bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Preoperative quality of life predicts complications in thoracic surgery: a retrospective cohort study
Authors: Peters Eagan J , Buduhan Gordon , Tan Lawrence , Srinathan Sadeesh K , Kidane Biniam 
Published: August 2024

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
Patients undergoing thoracic surgery experience high complication rates. It is uncertain whether preoperative health-related quality of life (HRQOL) measurements can predict patients at higher risk for postoperative complications. The objective of this study was to determine the association between preoperative HRQOL and postoperative complications among patients undergoing thoracic surgery.

METHODS
This was a retrospective cohort study of prospectively collected data. Consecutive patients undergoing elective thoracic surgery at a Canadian tertiary care centre between January 2018 and January 2019 were included. Patient HRQOL was measured using the Euroqol-5 Dimension (EQ-5D) survey. Complications were recorded using the Ottawa Thoracic Morbidity and Mortality system. Uni- and multivariable analysis were performed.

RESULTS
Of 515 surgeries performed, 133 (25.8%) patients experienced at least 1 postoperative complication; 345 (67.0%) patients underwent surgery for malignancy. A range of 271 (52.7%) to 310 (60.2%) patients experienced pain/discomfort at each timepoint. On multivariable analysis, lower preoperative EQ-5D visual analogue scale scores were significantly associated with postoperative complications (adjusted odds ratio 0.97, 95% confidence interval 0.95–0.99; P = 0.01). Presence of malignancy was not independently associated with complications (P = 0.68).

CONCLUSIONS
Self-reported preoperative HRQOL can predict incidence of postoperative complications among patients undergoing thoracic surgery. Assessments of preoperative HRQOL may help identify patients at higher risk for developing complications. These findings could be used to direct preoperative risk-mitigation strategies in areas of HRQOL where patients suffer most, such as pain. The full perioperative trajectory of patient HRQOL should be discerned to identify subsets of patients who share common risk factors.
Multimodal Transformers and Their Applications in Drug Target Discovery for Aging and Age-Related Diseases
Authors: Steurer Barbara , Vanhaelen Quentin , Zhavoronkov Alex 
Published: August 2024

Abstract
Given the unprecedented rate of global aging, advancing aging research and drug discovery to support healthy and productive longevity is a pressing socioeconomic need. Holistic models of human and population aging that account for biomedical background, environmental context, and lifestyle choices are fundamental to address these needs, but integration of diverse data sources and large data sets into comprehensive models is challenging using traditional approaches. Recent advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning, and specifically multimodal transformer-based neural networks, have enabled the development of highly capable systems that can generalize across multiple data types. As such, multimodal transformers can generate systemic models of aging that can predict health status and disease risks, identify drivers, or breaks of physiological aging, and aid in target discovery against age-related disease. The unprecedented capacity of transformers to extract and integrate information from large and diverse data modalities, combined with the ever-increasing availability of biological and medical data, has the potential to revolutionize healthcare, promoting healthy longevity and mitigating the societal and economic impacts of global aging.
Racial and Ethnic Variations in Resilience Factors Among Sexual and Gender Minority Midlife and Older Adults
Authors: Nelson Christi L , Oswald Austin G , Jung Hailey H , Fredriksen-Goldsen Karen I 
Published: August 2024

Abstract

Background and Objectives
This study explores resilience factors among sexual and gender minority (SGM) midlife and older adults, identifying historical/environmental, psychological, social, and behavioral predictors, and examining variations across racial/ethnic subgroups. By adopting a resilience-focused perspective, this research contributes to understanding strengths in the SGM community in the context of aging.

Research Design and Methods
Using weighted survey data from Aging with Pride: National Health, Aging, and Sexuality/Gender Study, this research investigates distinct risk and protective factors associated with resilience among SGM midlife and older adults. Subgroup variations were assessed using regression models. Factors moderated by race/ethnicity were integrated into final interaction models.

