bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Development and Application of a Computerized System for Medication Reconciliation in a Hospital Environment
Authors: Soares Alessandra Sá , Espindola Ana Cristina Claudino , Rosa David José Bittencourt da , Trevisol Daisson José , Trevisol Fabiana Schuelter 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Introduction: The World Health Organization (WHO) is concerned with ensuring patient safety in all health services. Thousands of people suffer from errors and adverse events related to medications2. Hospitals lack financial conditions, human resources, infrastructure, and computerized support systems for the implementation of clinical pharmacy, pharmacovigilance and medication reconciliation services. The introduction of systems that help the rational use of medicines (RMU), which is one of the pillars of safety in health services, is very relevant, especially for patients and pharmacists.
Objective: To develop and apply a computerized pharmaceutical decision support system for the medication reconciliation in a general hospital.
Method: Study of the development and application of a digital tool, with a cross-sectional design, for the comparison between manual medication reconciliation performed by the pharmacist and medication reconciliation performed with a computerized support system.
Results: In the medication reconciliation process, the computerized system reduced the time for analyzing prescriptions by eight minutes per patient. Of the 392 patients who were part of the sample, 97.7% used continuous medication at home. Among the list of home medications that were not prescribed in hospital prescriptions and identified through the system are: losartan (9.1%), levothyroxine (4.4%), metformin (3.6%), and medication for mental disorders. depression and anxiety such as: sertraline (2.9%), clonazepam (2.4%) fluoxetine (1.6%).
Conclusion: The developed computerized system proved to be superior to the pharmacist's manual search during medication reconciliation and clinical pharmacy and can be a valuable tool in pharmaceutical care.
CF-StyleGAN: Near-infrared image colorization of SE attention StyleGAN via color features
Authors: KONG LINGJUN , YANG XIN , WANG WENJU 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

With current Near-infrared (NIR) image colorization methods, the color and details of the colorized images are not well restored. Thus, in this paper, we propose an unsupervised color feature control SE attention StyleGAN (CF-StyleGAN) method for the NIR image colorization task. The proposed method is based on histogram LAB color and brightness feature extraction, which solves the problem whereby the color and brightness of the results do not match the actual situation. The proposed Squeeze-and-Excitation-based StyleGAN (SE-SGAN) method, which introduces a channel attention mechanism based on StyleGAN and utilizes both standard deviation adaptive normalization and the Mish activation function in the synthesis network, can improve the quality of the output image. The proposed method was evaluated experimentally on the KAIST dataset. We found that the proposed CF-StyleGAN outperformed existing methods and achieved state-of-the-art NIR image colorization results. Experimental results show that the peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) and structural similarity (SSIM) values of the colorized images were 27.15 and 0.83, respectively.
Strenuous expression of Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus ORF3 protein suggests role in pathogenesis
Authors: Kamau Ndirangu , Park Eui-Soon , Yu Jung-Eun , Rho Jae-Rang , Hong Eui-Ju , Shin Hyun-Jin 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
Background and objective
The swine enteric disease etiology, porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) is attenuated upon adaptation to cell culture. Genomic analyses between the wild type and the cell adapted (ca) strains have demonstrated nucleotide deletions exclusively on ORF3 gene of ca PEDV. Curiously, we sought to express the ORF3 protein of the virus in both mammalian and bacteria cells as a prerequisite for investigation of the protein’s putative role in pathogenesis.
Materials and methods
For prokaryotic expression, two vector systems, pET28-a(+) and pGEX-4T-1 were constructed and expressed in Escherichia coli cells. For eukaryotic analyses, ORF3/pEGFP-C1 vector constructs were expressed in human embryonic (HEK-293T) cells, green monkey kidney (Vero) cell and mouse fibrous cells (NIH3T3) cells. Intriguingly, there was minimal expression of the ORF3 gene. Following a hint from Shmitz (1998), that truncated ORF3 revealed higher expression, ORF3 gene was truncated following the Simple Modular Architecture Research Tool (SMART). The analysis predicted two transmembrane domains, one at position amino acid (aa) 41-63 and aa 76-98. Consequently, we generated two fragments; ORF-N (aa 1-98) which included the transmembrane domains and ORF3-C (aa 99-224). These truncated sequences were constructed in similar fashion as the whole gene here referred to as ORF3 wild type (wt).
