bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Design of a tailor‐made platform for syngas bioconversion into polyhydroxybutyrate
Authors: Narancic Tanja , O'Connor Kevin E. 
Published: August 2017

SummaryBiodegradable polymers such as polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) are part of the emerging portfolio of renewable materials, which are addressing the issue of plastic waste. Syngas, as a cheap, renewable and sustainable resource that can be obtained from biomass or waste, is viewed as an excellent feedstock for different bioprocesses, including syngas to PHB bioconversion. However, due to the hazardous nature of syngas, it is of utmost importance to consider safety aspects of the process. This recently developed tailor‐made platform for safe syngas fermentation and PHB production addresses safety aspects and demonstrates the importance of robust online and in‐line analytical tools allowing for monitoring and controlling of this bioprocess.
Non‐medical use of psychoactive prescription drugs is associated with fatal poisoning
Authors: Haukka Jari , Kriikku Pirkko , Mariottini Claudia , Partonen Timo , Ojanperä Ilkka 
Published: August 2017

AbstractAimsThe aims of this study were to estimate the prevalence and predictors of non‐medical substance use, and to assess the association between non‐medical substance use and fatal poisoning or history of drug abuse in Finland.Design and settingRetrospective cohort study of all medico‐legally investigated death cases in Finland. The postmortem toxicology database was linked together with the register on reimbursed prescription medicines.Participants and casesAll postmortem cases between 2011 and 2013 positive for one or more of the following drugs: oxycodone, fentanyl, tramadol, clonazepam, gabapentin, pregabalin, tizanidine, olanzapine, quetiapine, risperidone, alprazolam, zolpidem, mirtazapine and bupropion, n = 2974.MeasurementsNon‐medical use of substance was the outcome variable. Predictors were the following: gender, residence at the time of death, place of death, blood alcohol concentration, age, drug abuse, number of prescriptions of any psychoactive drugs in last year and proportion of prescriptions issued by psychiatrist in last year.FindingsIn 50.4% of the studied cases, at least one drug was detected without a prescription. Clonazepam, alprazolam and tramadol were the most prevalent non‐medical findings in these cases (6.6, 6.1 and 5.6%, respectively). The risk of non‐medical use of prescription drugs was especially high in cases with history of drug abuse (88.5%) and in fatal poisonings (71.0%). The proportion of non‐medical use of the studied substances varied between 5.9% [95% confidence interval (CI) = 3.1–10.1%)] for risperidone and 55.7% for fentanyl (95% CI = 44.1–66.9%).Valid prescription for one or more of any psychoactive drug was associated with lower odds for non‐medical use of the studied substances. Additionally, the higher the proportion of psychoactive drugs prescribed by a psychiatrist, the lower the probability of non‐medical use.ConclusionsNon‐prescribed psychoactive drugs are found commonly at postmortem in drug poisoning deaths in Finland, with history of drug abuse being a major contributing factor.
Phase II study of celecoxib with docetaxel chemoradiotherapy followed by consolidation chemotherapy docetaxel plus cisplatin with maintenance celecoxib in inoperable stage III nonsmall cell lung cancer
Authors: Takhar Harminder , Singhal Nimit , Mislang Anna , Kumar Raj , Kim Laurence , Selva‐Nayagam Sid , Pittman Ken , Karapetis Chris , Borg Martin , Olver Ian N. , Brown Michael P. 
Published: August 2017

