bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Screening and production of thrombolytic enzymes from different soil environments in Egypt 1
Authors: Kassab Mohammed 
Published: April 2024

Abstract

BACKGROUND:
Thromboembolic disorders including Myocardial infarction[ MI] and stroke represent the leading causes of death worldwide. Fibrinolytic enzymes extracted from microbial sources have shown high efficacy in dissolving various types of blood clots.
AIM OF THE STUDY:
Screening and bacterial recombinant DNA manufacturing of bacterial fibrinolytic enzymes from different soil environments in Egypt.
METHODOLOGY:
A total of 50 soil samples were screened for fibrinolytic enzyme production. The potent fibrinolytic enzyme-producing bacterial isolates were evaluated for their thrombolytic activities using the plasma plate method. The characterization of the enzyme activity and thermostability was carried out; also, the determination of molecular mass using mass spectrometry and western blot technique was performed. The purification of the fibrinolyric enzymes was done through affinity chromatography. On the other hand the production of the purified bacterial fibrinolytic enzyme was achieved via bacterial recombinant DNA technology. Formulation of fibrinolytic enzyme in different dosage forms were tried.
RESULTS:
In the present study the purified bacterial fibrinolytic enzyme was approximately 83% pure through affinity chromatography and SDS-PAGE assay. The predominating bacterial isolate secreting fibrinolytic enzymes found to be Bacillus cereus. The fibrinolytic enzyme activities of 50 soil samples were found to be in the range of 0.167-1.853 U/ ml. The fibrinolytic activity of extracellular enzyme refined from the culture supernatant of Bacillus cereus was relatively stable over PH range from 7.4-10 for 18 hours and also it showed a stability with highest productivity at a temperature of 43 ̊C for nearly 60 minutes. The enzyme was called fibrin-proteinase[ FP] in the present study. The FP degraded the fibrin clots via direct thrombolysis. The specific activity and the molecular mass of the FP were estimated to be nearly 40.71 Units/ mg protein and nearly 30 KDa respectively. Protease activity was noticed to be slightly increased in presence of Fe+3; While it was inhibited in presence of EDTA. On the other hand, the FP fibrinolytic activity was enhanced greatly after addition of monovalent cations such as K+1 and Na +1. Enzyme was also active over temperature range 20- 65 ̊̊C with the highest activity was at 55 ̊C. The optimum temperature and pH of protease production was at 35-43 ̊̊C and pH 8.0-10.
Conclusion:
During the present study, the thermostable fibrinolytic enzyme FP purified from Bacillus cereus in different soil environments in Egypt was a promising fibrinolytic enzyme because it showed a broader efficacious fibrinolytic activity as well as less adverse effects than the current fibrinolytic enzymes globally. It is recommended in the future advanced exploration of the optimization of suitable formulation of bacterial fibrinolytic enzymes to aid in the dissolution of various blood clots and as a consequence overcoming the high rate of mortality globally.
Vaping during pregnancy: A systematic review of health outcomes
Authors: Ussher Michael , Fleming Joy , Brose Leonie 
Published: April 2024

