bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Characterization of the biofilm phenotype of a Listeria monocytogenes mutant deficient in agr peptide sensing
Authors: Zetzmann Marion , Bucur Florentina Ionela , Crauwels Peter , Borda Daniela , Nicolau Anca Ioana , Grigore‐Gurgu Leontina , Seibold Gerd M. , Riedel Christian U. 
Published: March 2019

AbstractListeria monocytogenes is a food‐borne human pathogen and a serious concern in food production and preservation. Previous studies have shown that biofilm formation of L. monocytogenes and presence of extracellular DNA (eDNA) in the biofilm matrix varies with environmental conditions and may involve agr peptide sensing. Experiments in normal and diluted (hypoosmotic) complex media at different temperatures revealed reduced biofilm formation of L. monocytogenes EGD‐e ΔagrD, a mutant deficient in agr peptide sensing, specifically in diluted Brain Heart Infusion at 25°C. This defect was not related to reduced sensitivity to DNase treatment suggesting sufficient levels of eDNA. Re‐analysis of a previously published transcriptional profiling indicated that a total of 132 stress‐related genes, that is 78.6% of the SigB‐dependent stress regulon, are differentially expressed in the ΔagrD mutant. Additionally, a number of genes involved in flagellar motility and a large number of other surface proteins including internalins, peptidoglycan binding and cell wall modifying proteins showed agr‐dependent gene expression. However, survival of the ΔagrD mutant in hypoosmotic conditions or following exposure to high hydrostatic pressure was comparable to the wild type. Also, flagellar motility and surface hydrophobicity were not affected. However, the ΔagrD mutant displayed a significantly reduced viability upon challenge with lysozyme. These results suggest that the biofilm phenotype of the ΔagrD mutant is not a consequence of reduced resistance to hypoosmotic or high pressure stress, motility or surface hydrophobicity. Instead, agr peptide sensing seems to be required for proper regulation of biosynthesis, structure and function of the cell envelope, adhesion to the substratum, and/or interaction of bacteria within a biofilm.
Stress urinary incontinence after vaginal prolapse repair: development and internal validation of a prediction model with and without the stress test
Authors: van der Ploeg J. Marinus , Steyerberg Ewout W. , Zwolsman Sandra E. , van der Vaart C. Huub , Roovers Jan‐Paul W.R. 
Published: March 2019

AbstractObjectiveTo develop a prediction model for stress urinary incontinence (SUI) after vaginal prolapse repair (postoperative stress urinary incontinence [POSUI]) and assess the value of a preoperative stress test.Patients and methodsSecondary analysis of two trials in which women were randomised for prolapse repair with or without a midurethral sling (MUS). The trials included women with (CUPIDO‐1, n = 134) and without (CUPIDO‐2, n = 225) coexisting SUI. POSUI was defined as bothersome SUI one year after surgery and/or treatment of SUI in the first postoperative year. Logistic regression analysis was used to define a reference model, which was extended with the preoperative stress test. The stress test was performed with and without reduction of the prolapse. Missing values were imputed 20 times, with bootstrap resampling for internal validation of discriminatory ability.ResultsThree hundred fifty‐six women could be included. POSUI occurred in 17% of the women (n = 61). The reference model included age (<55 years), point Ba of the pelvic organ prolapse quantification system (<−1), vaginal parity (≤3), subjective urinary incontinence, and MUS. The stress test had an odds ratio of 2.4 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.2‐4.6) in the extended model, which increased the optimism‐corrected area under the receiver‐operating curve from 0.74 to 0.76. The stress test was especially valuable in women with a 10% to 30% POSUI risk, where a stress test substantially impacted the POSUI risk. In more than 50% of the women, the stress test had no additional value in predicting POSUI.ConclusionA preoperative stress test is not valuable for women at low risk of SUI after vaginal prolapse repair.
Can we replace the catheter when evaluating urinary residuals?
Authors: Araklitis George , Paganotto Maria , Hunter Jo , Thiagamoorthy Ganesh , Robinson Dudley , Cardozo Linda 
Published: March 2019

