bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Smooth muscle cell-specific matrix metalloproteinase 3 deletion reduces osteogenic transformation and medial artery calcification
Authors: Xie Yangzhouyun , Lin Tonghui , Jin Ying , Berezowitz Alexa G , Wang Xue-Lin , Lu Jinny , Cai Yujun , Guzman Raul J 
Published: March 2024

Abstract

Aims
Vascular calcification is highly prevalent in atherosclerosis, diabetes, and chronic kidney disease. It is associated with increased morbidity and mortality in patients with cardiovascular disease. Matrix metalloproteinase 3 (MMP-3), also known as stromelysin-1, is part of the large matrix metalloproteinase family. It can degrade extracellular matrix components of the arterial wall including elastin, which plays a central role in medial calcification. In this study, we sought to determine the role of MMP-3 in medial calcification.

Methods and results
We found that MMP-3 was increased in rodent models of medial calcification as well as in vascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs) cultured in a phosphate calcification medium. It was also highly expressed in calcified tibial arteries in patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD). Knockdown and inhibition of MMP-3 suppressed phosphate-induced SMC osteogenic transformation and calcification, whereas the addition of a recombinant MMP-3 protein facilitated SMC calcification. In an ex vivo organ culture model and a rodent model of medial calcification induced by vitamin D3, we found that MMP-3 deficiency significantly suppressed medial calcification in the aorta. We further found that medial calcification and osteogenic transformation were significantly reduced in SMC-specific MMP-3-deficient mice, suggesting that MMP-3 in SMCs is an important factor in this process.

Conclusion
These findings suggest that MMP-3 expression in vascular SMCs is an important regulator of medial calcification and that targeting MMP-3 could provide a therapeutic strategy to reduce it and address its consequences in patients with PAD.
Primary percutaneous intervention in an unusual vessel using an unusual technique: a case report
Authors: Gupta Mohit D , Gautam Ankur , MP Girish , Bansal Ankit , Batra Vishal 
Published: March 2024

Abstract

Background
Primary percutaneous intervention (PPCI) of the saphenous vein graft (SVG) is associated with a high risk of distal embolization and no reflow, since SVG lesions are often very friable and have a large thrombotic burden. We report a case of successful PPCI of the SVG using guide catheter thrombectomy with novel double wire technique.

Case summary
A 60-year-old male with a past history of coronary artery bypass grafting presented with acute thrombotic occlusion of the SVG to the obtuse marginal graft. Despite appropriate pharmacotherapy (GPIIb/IIIa inhibitors) and thrombosuction, there was a large residual thrombus burden with poor distal flow. In the present case, we decided to perform guide catheter thrombosuction. An exchange length floppy 0.014' wire was passed alongside the pre-existing wire and the 6 Fr JR guide catheter was exchanged for a less traumatic 5 Fr JR guide catheter over the exchange wire. The first wire was kept distally in the vessel along the guiding catheter to maintain the access to the graft vessel. The 5 Fr JR guide catheter was slowly advanced over the wire to the distal portion of the graft, keeping the other wire in the distal portion of the graft to maintain access. A large amount of thrombus was aspirated and the patient improved dramatically.

Discussion
This double wire technique is an effortless and novel way to maintain access to the distal vasculature of the occluded artery, while the guide can be safely intubated deep into the coronary artery that helps in removing a very large amount of thrombus because of their larger internal lumen.
Casualties of border changes: evidence from nighttime lights and plant exit
Authors: Behrens Kristian 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
We investigate the economic effects of the Russia–Ukraine conflict – following the 2014 annexation of Crimea – on Russian border regions. While southern regions gained market access to Crimea, northern regions lost market access to Ukraine. Using nighttime lights data and geo-referenced plant-level data, we find that regions with deteriorating market access saw 43% less growth in lights – translating into 6–12% lower growth in GDP depending on the assumed lights-GDP elasticity – and a 35% increase in the exit probability for manufacturing plants after 2014. Exploiting variations in closed local border crossings in the northern regions, we find that these effects may be partly driven by less cross-border labour flows.
A multicentre evaluation of the NG-test DetecTool OXA-23 for the rapid detection of OXA-23 carbapenemase directly from blood cultures
Authors: Vasilakopoulou Alexandra , Naas Thierry , Gonzalez Camille , Vila Jordi , Szabo Dóra , Riccobono Eleonora , Kamotsay Katalin , Reissier Sophie , Berbel Dàmaris , Aszalos Albert Zoltan , Rosenmoller Magda , Stankov-Puges Milovan , Georgiou Panagiota-Christina , Vourli Sophia , Volland Hervé , Pournaras Spyros 
Published: March 2024

Abstract

Objectives
A multicentre study evaluating NG-Test DetecTool OXA-23 for the detection of OXA-23 carbapenemase directly from positive blood cultures (PBCs).

