bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Predictors of Functional Outcome after Spinal Ependymoma Resection
Authors: Domazet Ivan , Paŝalić Ivan , Nemir Jakob , Peterković Vjerislav , Vukić Miroslav 
Published: July 2018

ABSTRACT
Aim: Spinal ependymomas are among the most common intramedullary neoplasms in both adults and children. While surgical resection is the golden treatment standard, the role chemotherapy and radiotherapy have in patients with spinal ependymomas remains unclear. The aim of this study is to determine the predictors of functional outcome following spinal ependymoma resection to single out patients that may require adjuvant therapy. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study on patients that underwent spinal ependymoma resection in our institution in a 10-year period. Magnetic resonance imaging of the spine was used to set the diagnosis of an intradural/intramedullary neoplasm. All patients underwent either gross tumor resection or tumor mass reduction. Histological diagnosis and histopathological grading of spinal ependymoma were done for all collected samples. Patients’ general and neurological examination were performed early after the surgery (within the 1st week) and in a 6-month follow-up. Results: A total of 51 intradural and intramedullary ependymoma resection surgeries on 43 patients were performed. There were slightly more male patients (57%) and the average patient age was 41 years. About 76.5% of patients presented with a tumor affecting one vertebrae level, while 23.5% presented with tumors expanding over two or more spinal regions. Gross tumor resection was achieved in 80% of cases, while 25% of procedures were performed on a recurring ependymomas. Most of the tumors (57%) were classified as G2 histological grade, while 8% were anaplastic ependymomas. In 80% of cases, early postoperative patient status was either better or equivalent to the preoperative one, while in a 6-month follow-up, up to 60% of cases showed a significant improvement over the preoperative status. Different demographic and clinical parameters were not proven to be predictors of postsurgical patient outcome including age, gender, and initial neurological presentation. Interestingly, most tumor characteristics were also not associated with postoperative functional outcome (histological grade, number of vertebrae levels affected, whether it is a primary or recurrent tumor). Even the scope of surgical procedure did not affect the functional outcome. The spinal region affected by the tumor was proven to be a predictor of early postoperative outcome (ρ = 0.346, P = 0.033), with lumbar spine being associated with the best outcomes. As expected, the scope of the surgery and whether gross tumor resection or tumor mass reduction was performed were the only significant predictors of tumor recurrence (ρ = 0.391, P = 0.005). Conclusions: Spinal ependymoma resection is an efficient procedure that improves the patient outcomes. Spinal region affected by the tumor is likely to be the most important predictor of functional outcome, while the procedure scope seems to be the most important predictor of tumor recurrence.
Myths and Superstition about Epilepsy: A Study from North India
Authors: Singh Smriti , Mishra Vijaya Nath , Rai Alka , Singh Ranjeet , Chaurasia Rameshwar Nath 
Published: July 2018

ABSTRACT
Background: Epilepsy is a treatable chronic neurological disorder which is often linked to supernatural activities, due to lack of knowledge and awareness among the common people. The beliefs that outbreak of epilepsy as an unnatural or supernatural activities can be most frequently seen in rural population. One cannot say that the perception of urban populace is different from that of rural populace, but yes, they do differ at some extent. Objective: Knowledge, superstition, and myth toward epilepsy in North India. Methods: This is a questionnaire-based study (12 questions) conducted in neurology outpatient department of Banaras Hindu University, visited by more than hundreds of people from different province of northern India. This survey was also conducted in nearby areas of holy city Varanasi. People belonging to different socioeconomic background and educational level were surveyed to know their view regarding epilepsy. Results: In this survey conducted by our team, we came to the truth that urban population do consider epilepsy as an unnatural phenomenon and adopted different treatment tactics as given in this article. Conclusion: There is the urgent need of creating awareness among the common people through different means such as newspaper, television, organizing health camps, and training local health practitioners for epilepsy management.
Endovascular treatment of small cerebral arteriovenous malformations as a primary therapy
Authors: Kocur Damian , Przybyłko Nikodem , Hofman Mariusz , Jamróz Tomasz , Ignatowicz Aleksandra , Baron Jan , Kwiek Stanisław 
Published: July 2018