Abstract

Introduction
Smoking during pregnancy is harmful to maternal and child health; vaping is used for smoking cessation but evidence on health effects during pregnancy is scarce. We conducted a systematic review of health outcomes of vaping during pregnancy.
Methods
We searched six databases for maternal/fetal/infant outcomes and vaping, including quantitative, English language, human studies of health consequences of vaping during pregnancy, to November 10th, 2023. We assessed study quality with the Mixed-Methods Appraisal Tool. We focused on comparisons of exclusive-vaping with non-use of nicotine and tobacco products and with smoking, with narrative presentation.
Results
We included 26 studies, with 765,527 women, with one randomised controlled trial (RCT) comparing vaping and nicotine replacement therapy for smoking cessation, 23 cohort studies and two case-control studies. While the RCT met 4/5 quality criteria, quality of the cohort studies and case-control studies was poor; none adequately assessed exposure to smoking and vaping. For studies comparing exclusive-vaping with ‘non-use’, more reported no increased risk for vaping (three studies) than reported increased risk for maternal pregnancy/postpartum outcomes (one study) and for fetal and infant outcomes (20 studies no increased risk, four increased risk), except for birth-weight and neurological outcomes where two studies each observed increased and no increased risk. When the RCT compared non-users with those not smoking but vaping or using NRT, irrespective of randomisation, they reported no evidence of risk for vaping/NRT. For studies comparing exclusive-vaping and exclusive-smoking, most studies provided evidence for a comparable risk for different outcomes. One maternal biomarker study revealed a lower risk for vaping. For small-for-gestational-age/mean-birth-centile equal numbers of studies found lower risk for vaping than for smoking as found similar risk for the two groups (two each).
Conclusions
While more studies found no evidence of increased risk of exclusive-vaping compared with non-use and evidence of comparable risk for exclusive-vaping and exclusive-smoking, the quality of the evidence limits conclusions. Without adequate assessment of exposure to vaping and smoking, findings cannot be attributed to behaviour as many who vape will have smoked and many who vape may do so at low levels.
Registration number of protocol for this review
https://osf.io/rfx4q/
Extremal properties of max-autoregressive moving average processes for modelling extreme river flows
Authors: D'Arcy Eleanor , Tawn Jonathan A 
Published: April 2024

Abstract
Max-autogressive moving average (Max-ARMA) processes are powerful tools for modelling time series data with heavy-tailed behaviour; these are a non-linear version of the popular autoregressive moving average models. River flow data typically have features of heavy tails and non-linearity, as large precipitation events cause sudden spikes in the data that then exponentially decay. Therefore, stationary Max-ARMA models are a suitable candidate for capturing the unique temporal dependence structure exhibited by river flows. This paper contributes to advancing our understanding of the extremal properties of stationary Max-ARMA processes. We detail the first approach for deriving the extremal index, the lagged asymptotic dependence coefficient, and an efficient simulation for a general Max-ARMA process. We use the extremal properties, coupled with the belief that Max-ARMA processes provide only an approximation to extreme river flow, to fit such a model which can broadly capture river flow behaviour over a high threshold. We make our inference under a reparametrisation which gives a simpler parameter space that excludes cases where any parameter is non-identifiable. We illustrate results for river flow data from the UK River Thames.
Sex dimorphism in pupae and adults of the specialist Ipomoea batatas defoliator Bedellia somnulentella (Lepidoptera: Bedelliidae)
Authors: Pinheiro Rodrigo Almeida , Cabral Maria Jéssica S. , Giordani Samuel C. O. , Zanuncio José C. , Serrão José Eduardo , Santos Conceição A. , Soares Marcus A. 
Published: April 2024

Abstract

Bedellia somnulentella Zeller, 1847 (Lepidoptera: Bedelliidae), a global pest of the sweet potato Ipomoea batatas, was recorded in Brazil, but morphological information on sexual dimorphism of this insect is scarce. The objective was to evaluate morphological characters of sexual dimorphism of B somnulentella pupae and adults. External structures with sexual dimorphism were not detected in the last abdominal segments of B. somnulentella pupae, but the females are heavier and could be a distinctive sex characteristic in this insect. A pair of frenulum on the hind wings of females and only one on those of males, in addition to elongated cerci and bipartite genitalia in the latter and smaller cerci involving the last abdominal segment and an ovipositor in females, differentiate sexes of B. somnulentella.
Cystoid macular oedema after flanged intraocular lens scleral fixation using the Yamane technique: a multicentre cohort study
Authors: Ishikawa Hiroto , Uchida Kazutaka , Terasaki Hiroto , Sakamoto Taiji , Kakinoki Masashi , Ohji Masahito , Jujo Tatsuya , Takagi Hitoshi , Mitamura Yoshinori , Yamada Yutaka , Takamura Yoshihiro , Sugimoto Masahiko , Kondo Mineo , Yoshida Shigeo , Fukuyama Hisashi , Gomi Fumi 
Published: April 2024