AbstractTitlePhase II study of celecoxib with docetaxel chemoradiotherapy (CRT) followed by consolidation chemotherapy docetaxel plus cisplatin with maintenance celecoxib in inoperable stage III nonsmall cell lung cancer.IntroductionConcurrent CRT has been associated with improvement in absolute 5‐year survival by 10% and is the standard of care for inoperable stage III nonsmall cell lung cancer. Preclinical evidence suggests that cyclooxygenase‐2 inhibition may increase the efficacy of CRT.MethodsPatients were treated with CRT (weekly docetaxel at 30 mg/m2 over 6 weeks with concurrent external beam radiotherapy with 60 Gy in 30 fractions) followed by consolidation chemotherapy with docetaxel and cisplatin, each at 75 mg/m2 given 3 weekly for four cycles. Patients were to receive celecoxib 400 mg twice daily during treatment. Prophylactic cranial irradiation (30 Gy in 15 fractions) was offered if there was disease response.ResultsTwenty‐four patients commenced CRT. Nineteen patients commenced consolidation therapy with 14 patients completing treatment. Twelve patients had treatment with celecoxib. In the total cohort, the median overall survival (mOS) was 21 months and progression‐free survival (PFS) was 16 months. Overall response rate was 59% and disease control rate was 82%. Three patient deaths occurred. Significant grade 3/4 toxicity included radiation pneumonitis (17%), febrile neutropenia (17%), infection/sepsis with or with neutropenia (25%) and esophagitis (12.5%). Retrospective analysis of celecoxib versus no celecoxib treatment showed favorable mOS 26.5 versus 17.5 months and PFS 22 versus 16 months, but this did not reach statistical significance.ConclusionsThe activity of this regimen has been demonstrated. Treatment‐related toxicity was substantial. The role of celecoxib in addition to CRT could not be demonstrated in this study because of the small number of patients.
Biomarkers and therapeutic advances in glioblastoma multiforme
Authors: Sasmita Andrew Octavian , Wong Ying Pei , Ling Anna Pick Kiong 
Published: August 2017

AbstractGlioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is a malignant tumor within the brain. Generally classified as primary and secondary with several different subtypes, ample molecular biomarkers have risen throughout the years which have garnered the attention of researchers. The advancements in genomics and proteomics have allowed researchers to gather prominent molecular biomarkers. All these biomarkers are gathered by means of biopsy or bodily fluid sample collection and are quantitatively analyzed by polymerase chain reaction coupled with other computational technologies. This review highlights the significance, regulation and prevalence of molecular biomarkers such as O6‐methylguanine‐DNA methyltransferase, epidermal growth factor receptor vIII, isocitrate dehydrogenase mutation and several others which expressed differently in different types and molecular subtypes of GBM. The discoveries and roles of GBM‐specific microRNAs including miR‐21 and miR‐10b as biomarkers with promising prognostic values were also delineated. The role and mechanism of biomarkers in GBM tumorigenesis are essential in the development of therapy for patients suffering from the disease itself. Thus, this review also discusses the mechanisms, effects and limitations of therapy such as temozolomide, viral gene transfer, biomarker‐based vaccines or even engineered T cells for more specific responses. Biomarkers have displayed a high value and could eventually be utilized as drug targets. It is hoped that by combining different aspects of the disease which present with different biomarkers could lead to the development of a robust, effective and innovative take on GBM therapy.
The Abstraction of Care: What Work Counts?
Authors: Henry Caitlin 
Published: August 2017

AbstractNurses provide essential health care labor, but their work, a mix of caregiving and clinical expertise, is often undervalued and unacknowledged by health care administrators and the policies and practices that govern health care more broadly. Based on interviews with nurses working in the New York metropolitan area and through pairing feminist political economy with literature on abstraction and politics of the possible, I show that the ways in which nurses’ work is measured creates a value hierarchy of tasks. Examining various tools of measurement, I argue that methods for measuring work are rooted in an historical and continuous hierarchy of what counts as work and what has value. For nurses, these processes obscure the essential care work they perform. I argue that bringing an explicit politics of social reproduction to the politics of measuring and accounting for work makes visible necessary and often‐obscured tasks, spaces, and social relations.
Who seeks bariatric surgery? Psychosocial functioning among adolescent candidates, other treatment‐seeking adolescents with obesity and healthy controls
Authors: Call C. C. , Devlin M. J. , Fennoy I. , Zitsman J. L. , Walsh B. T. , Sysko R. 
Published: August 2017

