bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Postural instability in patients with chronic stroke
Authors: Peurala Sinikka H. , Könönen Paavo , Pitkänen Kauko , Sivenius Juhani , Tarkka Ina M. 
Published: December 2024

Purpose: It is known that visuospatial orientation and the extent of spontaneous recovery vary between right or left hemisphere affected stroke patients. We hypothesized that the right hemisphere affected chronic patients would show more impaired static balance than left hemisphere affected patients. The purpose of the study was to assess displacement of the center of pressure (COP) of ambulatory patients with either left or right hemiparesis. Methods: Forty-five patients and thirty healthy subjects participated and static balance was measured while standing on a force plate. Results: The patients showed more than four times higher mean velocity moment and two times faster anterior-posterior (AP) and medial-lateral (ML) speed of COP displacement than healthy subjects. The patients with left hemiparesis, and affected right hemisphere, had higher power peak magnitudes of COP displacements than patients with right hemiparesis both in ML and AP directions at low frequencies. The patients had higher power peak magnitudes of COP displacements than healthy subjects in both ML and AP directions at all separately analyzed frequency ranges. More weight bearing on the paretic side was associated with less COP displacement in ML and AP directions. Conclusions: Patients with left hemiparesis have more low frequency COP movements from side to side and from front to back than patients with right hemiparesis. Patients with right or left hemiparesis sway more than the healthy subjects. The affected hemisphere and the disturbed cerebral networks likely produce different postural deficits in right or left hemiparetic patients.
Establishment of three-dimensional culture of neural	stem/progenitor cells in collagen Type-1 Gel
Authors: Watanabe Kota , Nakamura Masaya , Okano Hideyuki , Toyama Yoshiaki 
Published: December 2024

Purpose: Recent studies demonstrated that transplanting neural stem/precursor cells (NSPCs) into an injured spinal cord of adult rat promotes functional recovery. The functional recovery from spinal cord injury might be enhanced by transplanting NSPCs with a scaffold that fills the cavity, entraps the NSPCs in the cavity, and acts as an attachment for neurite extension. We recently focused on collagen type-1 as a scaffold for NSPC transplantation into the injured spinal cord. In the present study, we determined the optimal conditions for culturing NSPCs in 3D collagen type-1 gel with respect to cell survival and cell migration. We, then, evaluated the ability of NSPCs to differentiate under the optimal condition. Methods: NSPCs were derived from the striatum of rat embryos. To determine the optimal cell density and collagen concentration for 3D collagen gel culture for NSPC, we performed viability assay and migration assay. Then, we examined the proportion of phenotypes differentiated from NSPC in that optimal condition. Results: In viability assay, the viability rate increased as the NSPC density increased, and peaked at 1 × 10 $^{7}$ to 5 × 10 $^{7}$ cell/ml. For collagen concentration, the viability rate increased as the collagen concentration decreased. In migration assay, cell migration was most extensive at collagen concentrations between 0.3 and 0.75 mg/ml. Migration distances gradually declined as collagen concentrations increased. In the optimal condition, NSPCs differentiated into neurons (40.1%), astrocytes (53.1%), and oligodendrocytes (5.3%) in 3D collagen gel culture. Conclusion: The optimal conditions for NSPC culture in 3D collagen gel was a cell density between 1 × 10 $^{7}$ and 5 × 10 $^{7}$ cells/ml and a collagen concentration between 0.5 and 0.75 mg/ml. Under the condition, NSPCs could differentiate into neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes.
Long nerve gaps limit the regenerative potential of bioartificial	nerve conduits filled with Schwann cells
Authors: Sinis Nektarios , Schaller Hans-Eberhard , Becker Stephan Thomas , Schlosshauer Burkhard , Doser Michael , Roesner Harald , Oberhoffner Sven , Müller Hans-Werner , Haerle Max 
Published: December 2024

