bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
COVID-19 Inpatient Caseloads in General Hospitals Did Not Affect Quality Indicator Compliance Rates in Israel
Authors: Bronshtein Olga , Konson Alexander , Kuniavsky Michael , Goldschmidt Nethanel , Hanhart Shuli , Mahalla-Garashi Hannah , Peri Shir , Rosenfelder Chana , Niv Yaron , Dollberg Shaul 
Published: July 2024

Background and Objectives:
Early in the global COVID-19 pandemic, a concern was raised that potentially high volumes of COVID-19 inpatients in general hospitals might compromise the hospitals’ capabilities to maintain high-quality care for routine patients and, thereby, to comply with indicators specifying quality of care. The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of the surges of COVID-19 inpatients into general hospitals in Israel on the compliance rates for selected quality indicators reported by these hospitals within the Israeli National Program for Quality Indicators (NPQI).

Methods:
Compliance rate data were collected from the quality indicators reports made to the NPQI by participating hospitals. COVID-19 inpatient volume data were obtained from the Ministry of Health Digital Technologies and Data Division. Both datasets were analyzed on a week-by-week basis and plotted one alongside the other on a time scale. Association of each quality indicator’s compliance rate with the number of COVID-19 inpatients was tested by Pearson’s correlation analysis. The study included data from July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2022, spanning the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic in Israel. Five quality indicators included in the study were: Surgical repair of femoral neck fracture within 48 h of admission; Assessment of cerebral ischemic event risk for patients with atrial fibrillation; Duplex carotid ultrasound within 72 h of emergency department admission for patients with suspected transient ischemic attack; Antibiotic prophylaxis for caesarean sections; and Percutaneous coronary intervention within 90 min for patients presenting with ST-elevation myocardial infarction.

Results:
Compliance rates for five quality indicators, representing different aspects of routine health care, remained steady – even at times with high volumes of COVID-19 inpatients in general hospitals. This lack of effect was prominent throughout the analyzed period, i.e., general hospitals maintained similar compliance rates for all quality indicators both during the surges of COVID-19 patients and between these periods. Statistical analysis showed no correlation between the quality indicators’ compliance rates and the number of COVID-19 inpatients.

Conclusions:
Our findings indicate that high volumes of COVID-19 inpatients in general hospitals did not affect the hospitals’ capability to comply with routine health care quality indicators. The results of our study imply that general hospitals in Israel were able to withstand the challenges associated with the care of COVID-19 inpatients while preserving high quality of care for routine patients.
The Integration of Quality Improvement and Health Care Simulation: A Scoping Review
Authors: Allgood Ashleigh , Wiltrakis Susan , White Marjorie Lee , Hayes Leslie W. , Buchalter Scott , Hall Allyson G. , Brown Michelle R. 
Published: July 2024

Background and Objectives:
Quality improvement (QI) and simulation employ complementary approaches to improve the care provided to patients. There is a significant opportunity to leverage these disciplines, yet little is known about how they are utilized in concert. The purpose of this study is to explore how QI and simulation have been used together in health care.

Methods:
This scoping review includes studies published between 2015 and 2021 in 4 databases: CINAHL, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus.

Results:
The search yielded 921 unique articles.18 articles met the inclusion criteria and specifically described QI and simulation collaborative projects. Of the 18 articles, 28% focused on improvements in patient care, 17% on educational interventions, 17% on the identification of latent safety threats (LSTs) that could have an impact on clinical care, 11% on the creation of new processes, 11% on checklist creation, and 6% on both LST identification and educational intervention. The review revealed that 61% of the included studies demonstrated a concurrent integration of simulation and QI activities, while 33% used a sequential approach.

Conclusions:
There is a paucity of studies detailing the robust and synergistic use of QI and simulation. The findings of this review suggest a positive impact on patient safety when QI and simulation are used in tandem. The systematic integration of these disciplines and the use of established reporting guidelines can promote patient safety in practice and in the literature.
Association of Frailty, Balance, and Depression with Activities of Daily Living in Older Adults
Authors: Baysal Gökçe , Saka Seda 
Published: July 2024

Purpose:
This study aimed to examine the effects of frailty, balance, and depression on the performance of activities of daily living (ADL) in older adults.