Abstract

This retrospective observational multicentre cohort study compared the rate of postoperative cystoid macular oedema (CME) between two intraocular lens (IOL) scleral fixation techniques: a flanged IOL fixation technique (Yamane technique) and a suture IOL transscleral fixation technique (conventional technique). The study included 207 eyes with postoperative CME that had undergone IOL scleral fixation and were observed for > 12 weeks between January 2019 and January 2021. The primary endpoint was a comparison of the rate of postoperative CME at 3 months between groups. Secondary endpoints were a comparison of postoperative best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at 3 months between groups and an analysis of characteristics associated with postoperative CME in the Yamane technique group. The Yamane technique group developed postoperative CME in 13.0% of eyes at 3 months, compared with 1.9% in the conventional technique group (odds ratio: 7.99, P = 0.045). Postoperative BCVA was consistently significantly higher in the Yamane technique group. Although many retinal surgeons have performed the Yamane technique because of its convenience for IOL scleral fixation, our findings suggest that the Yamane technique carries an increased risk of postoperative CME compared with the conventional suture method. Therefore, careful management of postoperative CME is needed after IOL scleral fixation.
Prevailed Antimicrobial Resistance Correlated with Antimicrobial Exposure of Late-onset Sepsis in Preterm Infants : A Multicenter Prospective Cohort Study in China
Authors: Liu Jing , Hou Shanshan , Li Jiahui , Wang Xiaokang , Li Wen , Zhao Changliang , Li Zhongliang , Wang Hui , Zhang Bingjin , Chen Weibing , Zhao Guoying , Yao Guo , Lu Qinghua , Yang Changkun , Zhang Yongfeng , Lu Xiaoli , Li Huan , Yu Yonghui 
Published: April 2024

Abstract

Background.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses increasing threats of mortality among neonates in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In response, the WHO classified antibiotics for Children into three groups: Access, Watch, and Reserve. We aimed to present data on AMR of late-onset sepsis (LOS) in preterm infants by the Access-Watch-Reserve classification and investigate risk factors of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria.
Methods.
A prospective observational cohort study was conducted in 31 neonatal intensive care units in China (January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2022). Preterm infants (gestational age<32 weeks or birth weight<1500g) were enrolled, and followed up until discharge or death. LOS was defined as occurrence of sepsis after 3 days of life. We identified factors associated with MDR bacteria through multi-variable logistic regression analysis.
Results.
Among 8384 infants, 614 (7.3%) were diagnosed with LOS, of which 338 (55%) were caused by gram-negative bacteria (GNB), 181 (29.5%) by gram-positive bacteria, 95 (15.5%) by fungi. Klebsiella spp. (58.3%), Escherichia coli (13.6%), Enterobacter spp. (8.3%), Acinetobacter baumannii (8.0%) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (5%) were top five common GNB. Amikacin listed as Access antibiotic had the lowest resistance rates ranging from 0–8.1%. Resistance rates remained high in Watch antibiotics, with ceftriaxone or ceftazidime ranging from 5.9–70.7% and meropenem ranging from 4.3–24.9%. Resistance rates of cefepime, classified as Reserve antibiotic, range from 5.9–40.3%. MDR rates ranged from 5.9–47.7%, and extensively drug-resistant rates from 0–7.6%. Antibiotic spectrum index per antibiotic day and a 10% increase in antibiotic use rate before onset of LOS were associated with MDR bacteria infections (p = 0.041, OR = 1.112, 95% CI 1.005–1.230 and p<0.001, OR = 1.383, 95% CI 1.226–1.560). Case fatality rate was higher among preterm infants with MDR bacteria than non-MDR bacteria infections (20.5% vs 11.4%, P = 0.023).
Conclusions.
GNB predominated in LOS, with a high resistance rate of Watch antibiotics and substantial proportion of MDR bacteria, which had higher mortality rate and were associated with excessive antibiotic exposure before onset of LOS. Conducting AMR surveillance and implementation of antimicrobial stewardship interventions are urgently needed in LMICs.
Characterization of morpho-agronomic traits and powdery mildew resistance in mung bean (Vigna radiata)
Authors: Kitomari Doring J. , Venkataramana Pavithravani B. , Mkindi Angela G. , Belmain Steven R. , Stevenson Philip C. 
Published: April 2024

