bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Etiologies, predictors, and economic impact of readmission within 1 month among patients with takotsubo cardiomyopathy
Authors: Shah Mahek , Ram Pradhum , Lo Kevin Bryan U. , Sirinvaravong Natee , Patel Brijesh , Tripathi Byomesh , Patil Shantanu , Figueredo Vincent M. 
Published: May 2018

BackgroundLimited data exist on readmission among patients with takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TC), a commonly reversible cause of heart failure.HypothesisWe sought to identify etiologies and predictors for readmission among TC patients.MethodsWe queried the National Readmissions Database for 2013–2014 to identify patients with primary admission for TC using ICD‐9‐CM code 429.83. Patients readmitted to hospital within 1 month after discharge were further evaluated to identify etiologies, predictors, and resultant economic burden of readmission. Additionally, we analyzed readmission for TC at 6 months.ResultsWe studied 5997 patients admitted with TC, of whom 1.2% experienced in‐hospital mortality. Median age was 67 years, with 91.5% being female. Among survivors, 10.3% were readmitted within 1 month; 25% of the initial 1‐month readmissions occurred within 4 days, 50% within 10 days, and 75% within 20 days from discharge. The most common etiologies for readmission were cardiac (26%), respiratory (16%), and gastrointestinal (11%) causes. Heart failure was the most common cardiac etiology. Significant predictors of increased 1‐month readmission included systemic thromboembolic events, length of stay ≥3 days, and underlying psychoses. Obesity and private insurance predicted lower 1‐month readmission. The annual national cost impact for index admission and 1‐month readmissions was ≈$112 million. Recurrent TC was seen among 1.9% of patients readmitted within 6 months.ConclusionsThough the overall rate of 1‐month readmission following TC is low, associated economic burden from readmission is still significant. Patients are readmitted mostly for noncardiac causes. Readmission for another episode of TC within 6 months was uncommon.
A trust management framework for software‐defined network applications
Authors: Yao Zhen , Yan Zheng 
Published: May 2018

SummaryThe emergence of software‐defined network (SDN) has brought unprecedented innovation to current networks. SDN's two most notable features are decoupling and programmability. Decoupling makes network management centralized in a control plane. Meanwhile, having benefitted from the programmable characteristic of SDN, new functions of networking can be easily realized. However, these features also introduce new security issues to SDN. Through the programming interface provided by SDN, software engineers can easily develop network applications to generate networking policies for SDN's control planes for the purpose of guiding network routing. However, it is hard to guarantee the security and quality of these new applications. Malicious or low‐quality applications could damage a whole network. To solve this problem, we propose a novel trust management framework for SDN applications in this paper. It can evaluate applications' trust values based on their impact on the network performance (such as time delay, packet loss rate, throughput, etc). These trust values further play a decisive role for managing and selecting applications in SDN. We evaluate this framework's performance through a prototype system implemented based on a floodlight controller. The experimental results show the accuracy and effectiveness of our design.
Fluorescence Endomicroscopy Imaging of Mesenchymal Stem Cells in the Rat Lung
Authors: Perez Jessica R. , Ybarra Norma , Chagnon Frederic , Lesur Olivier , Seuntjens Jan , Naqa Issam El 
Published: May 2018

AbstractStem cell therapy has shown great promise for organ repair and regeneration. In the context of lung disease, such as radiation‐induced lung damage (RILD) in cancer radiotherapy, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have shown the ability to reduce damage possibly due to their immunomodulatory properties and other unknown mechanisms. However, once MSCs are transplanted into the body, little is known as to their localization or their mechanisms of action. In this work, we proposed, implemented, and validated a fluorescence endomicroscopy (FE) imaging technique that allows for the real‐time detection and quantification of transplanted pre‐labeled MSCs in vivo and tracking in a rat model. This protocol covers aspects related to MSCs extraction, labeling, FE imaging, and image analysis developed in a RILD rat model but applicable to other biological systems. © 2018 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Retinal blood vessel segmentation for macula detachment surgery monitoring instruments
Authors: Hajabdollahi Mohsen , Karimi Nader , Reza Soroushmehr S.M. , Samavi Shadrokh , Najarian Kayvan 
Published: May 2018