PurposeThe patient population that would benefit most from endovascular curative treatment of intracranial arteriovenous malformations has not been clearly established. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of curative embolisation of cerebral arteriovenous malformations with special regard to radiographic and clinical outcomes and procedure-related complicationsMaterial and methodsBetween January 2009 and December 2014, 18 patients with intracranial arteriovenous malformations were embolised with Onyx with intent to cure. There were four women and 14 men, with a mean age of 40 years (range 10-62 years). Inclusion criteria were: maximal diameter of the lesions ≤ 3 cm and arterial supply consisting of no more than two major arteries. Five (27.8%) patients had ruptured lesions, and 13 (72.2%) patients had unruptured lesions. Mean arteriovenous malformation size was 2.3 cm (range 1.5-2.9 cm).ResultsThirty-three procedures were performed in 18 patients. Total obliteration was achieved in five patients (27.8%). The most common reason for initial incomplete angiographic occlusion was unfavourable angioarchitectural features of arteriovenous malformations, with the rate of 44.4%. The mean follow-up of patients with complete occlusion was 35.2 months (range 18-60 months). Complication rate was 12.1%. One patient had permanent neurological deficit with resulting morbidity of 5.6%. There were no deaths.ConclusionsEmbolisation of intracranial arteriovenous malformations plays a limited role as a sole therapeutic modality even in terms of small lesions with two or fewer arterial feeders, although larger prospective series are necessary to confirm these findings. Associated complications are not trivial and should be considered when choosing this form of treatment.
Metastatic pulmonary calcification as a rare complication of end-stage renal disease with coexistence of pulmonary metastases from renal cell carcinoma: case report and literature review
Authors: Michali-Stolarska Marta , Zacharzewska-Gondek Anna , Bladowska Joanna , Guziński Maciej , Sąsiadek Marek J. 
Published: July 2018

PurposeWe present a case of metastatic pulmonary calcification (MCP) in an asymptomatic patient with chronic kidney disease after renal transplantation and nephrectomy due to renal cancer. Chest computed tomography (CT) revealed bilateral, diffuse, centrilobular ground-glass opacities and heterogeneous, high-density areas distributed throughout the lungs, predominantly in the upper and middle lobes. Unusually, in our patient the metastatic calcification coexisted with pulmonary metastases from renal cell carcinoma associated with end-stage renal disease. To our knowledge, such coexistence has not been previously described.Case reportCT, particularly high-resolution chest computed tomography (HRCT), plays an important role in detection and follow-up of MPC findings, which include ground-glass opacities and partially calcified nodules or consolidations, predominantly in the upper lung zones. Correct diagnosis is important because misdiagnosis may lead to improper or unnecessary treatment and/or procedures.ConclusionsMPC is a rare condition that results from calcium deposition in the normal pulmonary parenchyma. MPC commonly occurs in patients with end-stage chronic kidney disease due to abnormalities in calcium and phosphate metabolism. It is worth pointing out that despite the fact that the condition is called metastatic, it is a relatively benign lung disease with a generally good long-term prognosis.
Relationship between bridging and dimensions of sella turcica with classification of craniofacial skeleton
Authors: Sobuti Farhad , Dadgar Sepideh , Seifi Ali , Musavi Seyed Jaber , Hadian Hoora 
Published: July 2018

PurposeIn orthodontics, it is essential to determine the craniofacial skeleton pattern (class I, II, III) for planning treatment. Sella turcica bridging that is seen on lateral cephalometric radiographs is considered as a normal finding. This study aimed to compare sella turcica bridging and its dimensions in patients with various craniofacial patterns.Material and methodsA total of 105 lateral cephalometric radiographs (53 men and 52 women), aged 14–26 years, were randomly and equally assigned to three groups of class I, II, and III, respectively. The length, diameter, and depth of the sella turcica as well as sella turcica bridging were determined on radiographs. The chi-squared test was used for assessing the relationship between sella turcica bridging and craniofacial skeleton classification. ANOVA was used for assessing the relationship between the dimensions of the sella turcica and craniofacial skeleton classification. The Pearson’s correlation coefficient was used for assessing the relationship between age and the dimensions of the sella turcica.ResultsThe sella turcica had a normal shape in 64.76% of patients, whereas 35.33% of patients had sella turcica bridging. In total, 11.42% of patients belonged to class I, 34.28% to class II, and 66.62% to class III. The diameter of the sella turcica had a significant relationship with age; the diameter of the sella turcica increased with age (p < 0.001).ConclusionsThere is a significant relationship between craniofacial skeleton patterns and sella turcica bridging, i.e., the incidence of sella turcica bridging is higher in class III patients. The sella turcica had a greater diameter in older patients.
Enriched environment prevents oxidative stress in zebrafish submitted to unpredictable chronic stress
Authors: Marcon Matheus , Mocelin Ricieri , Sachett Adrieli , Siebel Anna M. , Herrmann Ana P. , Piato Angelo 
Published: July 2018