Results
Hispanic and Black individuals showed significantly higher resilience than non-Hispanic Whites. Lifetime victimization and day-to-day discrimination were negatively associated with resilience. Positive associations were found for higher income, identity affirmation, larger network size, greater social participation, increased physical activity, and sufficient food intake. Interaction models revealed nuanced patterns by subgroups; education negatively impacted resilience among Black individuals, while income positively influenced Hispanic individuals’ resilience. The Other racial/ethnic group demonstrated unique associations between optimal sleep and resilience.

Discussion and Implications
This study shifts from a deficit-based to a resilience-focused approach among SGM midlife and older adults, revealing key strengths within diverse subgroups. Results underscore the significance of recognizing racial/ethnic differences in factors promoting resilience and posing risks for SGM midlife and older adults. Tailoring interventions to address the intersectional needs of SGM aging populations is essential for enhancing their abilities to bounce back from adverse events.
Which Social Variables Predict Diabetes Onset? Robust Findings in Two National Surveys
Authors: Hawkley Louise C , Wroblewski Kristen E , Schumm Philip , Wang Sabrina D , Finch Laura E , McClintock Martha K , Huang Elbert S 
Published: August 2024

Abstract

Background and Objectives
The role of social factors in diabetes onset has been obscured by wide variation in their conceptualization and operationalization. We apply 3 theoretical frameworks to categorize social relationship variables along several dimensions and identify which dimension(s) are robustly associated with incident diabetes in the older adult population.

Research Design and Methods
The National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (n = 2,365) and the Health and Retirement Study (n =11,824) provided longitudinal data from 57 to 90-year-old respondents over a 4- to 5-year period. Logistic regression models were used to test associations of 15 social variables measured identically in both data sets with diabetes onset measured as respondents’ first report of a physician’s diagnosis.

Results
In both studies, not being married, experiencing strain in a spousal relationship, and feeling lonely were associated with increased risk for diabetes onset at follow-up. Inconsistent or null findings were observed for social support, social activity, network size, number of friends and relatives, living alone, and closeness to network members.

Discussion and Implications
Robust findings in 2 large-scale surveys support the importance of the valence dimension (i.e., positive and negative); specifically, alleviating negative aspects of social life might more effectively reduce risk for diabetes than augmenting positive ones. Findings were not aligned with social variables differing on the subjectivity dimension (i.e., structural, functional, and qualitative aspects of social connections). Future work needs consistent conceptualization and measurement of social factors to correctly identify and categorize risk factors for diabetes onset and other health conditions in older adults.
Rescue of Scn5a mis-splicing does not improve the structural and functional heart defects of a DM1 heart mouse model
Authors: Nitschke Larissa , Hu Rong-Chi , Miller Andrew N , Cooper Thomas A 
Published: August 2024

Abstract
Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1 (DM1) is an autosomal dominant multisystemic disorder for which cardiac features, including conduction delays and arrhythmias, are the second leading cause of disease mortality. DM1 is caused by expanded CTG repeats in the 3′ untranslated region of the DMPK gene. Transcription of the expanded DMPK allele produces mRNAs containing long tracts of CUG repeats, which sequester the Muscleblind-Like family of RNA binding proteins, leading to their loss-of-function and the dysregulation of alternative splicing. A well-characterized mis-regulated splicing event in the DM1 heart is the increased inclusion of SCN5A exon 6A rather than the mutually exclusive exon 6B that normally predominates in adult heart. As previous work showed that forced inclusion of Scn5a exon 6A in mice recapitulates cardiac DM1 phenotypes, we tested whether rescue of Scn5a mis-splicing would improve the cardiac phenotypes in a DM1 heart mouse model. We generated mice lacking Scn5a exon 6A to force the expression of the adult SCN5A isoform including exon 6B and crossed these mice to our previously established CUG960 DM1 heart mouse model. We showed that correction Scn5a mis-splicing does not improve the DM1 heart conduction delays and structural changes induced by CUG repeat RNA expression. Interestingly, we found that in addition to Scn5a mis-splicing, Scn5a expression is reduced in heart tissues of CUG960 mice and DM1-affected individuals. These data indicate that Scn5a mis-splicing is not the sole driver of DM1 heart deficits and suggest a potential role for reduced Scn5a expression in DM1 cardiac disease.
Benefit-Risk Trade-offs and Patient Preferences for Therapy Selection in Ulcerative Colitis: a Multicountry Preference Study
Authors: Gisbert Javier P , Schreiber Stefan , Siegel Corey A , Magro Fernando , Jus Anna , Whichello Chiara , Michaels-Igbokwe Christine , Heidenreich Sebastian , Oortwijn Alessandra , Vermeire Séverine 
Published: August 2024

