bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Right ventricular systolic dysfunction but not dilatation correlates with prognostically significant reductions in exercise capacity in repaired Tetralogy of Fallot
Authors: Rashid Imran , Mahmood Adil , Ismail Tevfik F , O’Meagher Shamus , Kutty Shelby , Celermajer David , Puranik Rajesh 
Published: September 2019

Abstract

Aims
The optimal timing for pulmonary valve replacement in asymptomatic patients with repaired Tetralogy of Fallot (rTOF) and pulmonary regurgitation remains uncertain but is often guided by increases in right ventricular (RV) end-diastolic volume. As cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) performance is a strong prognostic indicator, we assessed which cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) parameters correlate with reductions in exercise capacity to potentially improve identification of high-risk patients.

Methods and results
In all, 163 patients with rTOF (mean age 24.5 ± 10.2 years) who had previously undergone CMR and standardized CPET protocols were included. The indexed right and left ventricular end-diastolic volumes (RVEDVi, LVEDVi), right and left ventricular ejection fractions (RVEF, LVEF), indexed RV stroke volume (RVSVi), and pulmonary regurgitant fraction (PRF) were quantified by CMR and correlated with CPET-determined peak oxygen consumption (VO2) or peak work. On univariable analysis, there was no significant correlation between RVEDVi and PRF with peak VO2 or peak work (% Jones-predicted). In contrast, RVEF and RVSVi had significant correlations with both peak VO2 and peak work that remained significant on multivariable analysis. For a previously established prognostic peak VO2 threshold of &lt;27 mL/kg/min, receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis demonstrated a Harrell’s c of 0.70 for RVEF (95% confidence interval 0.61–0.79) with a sensitivity of 88% for RVEF &lt;40%.

Conclusion
In rTOF, CMR indices of RV systolic function are better predictors of CPET performance than RV size. An RVEF &lt;40% may be useful to identify prognostically significant reductions in exercise capacity in patients with varying degrees of RV dilatation.
Are Policymakers Ambiguity Averse?*
Authors: Berger Loïc , Bosetti Valentina 
Published: September 2019

Abstract
We investigate the ambiguity preferences of a unique sample of real-life policymakers at the Paris UN climate conference (COP21). We find that policymakers are generally ambiguity averse. Using a simple design, we are moreover able to show that these preferences are not necessarily due to an irrational behavior, but rather to intrinsic preferences over unknown probabilities. Exploring the heterogeneity within our sample, we also show that the country of origin and the degree of quantitative sophistication affect policymakers’ attitudes towards compound risk, but not towards ambiguity. Robustness results are obtained in a lab experiment with a sample of university students.
Deep septal deployment of a thin, lumenless pacing lead: a translational cadaver simulation study
Authors: Jastrzębski Marek , Moskal Paweł , Hołda Mateusz K , Strona Marcin , Bednarek Agnieszka , Kiełbasa Grzegorz , Czarnecka Danuta 
Published: September 2019

Abstract

Aims
The recently introduced technique of direct transseptal pacing of the left bundle branch is poorly characterized with many questions with regard to the optimal implantation strategy and safety concerns largely left unanswered. We developed a cadaver model for deep septal lead deployment in order to investigate the depth of penetration in relation to lead behaviour, lead tip position, and the number of rotations.

Methods and results
Five fresh human hearts and five lumenless, 4.1-Fr pacing leads were used for deep septal deployment simulations. The leads were positioned with the use of a dedicated delivery sheath and screwed into the interventricular septum at several sites progressively more distal from the atrioventricular ring with a predetermined number of lead rotations. During each lead deployment, the depth of tip penetration was measured and the lead behaviour was noted. Four distinct lead behaviours were observed: (i) helix only penetration, no matter how many rotations were performed, due to the ‘endocardial entanglement effect’ (43.1% cases) or (ii) ‘endocardial barrier effect’ (19.6% cases), (iii) shallow/moderate penetration, with ensuing ‘drill effect’ when more rotations were added (9.8% cases), and (iv) deep progressive penetration with each additional rotation, occurring when the ‘screwdriver effect’ was present (27.4% cases, including three septal perforations). These different lead behaviours seemed to be determined by the lead position—mainly the strength of the initial endocardial layer—and the number of fully transmitted rotations.