AbstractAimsTo test the different formulae to calculate the bladder volume using ultrasound; the accuracy of patients hearing/feeling “bubbles” at the end of urodynamics testing as a measure of being empty; and how good we are at estimating PVR using X‐ray at the end of video urodynamics testing.MethodsThis was a prospective cohort study. Using Sonosite 180 plus, bladder volumes were calculated as, height × width × depth × proportionality constant (0.52, 0.625, 0.65, and 0.7) Patients were asked whether the patient heard or felt “bubbles” at the end of the investigation. Each patient was fluoroscopically screened and the clinician estimated the volume and compared with single‐use catheter volume.ResultsA total of 85 patients were assessed. All four formulae were significantly correlated. The PC, 0.52, correlated best (r = 0.938,
P < 0.001) with no significant difference with the actual volumes (
P = 0.275). The “bubbles test” had a positive predictive value of 93%. A video postvoid residual (PVR) estimation significantly correlated with catheterised bladder volume (
r = 0.842,
P < 0.001). There was no significant difference between the estimated and actual bladder volumes (
P = 0.579).ConclusionThis study showed that although all four formulae correlated significantly, the PC of 0.52 was the only formula without a significant difference from the actual volume. More work is needed to produce patient individualised PC. Our clinicians were able to accurately estimate the PVR on X‐ray. This study has identified the best formula to accurately estimate bladder volume and that video estimation along with the “bubbles” test can avoid unnecessary intervention.
Scale‐up and Sustainability Evaluation of Biopolymer Production from Citrus Waste Offering Carbon Capture and Utilisation Pathway
Authors: Durkin Alex , Taptygin Ivan , Kong Qingyuan , Gunam Resul Mohamad F. M. , Rehman Abdul , Fernández Ana M. L. , Harvey Adam P. , Shah Nilay , Guo Miao 
Published: March 2019

AbstractPoly(limonene carbonate) (PLC) has been highlighted as an attractive substitute to petroleum derived plastics, due to its utilisation of CO2 and bio‐based limonene as feedstocks, offering an effective carbon capture and utilisation pathway. Our study investigates the techno‐economic viability and environmental sustainability of a novel process to produce PLC from citrus waste derived limonene, coupled with an anaerobic digestion process to enable energy cogeneration and waste recovery maximisation. Computational process design was integrated with a life cycle assessment to identify the sustainability improvement opportunities. PLC production was found to be economically viable, assuming sufficient citrus waste is supplied to the process, and environmentally preferable to polystyrene (PS) in various impact categories including climate change. However, it exhibited greater environmental burdens than PS across other impact categories, although the environmental performance could be improved with a waste recovery system, at the cost of a process design shift towards energy generation. Finally, our study quantified the potential contribution of PLC to mitigating the escape of atmospheric CO2 concentration from the planetary boundary. We emphasise the importance of a holistic approach to process design and highlight the potential impacts of biopolymers, which is instrumental in solving environmental problems facing the plastic industry and building a sustainable circular economy.
Design and Characterization of a Cook‐Off Resistant High‐Energy Booster Explosive Based on CL‐20/FOX‐7
Authors: Li Xiaodong , Zhang Ximing , Yang Wu , Song Changgui , Sun Hongyan , Wang Jingyu 
Published: March 2019