Abstract

Background
To help navigate the complex treatment landscape of ulcerative colitis (UC), we quantified the benefit-risk trade-offs that patients were willing to make when choosing treatment.

Methods
Patients completed an online discrete choice experiment. Eligible patients had a UC diagnosis for ≥6 months, were aged ≥18 years, and resided in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, or the UK. Patients chose between 2 hypothetical treatments set up to ensure trade-offs were made. Clinical trial data, literature review, and patient interviews identified treatment attributes. Relative attribute importance (RAI) scores and maximum acceptable risks were generated. A patient-centric benefit-risk assessment of 200 mg of filgotinib was conducted as an example to show how measured trade-offs can be used.

Results
Overall, 631 patients participated; patients had a mean age of 42.2 years and were predominantly male (75.3%). Achieving and maintaining clinical remission was the most important factor for patients (RAI 32.4%); to achieve this, patients were willing to accept slightly higher risks of blood clots, serious infections, and malignancies compared with lower risk treatment profiles. Patients also valued the convenience of oral treatments, avoiding steroids, and the ability to attend school/work. The patient-centric benefit-risk assessment suggested patients are significantly more likely to prefer Janus kinase 1 preferential inhibitor filgotinib over placebo.

Conclusions
Achieving clinical remission was the highest treatment priority for patients. To attain this, patients were willing to accept some slightly higher risk treatment profiles. Patient choices in the benefit-risk assessment suggested patients were significantly more likely to prefer filgotinib over placebo.
Life-course influences of poverty on violence and homicide: 30-year Brazilian birth cohort study
Authors: Murray Joseph , Degli Esposti Michelle , Loret de Mola Christian , Martins Rafaela , Smith Andrew D A C , Moffitt Terrie E , Heron Jon , Miranda Vanessa Iribarrem , Lima Natalia , Horta Bernardo L 
Published: August 2024

Abstract

Background
Homicide is the leading cause of death among young people in Latin America, one of the world’s most violent regions. Poverty is widely considered a key cause of violence, but theories suggest different effects of poverty, depending on when it is experienced in the life-course. Longitudinal studies of violence are scarce in Latin America, and very few prospective data are available worldwide to test different life-course influences on homicide.

Methods
In a prospective birth cohort study following 5914 children born in southern Brazil, we examined the role of poverty at birth, in early childhood, and in early adulthood on violence and homicide perpetration, in criminal records up to age 30 years. A novel Structured Life Course Modelling Approach was used to test competing life-course hypotheses about ‘sensitive periods’, ‘accumulation of risk’, and ‘downward mobility’ regarding the influence of poverty on violence and homicide.

Results
Cumulative poverty and poverty in early adulthood were the most important influences on violence and homicide perpetration. This supports the hypothesis that early adulthood is a sensitive period for the influence of poverty on lethal and non-lethal violence. Results were replicable using different definitions of poverty and an alternative outcome of self-reported fights.

Conclusion
Cumulative poverty from childhood to adulthood was an important driver of violence and homicide in this population. However, poverty experienced in early adulthood was especially influential, suggesting the importance of proximal mechanisms for violence in this context, such as unemployment, organized crime, drug trafficking, and ineffective policing and justice systems.
The “Clinching Effect” and Affective Polarization: Exposure to Incivility via Social Media in the Presence of Online News
Authors: Brundidge Jennifer , Garrett R Kelly 
Published: August 2024