Conclusion
New insights into deep septal lead deployment technique were gained with regard to safe and successful implantation.
Comparison of the plant growth-promotion performance of a consortium of Bacilli inoculated as endospores or as vegetative cells
Authors: Hashmi Isha , Paul Christophe , Al-Dourobi Andrej , Sandoz Frederic , Deschamps Priscilla , Junier Thomas , Junier Pilar , Bindschedler Saskia 
Published: September 2019

ABSTRACT
The effect of three plant growth-promoting Bacillus strains inoculated either alone or as a consortium was tested on oat (Avena sativa) growth. The bioinoculants were applied as vegetative cells or endospores at low cell densities on the seeds and their effect was tested in sterile in vitro conditions, pot experiments, and a field trial. The in vitro seed germination assay showed that both individual bacterial inocula and bacterial consortia had positive effects on seed germination. Greenhouse pot experiments with sterile and non-sterile soil showed that consortia increased the total dry biomass of oat plants as compared to single strain inoculation and uninoculated controls. However, the positive impact on plant growth was less prominent when the bioinoculated strains had to compete with native soil microbes. Finally, the field experiment demonstrated that the consortium of vegetative cells was more efficient in promoting oat growth than the endospore consortium and the uninoculated control. Moreover, both consortia successfully colonized the roots and the rhizosphere of oat plants, without modifying the overall structure of the autochthonous soil microbial communities.
The Draft Genome of Kochia scoparia and the Mechanism of Glyphosate Resistance via Transposon-Mediated EPSPS Tandem Gene Duplication
Authors: Patterson Eric L , Saski Christopher A , Sloan Daniel B , Tranel Patrick J , Westra Philip , Gaines Todd A 
Published: September 2019

AbstractIncreased copy number of the 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS) gene confers resistance to glyphosate, the world’s most-used herbicide. There are typically three to eight EPSPS copies arranged in tandem in glyphosate-resistant populations of the weed kochia (Kochia scoparia). Here, we report a draft genome assembly from a glyphosate-susceptible kochia individual. Additionally, we assembled the EPSPS locus from a glyphosate-resistant kochia plant by sequencing select bacterial artificial chromosomes from a kochia bacterial artificial chromosome library. Comparing the resistant and susceptible EPSPS locus allowed us to reconstruct the history of duplication in the structurally complex EPSPS locus and uncover the genes that are coduplicated with EPSPS, several of which have a corresponding change in transcription. The comparison between the susceptible and resistant assemblies revealed two dominant repeat types. Additionally, we discovered a mobile genetic element with a FHY3/FAR1-like gene predicted in its sequence that is associated with the duplicated EPSPS gene copies in the resistant line. We present a hypothetical model based on unequal crossing over that implicates this mobile element as responsible for the origin of the EPSPS gene duplication event and the evolution of herbicide resistance in this system. These findings add to our understanding of stress resistance evolution and provide an example of rapid resistance evolution to high levels of environmental stress.
The Race to Forget? Bi-racial Descendants of the First Rhineland Occupation in 1950s West German Debates about the Children of African American GIs*
Authors: Roos Julia 
Published: September 2019

Abstract
After the First World War, the German children of colonial French soldiers stationed in the Rhineland became a focal point of nationalist anxieties over ‘racial pollution’. In 1937, the Nazis subjected hundreds of biracial Rhenish children to compulsory sterilization. After 1945, colonial French soldiers and African American GIs participating in the occupation of West Germany left behind thousands of out-of-wedlock children. In striking contrast to the open vilification of the first (1920s) generation of biracial occupation children, post-1945 commentators emphasized the need for the racial integration of the children of black GIs. Government agencies implemented new programmes protecting the post-1945 cohort against racial discrimination, yet refused restitution to biracial Rhenish Germans sterilized by the Nazis. The contrasts between the experiences of the two generations of German descendants of occupation soldiers of colour underline the complicated ways in which postwar ruptures in racial discourse coexisted with certain long-term continuities in antiblack racism, complicating historians’ claims of ‘Americanization’ of post-1945 German racial attitudes.
Portrait of a Caregiver: Ethnodrama Development and Its Influence on Caregiver Well-Being
Authors: Eaton Jacqueline 
Published: September 2019

Abstract

Background and Objectives
The majority of long-term care needs are placed upon family members who often receive minimal support. In this study, we collaborate with family caregivers to create an ethnodrama about their experience and assess outcomes of participation, including caregiver well-being.