SummaryLimited data are available on the characteristics of adolescents with obesity who seek bariatric surgery. Existing data suggest that adolescent surgery candidates have a higher body mass index (BMI) than comparison adolescents with obesity, but the limited findings regarding psychosocial functioning are mixed. This study aimed to compare BMI and psychosocial functioning among adolescent bariatric surgery candidates, outpatient medical‐treatment‐seeking adolescents with obesity (receiving lifestyle modification), and adolescents in the normal‐weight range. All adolescents completed self‐report measures of impulsivity, delay discounting, depression, anxiety, stress, eating pathology, family functioning and quality of life, and had their height and weight measured. Adolescent surgical candidates had higher BMIs than both comparison groups. Surgical candidates did not differ from medical‐treatment‐seeking adolescents with obesity on any measure of psychosocial functioning, but both groups of adolescents with obesity reported greater anxiety and eating pathology and poorer quality of life than normal‐weight adolescents. Quality of life no longer differed across groups after controlling for BMI, suggesting that it is highly related to weight status. Adolescents with obesity may experience greater anxiety, eating pathology, and quality of life impairments than their peers in the normal‐weight range regardless of whether they are seeking surgery or outpatient medical treatment. Clinical implications and directions for future research are discussed.
Assessing the kinetics of microbubble appearance in cirrhotic patients using transthoracic saline contrast‐enhanced echocardiography
Authors: Tonelli Adriano R. , Naal Tawfeq , Dakkak Wael , Park Margaret M. , Dweik Raed A. , Stoller James K. 
Published: August 2017

BackgroundThe number of cardiac cycles that need to be reviewed by echocardiography before a significant intrapulmonary shunt can be excluded remains unclear.MethodsWe retrospectively identified patients with cirrhosis who underwent technetium‐99 m‐labeled macroaggregated albumin scanning. The kinetics of bubble appearance after the injection of agitated saline during transthoracic echocardiograms were assessed in these patients.ResultsFor the 64 eligible patients, the mean ± SD age was 56 ± 9 years. The median (IQR) shunt fraction by radionuclide scanning was 7.7% (2.8%–19.9%). Microbubbles were seen in the left atrium (LA) and left ventricle (LV) at a median (IQR) of 4 (2–5) and 4 (2–5) beats, respectively. The number of heart cycles before microbubbles appeared in the LA or LV was inversely associated with the nuclear scanning shunt fraction (R = −0.42, P = .001, R = −0.46, P < .001, respectively). If no microbubbles were detected by heart cycle 7, the shunt fraction was uniformly less than 3%. Patients with arterial oxygen <60 mm Hg, compared to ≥60 mm Hg, had earlier appearance of microbubbles in the left heart chambers (2.6 ± 1.9 vs 4.0 ± 2.3 beats, P = .046).ConclusionsIn patients with advanced cirrhosis suspected of having hepatopulmonary syndrome, a greater shunt fraction during nuclear scanning was associated with more pronounced hypoxemia and a prompt and more intense appearance of microbubbles in the left‐sided heart chambers. Patients with a shunt fraction above 3% have microbubbles in the LA or LV at some point during the first seven heart cycles.
Parental hospital‐treated somatic illnesses and psychosis of the offspring—The Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 study
Authors: Räsänen Sami , Niemelä Mika , Nordström Tanja , Hakko Helinä , Haapea Marianne , Marshall Catherine A , Miettunen Jouko 
Published: August 2017

AimThe aim of this study was to investigate whether parental somatic illnesses during childhood increase the risk for later psychosis in the offspring. In addition, we examined which parental illnesses in particular are associated with increased risk of psychosis in the offspring.MethodThe data of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 (NFBC 1986), included 9137 children born alive in northern Finland between the July 1, 1985, and the June 30, 1986. Information regarding the parents’ somatic morbidity was collected through various healthcare registers up to age 28 of the cohort members.ResultsPsychosis was diagnosed in 169 (1.8%) of the cohort members between the ages of 16 and 28. Accumulation of parental somatic diseases was related to later psychosis in the offspring. In addition, some specific somatic diagnostic groups of parents were emphasized in relation to psychosis in the offspring.ConclusionsOur study findings indicated that parental somatic illness should be taken into account in the prevention of serious mental health problems in their offspring.
Critique and resistance: Ethical, social‐theoretical, political? On Fabian Freyenhagen's Adorno's Practical Philosophy
Authors: Celikates Robin 
Published: August 2017