Abstract
The contemporary media environment is often characterized as awash in uncivil and divisive messages. Central to this characterization, are social media, where partisans may engage in uncivil exchanges with outgroup members. The Internet has also become a key source of partisan news content, which is often filled with vitriol and “outrage” toward “the other side.” Using panel survey data from a large and diverse general-population sample of the US, the current study considers the influence of exposure to incivility on social media and online news use on a particularly emotional form of division, affective polarization. Fixed effects regression analyses find no main effects, but significant interaction effects between exposure to incivility via social media and online news use (pro-attitudinal, counter-attitudinal, and nonpartisan online news use) on affective polarization. Exposure to incivility via social media as a form of personal contact, appears to supplement the effect of partisan online news (and vice versa), whether pro-attitudinal or counter-attitudinal, intensifying affective polarization. However, when combined with exposure to incivility on social media, nonpartisan news appears to have an attenuating effect on affective polarization.
MicroRNA miR-27a-5p Reduces Intestinal Inflammation Induced by Clostridioides difficile Flagella by Regulating the Nuclear Factor–κB Signaling Pathway
Authors: Kobeissy Philippe Hussein , Denève-Larrazet Cécile , Marvaud Jean-Christophe , Kansau Imad 
Published: August 2024

Abstract

Background
Clostridioides difficile is a major cause of nosocomial postantibiotic infections, often resulting in severe inflammation and watery diarrhea. Previous studies have highlighted the role of C. difficile flagellin FliC in activating Toll-like receptor 5 and triggering nuclear factor–κB (NF-κB) cell signaling, leading to the release of proinflammatory cytokines. However, the microRNA (miRNA)–mediated regulatory mechanisms underlying the FliC-induced inflammatory response remain unclear.

Methods
miRNA expression levels were analyzed in Caco-2 intestinal epithelial cells following FliC stimulation and infection with the epidemic C. difficile R20291 strain or its unflagellated mutant by reverse transcription–quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Chemical inhibitors were used to block NF-κB signaling, and their impact on miR-27a-5p expression was assessed. Knockdown and overexpression experiments with miRNA inhibitor and mimic respectively were conducted to elucidate the functional role of miR-27a-5p in FliC-induced inflammatory responses. Additionally, a mouse model of C. difficile infection was treated with miR-27a-5p to evaluate its therapeutic potential in vivo.

Results
miR-27a-5p showed significant FliC-dependent overexpression in Caco-2 cells. Inhibition of NF-κB signaling suppressed miR-27a-5p overexpression. Knockdown of miR-27a-5p increased NF-κB activation and cytokine production (tumor necrosis factor α and interleukin 8), while its overexpression had the opposite effect. Moreover, miR-27a-5p was overexpressed in the ceca of C. difficile–infected mice, correlating with intestinal interleukin 8 levels. Treatment of infected mice with the miR-27a-5p mimic reduced disease severity and intestinal inflammation.

Conclusions
miR-27a-5p plays a crucial role in regulating C. difficile–induced inflammation, suggesting its potential as a therapeutic target for controlling severe infection. These findings offer valuable insights into potential therapeutic strategies for managing C. difficile infection and associated inflammatory complications.
In vitro activity of delafloxacin against clinical levofloxacin-resistant Helicobacter pylori isolates
Authors: Luzarraga Victor , Cremniter Julie , Plouzeau Chloé , Michaud Anthony , Broutin Lauranne , Burucoa Christophe , Pichon Maxime 
Published: August 2024

Abstract

Background
Increasing antibiotic resistance in Helicobacter pylori necessitates research on new active molecules. In 2017, delafloxacin, a new fluoroquinolone with chemical properties of activity under acidic conditions, was approved for treatment of community-acquired bacterial pneumonia and acute bacterial skin and soft-tissue infections. Mutations in gyrA are responsible for fluoroquinolone resistance, but certain clinical isolates of H. pylori appear to display a dual phenotype: resistance to levofloxacin associated with very low delafloxacin MICs.

Objectives
To estimate epidemiological cut-off (ECOFF) values and to identify mutations in the gyrA gene, specific to FQ resistance, without increasing the MICs of delafloxacin.

