , Chen Xuesi 
Published: December 2018

AbstractSchiff base bonds formed by primary amines and aldehydes are attractive for the construction of self‐healing and injectable hydrogels. However, biomedical applications of the Schiff base–based (SB) hydrogels are usually limited by their inherent low stability due to the rapid exchange dynamic of the Schiff base bond under physiological condition. Herein, a general method to improve the stability of SB hydrogels by simply doubling the Schiff base linkages at the cross‐linking points is proposed. The hydrogels formed by single Schiff base linkage (hydrogel I) disorganize into nano‐aggregates due to the rapid exchange dynamic of Schiff base bond, while the hydrogels formed by double Schiff base linkage (hydrogel II) maintain the gel network for longer times due to the improved stability of the double Schiff base linkage at cross‐linking points. Moreover, the hydrogel II displays excellent self‐healing and injectable properties due to the rapid dynamic nature of Schiff base bonds.
Silver Metallic Cyclodextrin‐Core Star mPEG
Authors: Liang Jianghu , Liu Yuyang , Zhang Xiaoyu 
Published: December 2018

AbstractA novel silver metallic β‐cyclodextrin (β‐CD)‐core star methoxypolyethylene glycol (mPEG) (SM‐CD‐SPEG) is presented. For this, a well‐defined water‐soluble β‐CD‐core star mPEG with aldehyde groups (CD‐star(ald)PEG, III) is first designed and synthesized via the copper‐catalyzed azide–alkyne click reaction. Then, silver nanoparticles are formed within III through the oxidation–reduction reaction between the aldehyde groups and silver ions. The oxidation–reduction reaction is characterized by means of 1H NMR spectra. And the preparation conditions of SM‐CD‐SPEG are optimized. The resulting SM‐CD‐SPEG aqueous solutions exhibit good stability and a unimolecular micelle morphology. Significantly, it is able to obtain solid SM‐CD‐SPEG samples with molecular water‐solubility. This is convenient for storage and further application of SM‐CD‐SPEG. The SM‐CD‐SPEG samples also show good catalytic performance toward the reduction reaction of methylene blue (MB) by sodium borohydride (NaBH4).
Regularizing properties of a class of matrices including the optimal and the superoptimal preconditioners
Authors: Cipolla Stefano , Di Fiore Carmine , Durastante Fabio , Zellini Paolo 
Published: December 2018

SummaryIn this work, given a positive definite matrix A, we introduce a class of matrices related to A, which is obtained by suitably combining projections of its powers onto algebras of matrices simultaneously diagonalized by a unitary transform. After a detailed theoretical study of some spectral properties of the matrices of this class, which suggests their use as regularizing preconditioners, we prove that such matrices can be cheaply computed when the matrix A has a Toeplitz structure. We provide numerical evidence of the advantages coming from the employment of the proposed preconditioners when used in regularizing procedures.
Multiobjective optimization with an adaptive weight determination scheme using the concept of hyperplane
Authors: Ryu Namhee , Min Seungjae 
Published: December 2018

SummaryFinding an optimum design that satisfies all performances in a design problem is very challenging. To overcome this problem, multiobjective optimization methods have been researched to obtain Pareto optimum solutions. Among the different methods, the weighted sum method is widely used for its convenience. However, since the different weights do not always guarantee evenly distributed solutions on the Pareto front, the weights need to be determined systematically. Therefore, this paper presents a multiobjective optimization using a new adaptive weight determination scheme. Solutions on the Pareto front are gradually found with different weights, and the values of these weights are adaptively determined by using information from the previously obtained solutions' positions. For an n‐objective problem, a hyperplane is constructed in n ‐dimensional space, and new weights are calculated to find the next solutions. To confirm the effectiveness of the proposed method, benchmarking problems that have different types of Pareto front are tested, and a topology optimization problem is performed as an engineering problem. A hypervolume indicator is used to quantitatively evaluate the proposed method, and it is confirmed that optimized solutions that are evenly distributed on the Pareto front can be obtained by using the proposed method.