bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Instrument validation process: a case study using the Paediatric Pain Knowledge and Attitudes Questionnaire
Authors: Peirce Deborah , Brown Janie , Corkish Victoria , Lane Marguerite , Wilson Sally 
Published: February 2016

Aims and objectivesTo compare two methods of calculating interrater agreement while determining content validity of the Paediatric Pain Knowledge and Attitudes Questionnaire for use with Australian nurses.BackgroundPaediatric pain assessment and management documentation was found to be suboptimal revealing a need to assess paediatric nurses' knowledge and attitude to pain. The Paediatric Pain Knowledge and Attitudes Questionnaire was selected as it had been reported as valid and reliable in the United Kingdom with student nurses. The questionnaire required content validity determination prior to use in the Australian context.DesignA two phase process of expert review.MethodsTen paediatric nurses completed a relevancy rating of all 68 questionnaire items. In phase two, five pain experts reviewed the items of the questionnaire that scored an unacceptable item level content validity. Item and scale level content validity indices and intraclass correlation coefficients were calculated.ResultsIn phase one, 31 items received an item level content validity index <0·78 and the scale level content validity index average was 0·80 which were below levels required for acceptable validity. The intraclass correlation coefficient was 0·47. In phase two, 10 items were amended and four items deleted. The revised questionnaire provided a scale level content validity index average >0·90 and an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0·94 demonstrating excellent agreement between raters therefore acceptable content validity.ConclusionEquivalent outcomes were achieved using the content validity index and the intraclass correlation coefficient.Relevance to clinical practiceTo assess content validity the content validity index has the advantage of providing an item level score and is a simple calculation. The intraclass correlation coefficient requires statistical knowledge, or support, and has the advantage of accounting for the possibility of chance agreement.
Risk‐Adjusting the Returns to Venture Capital
Authors: KORTEWEG ARTHUR , NAGEL STEFAN 
Published: February 2016

ABSTRACTWe adapt stochastic discount factor (SDF) valuation methods for venture capital (VC) performance evaluation. Our approach generalizes the popular Public Market Equivalent (PME) method and allows statistical inference in the presence of cross‐sectionally dependent, skewed VC payoffs. We relax SDF restrictions implicit in the PME so that the SDF can accurately reflect risk‐free rates and returns of public equity markets during the sample period. This generalized PME yields substantially different abnormal performance estimates for VC funds and start‐up investments, especially in times of strongly rising public equity markets and for investments with betas far from one.
Boom and Gloom
Authors: POVEL PAUL , SERTSIOS GIORGO , KOSOVÁ RENÁTA , KUMAR PRAVEEN 
Published: February 2016

ABSTRACTWe study the performance of investments made at different points of an investment cycle. We use a large data set covering hotels in the United States, with rich details on their location, characteristics, and performance. We find that hotels built during hotel construction booms underperform their peers. For hotels built during local hotel construction booms, this underperformance persists for several decades. We examine possible explanations for this long‐lasting underperformance. The evidence is consistent with information‐based herding explanations.
Short‐ and long‐term acclimation patterns of the giant kelp Macrocystis pyrifera (Laminariales, Phaeophyceae) along a depth gradient
Authors: Koch Kristina , Thiel Martin , Hagen Wilhelm , Graeve Martin , Gómez Iván , Jofre David , Hofmann Laurie C. , Tala Fadia , Bischof Kai 
Published: February 2016

The giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera, is exposed to highly variable irradiance and temperature regimes across its geographic and vertical depth gradients. The objective of this study was to extend our understanding of algal acclimation strategies on different temporal scales to those varying abiotic conditions at various water depths. Different acclimation strategies to various water depths (0.2 and 4 m) between different sampling times (Jan/Feb and Aug/Sept 2012; long‐term acclimation) and more rapid adjustments to different depths (0.2, 2 and 4 m; short‐term acclimation) during 14 d of transplantation were found. Adjustments of variable Chl a fluorescence, pigment composition (Chl c, fucoxanthin), and the de‐epoxidation state of the xanthophyll cycle pigments were responsible for the development of different physiological states with respect to various solar radiation and temperature climates. Interestingly, the results indicated that phlorotannins are important during long‐term acclimation while antioxidants have a crucial role during short‐term acclimation. Furthermore, the results suggested that modifications in total lipids and fatty acid compositions apparently also might play a role in depth acclimation. In Aug/Sept (austral winter), M. pyrifera responded to the transplantation from 4 m to 0.2 m depth with a rise in the degree of saturation and a switch from shorter‐ to longer‐chain fatty acids. These changes seem to be essential for the readjustment of thylakoid membranes and might, thus, facilitate efficient photosynthesis under changing irradiances and temperatures. Further experiments are needed to disentangle the relative contribution of solar radiation, temperature and also other abiotic parameters in the observed physiological changes.
Disparate access to treatment regimens in chronic hepatitis C patients: data from the TRIO network
Authors: Younossi Z. M. , Bacon B. R. , Dieterich D. T. , Flamm S. L. , Kowdley K. , Milligan S. , Tsai N. , Nezam A. 
Published: February 2016

SummaryDespite the clinical success in the real‐world of all oral hepatitis C virus (HCV) therapy with response rates approaching that seen in the clinical trials, access has been limited by many payers with discussion of prioritization of treatment based upon AASLD guidelines. We evaluated patients in the TRIO network who were prescribed sofosbuvir (SOF)‐based regimens to determine reasons for not starting treatment. Trio Health is a disease management company that works in partnership with academic medical centres, community physicians and specialty pharmacies in the United States to optimize care for HCV. Data for 3841 patients prescribed a sofosbuvir‐containing regimen between December 2013 and September 2014 were obtained through this programme. Of the entire group, 315 (8%) patients did not start the prescribed sofosbuvir‐containing therapy. A total of 141 (45%) of the nonstart patients had a commercial plan as their primary insurance, 137 (44%) were primarily covered by Medicaid, 17 (5%) were primarily covered by Medicare, and 20 (6%) were either without coverage or coverage was not specified. Reasons for nonstarts were varied and overlapping. Only 15 patients (5% of nonstarts) did not start because they were unreachable or failed to complete required testing. Another 39 patients who did not start (12%) were following their physicians' direction to either wait for new treatment options or to hold treatment for an unspecified reason. Insurance‐related processes and financial reasons accounted for 254 (81%) of the 315 nonstarts. The remaining 7 (2%) patients did not have a specified reason for not starting treatment. Nonstart rates were highest in the Medicaid‐covered population at 35%. Medicare and Commercial nonstart rates were 2% and 6%, respectively. In a matched comparison, patients with commercial coverage were 6.5 times as likely to start SOF‐based therapy compared to patients with Medicaid. Despite high SVR rates of SOF‐based regimens in clinical practice, there are still barriers to access to care. In fact, almost half of the nonstart patients had advanced fibrosis scores (F3 or F4) and should have been prioritized to start treatment. As better treatment for HCV with high efficacy and low side effect rates become available, the disparity in access to treatment, as evidenced by the high nonstart rate in the Medicaid‐covered group, must be resolved.
Achieving sustained virologic response after interferon‐free hepatitis C virus treatment correlates with hepatic interferon gene expression changes independent of cirrhosis
Authors: Meissner E. G. , Kohli A. , Virtaneva K. , Sturdevant D. , Martens C. , Porcella S. F. , McHutchison J. G. , Masur H. , Kottilil S. 
Published: February 2016

SummaryChronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection can now be treated with oral directly acting antiviral agents, either with or without ribavirin (RBV). Virologic relapse after treatment can occur, and in some studies was more common in cirrhotic subjects. We previously observed changes in hepatic immunity during interferon (IFN)‐free therapy that correlated with favourable outcome in subjects with early liver disease. Here, we compared changes in endogenous IFN pathways during IFN‐free, RBV‐free therapy between cirrhotic and noncirrhotic subjects. mRNA and microRNA (miRNA) expression analyses were performed on paired pre‐ and post‐treatment liver biopsies from genotype‐1 HCV subjects treated with sofosbuvir/ledipasvir (SOF/LDV) for 12 weeks (n = 4, 3 cirrhotics) or SOF/LDV combined with GS‐9669 or GS‐9451 for 6 weeks (n = 6, 0 cirrhotics). Nine of ten subjects achieved a sustained virologic response (SVR), while one noncirrhotic subject relapsed. Hepatic IFN‐stimulated gene expression decreased with treatment in the liver of all subjects, with no observable impact of cirrhosis. Hepatic gene expression of type III IFNs (IFNL1, IFNL3, IFNL4‐ΔG) similarly decreased with treatment, while IFNA2 expression, undetectable in all subjects pretreatment, was detected post‐treatment in three subjects who achieved a SVR. Only the subject who relapsed had detectable IFNL4‐ΔG expression in post‐treatment liver. Other IFNs had no change in gene expression (IFNG, IFNB1, IFNA5) or could not be detected. Although expression of multiple hepatic miRNAs changed with treatment, many miRNAs previously implicated in HCV replication and IFN signalling had unchanged expression. In conclusion, favourable treatment outcome during IFN‐free HCV therapy is associated with changes in the host IFN response regardless of cirrhosis.
Revisiting the consequences of cooperative breeding
Authors: Burkart J. M. , van Schaik C. P. 
Published: February 2016

AbstractThornton & McAuliffe (2015) recently questioned the hypothesis that cooperative breeding has a variety of socio‐cognitive consequences, invoking both logical and empirical arguments. The cooperative breeding hypothesis (CBH) posits that the immediate tasks associated with extensive allomaternal care require motivational proximate mechanisms, such as increased social tolerance or proactive prosociality which, as a side‐effect, also can facilitate performance in socio‐cognitive tasks. Eventually, over evolutionary time this constellation may also, under specific conditions, facilitate increases in brain size. Thus, the CBH is not merely a modified version of the social brain hypothesis, as suggested by Thornton & McAuliffe, which would posit that a species has to be particularly smart to engage in cooperative breeding. In this reply, we first clarify these conceptual issues and then systematically address their criticism of the empirical evidence. We conclude that the empirical evidence for the CBH is strong in primates, but that future work on lineages other than primates is required to assess its generality.
The role of diet and nutritional supplementation in perinatal depression: a systematic review
Authors: Sparling Thalia M. , Henschke Nicholas , Nesbitt Robin C. , Gabrysch Sabine 
Published: February 2016

AbstractThis article presents a systematic literature review on whether dietary intake influences the risk for perinatal depression, i.e. depression during pregnancy or post‐partum. Such a link has been hypothesized given that certain nutrients are important in the neurotransmission system and pregnancy depletes essential nutrients. PubMed, EMBASE and CINAHL databases were searched for relevant articles until 30 May 2015. We included peer‐reviewed studies of any design that evaluated whether perinatal depression is related to dietary intake, which was defined as adherence to certain diets, food‐derived intake of essential nutrients or supplements. We identified 4808 studies, of which 35 fulfilled inclusion criteria: six randomized controlled trials, 12 cohort, one case‐control and 16 cross‐sectional studies, representing 88 051 distinct subjects. Studies were grouped into four main categories based on the analysis of dietary intake: adherence to dietary patterns (nine studies); full panel of essential nutrients (six studies); specific nutrients (including B vitamins, Vitamin D, calcium and zinc; eight studies); and intake of fish or polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs; 12 studies). While 13 studies, including three PUFA supplementation trials, found no evidence of an association, 22 studies showed protective effects from healthy dietary patterns, multivitamin supplementation, fish and PUFA intake, calcium, Vitamin D, zinc and possibly selenium. Given the methodological limitations of existing studies and inconsistencies in findings across studies, the evidence on whether nutritional factors influence the risk of perinatal depression is still inconclusive. Further longitudinal studies are needed, with robust and consistent measurement of dietary intake and depressive symptoms, ideally starting before pregnancy.
Revisiting a classic case of introgression: hybridization and gene flow in Californian sunflowers
Authors: Owens Gregory L. , Baute Gregory J. , Rieseberg Loren H. 
Published: February 2016

