bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Handwashing, sanitation and family planning practices are the strongest underlying determinants of child stunting in rural indigenous communities of Jharkhand and Odisha, Eastern India: a cross‐sectional study
Authors: Saxton Jennifer , Rath Shibanand , Nair Nirmala , Gope Rajkumar , Mahapatra Rajendra , Tripathy Prasanta , Prost Audrey 
Published: June 2016

AbstractThe World Health Organisation has called for global action to reduce child stunting by 40% by 2025. One third of the world's stunted children live in India, and children belonging to rural indigenous communities are the worst affected. We sought to identify the strongest determinants of stunting among indigenous children in rural Jharkhand and Odisha, India, to highlight key areas for intervention.We analysed data from 1227 children aged 6–23.99 months and their mothers, collected in 2010 from 18 clusters of villages with a high proportion of people from indigenous groups in three districts. We measured height and weight of mothers and children, and captured data on various basic, underlying and immediate determinants of undernutrition. We used Generalised Estimating Equations to identify individual determinants associated with children's height‐for‐age z‐score (HAZ; p < 0.10); we included these in a multivariable model to identify the strongest HAZ determinants using backwards stepwise methods.In the adjusted model, the strongest protective factors for linear growth included cooking outdoors rather than indoors (HAZ +0.66), birth spacing ≥24 months (HAZ +0.40), and handwashing with a cleansing agent (HAZ +0.32). The strongest risk factors were later birth order (HAZ −0.38) and repeated diarrhoeal infection (HAZ −0.23).Our results suggest multiple risk factors for linear growth faltering in indigenous communities in Jharkhand and Odisha. Interventions that could improve children's growth include reducing exposure to indoor air pollution, increasing access to family planning, reducing diarrhoeal infections, improving handwashing practices, increasing access to income and strengthening health and sanitation infrastructure.
An atypical forkhead‐containing transcription factor SsFKH1 is involved in sclerotial formation and is essential for pathogenicity in Sclerotinia sclerotiorum
Authors: Fan Huidong , Yu Gang , Liu Yanzhi , Zhang Xianghui , Liu Jinliang , Zhang Yanhua , Rollins Jeffrey A. , Sun Fengjie , Pan Hongyu 
Published: June 2016

SummarySclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) de Bary is a necrotrophic plant pathogen with a worldwide distribution. The sclerotia of S. sclerotiorum are pigmented multicellular structures formed from the aggregation of vegetative hyphae. These survival structures play a central role in the life and infection cycles of this pathogen. Here, we characterized an atypical forkhead (FKH)‐box‐containing protein, SsFKH1, involved in sclerotial development and virulence. To investigate the role of SsFkh1 in S. sclerotiorum, the partial sequence of SsFkh1 was cloned and RNA interference (RNAi)‐based gene silencing was employed to alter the expression of SsFkh1. RNA‐silenced mutants with significantly reduced SsFkh1 RNA levels exhibited slow hyphal growth and sclerotial developmental defects. In addition, the expression levels of a set of putative melanin biosynthesis‐related laccase genes and a polyketide synthase‐encoding gene were significantly down‐regulated in silenced strains. Disease assays demonstrated that pathogenicity in RNAi‐silenced strains was significantly compromised with the development of a smaller infection lesion on tomato leaves. Collectively, the results suggest that SsFkh1 is involved in hyphal growth, virulence and sclerotial formation in S. sclerotiorum.
Nausea and vomiting in gastroparesis: similarities and differences in idiopathic and diabetic gastroparesis
Authors: Parkman H. P. , Hallinan E. K. , Hasler W. L. , Farrugia G. , Koch K. L. , Calles J. , Snape W. J. , Abell T. L. , Sarosiek I. , McCallum R. W. , Nguyen L. , Pasricha P. J. , Clarke J. , Miriel L. , Lee L. , Tonascia J. , Hamilton F. ,   The NIDDK Gastroparesis Clinical Research Consortium (GpCRC)
Published: June 2016