SummaryIn recent years image processing has improved detection and diagnosis in medical application. Image processing applications are now embedded in medical instruments such as MRI and CT. In the case of retinopathy, fast extraction of blood vessels can allow the physician to view injury regions during surgery. Macula detachment surgeries, or computer‐aided intraocular surgeries, require precise and real‐time knowledge of the vasculature during the operation. Use of artificial neural network has produced good results in image processing applications, but its implementation may not be suitable for real‐time applications in small, embedded hardware. Because of error resiliency of the neural network, its structure can be pruned and simplified. In this paper an efficient hardware implementation of neural network for retinal vessel segmentation is proposed. We simplify the neural network structure in such a way that the accuracy of the results is not altered significantly. Simulation results and FPGA implementation show that our proposed network has low complexity and can be applied for segmentation of retinal vessels with acceptable accuracy. This makes the proposed method a good candidate to be implemented in any device such as a binocular indirect ophthalmoscope.
Integrating dynamic spectrum access and device‐to‐device via cloud radio access networks and cognitive radio
Authors: Marotta Marcelo Antonio , Roveda Faganello Leonardo , Kist Maicon , Bondan Lucas , Wickboldt Juliano Araujo , Zambenedetti Granville Lisandro , Rochol Juergen , Bonato Both Cristiano 
Published: May 2018

SummaryDynamic Spectrum Access (DSA) can be integrated with Device‐to‐Device (D2D) communications to enable the exploitation of unused spectrum portions and to address the spectrum scarcity problem. Spectrum management mechanisms integrated into DSA and D2D allow low‐power communications between User Equipments without interfering with licensed primary users. However, these mechanisms tend to be energy and processing intensive, being unfeasible to implement in User Equipments with strict battery and processing limitations. On the other hand, Cloud Radio Access Networks already leverage the virtually unlimited computing capacity of clouds for baseband processing functions. Thus, in this article, we propose the Cognitive Radio Device‐to‐Device (CRD2D) approach aiming to offload spectrum management functionality to the cloud taking advantage of Cloud Radio Access Networks architecture to support the integration of DSA and D2D.
A liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry method for the determination of cocaine and metabolites in blood and in dried blood spots collected from postmortem samples and evaluation of the stability over a 3‐month period
Authors: Moretti Matteo , Visonà Silvia Damiana , Freni Francesca , Tomaciello Ilaria , Vignali Claudia , Groppi Angelo , Tajana Luca , Osculati Antonio Marco Maria , Morini Luca 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThe aims of this study were (1) to identify and quantify cocaine (COC), benzoylecgonine (BE), ecgonine methyl ester (EME), and cocaethylene (CE) in DBS; (2) to compare dried blood spots (DBSs) analytical results with the routine blood analyses; (3) to monitor analytes stability on DBS within a 3‐month period. Eighty‐five μL of blood from postmortem cases were put on a card for DBS analysis and kept in the dark, at room temperature. Samples were extracted through solid‐phase extraction (SPE) cartridges and injected in the liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) system. The analytical procedure is simple, sensitive, and specific. Limits of detection (LODs) and quantification (LOQs) were calculated at 1.0 and 5.0 ng/mL(g) for COC and CE, and at 0.5 and 2 ng/mL for EME and BE, respectively. Validation parameters fulfilled all the acceptance criteria. Fifty‐five postmortem cases were evaluated. Eighteen cases were positive for COC (44–2456 ng/mL) and BE (228–4700 ng/mL), 12 for EME (92–1500 ng/mL), and 11 cases for CE (11–273 ng/mL). Stability was evaluated on 8 cases collected in the period January 2017–January 2018. For each case, 5 DBSs were collected at T0. Four DBSs were analyzed within the 4 following weeks and 1 sample was analyzed after 3 months. The concentrations on DBSs, stored at room temperature, always matched the ones obtained on blood samples kept at −20°C (<20% variation, both at T0 and after 3 months). BE and COC concentrations remained stable after a 3‐month storage, EME concentrations slightly increased after 3 weeks in the 2 analyzed samples, while CE provided a less homogeneous stability depending on the sample.
Comparing the rates of speciation and extinction between phylogenetic trees
Authors: Revell Liam J. 
Published: May 2018

AbstractOver the past decade or so it has become increasingly popular to use reconstructed evolutionary trees to investigate questions about the rates of speciation and extinction. Although the methodology of this field has grown substantially in its sophistication in recent years, here I will take a step back to present a very simple model that is designed to investigate the relatively straightforward question of whether the tempo of diversification (speciation and extinction) differs between two or more phylogenetic trees, without attempting to attribute a causal basis to this difference. It is a likelihood method, and I demonstrate that it generally shows type I error that is close to the nominal level. I also demonstrate that parameter estimates obtained with this approach are largely unbiased. As this method can be used to compare trees of unknown relationship, it will be particularly well‐suited to problems in which a difference in diversification rate between clades is suspected, but in which these clades are not particularly closely related. As diversification methods can easily take into account an incomplete sampling fraction, but missing lineages are assumed to be missing at random, this method is also appropriate for cases in which we have hypothesized a difference in the process of diversification between two or more focal clades, but in which many unsampled groups separate the few of interest. The method of this study is by no means an attempt to replace more sophisticated models in which, for instance, diversification depends on the state of an observed or unobserved discrete or continuous trait. Rather, my intention is to provide a complementary approach for circumstances in which a simpler hypothesis is warranted and of biological interest.
The genetic network of greater sage‐grouse: Range‐wide identification of keystone hubs of connectivity
Authors: Cross Todd B. , Schwartz Michael K. , Naugle David E. , Fedy Brad C. , Row Jeffrey R. , Oyler‐McCance Sara J. 
Published: May 2018