AbstractDuring invasion, colonizing species can hybridize with native species, potentially swamping out native genomes. However, theory predicts that introgression will often be biased into the invading species. Thus, empirical estimates of gene flow between native and invasive species are important to quantify the actual threat of hybridization with invasive species. One classic example of introgression occurs in California, where Helianthus bolanderi was thought to be a hybrid between the serpentine endemic Helianthus exilis and the congeneric invader Helianthus annuus. We used genotyping by sequencing to look for signals of introgression and population structure. We find that H. bolanderi and H. exilis form one genetic clade, with weak population structure that is associated with geographic location rather than soil composition and likely represent a single species, not two. Additionally, while our results confirmed early molecular analysis and failed to support the hybrid origin of H. bolanderi, we did find evidence for introgression mainly into the invader H. annuus, as predicted by theory.
Early Cretaceous Umkomasia from Mongolia: implications for homology of corystosperm cupules
Authors: Shi Gongle , Leslie Andrew B. , Herendeen Patrick S. , Herrera Fabiany , Ichinnorov Niiden , Takahashi Masamichi , Knopf Patrick , Crane Peter R. 
Published: February 2016

Summary

Corystosperms, a key extinct group of Late Permian to Early Cretaceous plants, are important for understanding seed plant phylogeny, including the evolution of the angiosperm carpel and anatropous bitegmic ovule.

Here, we describe a new species of corystosperm seed‐bearing organ, Umkomasia mongolica sp. nov., based on hundreds of three‐dimensionally preserved mesofossils from the Early Cretaceous of Mongolia.

Individual seed‐bearing units of U. mongolica consist of a bract subtending an axis that bifurcates, with each fork (cupule stalk) bearing a cupule near the tip. Each cupule is formed by the strongly reflexed cupule stalk and two lateral flaps that partially enclose an erect seed. The seed is borne at, or close to, the tip of the reflexed cupule stalk, with the micropyle oriented towards the stalk base.

The corystosperm cupule is generally interpreted as a modified leaf that bears a seed on its abaxial surface. However, U. mongolica suggests that an earlier interpretation, in which the seed is borne directly on an axis (shoot), is equally likely. The ‘axial’ interpretation suggests a possible relationship of corystosperms to Ginkgo. It also suggests that the cupules of corystosperms may be less distinct from those of Caytonia than has previously been supposed.
Topical Timolol for Infantile Hemangiomas: Evidence for Efficacy and Degree of Systemic Absorption
Authors: Weibel Lisa , Barysch Marjam J. , Scheer Helene S. , Königs Ingo , Neuhaus Kathrin , Schiestl Clemens , Rentsch Katharina , Müller Daniel M. , Theiler Martin 
Published: February 2016

AbstractBackgroundTopical use of timolol for infantile hemangiomas has recently emerged with promising results. It is unknown whether topical β‐blockers act locally or if their effect is partly due to systemic absorption. This study investigates whether topically applied timolol is absorbed and reports on the efficacy of this treatment.MethodsWe treated 40 infants with small proliferating hemangiomas with topical timolol gel 0.5% twice daily and assessed urinary excretion and serum levels in a proportion of patients. Clinical response was evaluated on a visual analog scale of standardized photographs after 1, 2, 3, and 5 months.ResultsForty infants with a median age of 18 weeks (range 2–35 wks) were included; 23 (58%) had superficial and 17 (42%) mixed‐type hemangiomas. The median size was 3 cm2 (range 0.1–15 cm2) and nine hemangiomas were ulcerated. The hemangiomas improved significantly during treatment, with a median increase in visual analog scale of 7 points after 5 months (p < 0.001). Urinalysis for timolol was performed in 24 patients and was positive in 20 patients (83%). In three infants, serum levels of timolol were also measured and were all positive (median 0.16 ng/mL [range 0.1–0.18 ng/mL]). No significant side effects were recorded.ConclusionTopical therapy with timolol is effective for infantile hemangiomas, but systemic absorption occurs. Serum levels in our patients were low, suggesting that using timolol for small hemangiomas is safe, but caution is advised when treating ulcerated or large hemangiomas, very young infants, or concomitantly using systemic propranolol.
Fetal arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy with double mutations in TMEM43
Authors: Honda Takashi , Kanai Yuji , Ohno Seiko , Ando Hisashi , Honda Masako , Niwano Shinichi , Ishii Masahiro 
Published: February 2016