AbstractBackgroundNausea and vomiting are classic symptoms of gastroparesis. It remains unclear if characteristics of nausea and vomiting are similar in different etiologies of gastroparesis. The aims of this article were as follows: to describe characteristics of nausea and vomiting in patients with gastroparesis and to determine if there are differences in nausea and vomiting in diabetic (DG) and idiopathic gastroparesis (IG).MethodsGastroparetic patients enrolling in the NIDDK Gastroparesis Registry underwent assessment with history and questionnaires assessing symptoms, quality of life, and a questionnaire characterizing nausea and vomiting.Key ResultsOf 159 gastroparesis patients (107 IG, 52 DG), 96% experienced nausea, whereas 65% experienced vomiting. Nausea was predominant symptom in 28% and vomiting was predominant in 4%. Nausea was severe or very severe in 41%. PAGI‐SYM nausea/vomiting subscore was greater with increased vomiting severity, but not nausea severity in DG than IG. Nausea was related to meals in 71%; lasting most of the day in 41%. Increasing nausea severity was related to decreased quality of life. Nausea often preceded vomiting in 82% of patients and vomiting often relieved nausea in 30%. Vomiting was more common in DG (81%) compared to IG (57%; p = 0.004). Diabetic patients more often had vomiting in the morning before eating, during the night, and when not eating.Conclusions & InferencesNausea is present in essentially all patients with gastroparesis irrespective of cause and associated with decreased quality of life. In contrast, vomiting was more prevalent, more severe, and occurred more often in DG than IG. Thus, characteristics of vomiting differ in IG vs DG.
The cbfs triple mutants reveal the essential functions of CBFs in cold acclimation and allow the definition of CBF regulons in Arabidopsis
Authors: Jia Yuxin , Ding Yanglin , Shi Yiting , Zhang Xiaoyan , Gong Zhizhong , Yang Shuhua 
Published: June 2016

Summary

In Arabidopsis, the C‐repeat binding factors (CBFs) have been extensively studied as key transcription factors in the cold stress response. However, their exact functions in the cold response remains unclear due to the lack of a null cbf triple mutant.

In this study, we used CRISPR/Cas9 technology to mutate CBF1 or CBF1/CBF2 in a cbf3 T‐DNA insertion mutant to generate cbf1,3 double and cbf1 cbf2 cbf3 (cbfs) triple mutants.

The response of the cbfs triple mutants to chilling stress is impaired. Furthermore, no significant difference in freezing tolerance was observed between the wild‐type and the cbf1,3 and cbfs mutants without cold acclimation. However, the cbfs mutants were extremely sensitive to freezing stress after cold acclimation, and freezing sensitivity ranking was cbfs > cbf1,3 > cbf3. RNA‐Seq analysis showed that 134 genes were CBF regulated, of which 112 were regulated positively and 22 negatively by CBFs.

Our study reveals the essential functions of CBFs in chilling stress response and cold acclimation, as well as defines a set of genes as CBF regulon. It also provides materials for the genetic dissection of components in CBF‐dependent cold signaling.
Nurses' oral hygiene care practices with hospitalised older adults in postacute settings
Authors: Coker Esther , Ploeg Jenny , Kaasalainen Sharon , Carter Nancy 
Published: June 2016

Aim and objectiveThe purpose of this study was to explore how nurses provide bedtime oral hygiene care, how they decide on interventions provided, and what factors influence their ability to provide oral care.BackgroundCurrent evidence links poor oral hygiene to systemic and infectious diseases such as pneumonia. Hospitalised patients, who now retain their teeth into older adulthood, often rely on nurses to provide oral hygiene care. Nurses have the potential to impact oral health outcomes and quality of life by controlling plaque. However, oral hygiene care practices of nurses in postacute hospital settings are relatively unknown.DesignA qualitative, exploratory multiple‐case study was conducted with 25 nurses working on five inpatient units at different hospitals.MethodsNurses were accompanied on their evening rounds to observe oral care practices, the physical environment and workflow. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the case study data including transcripts of guided conversations, field notes and documents. Within‐case analysis was followed by cross‐case analysis.ResultsFindings indicate that (i) nurses often convey oral hygiene care to their patients as being optional; (ii) nurses are inclined to preserve patient autonomy in oral hygiene care; (iii) oral hygiene care is often spontaneous and variable, and may not be informed by evidence; and (iv) oral hygiene care is not embedded into bedtime care routines.ConclusionsOral hygiene care is discretionary and often missed care.Implications for practiceNurses need knowledge of the health benefits of oral care, and skills related to assessment and approaches to oral care. Availability of effective products and supplies facilitates provision of oral care. The evidence for oral hygiene care practices, outcomes of nurse‐administered oral care and nursing's role in influencing the oral health literacy of patients require further study.
Is the frequency of adult strabismus surgery increasing?
Authors: Astle Andrew T. , Foulsham Tom , Foss Alexander J. , McGraw Paul V. 
Published: June 2016