Abstract

Background: Exploring genetic variation and screening for disease resistance is an important step in crop breeding initiatives but is lacking for many bean varieties including mung bean. The present study evaluated the diversity of 42 morpho-agronomic traits and screened mung bean genotypes for resistance to powdery mildew disease. A total of 132 mung bean and rice bean (R200) genotypes (as checks) were evaluated in an augmented incomplete block design across two cropping seasons. Pivot tables were used to analyse qualitative data, whereas the variation of 13 quantitative traits was examined using the generalized linear model (PROC GLM), agglomerative hierarchical clustering (AHC), and principal component analysis (PCA).
Result: The genotypes displayed a wide variation for the majority of traits evaluated and significant differences were observed among genotypes, block effect, and between seasons. Similarly, the effects due to checks, genotypes, and genotypes and controls were significant. One mung bean (G32) genotype and one rice bean (R200) exhibited resistance to powdery mildew under field conditions. Principal component analysis revealed that the first four PCs explained 59.77% of the total variation among the genotypes studied. In addition, cluster analysis grouped all the genotypes into four major clusters.
Conclusion: The trait variation recorded and resistance to powdery mildew disease provide valuable insight for developing breeding strategies especially with respect to reducing losses in mung bean and rice bean to powdery mildew.
First Incidence of Extrarenal Wilms Tumor within the Spinal Canal in the Adult Population: A Novel Case Report and Literature Review
Authors: Alijani Babak , Abbaspour Elahe , Karimzadhagh Sahand , Reihanian Zoheir , Dogahe Mohammad Haghani , Jafari Maryam , Jafari Seifollah , Zaresharifi Nooshin 
Published: April 2024

Abstract

Background: Wilms tumor (WT), also known as nephroblastoma, is a rare occurrence in adults, accounting for merely 3% of all nephroblastomas or 0.2 cases per million individuals. Extrarenal Wilms tumor (ERWT) emerges outside the renal confines and comprises 0.5 to 1% of all WT cases. Although ERWT is more prevalent in children, its incidence in adults signifies an even rarer incidence. Oncogenic mutations associated with ectopic nephrogenic rests (NR) may contribute to ERWT development. Diagnosis involves surgical resection and pathology examination. Due to scarce cases, adults often rely on pediatric guidelines.
We conducted a thorough search on PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases to establish our case's uniqueness. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first documented incidence of extrarenal Wilms tumor within the spinal canal in the adult population.
Case presentation: A 22-year-old woman with a history of congenital lipo-myelomeningocele surgery as an infant presented with a 6-month history of back pain. This pain gradually resulted in limb weakness, paraparesis, and loss of bladder and bowel control. An MRI showed a 6x5x3 cm spinal canal mass at the L4-S1 level. Consequently, a laminectomy was performed at the L4-L5 level to remove the intramedullary tumor. Post-surgery histopathology and immunohistochemistry confirmed the tumor as ERWT with favorable histology without any teratomatous component.
Conclusion: This report underscores a rare case of ERWT in an adult, challenging conventional diagnostics. Timely surgical intervention is recommended for similar masses, emphasizing the need for further research and clinical awareness.
Enhancing post machining surface finish of titanium alloy by cutting parameter optimization using ANOVA analysis
Authors: Polishetty Ashwin , Littlefair Guy 
Published: April 2024

Abstract

Titanium alloys are categorised under difficult to machine materials. The machinability of titanium alloy, Ti6Al4V using statistical methods such as Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) is investigated in this paper. Ti6Al4V is the most widely used titanium alloy in aerospace and biomedical application due to its advantageous material properties. However, despite its wide-ranging applications, there is a lack of clarity concerning its ideal machining parameters. This ambiguity primarily stems from Ti6Al4V's inherent properties, notably its low thermal conductivity and high chemical reactivity. Understanding and optimizing the machining parameters to get the right combination of speed, feed, depth of cut and coolant condition is vital. To gather comprehensive insights, a series of machining trials were conducted at various combinations of cutting parameters. The effects of varying the selected parameters on a crucial machining performance indicators-surface roughness was considered. Orthogonal arrays, known for their robustness in experiment design, were chosen to structure the machining trials. Furthermore, to decipher the collected data and interpret the results, ANOVA techniques were utilized with the help of R programming. The insights garnered can lead to more streamlined machining strategies, ensuring higher productivity and efficiency. By bridging the knowledge gap, this research seeks to make machining titanium alloys simpler, cost effective and more efficient for manufacturers.
Solar Active Regions Detection and Tracking Based on Deep Learning
Authors: Yang Yunfei , Gong Long , Feng Song , Dai Wei , Liang Bo , Xiong Jianping 
Published: April 2024