Methods
Participants met over 4 months to discuss their roles as informal caregivers. Discussions were analyzed in a two-phase process and themes were developed into a script. Member checks included script review and revisions, culminating in viewing a professional performance of the play followed by a post-performance discussion and reflection. Data were gathered at six timepoints to assess caregiver well-being and longitudinal analysis was used to assess change during the course of the intervention.

Results
Twenty-two caregivers completed intervention activities. Participant reactions to the process evolved overtime, from an initial hesitance about what individuals had to offer leading to an acknowledgement of feeling heard and a desire to help others. Caregivers had high levels of burden and positive perceptions towards caregiving. Those with high levels of self-rated health had the lowest levels of burden and the most positive perceptions of caregiving.

Discussion and Implications
Developing an ethnodrama in partnership with caregivers is a unique and feasible method of caregiver support, mentoring, reflexivity, and meaning making. Promoting caregiver health early in the caregiving trajectory has the potential of reducing burden and elevating positivity towards caregiving.
Don’t abandon RCTs in IVF. We don’t even understand them
Authors: Wilkinson J , Brison D R , Duffy J M N , Farquhar C M , Lensen S , Mastenbroek S , van Wely M , Vail A 
Published: September 2019

Abstract
The conclusion of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority that ‘add-on’ therapies in IVF are not supported by high-quality evidence has prompted new questions regarding the role of the randomized controlled trial (RCT) in evaluating infertility treatments. Critics argue that trials are cumbersome tools that provide irrelevant answers. Instead, they argue that greater emphasis should be placed on large observational databases, which can be analysed using powerful algorithms to determine which treatments work and for whom. Although the validity of these arguments rests upon the sciences of statistics and epidemiology, the discussion to date has largely been conducted without reference to these fields. We aim to remedy this omission, by evaluating the arguments against RCTs in IVF from a primarily methodological perspective. We suggest that, while criticism of the status quo is warranted, a retreat from RCTs is more likely to make things worse for patients and clinicians.
Contrasting the variability in spatial distribution of two juvenile flatfishes in relation to thermal stanzas in the eastern Bering Sea
Authors: Yeung Cynthia , Cooper Daniel W 
Published: September 2019

Abstract
Groundfish species in the Bering Sea are undergoing pronounced changes in spatial distribution and abundance due to warming ocean temperatures. The main drivers of interannual variability in this ecosystem are the alternating warm and cold thermal stanzas. Yellowfin sole (Limanda aspera; YFS) and northern rock sole (Lepidopsetta polyxystra; NRS) are commercially-valuable flatfishes in the Bering Sea and are among the most dominant groundfish species there in numbers and biomass. We examined the variability in the spatial distribution and abundance of juvenile NRS and YFS in relation to the ice and temperature conditions associated with warm-cold thermal shifts from 1982 to 2017. The goal was to assess the implications of the fluctuating thermal environment for Bering Sea flatfish production. We found ice cover and bottom temperature indices in the preceding 1 to 3 years to be the best predictors of NRS juvenile distribution. In contrast, these indices were not significantly correlated with YFS juvenile distribution, which could be an artifact of their relatively low availability to sampling. A warm stanza, as the Bering Sea is currently in, is expected to favor high numbers of NRS juveniles and the northward expansion of their distribution.
Long-term continuous flow mechanical biventricular support: 9 years and counting
Authors: Gude Einar , Hoel Tom N , Sørensen Gro , Broch Kaspar , Meyer Anders , Fiane Arnt E 
Published: September 2019