Methods:
Eighty-five older adults registered at a community health center in Amasya-Türkiye volunteered to participate in this one-time data collected observational study. All participants were assessed using the Mini Mental State Test (MMST), simple FRAIL scale, Geriatric Depression Scale–Short Form, and Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (L-IADL) Scale.

Results:
According to FRAIL scale scores, 38.8% (n = 33) of the participants were evaluated as frail, 37.6% (n = 32) as pre-frail, and 23.5% (n = 20) as normal. There were statistically significant correlations between all parameters analyzed (p < 0.05). According to the regression analysis performed to determine which factors are associated with L-IADL, it was determined that a 1-unit increase in the Berg Balance Scale score was associated with a 0.639-unit increase in the L-IADL score. Mean L-IADL score differed significantly between the frailty groups, with frail participants having a significantly lower mean L-IADL score compared to pre-frail and normal participants (p < 0.05).

Conclusions:
Our results demonstrated that frailty, balance, and depression are associated with performance of activities of daily living, with balance being the strongest determinant. Frail older adults showed greater dependence in activities of daily living than those who were pre-frail or normal.
Cardiac Rehabilitation in Geriatric Individuals
Authors: Calik-Kutukcu Ebru , Topcuoglu Ceyhun , Ar Ulas , Saglam Melda 
Published: July 2024

Background:
The aim of the study is a current review in the field of cardiac rehabilitation in geriatric individuals.

Methods:
Literature searches were conducted using PubMed, Embase and Scopus. Additional articles were identifed by searching reference lists.

Results:
Aging is a physiological condition in the normal process of life and leads to changes in all organs and systems. The aging process significantly affects the cardiovascular, pulmonary, musculoskeletal, and metabolic systems. Cardiac rehabilitation provides numerous psychological and physiological benefits to older adults. All comorbidities, frailty status, and social and financial factors should be comprehensively evaluated while planning cardiac rehabilitation programs that consist of the main components of exercise training, risk factor management, and psychosocial counseling in older adults.

Conclusions:
Regular participation in cardiac rehabilitation programs can reduce morbidity and mortality rates and improve cardiorespiratory fitness and overall health outcomes by modifying coronary artery disease risk factors in older adults with chronic conditions, including cardiovascular disease, stroke, and respiratory disease
Cross-disciplinary advance care planning in oncology and palliative care amidst a pandemic: a best practice implementation project
Authors: Muehlensiepen Felix , Stanze Henrikje , May Susann , Stahlhut Kerstin , Helm Carolin , Hakam Hassan Tarek , Bała Małgorzata M. , Peričić Tina Poklepović , Vrbová Tereza , Klugarova Jitka , Prill Robert 
Published: July 2024

ABSTRACT

Introduction:
Advance care planning (ACP) ensures that patients receive medical care aligned with their values, goals, and preferences, especially regarding end-of-life decisions in serious chronic illnesses.

Objective:
This project aimed to introduce and promote evidence-based ACP in oncology and palliative care at a midsized hospital near Berlin, Germany, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods:
This project was guided by the JBI Evidence Implementation Framework and used a mixed methods audit cycle. A baseline audit was conducted using qualitative interviews and workshops with representatives from all the health care disciplines involved in oncology and palliative care at the hospital. The findings were compared with eight best practice recommendations. Targeted strategies aimed at the key stakeholders involved in ACP practice were then implemented. Finally, a semi-quantitative questionnaire was used in a follow-up audit with the same participants as in the baseline audit.

Results:
The baseline audit revealed a high level of familiarity with the concept of ACP. However, there was a lack of a uniformly accepted definition and understanding of ACP among the health care professionals, leading to a lack of coordination in task distribution. The follow-up audit revealed improvements with regard to education and training in ACP (Criterion 1: 50% to 100%) and organizational support to facilitate ACP conversations (Criterion 3: 87.5% to 100%). Other audit criteria compliance rates remained unchanged.