Methods
The NG-Test DetecTool OXA-23 is an immunoassay that integrates a sample preparation device. We evaluated NG-Test DetecTool OXA-23 on 189 spiked and 126 clinical PBCs. The clinical samples’ standard-of-care procedure consisted of bacterial identification from the first day of positivity by MALDI-TOF MS, conventional culture and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. The immunoassay results were verified molecularly. The strains used for the spiked samples consisted of well-characterized Acinetobacter baumannii and Proteus mirabilis strains.

Results
The NG-Test DetecTool OXA-23 was evaluated on 315 PBCs and revealed sensitivity of 100% (95% CI: 98.21%–100.00%) and specificity of 100% (95% CI: 96.73%–100.00%). It provided 204 true-positive results for OXA-23 in 196 bottles with carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii (CRAB) and 8 bottles with carbapenem-resistant P. mirabilis and also provided 111 true-negative results. There were no false-positive and no false-negative results. Among the 315 PBCs studied, 83 clinical blood cultures collected in the ICU of a Greek university hospital, which were tested prospectively, all yielded CRAB, and OXA-23 was correctly detected in all samples from the first day of positivity using the NG-Test DetecTool OXA-23.

Conclusions
The NG-Test DetecTool OXA-23 has exhibited excellent sensitivity and specificity for OXA-23 detection in PBCs and can provide valuable information for appropriate selection of antibiotic therapy and early implementation of infection control measures.
Clinically Relevant Laboratory Monitoring of Gender-Affirming Hormone Therapy in Transgender People—Experiences from a Teaching Hospital in the Netherlands
Authors: Pouw Nadine , van der Linden Joke , Teuben Sonja , Kos Snježana 
Published: March 2024

Abstract

Background
Transgender care is shifting from academic to nonacademic settings leading to use of common (immunoassay) compared to sophisticated (mass spectrometry) methods to monitor estradiol and testosterone during gender-affirming hormone therapy (GAHT). The type of assay can influence results and have significant implications for clinical decision making. An evidence gap is present in recommendations regarding the assay needed to monitor GAHT. The present study aimed to summarize current evidence and evaluate immunoassay estradiol and testosterone concentrations in transgender people visiting a nonacademic hospital for GAHT.

Methods
Clinical practice guidelines on GAHT and scientific literature on assay methodologies were screened and summarized. Laboratory and medical data from 252 patients who visited the transgender outpatient clinic of the Maasstad Hospital for GAHT between 2020 and 2022 were retrospectively analyzed.

Results
Our research showed that the most used clinical practice guidelines for GAHT provide hormonal target values without recommending a preferred method. A comprehensive literature search on agreement between immunoassay and mass spectrometry showed substantial heterogeneity in results. Retrospective analysis of our immunoassay measured data in transgender people showed hormonal changes during GAHT that are to be expected from the medication used.

Conclusions
We demonstrate that laboratory monitoring of GAHT in a nonacademic hospital can be done safely by immunoassay in most cases. Only in cases where clinical observation is discordant with the hormonal results do more sophisticated methods need to be deployed. A best practice model was proposed for transgender care in nonacademic hospitals.
Digital health technologies for high-risk pregnancy management: three case studies using Digilego framework
Authors: Myneni Sahiti , Zingg Alexandra , Singh Tavleen , Ross Angela , Franklin Amy , Rogith Deevakar , Refuerzo Jerrie 
Published: March 2024

Abstract

Objective
High-risk pregnancy (HRP) conditions such as gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), hypertension (HTN), and peripartum depression (PPD) affect maternal and neonatal health. Patient engagement is critical for effective HRP management (HRPM). While digital technologies and analytics hold promise, emerging research indicates limited and suboptimal support offered by the highly prevalent pregnancy digital solutions within the commercial marketplace. In this article, we describe our efforts to develop a portfolio of digital products leveraging advances in social computing, data science, and digital health.

Methods
We describe three studies that leverage core methods from Digilego digital health development framework to (1) conduct large-scale social media analysis (n = 55 301 posts) to understand population-level patterns in women’s needs, (2) architect a digital repository to enable women curate HRP related information, and (3) develop a digital platform to support PPD prevention. We applied a combination of qualitative coding, machine learning, theory-mapping, and programmatic implementation of theory-linked digital features. Further, we conducted preliminary testing of the resulting products for acceptance with sample of pregnant women for GDM/HTN information management (n = 10) and PPD prevention (n = 30).

Results
Scalable social computing models using deep learning classifiers with reasonable accuracy have allowed us to capture and examine psychosociobehavioral drivers associated with HRPM. Our work resulted in two digital health solutions, MyPregnancyChart and MomMind are developed. Initial evaluation of both tools indicates positive acceptance from potential end users. Further evaluation with MomMind revealed statistically significant improvements (P &lt; .05) in PPD recognition and knowledge on how to seek PPD information.