AbstractA cook‐off resistant high‐energy booster explosive based on hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane (CL‐20) and 1,1‐diamino‐2,2‐dinitroethylene (FOX‐7) was prepared by the solvent‐slurry process with ethylene‐vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA) and acrylate rubber (ACM) as binders. Small‐scale cook‐off test was used to select formulations that have cook‐off resistant ability and their performance were further compared. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was utilized to characterize the morphology and particle size of CL‐20, FOX‐7 and molding powders. The mechanical sensitivity, thermal decomposition performance, and detonation velocity of the CL‐20/FOX‐7 boosters were also measured and analyzed. The results showed that the mechanical sensitivity of CL‐20/FOX‐7 boosters was significantly lower than those of CL‐20 based PBX without FOX‐7. The maximum measured detonation velocity of the booster is 8576 m ⋅ s−1. These combined properties indicate that CL‐20/FOX‐7 booster can be used as an insensitive booster.
On the omega probability distribution
Authors: Okorie Idika E. , Nadarajah Saralees 
Published: March 2019

AbstractDombi, Jónás, Tóth, and Árva (Quality and Reliability Engineering International, 2018, doi: 10.1002/qre.2425) introduced the omega probability distribution. They stated that main properties of this distribution are “difficult to deal with” analytically. In this note, we derive closed‐form expressions for all of the main properties of the omega distribution. A real data illustration of the derived expressions is also given.
On identification of agonistic interaction: Hepatitis B and C interaction on hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Lin Sheng‐Hsuan , Huang Yen‐Tsung , Yang Hwai‐I 
Published: March 2019

Agonistic interaction is one of the most important types of mechanistic interaction, which is difficult to be distinguished from synergistic interaction by empirical data. In this study, we propose four approaches that suffice to identify and estimate the agonistic interaction: (1) to make a strong assumption that synergism does not exist; (2) to exploit information from a third factor by assuming that this factor is a necessary component for the background condition of synergistic interaction but is not involved in other mechanisms; (3) to consider a third factor necessary for the background condition of agonistic interaction but not involved in other mechanisms; and (4) similar to (3) but to allow flexibility that the third factor may have a main effect on the outcome and/or a synergistic effect with the two risk factors of interest. We applied the proposed methods to quantify the agonism of Hepatitis B and C viruses (HBV and HCV) infections on liver cancer using a Taiwanese cohort study (n = 23 820; HBV carrier n = 4149 (17.44%), HCV carrier n = 1313 (5.52%)). The result demonstrated that agonistic interaction is more dominant compared with synergistic interaction, which explains the findings that the dual infected patients do not have a significantly higher risk of liver cancer than those with single infection. By exploiting an additional risk factor that satisfies certain assumptions, these approaches potentially fill the gap between mechanistic and causal interactions, contributing the comprehensive understanding of causal mechanisms.
Including operational aspects in the planning of power systems with large amounts of variable generation: A review of modeling approaches
Authors: Helistö Niina , Kiviluoma Juha , Holttinen Hannele , Lara Jose Daniel , Hodge Bri‐Mathias 
Published: March 2019

In the past, power system planning was based on meeting the load duration curve at minimum cost. The increasing share of variable generation (VG) makes operational constraints more important in the planning problem, and there is more and more interest in considering aspects such as sufficient ramping capability, sufficient reserve procurement, power system stability, storage behavior, and the integration of other energy sectors often through demand response assets. In VG integration studies, several methods have been applied to combine the planning and operational timescales. We present a four‐level categorization for the modeling methods, in order of increasing complexity: (1a) investment model only, (1b) operational model only, (2) unidirectionally soft‐linked investment and operational models, (3a) bidirectionally soft‐linked investment and operational models, (3b) operational model with an investment update algorithm, and (4) co‐optimization of investments and operation. The review shows that using a low temporal resolution or only few representative days will not suffice in order to determine the optimal generation portfolio. In addition, considering operational effects proves to be important in order to get a more optimal generation portfolio and more realistic estimations of system costs. However, operational details appear to be less significant than the temporal representation. Furthermore, the benefits and impacts of more advanced modeling techniques on the resulting generation capacity mix significantly depend on the system properties. Thus, the choice of the model should depend on the purpose of the study as well as on system characteristics.This article is categorized under:
Wind Power > Systems and Infrastructure
Energy Systems Analysis > Economics and Policy
Energy Policy and Planning > Economics and Policy
Minimally Invasive Parathyroidectomy without Intraoperative PTH Performed after Positive Ultrasonography as the only Diagnostic Method in Patients with Primary Hyperparathyroidism
Authors: Schneider Ralph , Hinrichs Jakob , Meier Beate , Walz Martin K. , Alesina Pier Francesco 
Published: March 2019