Conclusion:
Clinical education and team-based process analysis can facilitate ACP implementation across disciplines in oncology and palliative care facilities. However, the project did not succeed in implementing lasting changes in clinical processes and best practice ACP due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Such an endeavor would demand considerable resources and time, both of which were constrained during the pandemic.

Spanish abstract:

http://links.lww.com/IJEBH/A236
Central Nervous System Control of breathing in Natural Conversational Turn-Taking
Authors: Di Pasquasio Camilla , De Pellegrin Lila , Pineaud Arthur , Marty Antonin , Chaminade Thierry 
Published: July 2024

AbstractDiscussion is a fundamental social activity requiring coordination of speech between interlocutors. Speech production is a complex human behaviour that involves several anatomo-physiological processes, including inspiration and expiration. The aim of the present study is to investigate the neurophysiological underpinnings of speech-related respiration events in conversational turn-taking. We made use of an existing corpus of natural conversations between a participant and its interlocutor (Human or Robot) focusing on synchronised (1) behavioural (conversation turn-taking), (2) respiratory (maxima of inspiration) and (3) neurophysiological (fMRI) data. Precisely timed conversation transcripts from 25 participants were used to categorise breathing maxima based on their timing relative to the participant’s speech onset. In agreement with the literature, the closest respiration time maximum to each speech turn occurred on average 200 ms prior to speech onset. The fMRI second-level contrast (pFWE< 0.05, extend k > 5 cm3) Resp+ (maximum respiration associated with speech)versusResp-, exclusively masked to exclude speech related areas, revealed bilateral activations in the central sulcus, the brainstem and the cerebellum. The brainstem cluster comprises respiratory pattern generators, possibly the preBötzinger complex, that need to be inhibited to enslave breathing to speech production and not physiological needs, while the central sulcus cluster is likely to be located in the postcentral primary sensory cortex receiving upper torso inputs indicating that lungs are filled, and the cerebellum clusters could play a role in the timing of speech onset, 200 ms after a respiration maximum. These results show how cortical, cerebellar and brainstem coordinated control of breathing during conversational turn-taking is part of the intricate physiological mechanisms that contribute to natural communication dynamics.
A Necrotizing Toxin PromotesPseudomonas syringaeInfection Across Evolutionarily Divergent Plant Lineages
Authors: Grenz Kristina , Chia Khong-Sam , Turley Emma K. , Tyszka Alexa S. , Atkinson Rebecca E. , Reeves Jacob , Vickers Martin , Rejzek Martin , Walker Joseph F. , Carella Philip 
Published: July 2024

ABSTRACTThePseudomonas syringaespecies complex harbors a diverse range of plant pathogenic bacteria. While much of the current understanding ofP. syringaeis centered on interactions with flowering plants, much less is known about infection in evolutionarily divergent non-flowering lineages. Here, we took a comparative evolutionary approach to understand howP. syringaeinfects distantly related plants. We identify broad hostP. syringaeisolates causing significant disease in the liverwortMarchantia polymorpha, the fernCeratopteris richardii, and the flowering plantNicotiana benthamiana, which last shared a common ancestor over 500 million years ago. We demonstrate that phytotoxin enriched isolates belonging to the phylogroup 2 clade of theP. syringaespecies complex are particularly virulent in non-flowering plants, relying on a combination of type-3 secreted effector proteins and the lipopeptide phytotoxin syringomycin. The application of purified syringomycin promotes necrosis in diverse host tissues and activates conserved genes associated with redox regulation and cell death. Toxin-deficient phylogroups normally unable to infectMarchantiathalli exhibit enhanced bacterial growth when supplemented with exogenous syringomycin, further highlighting its role as a host-range defining factor inPseudomonas. Collectively our research reveals a key role for the lipopeptide syringomycin in promotingPseudomonascolonization, which works in concert with type-3 effector proteins to antagonize an exceptionally wide spectrum of land plants.
Manganese transporter SLC30A10 and iron transporters SLC40A1 and SLC11A2 impact dietary manganese absorption
Authors: Prajapati Milankumar , Zhang Jared Z. , Chong Grace S. , Chiu Lauren , Mercadante Courtney J. , Kowalski Heather L. , Antipova Olga , Lai Barry , Ralle Martina , Jackson Brian P. , Punshon Tracy , Guo Shuling , Aghajan Mariam , Bartnikas Thomas B. 
Published: July 2024