BackgroundThe enriched environment (EE) is a laboratory housing model that emerged from efforts to minimize the impact of environmental conditions on laboratory animals. Recently, we showed that EE promoted positive effects on behavior and cortisol levels in zebrafish submitted to the unpredictable chronic stress (UCS) protocol. Here, we expanded the characterization of the effects of UCS protocol by assessing parameters of oxidative status in the zebrafish brain and reveal that EE protects against the oxidative stress induced by chronic stress.MethodsZebrafish were exposed to EE (21 or 28 days) or standard housing conditions and subjected to the UCS protocol for seven days. Oxidative stress parameters (lipid peroxidation (TBARS), reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, non-protein thiol (NPSH) and total thiol (SH) levels, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities were measured in brain homogenate.ResultsOur results revealed that UCS increased lipid peroxidation and ROS levels, while decreased NPSH levels and SOD activity, suggesting oxidative damage. EE for 28 days prevented all changes induced by the UCS protocol, and EE for 21 days prevented the alterations on NPSH levels, lipid peroxidation and ROS levels. Both EE for 21 or 28 days increased CAT activity.DiscussionOur findings reinforce the idea that EE exerts neuromodulatory effects in the zebrafish brain. EE promoted positive effects as it helped maintain the redox homeostasis, which may reduce the susceptibility to stress and its oxidative impact.
Trabecular bone patterning in the hominoid distal femur
Authors: Georgiou Leoni , Kivell Tracy L. , Pahr Dieter H. , Skinner Matthew M. 
Published: July 2018

BackgroundIn addition to external bone shape and cortical bone thickness and distribution, the distribution and orientation of internal trabecular bone across individuals and species has yielded important functional information on how bone adapts in response to load. In particular, trabecular bone analysis has played a key role in studies of human and nonhuman primate locomotion and has shown that species with different locomotor repertoires display distinct trabecular architecture in various regions of the skeleton. In this study, we analyse trabecular structure throughout the distal femur of extant hominoids and test for differences due to locomotor loading regime.MethodsMicro-computed tomography scans ofHomo sapiens(n= 11),Pan troglodytes(n= 18),Gorilla gorilla(n= 14) andPongosp. (n= 7) were used to investigate trabecular structure throughout the distal epiphysis of the femur. We predicted that bone volume fraction (BV/TV) in the medial and lateral condyles inHomowould be distally concentrated and more anisotropic due to a habitual extended knee posture at the point of peak ground reaction force during bipedal locomotion, whereas great apes would show more posteriorly concentrated BV/TV and greater isotropy due to a flexed knee posture and more variable hindlimb use during locomotion.ResultsResults indicate some significant differences between taxa, with the most prominent being higher BV/TV in the posterosuperior region of the condyles inPanand higher BV/TV and anisotropy in the posteroinferior region inHomo. Furthermore, trabecular number, spacing and thickness differ significantly, mainly separatingGorillafrom the other apes.DiscussionThe trabecular architecture of the distal femur holds a functional signal linked to habitual behaviour; however, there was more similarity across taxa and greater intraspecific variability than expected. Specifically, there was a large degree of overlap in trabecular structure across the sample, andHomowas not as distinct as predicted. Nonetheless, this study offers a comparative sample of trabecular structure in the hominoid distal femur and can contribute to future studies of locomotion in extinct taxa.
Perfused Organ Cell‐Dense Macrotissues Assembled from Prefabricated Living Microtissues
Authors: Ip Blanche C. , Cui Francis , Wilks Benjamin T. , Murphy John , Tripathi Anubhav , Morgan Jeffrey R. 
Published: July 2018