Results
Coomassie blue stained gels revealed bands of ORF3-C expressed as a fusion protein of 17.5 and 39 kDa in pET28-a(+) and pGEX-4T-1 vectors, respectively. In contrast, there were no apparent bands visualized for ORF3-N. In addition, ORF3-N induction decreased the total levels of cellular proteins suggesting inhibition of protein synthesis or metabolism in the transformed cells. Further, solubility tests carried out at 30oC, 25oC and 18oC showed that ORF3 formed inclusion bodies. Similar expression patterns were observed in mammalian cells.
Conclusion
The difficult expression of ORF3 protein and mutants may have resulted from host cell immune system. This would be true especially if the protein is critical in virus pathogenesis. Noteworthy, morphological distortions appeared exclusively in mammalian cells expressing ORF3 protein or truncated mutants suggesting that the protein may be significant in pathogenesis.
Physico-chemical characterization of a New supramolecular Hybrid 2,6- diaminopurinium Chloride hexacholorobismuthates(III) bihydrate
Authors: Elleuch Nour , Lhoste Jerome , Bulou Alain , Boujelbene Mohamed 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
The new hybrid bismuth(III)-based material (C5H8N6)3[BiCl6].4Cl.2H2O has been synthesized and crystallized at room temperature by slow evaporation in the centrosymectric triclinic space group \(\mathbf{P}\stackrel{-}{1}\) with the crystallographical parameters: a = 11.5777 (3) Å, b = 12.0847 (4) Å, c = 15.2286 (4) Å, β = 108.571 (6)° Z = 2 and V = 1132.6 (2) Å3. The crystal structure is consists of discrete Bi2Cl11 dioctahedron anions, four chloride surrounded by three 2,6 diaminopurinium cations and two molecule water. The atomic arrangement can be described as an alternation of organic and inorganic parts which are linked via N-H…Cl and O-H…Cl hydrogen bonds forming a three dimensional network. The infrared and Raman spectra were recorded in the 4000–500 cm− 1 and 3000–0 cm− 1 frequency region ,respectively. Furthermore, the thermal behavior studied by thermogravimetric analyses shows a good stability up to 150°C. The results of Hirshfeld analysis associated with 2D fingerplints plots revealed that in all potential molecular contacts, the H…Cl/Cl…H constitutes the most important interaction in the crystal (49%). Finally, photoluminescence measurement indicates that the synthesized material manifests luminescence property and can be practical for use in the optoelectronics domain.
Electrochemical determination of butylhydroxyanisol (BHA) using a carbon fiber microelectrode modified by electrodeposition of gold nanoparticles and p-NiTSPc film
Authors: TCHOUMI Honorine Hortence BOUGNA , NJANJA Evangeline , FOUKMENIOK Serge MBOKOU , MASSAH Raïssa TAGUEU , BAKO Yibor Fabrice Roland , PONTIÉ Maxime , KENFACK Ignas TONLE 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

We report an approach to the manual manufacture of carbon fiber microelectrodes modified by electrodeposition of gold nanoparticles and nickel phthalocyanine tetrasulphonated composite (CFME-AuNPs/pNiTSPc), for the sensitive determination of butylhydroxyanisol (BHA) using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV). Atomic force microscopy (AFM), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Energy dispersive Xray spectroscopy (EDX) were used for the topographical, morphological and elemental characterizations of CFME, CFME-AuNPs, CFME-pNiTSPc and CFME-AuNPs/pNiTSPc, respectively. Furthermore, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) technique was used to evaluate the charge-transfer rate of the tested sensors. To establish optimum conditions for the electroanalysis of BHA, various parameters were studied such as the effect of scan rate, pH and the electrolysis potential. CFME-AuNPs/pNiTSPc showed better signal of BHA with a higher active surface area of 0.195 cm2 compared to those of CFME-pNiTSPc (0.182 cm2), CFME-AuNPs (0.142 cm2) and CFME (0.130 cm2). In phosphate buffer solution (PBS 0.1M; pH 3), good linearity (R2 = 0.998) was obtained between peak current intensities and BHA concentrations in the range from 10 to 70 µM, leading to a detection limit (LOD) of 3.60 µM (S/N=3) and a quantification limit (LOQ) of 12 µM (S/N=10). The interfering effect of certain species likely to affect the BHA oxidation signal was also evaluated, followed by the application of CFME-AuNPs/pNiTSPc in real water and mitosyl ointment samples. Recovery values of BHA were acceptable ranging from 96 to 99%, indicating that the developed sensor proved to be very sensitive and effective for detecting traces of BHA.