Abstract
We report 2 continuous flow HeartWareTM left ventricular assist devices successfully used in a patient with advanced heart failure of giant cell myocarditis origin in a biventricular configuration. Despite technical challenges of adapting a left ventricular assist device engineered for systemic pressure to function as a right ventricular assist device, the addition of dynamic banding on the right ventricular assist device outflow graft allowed successful adaptation of afterload. This patient has now been on biventricular configuration support for 9 years, and remains stable to this day.
Sevoflurane provides better haemodynamic stability than propofol during right ventricular ischaemia–reperfusion
Authors: Haraldsen Pernille , Cunha-Goncalves Doris , Metzsch Carsten , Algotsson Lars , Lindstedt Sandra , Ingemansson Richard 
Published: September 2019

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
To assess whether sevoflurane provides better haemodynamic stability than propofol in acute right ventricular (RV) ischaemia–reperfusion.

METHODS
Open-chest pigs (mean ± standard deviation, 68.8 ± 4.2 kg) anaesthetized with sevoflurane (n = 6) or propofol (n = 6) underwent 60 min of RV free wall ischaemia and 150 min of reperfusion. Haemodynamic parameters and blood flow in the 3 major coronary arteries were continuously monitored. Biomarkers of cardiac ischaemia were analysed.

RESULTS
Mean arterial pressure and stroke volume decreased, whereas pulmonary vascular resistance increased equally in both groups. Heart rate increased 7.5% with propofol (P &lt; 0.05) and 17% with sevoflurane (P &lt; 0.05). At reperfusion, left atrial pressure and systemic vascular resistance decreased with sevoflurane. While RV stroke work (mmHg·ml) and cardiac output (l·min−1) decreased in the propofol group (4.2 ± 1.2 to 2.9 ± 1.7 and 2.65 ± 0.44 to 2.28 ± 0.56, respectively, P &lt; 0.05 both), they recovered to baseline levels in the sevoflurane group (4.1 ± 1.5 to 4.0 ± 1.5 and 2.77 ± 0.6 to 2.6 ± 0.5, respectively, P &gt; 0.05). Circumflex and left anterior descending coronary artery blood flow decreased in both groups. Right coronary artery blood flow (ml·min−1) decreased with propofol (38 ± 9 to 28 ± 9, P &lt; 0.05), but not with sevoflurane (28 ± 11 to 28 ± 17, P &gt; 0.05). Biomarkers of cardiac ischaemia increased in both groups.

CONCLUSIONS
Compared to propofol, sevoflurane-anaesthetized pigs showed higher RV stroke work, cardiac output and right coronary artery blood flow during reperfusion. These findings warrant a clinical trial of sevoflurane in RV ischaemia in humans.
Big data, observational research and P-value: a recipe for false-positive findings? A study of simulated and real prospective cohorts
Authors: Veronesi Giovanni , Grassi Guido , Savelli Giordano , Quatto Piero , Zambon Antonella 
Published: September 2019

Abstract

Background
An increasing number of observational studies combine large sample sizes with low participation rates, which could lead to standard inference failing to control the false-discovery rate. We investigated if the ‘empirical calibration of P-value’ method (EPCV), reliant on negative controls, can preserve type I error in the context of survival analysis.

Methods
We used simulated cohort studies with 50% participation rate and two different selection bias mechanisms, and a real-life application on predictors of cancer mortality using data from four population-based cohorts in Northern Italy (n = 6976 men and women aged 25–74 years at baseline and 17 years of median follow-up).

Results
Type I error for the standard Cox model was above the 5% nominal level in 15 out of 16 simulated settings; for n = 10 000, the chances of a null association with hazard ratio = 1.05 having a P-value &lt; 0.05 were 42.5%. Conversely, EPCV with 10 negative controls preserved the 5% nominal level in all the simulation settings, reducing bias in the point estimate by 80–90% when its main assumption was verified. In the real case, 15 out of 21 (71%) blood markers with no association with cancer mortality according to literature had a P-value &lt; 0.05 in age- and gender-adjusted Cox models. After calibration, only 1 (4.8%) remained statistically significant.