AbstractEngineered tissues usually fall short of physiological cell densities and sizes, resulting in limited functional performance. Viability of large tissues is constrained by inadequate diffusion‐driven nutrient exchange. Methods to form large viable tissues are lacking and are constrained by diffusion‐driven nutrient exchange. Here, the use of the Bio‐Pick, Place, and Perfuse (Bio‐P3) is reported, an integrated biofabrication‐bioreactor platform that semiautomatically and rapidly assembles physiologically cell‐dense macrotissues with 100 million cells while being actively perfused. The Bio‐P3 grips, aligns, and stacks prefabricated, scaffold‐free microtissue parts with integrated lumens on a perfusable build‐platform. Parts spontaneously fuse into one continuous macrotissue with perfusable channels. Customizable microtissues are rapidly prepared up to centimeter‐scale with sustained functional performance. Computational models are developed and experimentally validated to elucidate the effects of perfusion rate and tissue geometry on convective nutrient transport in built macrotissues. It is shown that macrotissues constructed from human hepatocellular microtissues maintain geometry and function (albumin and urea secretion) over 5 days. The Bio‐P3 technology fabricates massive solid tissues with high cell numbers and densities to mimic human physiology for preclinical and clinical applications.
Exploiting Singlet Fission in Organic Light‐Emitting Diodes
Authors: Nagata Ryo , Nakanotani Hajime , Potscavage William J. , Adachi Chihaya 
Published: July 2018

AbstractHarvesting of both triplets and singlets yields electroluminescence quantum efficiencies of nearly 100% in organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs), but the production efficiency of excitons that can undergo radiative decay is theoretically limited to 100% of the electron–hole pairs. Here, breaking of this limit by exploiting singlet fission in an OLED is reported. Based on the dependence of electroluminescence intensity on an applied magnetic field, it is confirmed that triplets produced by singlet fission in a rubrene host matrix are emitted as near‐infrared (NIR) electroluminescence by erbium(III) tris(8‐hydroxyquinoline) (ErQ3) after excitonic energy transfer from the “dark” triplet state of rubrene to an “emissive” state of ErQ3, leading to NIR electroluminescence with an overall exciton production efficiency of 100.8%. This demonstration clearly indicates that the harvesting of triplets produced by singlet fission as electroluminescence is possible even under electrical excitation, leading to an enhancement of the quantum efficiency of the OLEDs. Electroluminescence employing singlet fission provides a route toward developing high‐intensity NIR light sources, which are of particular interest for sensing, optical communications, and medical applications.
Melt‐Compounded Keratin‐TPU Self‐Assembled Composite Film as Bioinspired e‐Skin
Authors: Li Huan , Sinha Tridib K. , Lee Jinho , Oh Jeong Seok , Ahn Youngjoon , Kim Jin Kuk 
Published: July 2018

AbstractInspired by the keratin–elastin composition of human skin, here an artificial skin (alias electronic (e)‐skin) is developed through solvent‐free extrusion based melt mixing of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) with the biowaste human hair keratin. Self‐assembled composite film of TPU and keratin (i.e., PUK) shows leg skin equivalent coefficient of friction value of 0.26 ± 0.05, cheek skin equivalent average surface roughness (Ra) of 0.047 ± 0.07 µm, cytoskeletal keratin intermediate filament network like rheological behavior, porous morphology, and skin like positive triboelectric property, when the keratin content is 10 wt%. H‐bonded self‐assembled network and lubricating behavior of cysteine‐rich keratin provide such tribological and rheological behaviors of the PUK. Single electrode triboelectric nanogenerator (STENG) made of PUK containing 10 wt% keratin (i.e., 10% PUK) not only shows clear discrimination between the touch feeling sensations of bare, and glove protected human finger, by producing output voltage of ≈1 and ≈16 V cm−2, respectively, but it also can discriminate the tactile sensations of different objects viz., aluminum foil, cotton glove, wood, polyimide, and poly(tetrafluoroethylene) by producing different output voltages, resembling that the PUK composite film is well fitted for e‐skin applications.
Advent of Cross‐Scale Modeling: High‐Performance Computing of Solidification and Grain Growth
Authors: Shibuta Yasushi , Ohno Munekazu , Takaki Tomohiro 
Published: July 2018