Evaluation of the Relationship between Optical Cohorence Tomography Findings and Visual Acuity and Magnetic Resonance Imaging Findings in Multiple Sclerosis Patients
Authors: Özen Kıvanç , Türe Gamze , Özen Tuğba Demir , Adıyeke Seda Karaca 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Purpose
In our study, the relationship between optical coherence tomography (OCT) findings and best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and the number of T2 hyperintense lesions in cranial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was investigated in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients.
Methods
A total of 188 eyes, including 118 eyes in the MS group and 70 eyes in the control group, were included in the study. MS group was also divided into two subgroups as those with history of optic neuritis (ON) (34 eyes) and those without history of ON (84 eyes). BCVA, anterior segment and fundus examination findings and OCT images of the cases were analyzed retrospectively. With OCT, total macular volume (TMV), macular retinal nerve fiber layer (mRNFL), ganglion cell layer (GCL), inner plexiform layer (IPL), inner nuclear layer (INL), outer plexiform layer (OPL), and outer nuclear layer (ONL) volumes and peripapiller RNFL thickness were calculated. The relationship between TMV and BCVA and the number of T2 hyperintense lesions on cranial MRI was examined.
Results
In the MS group, 34 eyes (28.8%) had history of ON. TMV, mRNFL, GCL and IPL volumes were found to be significantly higher in the control group than in the MS subgroups. mRNFL, GCL and IPL volumes were observed to be significantly higher in the MS group without history of ON. It was observed that the ONL volume was higher in MS group with history of ON, and there was a moderate negative correlation between TMV, BCVA and the number of MR lesions in this group. In MS group without history of ON, a high level of negative correlation was found between TMV and the number of MRI lesions. When all MS group were evaluated, it was observed that there was a weak negative correlation between TMV and BCVA, and a high level of negative correlation between the number of MRI lesions.
Conclusion
The study showed that OCT findings are associated with BCVA and MRI findings in MS patients. The MS patient with low TMV had lower visual acuity and more lesions on MRI.
Generalized Fixed Point Theory of a Class of Nonlinear Operators on the Positive Cone
Authors: Ren Guanlong , Yang Jiaxi 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
The paper has been motivated by the availability of new and unexploited techniques for solving the monotone concave operators, and by the direct implementation of corresponding theory. Based on Du's general results, we confine ourselves to a specific class of monotone order concave operators and then extend his results in multiple directions. These include developing sufficient conditions that assure existence of a concretely super-solution for the nonlinear operator possessing certain linear majorants, and providing uniqueness results and convergence of the iteration method over whole solid cones rather than just bounded order intervals. In addition, the sufficient conditions in our results have relatively weak requirements, making the underlying operator easy to deal with, and hence making the corresponding theorems easy to implement in practice.
Mathematics Subject Classification (2010). 54H25; 47H10.
Transnational social spaces, guanxi, and resource mobilization in US-China collaboration on COVID-19-related research
Authors: Haupt John P , Chen Morris , Lee Jenny J , Hu Die , Wen Wen 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

This study investigates the quality and intensity of collaborations between US and Chinese scientists. It examines differences in the self-reported roles and responsibilities of scientists across three groups: US Chinese, US non-Chinese, and China-based scientists, and the reasons why such differences may have emerged. The study employed a sequential exploratory mixed methods design, collecting interview and survey data from US-based and China-based scientists who co-published articles related to COVID-19. The findings generally showed that Chinese scientists in the US and China were more highly involved in research projects compared to their non-Chinese counterparts. Higher levels of involvement included greater intellectual contributions, more time and energy exerted, and more financial and material support provided. The findings also revealed that differences between the three groups of scientists can be explained by the US non-Chinese scientists’ limited involvement in many projects, by the US Chinese scientists’ transmigrant experiences and their embeddedness in transnational guanxi networks, and by the focus of many projects being on COVID-19 in China.