Methods
Clinical strains (n = 231) were collected in the bacteriology laboratory of Poitiers University Hospital over a 2 year period to determine the ECOFF of delafloxacin. Retrospectively, 101 clinical strains with an levofloxacin-resistant phenotype (MIC &gt; 1 mg/L) were selected from 2018 to 2022 for delafloxacin MIC determination and QRDR (gyrA) sequencing.

Results
The estimated ECOFF of delafloxacin was ≤0.125 mg/L. No H. pylori isolate showed a levofloxacin-sensitive phenotype with a delafloxacin MIC of &gt;0.125 mg/L. Among the levofloxacin-resistant H. pylori isolates, 53.5% had delafloxacin MICs of ≤0.125 mg/L. The N87I mutation was associated with dual levofloxacin/delafloxacin resistance (P &lt; 0.001) in contrast to the N87K and D91N mutations (P &gt; 0.05). Mutations D91G and D91Y were not associated with a delafloxacin resistance phenotype (P &gt; 0.05).

Conclusions
Delafloxacin seems to be a therapeutic alternative for levofloxacin-resistant strains with greater in vitro activity. However, further clinical/biological investigations are required to determine its efficacy in H. pylori eradication.
Gestating sows with a restricted feed allowance require a longer adaptation period before collecting feces compared with lactating sows in total tract digestibility assessments using index method
Authors: Choi Hyunjun , Jo Hyunwoong , Kim Sung Woo , Kim Beob Gyun 
Published: August 2024

Abstract
The objective of the present experiment was to determine the minimum adaptation period for total tract digestibility experiments in gestating and lactating sows using the indigestible index method. Five gestating and 5 lactating sows at parities 3 to 5 were used. An indigestible index of 0.5% chromic oxide was supplemented to a diet based on corn and soybean meal. The daily feed allowance for gestating sows was 2 kg and 2 equal meals were provided to the sows. Lactating sows were fed 6 kg of feed per day in 3 equal meals. After feeding a diet without supplemental chromic oxide for 5 d, index-supplemented diets were provided to the gestating and lactating sows. Feces were collected at 24-h intervals for 9 and 7 d from gestating and lactating sows, respectively. Fecal Cr concentrations increased linearly (P &lt; 0.001) and quadratically (P &lt; 0.001) with collection time in both gestating and lactating sows. Minimum adaptation periods were estimated by one-slope broken-line model. The break point of Cr concentrations in feces was day 7.2 (SE = 0.3) in the gestating sows and day 4.2 (SE = 0.2) in the lactating sows, respectively. Apparent total tract digestibility of dry matter, organic matter, and energy on day 4 was less (P &lt; 0.001) than that on days 8 to 9 in gestating sows fed the experimental diet with a 2-kg feed allowance. In lactating sows fed the experimental diets with a 6-kg feed allowance, the apparent total tract digestibility of dry matter, organic matter, and energy on day 3 was less (P &lt; 0.05) than that on days 5 to 7. In conclusion, at least 8 d of adaptation period are required for gestating sows to determine total tract digestibility using Cr as the indigestible index method whereas 5 d of adaptation period are required for lactating sows. An insufficient adaptation period results in lower digestibility values.
Deaf role-models for Deaf children in hearing families: a scoping review
Authors: Joy Angela , Ledger Susan , Duncan Jill 
Published: August 2024

Abstract
The use of Deaf role-models (DRMs) with Deaf children born into hearing families is a practice aimed at improving outcomes for Deaf children, yet there is little peer-reviewed research available to influence future direction of such. This scoping review directs attention to available research on DRMs as a socio-linguistic and cultural viewpoint for balancing a predominantly audiological approach for early intervention for Deaf children. Systematic database searches initially yielded 132 records, of which seven articles were included in this scoping review. Findings are presented as five themes: ‘Deaf Gain’ and associated cultural capital, effective communication, developmental influences, family (or caregiver) attitudes to Deafness, and administration of DRM programs. Few formalized DRM programs were identified within the literature. The review concludes with recommendations for further exploration of the DRM experiences of Deaf people and their families within Australia.