Purpose: Recently we successfully used a conduit of ε-caprolactone-co-trimethylene carbonate filled with Schwann cells (SC) across a 20 mm gap in a rat median nerve. In this study we applied the tubes with SC across a 40 mm gap in order to analyse the regenerative potential of the tubes in long nerve defects. Methods: To augment the nerve defect a cross-chest procedure was used and the tubes were implanted with injected isogeneic SCs inside (group 3). Both ulnar nerves were used for a 40 mm autograft (group 2). For control group non-operated animals were used (group 1). The grasping test, histology (S-100, PAM), electrophysiology, and the muscle weight were used to assess regeneration. Results: After 12 months, grasping was seen only in three animals of group 3 (3.6 g [95% CI: 0 to 7.6 g]). However, in group 2 all rats had a partial functional regeneration (42.8 g [95% CI: 39.1 to 46.6 g]). The grasping force of the non-operated animals (group 1) was 240.9 g [95% CI: 237.2 to 244.7 g] at the time. Histology from group 3 confirmed an irregular arrangement of fibres in contrast to more organized structures in group 2. Electrophysiology in group 3 displayed potentials only in the three animals with functional regeneration. In group 2 all animals exhibited potentials. A significant decrease of muscle weight was observed in groups 2 and 3, most prominent in the latter. Conclusion: Regeneration was not successful across the 40 mm gap using the applied tube in combination with SC. For future experiments further consideration should be taken in optimizing the cellular and material components that are critical for a successful application to overcome very large nerve gaps.
No effect of a levodopa single dose on motor performance and motor	excitability in chronic stroke. A double-blind placebo-controlled cross-over	pilot study
Authors: Restemeyer C. , Weiller C. , Liepert J. 
Published: December 2024

Purpose: Drugs that modulate neuronal transmission can influence motor recovery after stroke. Here, we tested if a single dose of levodopa could improve motor functions and change motor excitability in a group of chronic stroke patients. Methods: Ten patients > 6 months after their stroke participated in a placebo-controlled double-blind trial. On two different occasions, they received either 100 mg levodopa or placebo in a randomized order. After drug intake, they participated in one hour of physiotherapy aimed at an improvement of dexterity. Motor functions were tested by application of the Nine-Hole-Peg Test, a dynamometer measuring grip strength and the Action Research Arm Test. In addition, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was applied to study intracortical excitability, stimulus response curves and silent periods. TMS studies and motor function measurements were performed before drug intake, 45 minutes after drug ingestion and after the physiotherapy. Results: Compared to placebo, levodopa neither improved motor functions nor changed motor excitability as tested by TMS. Conclusion: These findings suggests that a single levodopa dose is not sufficient to improve motor function in chronic stroke. However, it cannot be excluded that the lack of a beneficial effect is related to the small study sample.
Progesterone inhibits ischemic brain injury in a rat model of	permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion
Authors: Sayeed Iqbal , Wali Bushra , Stein Donald G. 
Published: December 2024

Purpose: Previous studies suggest that progesterone (PROG) has a substantial protective effect against several types of brain injury. Since most cases of human stroke are caused by permanent occlusion of cerebral arteries, we assessed the neuroprotective effects of PROG on cerebral infarction and behavioral deficits in a permanent MCAO (pMCAO) model. Methods: pMCAO was produced by surgical insertion of a silicone-coated nylon filament into the right internal carotid artery. Laser-Doppler flowmetry was used to monitor cerebral blood flow for 10 min post-occlusion. PROG (8 mg/kg) or vehicle (2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin) was administered intraperitoneally at 1 h post-occlusion followed by subcutaneous injections at 6, 24 and 48 h post-occlusion. Measurements of infarct volumes (cortical, subcortical and total) were performed at 72 h and functional recovery, assessed by rotarod test, were performed 24, 48, and 72 h after pMCAO. Results: Following PROG treatment, stained sections revealed a significant reduction in cortical, caudate-putamen and hemispheric infarct volumes (% contralateral structure) compared to vehicle-injected controls. In addition, PROG treatment reduced functional deficits on the accelerating rotarod apparatus. Conclusion: We demonstrated and confirmed the neuroprotective effect of PROG using a permanent model of focal brain ischemia in rats.
Congenital amusia: An auditory-motor feedback disorder?
Authors: Mandell Jake , Schulze Katrin , Schlaug Gottfried 
Published: December 2024