AbstractSLC30A10 deficiency is a disease of severe manganese excess attributed to loss of SLC30A10-dependent manganese excretion via the gastrointestinal tract. Patients develop dystonia, cirrhosis, and polycythemia. They are treated with chelators but also respond to oral iron, suggesting that iron can outcompete manganese for absorption in this disease. Here we explore the latter observation. Intriguingly, manganese absorption is increased in Slc30a10-deficient mice despite manganese excess. Studies of multiple mouse models indicate that increased dietary manganese absorption reflects two processes: loss of manganese export from enterocytes into the gastrointestinal tract lumen by SLC30A10, and increased absorption of dietary manganese by iron transporters SLC11A2 (DMT1) and SLC40A1 (ferroportin). Our work demonstrates that aberrant absorption contributes prominently to SLC30A10 deficiency and expands our understanding of biological interactions between iron and manganese. Based on these results, we propose a reconsideration of the role of iron transporters in manganese homeostasis is warranted.
Expansion of the MutS Gene Family in Plants
Authors: Sloan Daniel B. , Broz Amanda K. , Kuster Shady A. , Muthye Viraj , Peñafiel-Ayala Alejandro , Marron Jennifer R. , Lavrov Dennis V. , Brieba Luis G. 
Published: July 2024

AbstractTheMutSgene family is distributed across the tree of life and is involved in recombination, DNA repair, and protein translation. Multiple evolutionary processes have expanded the set ofMutSgenes in plants relative to other eukaryotes. Here, we investigate the origins and functions of these plant-specific genes. Land plants, green algae, red algae, and glaucophytes share cyanobacterial-likeMutS1andMutS2genes that presumably were gained via plastid endosymbiotic gene transfer.MutS1was subsequently lost in some taxa, including seed plants, whereasMutS2was duplicated in Viridiplantae (i.e., land plants and green algae) with widespread retention of both resulting paralogs. Viridiplantae also have two anciently duplicated copies of the eukaryoticMSH6gene (i.e.,MSH6andMSH7) and acquiredMSH1via horizontal gene transfer – potentially from a nucleocytovirus. Despite sharing the same name, “plantMSH1” is not directly related to the gene known asMSH1in some fungi and animals, which may be an ancestral eukaryotic gene acquired via mitochondrial endosymbiosis and subsequently lost in most eukaryotic lineages. There has been substantial progress in understanding the functions ofMSH1andMSH6/MSH7in plants, but the roles of the cyanobacterial-likeMutS1andMutS2genes remain uncharacterized. Known functions of bacterial homologs and predicted protein structures, including fusions to diverse nuclease domains, provide hypotheses about potential molecular mechanisms. Because most plant-specific MutS proteins are targeted to the mitochondria and/or plastids, the expansion of this family appears to have played a large role in shaping plant organelle genetics.One-Sentence SummaryPlants are distinguished from other eukaryotes by a functionally diverse complement of MutS proteins gained via a combination of gene duplication, endosymbiotic gene transfer, and horizontal gene transfer.
Ex vivofunctional characterization of mouse olfactory bulb projection neurons reveals a heterogenous continuum
Authors: Gadiwalla Sana , Guillaume Chloé , Huang Li , White Samuel JB , Basha Nihal , Petersen Pétur Henry , Galliano Elisa 
Published: July 2024