Abstract

Solar active regions serve as the primary energy sources of various solar activities, directly impacting the terrestrial environment. Therefore, precise detection and tracking of active regions are crucial for space weather monitoring and forecasting. In this study, a total of 4,532 HMI and DMI longitudinal magnetograms are selected for building the dataset, including the training set, validating set, and eight testing sets. They represent different observation instruments, different numbers of activity regions, and different time intervals. A new deep learning method, ReDetGraphTracker, is proposed for detecting and tracking the active regions in full-disk magnetograms. The cooperative modules, especially the re-detection module, NSA Kalman filter, and the splitter module, better solve the problems of missing detection, discontinuous trajectory, drifting tracking bounding box, and ID change. The evaluation metrics, IDF1, MOTA, MOTP, IDs, and FPS, for the testing sets with 24h interval on average are 74.3%, 75.0%, 0.130, 14.5, and 13.7, respectively. With the decreasing intervals, the metrics become better and better. The experimental results show that ReDetGraphTracker has a good performance in detecting and tracking active regions, especially capturing an active region as early as possible and terminating tracking in real-time. It can well deal with the active regions whatever evolve drastically or with weak magnetic field strengths.
Boundary Layer Fluid Flow in Volume Chamber of Cavitating Gerotor Pump: Computational Analysis using MATLAB
Authors: Ile Anthony A. E. , Ngonda Tiyamike N. 
Published: April 2024

Abstract

Gerotor pumps are widely used in the lubrication system of automobile combustion engines, known for their simplicity and efficiency. This paper presents a computational study of boundary layer flow for volume chamber of a gerotor pump experiencing cavitation. Utilizing MATLAB, we investigate the feasibility of using boundary layer approximation to monitor the adversity of the condition. The implementation is done by developing a finite element code to solve the boundary layer equation, for an arc length (0 to 1 mm) using experimental data. The focus is on understanding the fluid dynamics of the pump within the pump volume chamber, which plays a crucial role in the pump's overall performance. Solving the boundary layer equation, we simulated the flow characteristics within the pump volume chamber and generated results of Reynolds number, velocity profile, boundary layer thickness, and pressure energy profile. The main measure is the pressure energy parameter which shows analysis of the work done in moving the fluid against the resistance created by the cavitation. As expected, the results revealed a high correlation of cavitation with the suction pressure. This influence is seen to affect the overall delivered oil flow rate, while no interest was placed on other parameters outside the pump chamber flow characteristics. Furthermore, pressure ripples from the surface plot of the velocity profile show evidence of re-circulation or separation zones along the arc length.
Bayesian variable selection in joint modeling of longitudinal data and interval-censored failure time data
Authors: Mao Yuchen , Wang Lianming , Lin Xiaoyan , Sui Xuemei 
Published: April 2024

Abstract
Joint modeling of longitudinal data and survival data has gained great attention in the last two decades. However, most of the existing studies have focused on right-censored survival data. In this article, we study joint analysis of longitudinal data and interval-censored survival data and conduct Bayesian variable selection in this framework. A new joint model is proposed with a shared frailty to characterize the dependence between the two types of responses, where the longitudinal response is modeled with a semiparametric linear mixed-effects submodel and the survival time is modeled by a semiparametric normal fraility probit sub-model. Several Bayesian variable selection approaches are developed by adopting Bayesian Lasso, adaptive Lasso, and spike-and-slab priors in order to simultaneously select significant covariates and estimate their effects on the two types of responses. Efficient Gibbs samplers are proposed with all unknown parameters and latent variables being sampled directly from well recognized full conditional distributions. Our simulation study shows that these methods perform well in both variable selection and parameter estimation. A real-life data application to joint analysis of blood cholesterol level and hypertension is provided as an illustration.