Purpose: Congenital amusia ( tone deafness) is a disorder in which those affected typically complain of or are identified by their inability to sing in tune. A psychophysical and possibly surrogate marker of this condition is the inability to recognize deviations in pitch that are one semitone (100 cents) or less. The aim of our study was to identify candidate brain regions that might be associated with this disorder. Methods: We used Voxel-Based-Morphometry (VBM) to correlate performance on a commonly used assessment tool, the Montreal Battery for the Evaluation of Amusia (MBEA), with local inter-individual variations in gray matter volumes across a large group of individuals ( n = 51) to identify brain regions potentially involved in the expression of this disorder. Results: The analysis across the entire brain space revealed significant covariations between performance on the MBEA and inter-individual gray matter volume variations in the left superior temporal sulcus (BA 22) and the left inferior frontal gyrus (BA 47). The regression analyses identified subregions within the inferior frontal gyrus, and inferior portion of BA47 that correlated with performance on melodic subtests, while gray matter volume variations in a more superior subregion of BA47 correlated with performance on rhythmic subtests. Conclusions: Our analyses demonstrate the existence of a left fronto-temporal network that appears to be involved in the melodic and rhythmic discrimination skills measured by the MBEA battery. These regions could also be part of a network that enable subjects to map motor actions to sounds including a feedback loop that allows for correction of motor actions (i.e., singing) based on perceptual feedback. Thus, it is conceivable that individuals with congenital amusia, or the inability to sing in tune, may actually have an impairment of the auditory-motor feedback loop and/or auditory-motor mapping system.
Tuning the tinnitus percept by modification of synchronous brain activity
Authors: Dohrmann Katalin , Elbert Thomas , Schlee Winfried , Weisz Nathan 
Published: December 2024

Purpose: Tinnitus, the perception of sound without the presence of a physical stimulus, provides the opportunity to study neural codes of percepts without simultaneous processing of stimuli. Previously, we have found that tinnitus is associated with enhanced delta- and reduced tau-power in temporal brain regions. By operantly modifying corresponding aspects of spontaneous EEG activity, the aim of the present study was to corroborate the assumption that tinnitus should be reduced if patterns of ongoing synchronous brain activity are normalised. Methods: In response to different variants of neurofeedback, a total of twenty-one patients produced significant changes in EEG frequency bands. Results: Simultaneous alteration of both frequency bands was strongly related to changes in tinnitus intensity matched before and after the intervention ( r = −0.74). In those two patients with the greatest modulatory success, the tinnitus sensation resided completely in response to the treatment. Comparing the neurofeedback-treated patients with a group of patients trained with a frequency discrimination task ( n = 27), the tinnitus relief in the neurofeedback group was significantly stronger. Conclusions: This study supports the notion that altered patterns of intrinsic ongoing brain activity lead to phantom percepts and offer new routes to the treatment of tinnitus.
Predicting cochlear implant outcome from brain organisation in the deaf
Authors: Giraud Anne-Lise , Lee Hyo-Jeong 
Published: December 2024

Purpose: Cochlear implantation is an effective technique for restoring hearing in the profoundly deaf. Although cochlear implants are a therapeutical success, huge performance variability in speech comprehension is observed after implantation. The reason for this remains incompletely understood after 20 years of clinical practice and basic research. Which patients are going to respond well and why is an unresolved question. The duration of auditory deprivation plays an important role, and currently is the main predictor of implantation success in children; basically, the earlier the better. However, among patients with identical duration of deafness, performance remains highly variable, suggesting there are other more fundamental factors that determine clinical outcome. Methods: To delineate the cognitive factors that could influence the clinical outcome of cochlear implantation, we correlated resting metabolism PET images acquired before implantation in congenitally deaf children with speech perception behavioural scores measured three years after implantation. Results: Using this paradigm, we showed distinct brain organisation patterns in the deaf brain, which predict good and bad speech perception outcome after cochlear implantation. Conclusions: These data show that brain organisation assessed immediately before cochlear implantation can efficiently predict subsequent speech outcome.
Automatic and attentive processing of sounds in cochlear implant patients – Electrophysiological evidence
Authors: Nager W. , Münte T.F. , Bohrer I. , Lenarz T. , Dengler R. , Möbes J. , Schröder C. , Lesinski-Schiedat A. 
Published: December 2024