AbstractBackgroundA positive and concordant result of at least two diagnostic modalities is generally recommended prior to focused parathyroidectomy. The aim of this study was to analyze the results of surgery and the accurateness of preoperative ultrasonography (US) as single localization modality in patients who underwent parathyroidectomy without the adjunct of intraoperative Parathormone (PTH) measurement.MethodsThe cases with a preoperative US as the only localization technique, who underwent parathyroidectomy between 10/1999 and 12/2017, were selected from a prospectively maintained database. Therefore, a total number of 242 patients with a mean age of 58.6 ± 13.7 years were included in the present study. US was performed by referral endocrinologist or by the surgeon during office visits.ResultsThe overall “cure rate” was 99.2% (240 out of 242 patients). In 228/242 patients (94.2%), a drop of perioperative PTH levels consistent with the definition of cure was observed on the day of surgery. In four of the remaining 14 patients, healing was confirmed by PTH level dropping into the normal range on the first postoperative day. Eight patients were cured after a reoperation was performed at our department. Postoperative complications included one case of permanent recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy (0.4%).ConclusionsIf performed by an experienced endocrinologist and/or endocrine surgeon, a positive US could be the only preoperative localization study in patients with pHPT. Moreover, the add‐value of intraoperative PTH is limited. Major advantages of US are a very high accuracy, the ease of performance (accessibility) and its cost‐effectiveness compared with Sesta‐MIBI scintigraphy.
Lipidomics characterization of the alterations of Trichoderma brevicompactum membrane glycerophospholipids during the fermentation phase
Authors: Bai Yunfan , Gao Yuran , Lu Xin , Wang Huiyu 
Published: March 2019

Abstract
The biological membrane lipid composition has been demonstrated to greatly influence the secretion of secondary metabolites. This study was conducted to investigate the periodical alterations of whole cellular lipids and their associations with secondary products in Trichoderma brevicompactum. An electrospray ionization–mass spectrometry-based lipidomics strategy was used to acquire the metabolic profiles of membrane lipids during fermentation. Univariate analyses showed that most fungi glycerophospholipids were significantly altered at the early phase compared with the late phase. In addition, correlation analyses showed high correlations between phosphatidylcholine alterations and fermentation duration. In addition, the fermentation-associated alterations of phosphatidylcholines were found to be in accordance with the degrees of unsaturation of acyl-chains. Harzianum A reached a maximum on the 12th day, while trichodermin and 6-pentyl-2H-pyran-2-one showed the highest abundances on the 9th day, both of which were inclined to correlate with the alterations of phosphatidylcholines and phosphatidylethanolamines, respectively. These findings demonstrated that the alterations of the membrane lipid species in Trichoderma spp. were associated with the fermentation phases and might influence the secretion of specific secondary products, which may be useful in studying the optimization of secondary products in Trichoderma spp.
What outcomes are important to patients with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease, their caregivers, and health‐care professionals? A systematic review
Authors: Tochel Claire , Smith Michael , Baldwin Helen , Gustavsson Anders , Ly Amanda , Bexelius Christin , Nelson Mia , Bintener Christophe , Fantoni Enrico , Garre‐Olmo Josep , Janssen Olin , Jindra Christoph , Jørgensen Isabella F. , McKeown Alex , Öztürk Buket , Ponjoan Anna , Potashman Michele H. , Reed Catherine , Roncancio‐Diaz Emilse , Vos Stephanie , Sudlow Cathie ,   the ROADMAP consortium
Published: March 2019