AbstractGenetic networks can characterize complex genetic relationships among groups of individuals, which can be used to rank nodes most important to the overall connectivity of the system. Ranking allows scarce resources to be guided toward nodes integral to connectivity. The greater sage‐grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) is a species of conservation concern that breeds on spatially discrete leks that must remain connected by genetic exchange for population persistence. We genotyped 5,950 individuals from 1,200 greater sage‐grouse leks distributed across the entire species’ geographic range. We found a small‐world network composed of 458 nodes connected by 14,481 edges. This network was composed of hubs—that is, nodes facilitating gene flow across the network—and spokes—that is, nodes where connectivity is served by hubs. It is within these hubs that the greatest genetic diversity was housed. Using indices of network centrality, we identified hub nodes of greatest conservation importance. We also identified keystone nodes with elevated centrality despite low local population size. Hub and keystone nodes were found across the entire species’ contiguous range, although nodes with elevated importance to network‐wide connectivity were found more central: especially in northeastern, central, and southwestern Wyoming and eastern Idaho. Nodes among which genes are most readily exchanged were mostly located in Montana and northern Wyoming, as well as Utah and eastern Nevada. The loss of hub or keystone nodes could lead to the disintegration of the network into smaller, isolated subnetworks. Protecting both hub nodes and keystone nodes will conserve genetic diversity and should maintain network connections to ensure a resilient and viable population over time. Our analysis shows that network models can be used to model gene flow, offering insights into its pattern and process, with application to prioritizing landscapes for conservation.
Shrimp ponds lead to massive loss of soil carbon and greenhouse gas emissions in northeastern Brazilian mangroves
Authors: Kauffman J. Boone , Bernardino Angelo F. , Ferreira Tiago O. , Bolton Nicholas W. , Gomes Luiz Eduardo de O. , Nobrega Gabriel Nuto 
Published: May 2018

AbstractMangroves of the semiarid Caatinga region of northeastern Brazil are being rapidly converted to shrimp pond aquaculture. To determine ecosystem carbon stocks and potential greenhouse gas emissions from this widespread land use, we measured carbon stocks of eight mangrove forests and three shrimp ponds in the Acaraú and Jaguaribe watersheds in Ceará state, Brazil. The shrimp ponds were paired with adjacent intact mangroves to ascertain carbon losses and potential emissions from land conversion. The mean total ecosystem carbon stock of mangroves in this semiarid tropical landscape was 413 ± 94 Mg C/ha. There were highly significant differences in the ecosystem carbon stocks between the two sampled estuaries suggesting caution when extrapolating carbon stock across different estuaries even in the same landscape. Conversion of mangroves to shrimp ponds resulted in losses of 58%–82% of the ecosystem carbon stocks. The mean potential emissions arising from mangrove conversion to shrimp ponds was 1,390 Mg CO2e/ha. Carbon losses were largely from soils which accounted for 81% of the total emission. Losses from soils >100 cm in depth accounted for 33% of the total ecosystem carbon loss. Soil carbon losses from shrimp pond conversion are equivalent to about 182 years of soil carbon accumulation. Losses from mangrove conversion are about 10‐fold greater than emissions from conversion of upland tropical dry forest in the Brazilian Caatinga underscoring the potential value for their inclusion in climate change mitigation activities.
Functional diversity positively affects prey suppression by invertebrate predators: a meta‐analysis
Authors: Greenop Arran , Woodcock Ben A. , Wilby Andy , Cook Samantha M. , Pywell Richard F. 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThe use of pesticides within agricultural ecosystems has led to wide concern regarding negative effects on the environment. One possible alternative is the use of predators of pest species that naturally occur within agricultural ecosystems. However, the mechanistic basis for how species can be manipulated in order to maximize pest control remains unclear. We carried out a meta‐analysis of 51 studies that manipulated predator species richness in reference to suppression of herbivore prey to determine which components of predator diversity affect pest control. Overall, functional diversity (FD) based on predator's habitat domain, diet breadth and hunting strategy was ranked as the most important variable. Our analysis showed that increases in FD in polycultures led to greater prey suppression compared to both the mean of the component predator species, and the most effective predator species, in monocultures. Further analysis of individual traits indicated these effects are likely to be driven by broad niche differentiation and greater resource exploitation in functionally diverse predator communities. A decoupled measure of phylogenetic diversity, whereby the overlap in variation with FD was removed, was not found to be an important driver of prey suppression. Our results suggest that increasing FD in predatory invertebrates will help maximize pest control ecosystem services in agricultural ecosystems, with the potential to increase suppression above that of the most effective predator species.
The dynamic effects of sediment availability on the relationship between wind speed and dust concentration
Authors: Mockford Tom , Bullard Joanna E. , Thorsteinsson Throstur 
Published: May 2018