Purpose: Processing auditory scenes requires the automatic detection of unexpected acoustic irregularities which allows to reorient the attentional focus for further in-depth analysis. Even if cochlea implants (CI) may partly restore hearing capabilities in patients suffering from profound peripheral deafness, CI users complain about difficulties in identifying novel and unexpected acoustic events. To assess whether this impairment is attributable to preattentive auditory deficits, impaired automatic orienting to novel events and/or to deficits in attentional processing we recorded event-related potentials (ERPs) in an auditory novelty oddball paradigm. Methods: ERPs were obtained in 7 postlingually deafened CI patients and their age-matched controls in passive and active listening conditions. Subjects had to press a button for infrequent novel sounds but not for frequent standard sounds in the active condition. Results: In the active condition patients and controls did not differ with regard to hit-rates and reaction times. ERPs to novel stimuli in the active condition were characterized by enhanced N2b and P3b components that did not differ between groups. By contrast, the P3a component to novel sounds in the passive condition, an index of automatic orienting of attention, was greatly attenuated in the CI users. Conclusions: CI-users are impaired in the preattentive registration of novel auditory events while attentive processing of a designated auditory stream appears intact.
АНАЛІЗ НАПРУЖЕНОГО СТАНУ ШАРУ З ДВОМА ЦИЛІНДРИЧНИМИ ВРІЗАНИМИ ОПОРАМИ ТА ЦИЛІНДРИЧНИМИ ВТУЛКАМИ
Authors: Мірошніков В. Ю. , Савін О. Б. , Косенко М. Л. , Ільїн О. О. 
Published: December 2024

The spatial problem of the theory of elasticity for a layer on cylindrical embedded supports with cylindrical sleeves (thick-walled pipes) located between each support and the layer is solved. Smooth contact conditions are set at the interface between the layer and the pipes. Stresses are specified on the surfaces of the layer, and displacements are specified on the inner surface of the pipe (rigidly conjugated to the support). The analytical and numerical solution of the problem is based on the Lamé equations written for the layer and each pipe. When the boundary conditions and the conditions of conjugation of the layer with the pipes are met, a system of integro-algebraic equations is created, which reduces to a system of linear algebraic equations. Each equation is written in its local coordinate system. For this purpose, the transition formulas of the generalized Fourier method are applied to the basic solutions of the Lamé equation. After solving the system of equations and finding the unknowns, the stress-strain state in the body of the layer and pipes was obtained. The reduction method was used to obtain numerical results. Fulfillment of the boundary conditions showed high convergence of the results, the accuracy of which depends on the order of the system of equations. The analysis of the stress-strain state of the layer and the pipe was carried out for different sleeve materials in places of stress concentration. The results indicate an increase in the stresses sφ and sz on cylindrical surfaces in the case of using polyamide bushings. The proposed method makes it possible to analyze the stress-strain state of a wide range of pipe structures. It also provides an opportunity to assess how changes in material and geometric parameters affect the stress distribution in such systems, which allows optimizing structures and ensuring their reliability. In the further development of this research topic, it is necessary to consider models where bushings are combined with other types of inhomogeneities (cavities, reinforcement) and other boundary conditions.
Exploring the association between social media disorder and academic procrastination of college students
Authors: Choudhury Sourav , D'Cruz Nikita Ruth , Deb Joy Prakash , Biswas Samiul , Patil Sandeep 
Published: December 2024

The study aimed at exploring the relationship between social media disorder and academic procrastination, and to thereby investigate the mediating effects of intrusive thinking and fatigue. By enrolling 412 undergraduate college students in India, the interconnectedness of the four variables was investigated using Social Media Disorder scale by Choudhury et al. (2024), White Bear Suppression Inventory by Rassin (2003), Fatigue Assessment Scale by Michielsen et al. (2003) and Academic Procrastination Scale by Mccloskey and Scielzo (2015). The results disclosed: 1) A significant gender differences in the level of SMD; 2) Correlation analysis displayed a significant positive correlation between the four variables; 3) The multiple mediating effect test results showed that SMD caused academic procrastination directly and indirectly through three pathways.
Searching for modernization
Authors: Hadley Gregory 
Published: December 2024