Antibiogram and Multi-drug Resistance Profile of Escherichia coli Isolated from Retail Poultry Feeds
Authors: Ogbu Cosmas C. , Ezema Chuka , Okoye J. O. 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
High cost of poultry feeds necessitate feed retailing to small scale farmers. Retailing of feeds however, breaches feed biosecurity, enhances microbial contamination including antimicrobial resistant bacteria. The present study evaluated the antibiogram and multi-drug resistance profile of E. coli from retail poultry feeds in Southeastern Nigeria. A total of 390 feed samples from broiler starter, broiler finisher, chick grower, and layer ration belonging to various feed brands were collected for the study. Presumptive E. coli bacteria were isolated from samples following standard microbiological techniques and confirmed as E. coli using biochemical tests. Isolate antibiotic resistance was evaluated using 10 antibiotic agents. There was high prevalence of zero inhibition zone diameters among resistance zone diameters, and extensive antibiotic resistance by isolates. Of the 114 isolates, eight (7 %) were completely sensitive while 29 (25.4 %) were completely resistant (MDRI: 1.0). Feed brand J and broiler starter yielded the most resistant isolates. Resistance to cell wall inhibitors were the most prevalent (79.2 %) while nalidixic acid was the most resisted antibiotic (n = 99, 86.8 %). Antibiotic resistance status and source of isolates showed significant association across feed brands (χ2 = 49.085, p < 0.000), and feed types (χ2 = 25.429, p < 0.000); and for feed brands within states (χ2 = 16.518, p < 0.001; χ2 = 30.768, p < 0.000; and χ2 = 20.025, p < 0.006 for Abia, Ebonyi and Enugu States, respectively). Antibiotic agent and resistance status of isolates were significantly related across feed brands in Abia State. There were 41 multi-drug resistance patterns of which the most frequent involved eight antibiotics (n = 12, 29.3 %). In conclusion, retail poultry feeds harbor multi-drug resistant E. coli bacteria. Feed retailing should be outlawed, and feed companies made to bag graded small quantities for resource poor farmers.
Statistical modeling of the attitudes toward mathematics from a school survey data of Mayotte
Authors: Manou-Abi Solym 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
Motivated by two survey data samples (student and teacher) obtained from institutional records in some school establishments of Mayotte, this paper has two main objectives. Firstly, a global application of statistical models for the analysis of students’ attitude toward mathematics (difficulty, interest or perception, value of the level in mathematics and others attitudes such as social factors, school environment) together with the teachers’ attitude toward mathematics (difficult courses, professional training experience, teaching preparation time, etc). Some didactic analysis have helped to reach conclusions to ensure the consistency of certain characterization. Secondly, we develop a theoretical methodology for parameter estimation of the density of the students’ level in mathematics and teachers’ attitude in the framework of stable and extreme values distributions which are suitable for studying non Gaussian and heavy-tailed distributions. More precisely, we described a new estimation method based on the tail regression estimation method for stable distributions. For the extreme family distributions, we consider a mixture estimation using the EM algorithm. Finaly, we end with a brief discussion on a current experimentation of the statistical and didactic analysis results in the form of Lesson study involving several teachers from the island of Mayotte.
Effects of nitrogen fertilizer and water management practices on pH and nitrogen distributions in the wetted-soil volume using drip irrigation
Authors: Qiu Zhenjie , Luo Rihui , Sun Mengying , Liao Wei , Liu Yunyi 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

In the soil column experiments, the irrigation amount varied from 4.8 to 12 L, and the nitrogen application rate was from 80 to 360 kg ha−1. Three fertigation strategies were tested. The results indicated that an increase in water input led to an increase in the area of pH decrease in the soil at 10 days after the irrigation ended for a given lateral depth of 10 cm. The measurement of nitrogen distribution showed that the nitrogen content in the soil was significantly increased with the nitrogen application rate. Fertigation strategies substantially affect the pH and nitrogen distributions in soil. The strategy of applying water at first for one-fourth of the total irrigation time (1/4W), then applying fertilizer solution for one-half of the total irrigation time (1/2N), followed by applying water for the remaining one-fourth of the total irrigation time (1/4W) made a minimal soil pH decreasing area and a homogeneous nitrate distribution at 0–20 cm depth. Therefore, to reduce NO3-N leaching and avoid deep soil acidification, a dripline depth of 10 cm with an irrigation amount of 4.8 L and a nitrogen application rate of 80 kg ha−1 through the 1/4W–1/2N–1/4W fertigation may be suggested.