AbstractPurposeIn recent years there has been an increase in evidence for the functional and psychosocial benefits of correcting strabismus/heterotropia in adults. This study aimed to establish whether there has been an associated change in the frequency of strabismus surgery performed on adults in England since 2000.MethodsData on strabismus surgery performed in England between 2000 and 2014 were obtained from Hospital Episode Statistics, Health and Social Care Information Centre, England. The frequency of strabismus surgery was analysed for different age groups. Data were considered in the context of total population data for England, obtained from the Office for National Statistics.ResultsThere was little change in the total number of strabismus operations performed in 2000–2014 (1% reduction). In the same period the number of operations performed on children aged 0–15 years decreased by 17%. In contrast, there was a 24% increase in the number of strabismus operations performed on patients aged 15 years or older.ConclusionsAlthough strabismus surgery is still most commonly performed on children, the data show there has been a significant increase in the number of strabismus operations performed on adults. We speculate that this increase is connected to the growing weight of evidence detailing the functional and psychosocial consequences of strabismus and the benefits of correction. These results have potential implications for the delivery of future care.
Local Explosion Modelling by Non-Causal Process
Authors: Gouriéroux Christian , Zakoïan Jean-Michel 
Published: June 2016

Summary
The non-causal auto-regressive process with heavy-tailed errors has non-linear causal dynamics, which allow for local explosion or asymmetric cycles that are often observed in economic and financial time series. It provides a new model for multiple local explosions in a strictly stationary framework. The causal predictive distribution displays surprising features, such as higher moments than for the marginal distribution, or the presence of a unit root in the Cauchy case. Aggregating such models can yield complex dynamics with local and global explosion as well as variation in the rate of explosion. The asymptotic behaviour of a vector of sample auto-correlations is studied in a semiparametric non-causal AR(1) framework with Pareto-like tails, and diagnostic tests are proposed. Empirical results based on the Nasdaq composite price index are provided.
C‐type Lectin Receptor Expression on Human Basophils and Effects of Allergen‐Specific Immunotherapy
Authors: Lundberg K. , Rydnert F. , Broos S. , Andersson M. , Greiff L. , Lindstedt M. 
Published: June 2016

AbstractBasophils are emerging as immunoregulatory cells capable of interacting with their environment not only via their characteristic IgE‐mediated activation, but also in an IgE‐independent manner. Basophils are known to express and respond to stimulation via TLR2, TLR4, DC‐SIGN and DCIR, but whether basophils also express other C‐type lectin receptors (CLRs) is largely unknown. In this study, we investigate the CLR expression profile of human basophils using multicolour flow cytometry. As FcRs as well as some CLRs are associated with allergen recognition and shown to be involved in subsequent immune responses, the expression of CLRs and FcRs on peripheral blood basophils, as well as their frequency, was monitored for 1 year in subjects undergoing subcutaneous allergen‐specific immunotherapy (AIT). Here, we show that human basophils express CLECSF14, DEC205, Dectin‐1, Dectin‐2 and MRC2. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the frequencies of basophils expressing the allergy‐associated CLRs Dectin‐1 and Dectin‐2 were significantly reduced after 1 year and 8 weeks of AIT, respectively. In contrast, the frequency of basophils positive for FcγRII, as well as the fraction of total basophils, significantly increased after 1 year of AIT. The herein demonstrated expression of various CLRs on basophils, and their altered CLR and FcR expression profile upon AIT, suggest yet unexplored ways by which basophils can interact with antigens and may point to novel immunoregulatory functions targeted through AIT.
Study of red blood cell alloimmunization risk factors in multiply transfused thalassemia patients: role in improving thalassemia transfusion practice in Fayoum, Egypt
Authors: Abdelrazik Abeer Mohamed , Elshafie Shahira Morsy , El Said Manal Niazi , Ezzat Ahmed Ghada M. , Al‐Gamil Al‐Kassem Ahmed , El Nahhas Mona Gamal Mostafa , Sady Ahmed Ali Badie 
Published: June 2016