This paper considers the theoretical underpinnings of rural out-migration and economic stagnation, specific to rural Nova Scotia, Canada, and argues that rural Nova Scotia has, in part, misapplied the tenets of modernization. It situates out-migration, and economic stagnation, amongst Modernization Theory and considers how economic rejuvenation, vis a vis entrepreneurship education, can, potentially, revivify the topophilic bonds between person and (rural) community. Structurally, this paper argues three points: first, that rural Nova Scotia is enduring a misapplication of modernization, resulting in a lingering traditionalism that pushes people out and dampens economic growth. Second, that rural Nova Scotia would benefit from a structural shift in its economic model and third, that community economic development through entrepreneurship stands a reasonable chance of reserving the social and economic misfortune now ubiquitous in the areas outside of Nova Scotia’s capital region.
Prevalence, Antibiotic Resistant Pattern and Genotypic Detection of Acinetobacter baumannii Isolated from Different Clinical Specimens of Patients Admitted at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Bangladesh
Authors: Sharmin Nazmun , Khoda Md. Mahbub E , Uddin Mohammad Nazim , Shamsuzzaman SM , Jahan Hosne 
Published: December 2024

Background: Acinetobacter baumannii infection treatment has become a clinical challenge due to the increasing resistance of the bacteria to different classes of antimicrobial agents and it needs to be identified before exposure to patients.
Objective: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of Acinetobacter baumannii with its antibiotic-resistant patterns.
Methodology: The study was a cross-sectional study that was done from 1st January 2019 to 31st December 2019 at the Microbiology Department of Dhaka Medical College. Clinical samples including endotracheal aspirates, blood, urine, sputum, wound swabs, and pus were collected from the patients from the intensive care unit, burn unit, general wards, and outpatient department of Dhaka Medical College and Hospital. Acinetobacter baumannii organisms were identified by biochemical tests and Gram staining, and the resistance pattern was determined by using the disc diffusion method for all antibiotics except for colistin, which was determined by minimum inhibitory concentration.
Results: Among 500 clinical samples, 13.31% Acinetobacter baumannii were identified. Most of these showed resistance to fluoroquinolones, carbapenem, amikacin, the extended spectrum of cephalosporin, β-lactam, and β-lactamase inhibitors. However, the least resistant drug was tigecycline (8.88%). About 62.22% MDR, 28.89% A. baumannii were identified.
Conclusion: Acinetobacter baumannii is showing increasing resistance to colistin and tigecycline.
Bangladesh Journal of Medical Microbiology, January 2024;18(1):37-43
Pattern of Bacterial Isolates and their Antimicrobial Susceptibility Profiles of Chronic Suppurative Otitis Media Patients attended at a tertiary Care Hospital in Bangladesh
Authors: Akter Firoza , Khaled Md. Saifuddin , Akhter Farida , Khan Md Jahangir , Yusuf Md. Abdullah 
Published: December 2024

Background: Different bacteria can cause the chronic suppurative otitis media.
Objective: The purpose of the present study was to assess the pattern of bacterial isolates and their antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of chronic suppurative otitis media patients.
Methodology: This cross-sectional study was carried in the Department of Microbiology in collaboration with the Department of ENT at Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College, Sylhet, Bangladesh from July 2017 to June 2018 for a period of one year. In this study, aural swab was taken from patients presented with CSOM and isolation and identification of bacterial species were done by standard microbiological methods. The Kirby Bauer’s modified disc diffusion test was used to determine the antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of the recovered bacterial isolates.
Results: Out of 80 ear swabs processed, 42(52.5%) cases were positive by culture and microscopy. No growth was reported in 38 (47.5%) samples. The most commonly isolated bacteria were Pseudomonas aeruginosa followed by Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella species and Proteus species. Most of the Gram negative bacilli were sensitive to imipenem (100%), meropenem (90.9%), amikacin (85%), gentamicin (72.2%), levofloxacin (60%), azithromycin (52.4%), and ciprofloxacin (52.4%). Gram positive cocci were sensitive to imipenem (100.0%), meropenem (100.0%), amikacin (100.0%), gentamicin (83.3%), ceftriaxone (75.0%), azithromycin (60.0%), erythromycin (50.0%), and ciprofloxacin (28.6%).
Conclusion: In conclusion the most commonly isolated bacteria are Pseudomonas aeruginosa followed by Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella species and Proteus species.
Bangladesh Journal of Medical Microbiology, January 2024;18(1):30-36