Tweedie models for Malaysia rainfall simulations with seasonal variabilities
Authors: Suhaila Jamaludin 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the suitability of the Tweedie generalised linear model for characterising monthly rainfall patterns across 18 meteorological stations in Peninsular Malaysia. It incorporates harmonic functions consisting of sine and cosine functions as seasonal predictors and El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) indices as climatic predictors. Results indicate that three harmonic functions are essential to accurately portray rainfall dynamics in the southwestern and northwestern regions, while two suffice for the inland and western regions. However, incorporating four harmonic functions is the most optimal representation of the eastern region. An additional 1-month lag in ENSO indices is introduced to the optimal seasonal predictor model. Based on the findings, the southern oscillation index notably impacts monthly rainfall significantly in eastern and inland areas, while meteorological stations in the western and northwestern areas fit better with the multivariate ENSO index. Strikingly, no substantial impact of climate predictors is observed on the monthly rainfall within the southwestern region. Thus, the influence of climate indices is very much influenced by the geographical locations of the regions. Importantly, generating simulated data through the Tweedie model contributes to a more accurate representation of the statistical properties inherent in rainfall analysis.
Isolation and genotyping of Acanthamoeba species and Vahlkampfiidae in the harsh environmental conditions in the centre of Iran
Authors: Pourabbasi Ardekan Azam , Niyyati Maryam , Saberi Reza , Zanjirani Farahani Leyli , Fatemi Marziye 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Different species of free-living amoeba (FLA) have been abundantly isolated in harsh environmental conditions such as hot springs and brackish water. The present study aimed to isolate, genotype, and evaluate the pathogenicity of FLAs in Qom Roud, a large river, in the centre of Iran. About 500 mL of water samples (n = 30) were collected from each sampling site and were investigated for the presence of FLAs using morphological and molecular characters. Genotype identification was performed using DNA sequencing and a phylogenetic tree was constructed with the MEGA X software. The pathogenic potential of all positive isolates was evaluated using the tolerance ability test. Morphological and molecular analysis indicated that 14 (46.66%) and two (6.66%) water samples were positive for Acanthamoeba species and Vahlkampfiidae, respectively. According to sequence analysis, Acanthamoeba isolates related to the T4 genotype and Vahlkampfiidae sequences were similar to Naegleria philippinensis. In the next step, thermo- and osmotolerance tests indicated four Acanthamoeba strains are extremely pathogenic. Our data showed the presence of potentially pathogenic Acanthamoeba T4 genotype and N. philippinensis in the super harsh Qom Roud. Contamination of water with virulent T4 genotype of Acanthamoeba may pose risk factors for contact lens users, children, and immunocompromised people.
Identifying key pipe attributes and locations to best determine chlorine decay coefficients within a water distribution system
Authors: Maleki Mahnoush , Pelletier Genevieve , Rodriguez Manuel 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
Water distribution system (WDS) characteristics can impact drinking water quality. Kinetic reaction coefficients of residual disinfectant associated with bulk water (kb) and pipe wall (kw) during water distribution can lead to water quality degradation. Determining these coefficients can be expensive and time-consuming. The main objective of this study is to determine the most relevant pipe characteristics and locations to best determine chlorine decay coefficients in a WDS. This article aims to evaluate various scenarios of kb and kw values and compare them to measured data in a full-scale WDS. The most accurate scenario is also compared with the lowest-cost scenario to identify the most effective information needed to determine these coefficients, in terms of location within the WDS and pipe characteristics (age, diameter, and material). Results showed that the scenario with the highest kw and kb values corresponds best to the field-measured data. Moreover, determining specific kinetic coefficients was shown to be more accurate for gray cast iron pipes, pipes installed in a period before 1960, and vulnerable zones for residual chlorine decay.