AbstractFabian Freyenhagen's impressive reconstruction of Adorno's ‘practical philosophy’ provides a convincing defence of the possibility of making normative claims about the social world we live in without justifying these claims in terms of the right, the good, or human nature. More specifically, and more controversially, Freyenhagen argues that the normative resources Adorno's critique relies on are provided by a negative Aristotelianism. In this paper, I argue that this approach underestimates the extent to which Adorno follows the model of immanent critique, I highlight the socio‐theoretical underpinnings of what Freyenhagen calls Adorno's ‘ethics of resistance’, and I discuss the risk of overstating the danger of co‐optation that collective political action faces.
An evaluation of a school‐based dental sealant programme
Authors: Williams R , Rogo EJ , Gurenlian JR , Portillo KM 
Published: August 2017

AbstractObjectivesTo evaluate the effectiveness of Bengal Smiles, a school‐based dental sealant programme and assess outcomes related to the U.S. Healthy People 2020 oral health objectives.MethodsA needs assessment identified high caries prevalence in Idaho children and supported the need for a school‐based dental sealant programme at a local Title 1 school. Children (n=54) ages 6‐12 were screened by dental hygiene students for suspected dental caries, sealant placement and need for referral for dental treatment. Sealant retention and sealant caries rates were computed at 12 months (n=32) using descriptive statistics. Caries rates were analysed with a t test for paired samples, while a chi‐square test was used to determine a difference in referral treatment rates before and after the intervention of administrative staff who contacted parents of children in need of dental treatment.ResultsBengal Smiles participants had a 16% decrease in suspected dental caries; however, there was no statistically significant difference in caries rates (P=.21) at baseline and 12 months. Sealant prevalence increased 370%. Sealant retention outcomes were 74% fully retained with 0% caries, 13% partially retained with 25% caries and 13% no retention with 25% caries. At 12 months, 50% of participants referred for dental treatment accessed care. The intervention of contacting parents had no statistically significant effect on increasing dental treatments (P=.75).ConclusionsSchool‐based sealant programmes eliminate disparities in accessing oral health care and contribute to attaining U.S. Healthy People 2020 oral health objectives.
Research priorities for specialized nursing practice in the United Arab Emirates
Authors: Al‐Yateem N. , Al‐Tamimi M. , Brenner M. , Altawil H. , Ahmad A. , Brownie S. 
Published: August 2017

BackgroundGlobally, nurses are undertaking expanded and more specialized roles in healthcare planning and service delivery in response to changing patterns and levels of health service demand. This means the nursing profession is increasingly considered as leaders in health service policy, research and practice. The United Arab Emirates has strengthened nursing governance and practice by establishing a Nursing and Midwifery Council and increasing the activity of nursing specialization, service leadership and research. This study aimed to identify clinically relevant research priorities to facilitate nursing contributions to evidence‐based care and strengthening health services in the country.MethodsA two‐stage Delphi study design was used.ResultsThe first round involved 783 participants. The second round involved 1116 participants, as more clinical settings were accessed. In total, 58 research priorities across a variety of nursing specialties (paediatrics, emergency care, intensive care, labour and maternity care, operating theatre and long‐term care) were identified as highly important.ConclusionThese identified priorities will guide a more informed programme of research in each nursing specialty, with the aim of strengthening the evidence base to improving outcomes for patients and their families in the United Arab Emirates.Implications for nursing practice, research and policyThe findings provide guidance on key areas for nurses to focus research contributions to enhance evidence‐based care and strengthen health systems. The identified priorities may also guide researchers in academic institutions to conduct research informed by current, clinically relevant issues. The findings may help inform funders and policymakers to support allocation of funding to research that has potential to contribute to enhancing nursing care in specialist areas.
Gender and leadership aspiration: Interpersonal and collective elements of cooperative climate differentially influence women and men
Authors: Fritz Claudia , van Knippenberg Daan 
Published: August 2017

AbstractFemale leaders remain a minority. Because leadership aspiration is a predictor of advancement, understanding stimulating conditions is important. A neglected perspective is the impact of organizational climate. We propose that cooperative climate can engender individuals’ motivation to contribute to the organization through leadership, and that leadership aspiration of women and men is differentially sensitive to interpersonal and collective aspects of cooperative climate. We argue that women are more disposed toward relational self‐construal and men toward collective self‐construal, and hence women's leadership aspiration is more influenced by the interpersonal element of cooperative climate whereas men's leadership aspiration by the collective element of cooperative climate. Results of a survey of N = 404 employed men and women supported both hypotheses.
Cardioprotection mediated by exosomes is impaired in the setting of type II diabetes but can be rescued by the use of non‐diabetic exosomes in vitro
Authors: Davidson Sean M. , Riquelme Jaime A. , Takov Kaloyan , Vicencio Jose M. , Boi‐Doku Claire , Khoo Vanessa , Doreth Christian , Radenkovic Dina , Lavandero Sergio , Yellon Derek M. 
Published: August 2017