Discussion
Digilego framework provides an integrative methodological lens to gain micro-macro perspective on women’s needs, theory integration, engagement optimization, as well as subsequent feature and content engineering, which can be organized into core and specialized digital pathways for women engagement in disease management.

Conclusion
Future works should focus on implementation and testing of digital solutions that facilitate women to capture, aggregate, preserve, and utilize, otherwise siloed, prenatal information artifacts for enhanced self-management of their high-risk conditions, ultimately leading to improved health outcomes.
Polymorphisms in two key anthocyanic genes of clivia (Clivia miniata L.) reveal evidence of selection and possible association with flower pigmentation
Authors: Maleka Mathabatha F , Spies Johan J 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Members of the genus Clivia show considerable variation in flower pigmentation and morphology. Such variation is affected by mutations that emerge in candidate flower development genes over time. Besides population history, mutations can further illuminate the effects of demographic events in populations in addition to population genetic parameters including selection, recombination, and linkage disequilibrium (LD). The current study aimed to find sequence variants in 2 anthocyanin biosynthetic genes (DFR and bHLH) of Clivia miniata and use the data to assess population genetic factors from a random collection of orange/red- and yellow-flowered specimens. Overall, average nucleotide diversity in the 2 anthocyanin genes was moderate (π = 0.00646), whereas haplotypes differed significantly (Hd ≥ 0.9). Gene evolution was seemingly driven by mutations (CmiDFR) or recombinations (CmibHLH001). LD decayed swiftly within the analyzed gene regions and supported the feasibility of assessing trait-variant associations via the association/linkage mapping approach. In the end, most associations were found to be spurious, but 1 haplotype in CmibHLH001 showed a promising correlation to the orange/red flower phenotype in Clivia specimens. In all, the present study is the first to measure gene-level diversity in C. miniata—data that had never been reported so far. Furthermore, the study also identified allelic and haplotypic variants that may be beneficial in future association genetic studies of Clivia. Such studies, however, consider large diverse populations to control for statistical bias intrinsic to the analysis of small datasets.
Indirect genetic effects should make group size more evolvable than expected
Authors: Fisher David N 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Group size is an important trait for many ecological and evolutionary processes. However, it is not a trait possessed by individuals but by social groups, and as many genomes contribute to group size understanding its genetic underpinnings and so predicting its evolution is a conceptual challenge. Here I suggest how group size can be modelled as a joint phenotype of multiple individuals, and so how models for evolution accounting for indirect genetic effects are essential for understanding the genetic variance of group size. This approach makes it clear that (a) group size should have a larger genetic variance than initially expected as indirect genetic effects always contribute exactly as much as direct genetic effects and (b) the response to selection of group size should be faster than expected based on direct genetic variance alone as the correlation between direct and indirect effects is always at the maximum positive limit of 1. Group size should therefore show relatively rapid evolved increases and decreases, the consequences of which and evidence for I discuss.
Modeling, driving characterization of collision and stick-slip vibration-driven system
Authors: Liu Tao , Wu Shaopei , Li Guofang , Li Deyang , You Taiwen , Ding Wangcai 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Considering the internal collision vibration-driven and external discontinuous resistance tolerance fusion conditions, the non-smooth dynamics characteristics of collision and stick-slip vibration-driven system are studied and experimented. Unilateral collision behavior of internal oscillators under the action of a periodic force to achieve system motion in different directions, it overcome the external Coulomb friction force and drives the system to drive in steady state under a certain direction. The kinematic and dynamic models of the system are established, and the collision and stick-slip driving motion of the system is analyzed based on the theory of non-smooth dynamics. The voice coil motor is used as the internal driving element, and the vibration driving test platform is designed and fabricated, and the driving characteristics of the system are studied experimentally. The study shows that there are three forms of movement in the steady state driving motion of the system: sticking motion, forward motion and backward motion; sine wave excitation and triangular wave excitation as input excitation have the characteristic of smoother operation with less shock; external excitation parameter regulation can change the system speed and direction of the movement; excitation frequency as a regulation parameter has the advantages of speed bandwidth, continuity, and so on; the system average driving speed in the numerical simulation and experimental test with the system average driving speed in numerical simulation and experimental test has the same rule of change, the backward motion is located in the low-frequency region, the forward motion is located in the high-frequency region, the friction coefficient and the excitation amplitude affect the size of driving speed. The results and methods of this study provide a corresponding theoretical basis for the design and parameter optimization of vibration-driven robots.
Robotic excision of a retrocaval ancient schwannoma: a case report
Authors: Marquez Bianca , Luciano Emmanuel , Ghanem Maher 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
We report a case of a robotic-assisted excision of a retrocaval ancient schwannoma. A 40-year-old female presented with generalized weakness and abdominal pain that led to the diagnosis of a retroperitoneal mass adjacent to the pancreas and inferior vena cava. Because of the clinical, imaging, and needle biopsy findings, the patient underwent an elective robotic-assisted retroperitoneal exploration. We provide an overview of the pathology and highlight the significance of utilizing a minimally invasive approach for excision of retroperitoneal masses.
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma
Authors: Bhatt Vijaya Raj , Armitage James O. 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Non-Hodgkin lymphomas comprise precursor lymphoid neoplasms, mature B-cell neoplasms, and mature T-cell neoplasms. The aetiology of most cases is unknown, but increased risk is associated with immune deficiencies, agricultural chemicals, autoimmune disorders, treated Hodgkin lymphoma, and some infectious agents. Incidence varies from 10 to 22 cases per 100 000 per year in different populations. Patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma most commonly present with lymphadenopathy, but other presentations include systemic symptoms or those attributable to mediastinal or retroperitoneal masses or involvement. Diagnosis is typically based on expert evaluation of an adequate lymph node biopsy. Staging depends largely on determining the anatomical extent of disease, with FDG positron emission tomography/CT scanning generally the preferable imaging modality. For most patients, the goal of therapy is to achieve a complete remission. Patients with potentially curable lymphomas, such as diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and Burkitt’s lymphoma, are almost always treated promptly with intensive regimens, for example, chemotherapy with CHOP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine (Oncovin), and prednisone) plus the anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody rituximab. By contrast, follicular lymphoma is often not curable and the best treatment is not clear, with many physicians favouring no initial therapy in an asymptomatic patient. Patients who are not cured with initial therapy are candidates for what has been termed ‘salvage therapy’. For most patients, the only curative approach in this setting is haematopoietic stem cell transplantation, the toxicity of which means that it is only sensibly offered to carefully selected patients. In recent years, anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies have emerged as important options for management of several types of relapsed B-cell lymphomas. These CAR T-cell therapies are replacing the use of transplantation in many patients. Various new agents, such as small molecule kinase and BCL-2 inhibitors, provide additional options for salvage therapy and hope for prolonging survival.
Osteoporosis and osteopenia in patients with psoriatic arthritis: A single-centre retrospective study
Authors: Takami Kenji , Higashiyama Mari , Tsuji Shigeyoshi 
Published: March 2024