BACKGROUNDβ‐Thalassemia is considered the most common chronic hemolytic anemia in Egypt. Alloimmunization can lead to serious clinical complications in transfusion‐dependent patients. The objective of this study was to determine the frequency and types of alloantibodies, and, in addition, to study the risk factors that might influence alloimmunization in multiply transfused thalassemia patients in Fayoum, Egypt, with the goal that this study could help minimize some of the transfusion‐associated risks in those patients.STUDY DESIGN AND METHODSA total of 188 multiply transfused thalassemia patients attending Fayoum University Hospital were analyzed. Alloantibody identification was performed by DiaMed‐ID microtyping system.RESULTSAlloimmunization prevalence was 7.98%. The most common alloantibody was D‐related; anti‐D was the most frequent alloantibody found in eight of the 188 patients (4.25 %), followed by anti‐C in two patients (1.1%), anti‐ E in two (1.1 %), anti‐c in two (1.1 %), anti‐Fya in two (1.1%), anti‐K in one (0.53 %), and an unknown antibody in one patient (0.53%). Higher rates of alloimmunization were found in female patients, in patients with β‐thalassemia intermedia, in splenectomized patients, in D– patients, and in patients who started blood transfusion after 3 years of age.CONCLUSIONThe study reemphasizes the need for cost‐effective strategy for thalassemia transfusion practice in developing countries. Red blood cell antigen typing before transfusion and issue of antigen‐matched or antigen‐negative blood can be made available to alloimmunized multiply transfused patients. Early institution of transfusion therapy after diagnosis is another means of decreasing alloimmunization.
First steps into lean at the Australian Red Cross Blood Service
Authors: Jones T. R. , Wilkie G. 
Published: June 2016

AimThe drivers for introducing lean principles to the Blood Service were as follows:

Pressure on the health dollar and a commitment to providing value for taxpayer funding;
Recognition of process inefficiencies including comparative international benchmarking
MethodIn early 2013, the Manufacturing Division of the Blood Service launched a series of kaizen or rapid improvement events. Around thirty front‐line staff and supervisors were trained in the tools and techniques and encouraged to address some long‐standing improvement opportunities.ResultsLean awareness programmes were developed and rolled out to all manufacturing employees, and this was built into the induction programme for new employees. Visual management, short interval production meetings and gemba walks were introduced and quickly drew attention from other parts of the Blood Service. Waste reduction, pull, flow, level production and lean production systems all feature in the new plan as key enablers to the achievement of strategic goals.ConclusionThe Blood Service is already seeing great benefits from the pursuit of a lean continuous improvement culture. While most of the gains have been within the Manufacturing Division to date, momentum is building in other parts of the business, supported by a small central team of business process improvement specialists. The changes in manufacturing have resulted in improvements in meeting customer demand and strong improvements in productivity in both processing and testing.
Genomic Changes Associated with the Loss of Nocardia brasiliensis Virulence in Mice after 200
In Vitro
Passages
Authors: Gonzalez-Carrillo Carolina , Millan-Sauceda Cassandra , Lozano-Garza Hector Gerardo , Ortiz-Lopez Rocio , Elizondo-Gonzalez Ramiro , Welsh Oliverio , Ocampo-Candiani Jorge , Vera-Cabrera Lucio 
Published: June 2016

ABSTRACT

Nocardia
species, particularly
Nocardia brasiliensis
, are etiologic agents of mycetoma, a chronic subcutaneous infection. Until now, little has been known about the pathogenic mechanisms involved in nocardial infection. Traditionally, subculture in rich media has been a simple way to induce attenuation. In this work, we report the changes in virulence toward mice and in genomic constitution of
N. brasiliensis
produced after 200 continuous subcultures in brain heart infusion (BHI) medium (P-200 strain). The ability of the
N. brasiliensis
P-200 strain to produce experimental infection was tested using BALB/c mice. P-200 was also used to immunize mice to determine whether it could induce resistance against a challenge with a nonsubcultured isolate (P-0). Comparative proteomic analysis between
N. brasiliensis
P-0 and P-200 was performed by two-dimensional (2-D) electrophoresis, and the genome sequence was obtained through Roche 454 sequence analysis. Virulence in BALB/c mice was completely lost, and BALB/c mice immunized with P-200 bacterial cells were resistant to mycetoma production by the nonsubcultured strain. Whole-genome sequence analysis revealed that P-200 lost a total of 262,913 bp distributed in 19 deleted regions, involving a total of 213 open reading frames (ORFs). The deleted genes included those encoding bacterial virulence factors, e.g., catalase, nitrate reductase enzymes, and a group of mammalian cell entry (MCE) family proteins, which may explain the loss of virulence of the isolate. Thus, completely attenuated
N. brasiliensis
was obtained after 200 passages in BHI medium, and putative
Nocardia
virulence genes were identified for the first time.
The Escherichia coli P and Type 1 Pilus Assembly Chaperones PapD and FimC Are Monomeric in Solution
Authors: Sarowar Samema , Hu Olivia J. , Werneburg Glenn T. , Thanassi David G. , Li Huilin 
Published: June 2016