AbstractWe herein describe a fetal case of arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) with double mutations in transmembrane protein 43 (TMEM43). RV aneurysm and ventricular arrhythmia were detected during the fetal period. After birth, electrocardiogram showed frequent premature ventricular contractions (PVC) of left bundle branch block morphology and epsilon waves in the right‐sided chest leads. Echocardiography also indicated RV aneurysm with regionally decreased systolic function. PVC disappeared after treatment with amiodarone and mexiletin. Mutations in TMEM43, which was recently identified as the causative gene of ARVC type 5, were also confirmed in the present patient and in the patient's mother, and they were therefore diagnosed with ARVC. The present case confirms that symptoms of ARVC can emerge during the fetal period. Pediatricians need to keep in mind the possibility of ARVC when they encounter patients with RV aneurysm and arrhythmia.
Implantable central venous access device in infants: Long‐term results
Authors: Ohno Koichi , Nakaoka Tatsuo , Takama Yuichi , Higashio Atsushi , Santo Kenji , Yoneda Akihiro 
Published: February 2016

AbstractBackgroundThe management of central venous access device (CVAD) is extremely difficult in babies and small infants (BSI). We therefore compared the long‐term results and complications of CVAD in BSI with those in children.MethodsOne hundred and twenty patients were divided into two groups as follows: age <1 year or weight <10 kg (group A; 25 patients); and age 1 year and weight 10 kg (group B; 95 patients). The clinical results were retrospectively compared between the groups.ResultsMean age and weight were 12.5 ± 5.9 months and 8.2 ± 1.2 kg in group A, and 78.8 ± 58.9 months and 20.9 ± 13.6 kg in group B. Operation time was 57 ± 29 min in group A and 52 ± 21 min in group B (P = 0.38). The catheter was advanced with difficulty into the central vein in five and in 16 patients (P = 0.77), and surgical complications occurred in one and in seven patients in groups A and B, respectively (P > 0.99). The CVAD remained in place for 627 ± 494 and 550 ± 414 days (P = 0.47) and was removed before treatment completion in five and in 14 patients in groups A and B, respectively (P = 0.54).ConclusionThe clinical results for CVAD in BSI did not differ from those in children. CVAD are useful and safe for the treatment of BSI with serious diseases.
The gap‐startle paradigm to assess auditory temporal processing: Bridging animal and human research
Authors: Fournier Philippe , Hébert Sylvie 
Published: February 2016

AbstractThe gap‐prepulse inhibition of the acoustic startle (GPIAS) paradigm is the primary test used in animal research to identify gap detection thresholds and impairment. When a silent gap is presented shortly before a loud startling stimulus, the startle reflex is inhibited and the extent of inhibition is assumed to reflect detection. Here, we applied the same paradigm in humans. One hundred and fifty‐seven normal‐hearing participants were tested using one of five gap durations (5, 25, 50, 100, 200 ms) in one of the following two paradigms—gap‐embedded in or gap‐following—the continuous background noise. The duration‐inhibition relationship was observable for both conditions but followed different patterns. In the gap‐embedded paradigm, GPIAS increased significantly with gap duration up to 50 ms and then more slowly up to 200 ms (trend only). In contrast, in the gap‐following paradigm, significant inhibition—different from 0—was observable only at gap durations from 50 to 200 ms. The finding that different patterns are found depending on gap position within the background noise is compatible with distinct mechanisms underlying each of the two paradigms.
An Empirical Process View of Inverse Regression
Authors: Portier François 
Published: February 2016

AbstractA common approach taken in high‐dimensional regression analysis is sliced inverse regression, which separates the range of the response variable into non‐overlapping regions, called ‘slices’. Asymptotic results are usually shown assuming that the slices are fixed, while in practice, estimators are computed with random slices containing the same number of observations. Based on empirical process theory, we present a unified theoretical framework to study these techniques, and revisit popular inverse regression estimators. Furthermore, we introduce a bootstrap methodology that reproduces the laws of Cramér–von Mises test statistics of interest to model dimension, effects of specified covariates and whether or not a sliced inverse regression estimator is appropriate. Finally, we investigate the accuracy of different bootstrap procedures by means of simulations.