Conclusions
In the analyses of large observational studies prone to selection bias, the use of empirical distribution to calibrate P-values can substantially reduce the number of trivial results needing further screening for relevance and external validity.
Personality Factors Differentiating Selective Approach, Selective Avoidance, and the Belief in the Importance of Silencing Others: Further Evidence for Discriminant Validity
Authors: Tsfati Yariv 
Published: September 2019

AbstractRecent research proposed self-report measures tapping three different strategies used by people to place themselves within an ideologically homogeneous information environment: selective approach, selective avoidance, and the belief in the importance of silencing others (BISO). Using online survey data collected in Israel (n = 749), the present investigation explores the discriminant validity of these constructs. Confirmatory factor model comparisons support their empirical differentiation. In addition, it is argued that the constructs are empirically different given the fact that they correlate differently with personality factors. BISO is more strongly and positively associated with authoritarianism. Selective avoidance is more strongly negatively associated with openness to experience. Selective approach was positively associated with empathy, with which selective avoidance was negatively associated.
Antipartyism and Public Opinion toward Presidential Unilateral Actions: The Case of Taiwan in 2017
Authors: Tsai Tsung-han , Yu Ching-hsin 
Published: September 2019

AbstractIn this article, we examine how antipartyism influences the public’s preferences for the tools of presidential power by focusing on the case of Taiwan, which is a president-parliamentary system. We distinguish two types of antipartyism: general antipartyism and reactive antipartyism. The former refers to the general perception of political parties, whereas the latter involves the functions of parties in modern democracy. According to the analysis results, we find that general antipartyism is positively associated with support for the president’s power to unilaterally appoint judges. In contrast, reactive antipartyism leads to less support for executive privilege, unilateral judicial appointments, and the authority to direct agency implementation of policies passed by the legislature.
A novel approach to the Lindelöf hypothesis
Authors: Fokas A S 
Published: September 2019

Abstract
Lindelöf’s hypothesis, one of the most important open problems in the history of mathematics, states that for large $t$, Riemann’s zeta function $\zeta (1/2+it)$ is of order $O(t^{\varepsilon })$ for any $\varepsilon&gt;0$. It is well known that for large $t$, the leading order asymptotics of the Riemann zeta function can be expressed in terms of a transcendental exponential sum. The usual approach to the Lindelöf hypothesis involves the use of ingenious techniques for the estimation of this sum. However, since such estimates cannot yield an asymptotic formula for the above sum, it appears that this strategy cannot lead to the proof of Lindelöf’s hypothesis. Here a completely different approach is introduced. In particular, a novel linear integral equation is derived for $|\zeta (\sigma +it)|^2, \ 0&lt;\sigma &lt;1$ whose asymptotic analysis yields asymptotic results for a certain Riemann zeta-type double exponential sum. This sum has the same structure as the sum describing the leading asymptotics of $|\zeta (\sigma +it)|^2$, namely it involves $m_1^{-\sigma -it}m_2^{-\sigma -it}$, but its summation limits are different than those of the sum corresponding to $|\zeta (\sigma +it)|^2$. The analysis of the above integral equation requires the asymptotic estimation of four different integrals denoted by $I_1,I_2,\tilde{I}_3,\tilde{I}_4$, as well as the derivation of an exact relation between certain double exponential sums. Here the latter relation is derived, and also the rigourous analysis of the first two integrals $I_1$ and $I_2$ is presented. For the remaining two integrals, formal results are only derived that suggest a possible roadmap for the derivation of rigourous asymptotic results of the above double exponential sum, as well as for other sums associated with $|\zeta (\sigma +it)|^2$. Additional developments suggested by the above novel approach are also discussed.
Bergman-Harmonic Functions on Classical Domains
Authors: Xiao Ming 
Published: September 2019

AbstractWe study Bergman-harmonic functions on classical domains from a new point of view in this paper. We first establish a boundary pluriharmonicity result for Bergman-harmonic functions on classical domains: a Bergman-harmonic function $u$ on a classical domain $D$ must be pluriharmonic on germs of complex manifolds in the boundary of $D$ if $u$ has some appropriate boundary regularity. Next we give a new characterization of pluriharmonicity on classical domains which may shed a new light on future study of Bergman-harmonic functions. We also prove characterization results for Bergman-harmonic functions on type I domains.