ABSTRACT

The chaperone/usher pathway is used by Gram-negative bacteria to assemble adhesive surface structures known as pili or fimbriae. Uropathogenic strains of
Escherichia coli
use this pathway to assemble P and type 1 pili, which facilitate colonization of the kidney and bladder, respectively. Pilus assembly requires a periplasmic chaperone and outer membrane protein termed the usher. The chaperone allows folding of pilus subunits and escorts the subunits to the usher for polymerization into pili and secretion to the cell surface. Based on previous structures of mutant versions of the P pilus chaperone PapD, it was suggested that the chaperone dimerizes in the periplasm as a self-capping mechanism. Such dimerization is counterintuitive because the chaperone G1 strand, important for chaperone-subunit interaction, is buried at the dimer interface. Here, we show that the wild-type PapD chaperone also forms a dimer in the crystal lattice; however, the dimer interface is different from the previously solved structures. In contrast to the crystal structures, we found that both PapD and the type 1 pilus chaperone, FimC, are monomeric in solution. Our findings indicate that pilus chaperones do not sequester their G1 β-strand by forming a dimer. Instead, the chaperones may expose their G1 strand for facile interaction with pilus subunits. We also found that the type 1 pilus adhesin, FimH, is flexible in solution while in complex with its chaperone, whereas the P pilus adhesin, PapGII, is rigid. Our study clarifies a crucial step in pilus biogenesis and reveals pilus-specific differences that may relate to biological function.

IMPORTANCE
Pili are critical virulence factors for many bacterial pathogens. Uropathogenic
E. coli
relies on P and type 1 pili assembled by the chaperone/usher pathway to adhere to the urinary tract and establish infection. Studying pilus assembly is important for understanding mechanisms of protein secretion, as well as for identifying points for therapeutic intervention. Pilus biogenesis is a multistep process. This work investigates the oligomeric state of the pilus chaperone in the periplasm, which is important for understanding early assembly events. Our work unambiguously demonstrates that both PapD and FimC chaperones are monomeric in solution. We further demonstrate that the solution behavior of the FimH and PapGII adhesins differ, which may be related to functional differences between the two pilus systems.
Directed Binding of Gliding Bacterium, Mycoplasma mobile, Shown by Detachment Force and Bond Lifetime
Authors: Tanaka Akihiro , Nakane Daisuke , Mizutani Masaki , Nishizaka Takayuki , Miyata Makoto 
Published: June 2016

ABSTRACT

Mycoplasma mobile
, a fish-pathogenic bacterium, features a protrusion that enables it to glide smoothly on solid surfaces at a velocity of up to 4.5 µm s
−1
in the direction of the protrusion.
M. mobile
glides by a repeated catch-pull-release of sialylated oligosaccharides fixed on a solid surface by hundreds of 50-nm flexible “legs” sticking out from the protrusion. This gliding mechanism may be explained by a possible directed binding of each leg with sialylated oligosaccharides, by which the leg can be detached more easily forward than backward. In the present study, we used a polystyrene bead held by optical tweezers to detach a starved cell at rest from a glass surface coated with sialylated oligosaccharides and concluded that the detachment force forward is 1.6- to 1.8-fold less than that backward, which may be linked to a catch bond-like behavior of the cell. These results suggest that this directed binding has a critical role in the gliding mechanism.

IMPORTANCE
Mycoplasma
species are the smallest bacteria and are parasitic and occasionally commensal, as represented by
Mycoplasma pneumoniae
, which causes so-called “walking pneumonia” in humans. Dozens of species glide on host tissues, always in the direction of the characteristic cellular protrusion, by novel mechanisms. The fastest species,
Mycoplasma mobile
, catches, pulls, and releases sialylated oligosaccharides (SOs), which are common targets among influenza viruses, by means of a specific receptor based on the energy of ATP hydrolysis. Here, force measurements made with optical tweezers revealed that the force required to detach a cell from SOs is smaller forward than backward along the gliding direction. The directed binding should be a clue to elucidate this novel motility mechanism.