AbstractMany patients with ischaemic heart disease also have diabetes. As myocardial infarction is a major cause of mortality and morbidity in these patients, treatments that increase cell survival in response to ischaemia and reperfusion are needed. Exosomes—nano‐sized, lipid vesicles released from cells—can protect the hearts of non‐diabetic rats. We previously showed that exosomal HSP70 activates a cardioprotective signalling pathway in cardiomyocytes culminating in ERK1/2 and HSP27 phosphorylation. Here, we investigated whether the exosomal cardioprotective pathway remains intact in the setting of type II diabetes. Exosomes were isolated by differential centrifugation from non‐diabetic and type II diabetic patients, from non‐diabetic and Goto Kakizaki type II diabetic rats, and from normoglycaemic and hyperglycaemic endothelial cells. Exosome size and number were not significantly altered by diabetes. CD81 and HSP70 exosome markers were increased in diabetic rat exosomes. However, exosomes from diabetic rats no longer activated the ERK1/2 and HSP27 cardioprotective pathway and were no longer protective in a primary rat cardiomyocytes model of hypoxia and reoxygenation injury. Hyperglycaemic culture conditions were sufficient to impair protection by endothelial exosomes. Importantly, however, exosomes from non‐diabetic rats retained the ability to protect cardiomyocytes from diabetic rats. Exosomes from diabetic plasma have lost the ability to protect cardiomyocytes, but protection can be restored with exosomes from non‐diabetic plasma. These results support the concept that exosomes may be used to protect cardiomyocytes against ischaemia and reperfusion injury, even in the setting of type II diabetes.
Effect of prebiotics on growth behavior of Lactobacillus plantarum and their impact on adherence of strict anaerobic pathogens to intestinal cell lines
Authors: Sharma Sakshi , Kanwar Sarbjit Singh 
Published: August 2017

AbstractThis study aimed to examine the influence of prebiotics on growth and activity of Lactobacillus plantarum and their effect on adherence of anaerobic pathogens to Caco‐2 and HT‐29 intestinal cell lines. The specific growth rate of indigenous L. plantarum in lactulose (0.51/hr) was found to be maximum followed by fructooligosaccharide (0.34/hr) and inulin (0.18/hr) which was statistically at par with reference strain. Shortest mean doubling time of indigenous strain was observed with lactulose (1 hr 35 min) followed by fructooligosaccharide (2 hr 3 min), and inulin (3 hr 85 min). Lactic and short‐chain fatty acids namely, acetic, propionic, and butyric were the principle metabolites observed after fermentation of prebiotics as detected by ultra‐performance liquid chromatography analysis. No significant change in growth and pH of anaerobic pathogens was observed in medium supplemented with different prebiotics. Presence of lactulose showed maximum inhibition in adherence of anaerobic pathogens namely, Peptostreptococcus anaerobius (39 and 37%), Clostridium perfringens (36 and 34%), and Bacteroides fragilis (18 and16%), to Caco‐2 and HT‐29 intestinal cell lines.Practical applicationsThe ability of certain bacteria to ferment prebiotics selectively is an important probiotic characteristic. According to the results of this study, lactulose was found to be the promising ingredient in combination with indigenous strain that not only supported the growth of lactobacillus strain, but also inhibited the adherence of anaerobic pathogens to intestinal cell lines. The metabolites produced on fermentation of prebiotic such as lactate, acetate, propionate, and butyrate have many reported health benefits in boosting the gut immunity of the host. Negligible growth of anaerobic pathogens in lactulose indicating its safe use without any ill effect to the host. Thus, the lactulose might have a potential for practical use in food industry for the development of future functional and dietary foods to impart health benefits at both colonic and systemic levels.