AbstractThe application range of computational metallurgy is rapidly expanding thanks to the recent progress in high‐performance computing. In this Progress Report, state‐of‐the‐art collections of large‐scale simulations of solidification and grain growth, performed on the GPU supercomputer, are introduced. One of the notable achievements in this direction is a billion‐atom molecular dynamics simulation for nucleation and solidification, which revealed the heterogeneity in homogeneous nucleation. Moreover, a series of large‐scale phase‐field simulations shed light on the topics at issue including competitive growth of dendrites during the directional solidification, the effect of forced and natural convections on the solidification, and so on. Based on simulation results bridging the gap between atomistic and continuum‐based simulations, a new criterion of multi‐scale modeling is proposed in the age to come. We are now standing at the new era of cross‐scale modeling, in which the overlap between atomistic and continuum simulations creates new research concepts and fields.
Geometrical Structure of the Gold–Iron(III) Oxide Interfacial Perimeter for CO Oxidation
Authors: Wei Xuejiao , Shao Bin , Zhou Yan , Li Yong , Jin Chuanchuan , Liu Jingyue , Shen Wenjie 
Published: July 2018

AbstractThe geometrical structure of the Au‐Fe2O3 interfacial perimeter, which is generally considered as the active sites for low‐temperature oxidation of CO, was examined. It was found that the activity of the Au/Fe2O3 catalysts not only depends on the number of the gold atoms at the interfacial perimeter but also strongly depends on the geometrical structure of these gold atoms, which is determined by the size of the gold particle. Aberration‐corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy images unambiguously suggested that the gold particles, transformed from a two‐dimensional flat shape to a well‐faceted truncated octahedron when the size slightly enlarged from 2.2 to 3.5 nm. Such a size‐induced shape evolution altered the chemical bonding environments of the gold atoms at the interfacial perimeters and consequently their catalytic activity. For Au particles with a mean size of 2.2 nm, the interfacial perimeter gold atoms possessed a higher degree of unsaturated coordination environment while for Au particles with a mean size of 3.5 nm the perimeter gold atoms mainly followed the atomic arrangements of Au {111} and {100} facets. Kinetic study, with respect to the reaction rate and the turnover frequency on the interfacial perimeter gold atom, found that the low‐coordinated perimeter gold atoms were intrinsically more active for CO oxidation. 18O isotopic titration and Infrared spectroscopy experiments verified that CO oxidation at room temperature occurred at the Au‐Fe2O3 interfacial perimeter, involving the participation of the lattice oxygen of Fe2O3 for activating O2 and the gold atoms for CO adsorption and activation.
Lewis Acid Guests in a {P8W48} Archetypal Polyoxotungstate Host: Enhanced Proton Conductivity via Metal‐Oxo Cluster within Cluster Assemblies
Authors: Yang Peng , Alsufyani Maryam , Emwas Abdul‐Hamid , Chen Chaoqin , Khashab Niveen M. 
Published: July 2018

AbstractComplexes made by hosts that completely surround their guests provide a means to stabilize reactive chemical intermediates, transfer biologically active cargo to a diseased cell, and construct molecular‐scale devices. By the virtue of inorganic host–guest self‐assembly, nucleation processes in the cavity of a {P8W48}‐archetype phosphotungstate has afforded a nanoscale 16‐AlIII‐32‐oxo cluster and its GaIII analogue that contain the largest number of AlIII/GaIII ions yet found in polyoxometalate (POM) chemistry. Interestingly, the rich Lewis acid AlIII centers within the Lewis base POM support shows an exceptional proton conductivity of 4.5×10−2 S cm−1 (85 °C, 70 % RH; RH: relative humidity), which is by far the highest conductivity reported among POM‐based single‐crystal proton conductors.