AbstractWhere sediment supply is unlimited, previous research suggests that a strong, positive relationship between wind speed and dust concentration exists at the event scale. This relationship can break down if sediment availability is limited or changes during an event. This paper explores the dynamic effects of sediment availability on the relationship between wind speed and dust concentration using data from nine high‐latitude dust events recorded in Iceland. Of these events, six showed a strong positive relationship between wind speed and dust concentration. For the remainder, the relationship breaks down periodically during the event due to changing surface moisture conditions and atmospheric humidity. Results suggest a need to understand how spatial and temporal changes in humidity, surface soil moisture, soil texture and threshold velocity interact and control sediment availability for dust emissions in all environments, including at high latitudes. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Dating of paleolandslides in western Finnish Lapland
Authors: Ojala Antti E.K. , Markovaara‐Koivisto Mira , Middleton Maarit , Ruskeeniemi Timo , Mattila Jussi , Sutinen Raimo 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThe dating of landslide‐buried organic materials potentially indicates non‐stationary seismicity in northern Finland attributable to the release of lithospheric stresses during and after retreat of the Scandinavian Ice Sheet. The landslide age data reveals three episodes of increased slope instability and formation of landslides, from 9000 to 11 000 cal BP, from 5000 to 6000 cal BP, and from 1000 to 3000 cal BP. While a seismogenic origin cannot be unequivocally established, we interpret that at least the early Holocene episode reflects increased seismic activity in northern Finland in association with late‐glacial and postglacial faulting. The foci of slope instabilities changes through time, implying that different segments of the postglacial fault systems were active at different times during the Holocene. We also show that the correlation of landslide ages with the surface roughness and backwall slope is complicated. The morphology of landslide scarps is significantly affected by thickness of glacial sediments, liquefaction during landslide formation, and accumulation of peat upon landslide scars and deposits, and thus, the time‐dependent erosional smoothing of the surfaces should be considered as descriptive and non‐qualitative. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A distributed density optimized scheduling function for IEEE 802.15.4e TSCH networks
Authors: Municio Esteban , Spaey Kathleen , Latré Steven 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThe Industrial Internet of Things is a challenge for wireless sensor networks, where ultrareliability, guaranteed performance, and ultralow‐power consumption are mandatory requirements to enable critical IoT applications. The time‐slotted channel hopping (TSCH) mode of the IEEE 802.15.4e standard is one of the most promising technologies to accomplish these requirements by yielding guaranteed performance and, simultaneously, efficiently combating external interference and multipath fading. One of the challenges in TSCH networks is to build an efficient schedule for managing the access of the nodes to the timeslots and channels. Several scheduling algorithms have been proposed. Currently, the Scheduling Function Zero SFx is one of the proposed scheduling algorithms for 6TiSCH, the ongoing standard for an IPv6‐enabled stack working over TSCH. SFx is based on random resource allocation according to the traffic demand, which makes it inadequate for large‐scale and dense deployments due to internal collisions. This paper has two main goals. First, we extensively investigate the performance of SFx for large‐scale and dense scenarios, analyze its scalability, and identify its scheduling limitations. Second, we present a new TSCH‐based scheduling function, ie, the distributed broadcast‐based scheduling (DeBraS) algorithm, a scheduling solution designed for dense deployments based on sharing scheduling information between nodes to reduce collisions proactively. We show, through extensive and large‐scale simulations, that DeBraS supports much larger densities than state‐of‐the‐art scheduling functions, outperforming the current distributed 6TiSCH algorithm SFx up to 1.61 times in terms of throughput for large network sizes, at the expense of an increase in power consumption.
Hierarchical decision model for throughput maximization in D2D‐enabled LTE‐WiFi HetNets
Authors: Gbenga‐Ilori Abiodun , Sezgin Aydin 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThis paper proposes a hierarchical decision model for efficient and fair coexistence of Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) and heterogeneous cellular networks with device‐to‐device (D2D) communications. The first submodel is an allocation game formulated to model the data rate gain possible through the deployment of D2D communication in cellular networks. This is to guarantee that the Long‐Term Evolution (LTE) network is optimally utilized before offloading traffic to WiFi small cells. The second submodel is a Markovian model proposed as an optimal spectrum sharing scheme that guarantees efficient spectrum utilization and interference reduction in LTE‐WiFi heterogeneous networks (HetNets). Simulation results verify that the proposed decision model not only provides a more spectrum efficient sharing scheme but also shows better network throughput while ensuring fairness in spectrum access for WiFi users.