ABSTRACT

Objective
It is known that fracture risk is increased in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA); however, there is no consensus on the association with osteoporosis. The purpose of this study was to elicit the rate of osteoporosis and the risk factors of osteoporosis in patients with PsA at our institution.

Methods
The data in this study were extracted from 163 patients with PsA. Osteoporosis and osteopenia were defined based on the WHO definition. Osteoporosis was also diagnosed when a fragility vertebral compression fracture was observed.

Results
The osteoporosis and osteopenia rates for PsA patients were 11.7% and 33.1%, respectively. The rates of osteoporosis and osteopenia in males were particularly high compared to previous reports, at 9.3% and 34.3%, respectively. Trabecular bone score was considered age-appropriate for both males and females. Body mass index and Trabecular bone score were significantly lower in patients with osteoporosis.

Conclusions
In patients with PsA, males are at elevated risk of osteoporosis and associated fragility fractures even if they are under 50 years. Body mass index was significantly lower in osteoporotic cases, suggesting the importance of bone mineral density testing and treatment in such cases.
Sources of richness and ineffability for phenomenally conscious states
Authors: Ji Xu , Elmoznino Eric , Deane George , Constant Axel , Dumas Guillaume , Lajoie Guillaume , Simon Jonathan , Bengio Yoshua 
Published: March 2024

Abstract
Conscious states—state that there is something it is like to be in—seem both rich or full of detail and ineffable or hard to fully describe or recall. The problem of ineffability, in particular, is a longstanding issue in philosophy that partly motivates the explanatory gap: the belief that consciousness cannot be reduced to underlying physical processes. Here, we provide an information theoretic dynamical systems perspective on the richness and ineffability of consciousness. In our framework, the richness of conscious experience corresponds to the amount of information in a conscious state and ineffability corresponds to the amount of information lost at different stages of processing. We describe how attractor dynamics in working memory would induce impoverished recollections of our original experiences, how the discrete symbolic nature of language is insufficient for describing the rich and high-dimensional structure of experiences, and how similarity in the cognitive function of two individuals relates to improved communicability of their experiences to each other. While our model may not settle all questions relating to the explanatory gap, it makes progress toward a fully physicalist explanation of the richness and ineffability of conscious experience—two important aspects that seem to be part of what makes qualitative character so puzzling.