AbstractMitral and tufted cells in the olfactory bulb (OB) act as an input convergence hub and transmit information to higher olfactory areas. Since first characterized, they have been classed as distinct projection neurons based on size and location: laminarly-arranged mitral cells with a diameter larger than 20µm in the mitral layer (ML), and smaller tufted cells spread across both the ML and external plexiform layer (EPL). Recentin vivowork has shown that these neurons encode complementary olfactory information, akin to parallel channels in other sensory systems. Yet, manyex vivostudies still collapse them into a single class, mitral/tufted, when describing their physiological properties and impact on circuit function. Using immunohistochemistry and whole-cell patch clamp electrophysiology in fixed or acute slices from adult mice, we attempted to alignin vivo andex vivodata and test a soma size-based classifier of OB projection neurons using passive and intrinsic firing properties. We found that there is no clear separation between cell types based on passive or active properties. Rather, there is a heterogeneous continuum with three loosely clustered subgroups: EPL tufted cells, and putative tufted or putative mitral cells in the ML. These findings illustrate the large functional heterogeneity present within the OB projection neurons and complement existing literature highlighting how heterogeneity in sensory systems is preponderant and possibly used in the OB to decode complex olfactory information.
Normative trajectories of R1, R2* and magnetic susceptibility in basal ganglia on healthy ageing
Authors: Chan Kwok-Shing , Zwiers Marcel P. , Jansen Michelle G. , Oosterman Joukje M. , Norris David G. , Beckmann Christian F. , Marques José P. 
Published: July 2024

AbstractQuantitative MRI techniques, including R1, R2*, and magnetic susceptibility mapping, have emerged as promising tools for generating surrogate imaging markers of brain tissue microstructure, enabling non-invasive in vivo measurements associated with myelination and iron deposition. Gaining insights into how these quantitative measurements evolve throughout a normal lifespan can enhance our understanding of brain maturation processes and facilitate the study of disease-related microstructural changes by distinguishing pathological alterations from normal brain development. In this study, we established the normative trajectories of R1, R2*, and magnetic susceptibility in the basal ganglia at 3T. We used a healthy ageing cohort comprising 260 subjects with an evenly distributed age range and sex ratio throughout adulthood. Utilizing the non-parametric Gaussian Process Regression model to derive the normative trajectories, we found that R1in these structures predominantly exhibit a quadratic shape over age, while R2* and magnetic susceptibility are primarily linear. We validated the normative trajectories of R2* and magnetic susceptibility using an independent cohort. Additionally, we demonstrated that the spatial distributions of the quantitative MRI parameters also change with age in the putamen and caudate nucleus. This study not only reinforces existing findings on the association between age and qMRI but also provides valuable resources for studying cognitive ageing, in conjunction with the behavioural data available in the same data collection.
2D representations of DNA sequence show that most transversions are misaligned nucleotides associated with replication slippage
Authors: Erives Albert J. 
Published: July 2024

AbstractHomologous sequences diverge in length via insertions and deletions (indels). Consequently, evolutionary genetic analyses routinely use methods to produce gapped alignment (GA). In GA, artificial null characters (gaps) are inserted into sequences so that nucleotide characters may be placed into homological correspondence within an alignment column. However, this approach sacrifices the homological correspondence of nucleotides diverging via tandem repeats (TRs). To address this deficit, we generalize GA withmicro-paralogical gapped alignment(MPGA). While GA operates under a strict two-state homology model ofone-to-oneandone-to-none(i.e. one-to-gap) relationships, MPGA addsone-to-many,many-to-many, andmany-to-nonerelationships. This expanded, multi-state homology model is motivated by DNA replication slippage (RS). RS produces short tandem repeats, constituting interrelated micro-paralogous sequences. Together, RS and TR-associated instability have a synergistic effect in the production of indels, which generate the need for gap insertions. MPGA reduces the computational cost of determining optimal gap insertions by reducing the number of gaps required by two-dimensional (2D) representations of sequence. A 2D representation of one sequence is achieved when tandem repeats are contracted into the same columns (dimension one) by occupying multiple rows (dimension two), an internal micro-paralogical dimension. To demonstrate the benefits and challenges of 2D representation, we develop a program calledLINEUPand identify a pervasive fractal dimension in evolving sequences. We then demonstrate howLINEUP-generated 2D representations provide improved measures of substitution rates and transition-to-transversion ratios. Altogether, these results showcase significant new perspectives on basic mutational and evolutionary processes when multi-state homology models are adopted.