AbstractIntroductionClinical trials involving patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) continue to try to identify disease‐modifying treatments. Although trials are designed to meet regulatory and registration requirements, many do not measure outcomes of the disease most relevant to key stakeholders.MethodsA systematic review sought research that elicited information from people with AD, their caregivers, and health‐care professionals on which outcomes of the disease were important. Studies published in any language between 2008 and 2017 were included.ResultsParticipants in 34 studies described 32 outcomes of AD. These included clinical (memory, mental health), practical (ability to undertake activities of daily living, access to health information), and personal (desire for patient autonomy, maintenance of identity) outcomes of the disease.DiscussionEvidence elicited directly from the people most affected by AD reveals a range of disease outcomes that are relevant to them but are not commonly captured in clinical trials of new treatments.
Post-Hurricane Distress Scale (PHDS): A Novel Tool for First Responders and Disaster Researchers
Authors: Carl Yonatan , Ortiz Ediricardo Rodríguez , Cintrón Moisés , Vega Andy , Font Cristina , Stukova Marina , Blundell Andrew , Gutierréz Ashley N. , Burgos Raúl Ferrer 
Published: March 2019

ABSTRACTObjectiveThe aim of this study was the construction and validation of a novel research instrument to quantify the degree of post-hurricane trauma and distress in an affected population. The Post-Hurricane Distress Scale (PHDS) has quantitative measures of both acute and prolonged distress, attributable to meteorological and hydrological disasters.MethodsA careful evaluation of existing questionnaires, as well as extensive canvasing of the post-Maria population of Puerto Rico, availed the construction of the PHDS. The PHDS consists of 20 items, organized into 4 subscales. The PHDS was pre-validated (n=79), revised, and then distributed to a broad sampling of the post-Hurricane Maria Puerto Rican population (n=597). Validation, including factor analysis, analyses of concurrent validity, discriminant validity, and internal reliability, was performed.ResultsAfter comparing various scales, factor loading profiles, concurrent validities, and models of fit, we show that the PHDS is best scored as a single 0–6 distress scale. When compared with the Traumatic Exposure Severity Scale, the PHDS shows superior concurrent validity, more accurately predicting scores for the Peritraumatic Distress Inventory, Impact of Event Scale – Revised, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7 Scale. The PHDS shows good internal reliability and discriminant validity.ConclusionsThe PHDS represents a novel, useful instrument for disaster first-responders and researchers. The prompt identification of high-risk populations is possible using this instrument. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2019;13:82-89)
Addressing Community Needs During the Hurricane Response and Recovery Efforts Through Community Assessments for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPER)—United States Virgin Islands, 2017-2018
Authors: Schnall Amy Helene , Roth Joseph (Jay) , Ellis Brett , Seger Krystal , Davis Michelle , Ellis Esther M. 
Published: March 2019

ABSTRACTObjectivesTwo category 5 storms hit the US Virgin Islands (USVI) within 13 days of each other in September 2017. This caused an almost complete loss of power and devastated critical infrastructure such as the hospitals and airportsMethodsThe USVI Department of Health conducted 2 response Community Assessments for Public Health Emergency Response (CASPERs) in November 2017 and a recovery CASPER in February 2018. CASPER is a 2-stage cluster sampling method designed to provide household-based information about a community’s needs in a timely, inexpensive, and representative manner.ResultsAlmost 70% of homes were damaged or destroyed, 81.2% of homes still needed repair, and 10.4% of respondents felt their home was unsafe to live in approximately 5 months after the storms. Eighteen percent of individual respondents indicated that their mental health was “not good” for 14 or more days in the past month, a significant increase from 2016.ConclusionThe CASPERs helped characterize the status and needs of residents after the devastating hurricanes and illustrate the evolving needs of the community and the progression of the recovery process. CASPER findings were shared with response and recovery partners to promote data-driven recovery efforts, improve the efficiency of the current response and recovery efforts, and strengthen emergency preparedness in USVI. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2019;13:53-62)