bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Urine Albumin Measurements in Clinical Diagnostics
Authors: Seegmiller Jesse C , Bachmann Lorin M 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Background
Measurement of urine albumin is critical for diagnosis, risk classification, and monitoring of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Guidelines recommend clinical decision cutoffs for the urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio (ACR) of 30 and 300 mg/g (3 and 30 mg/mmol). However, differences among manufacturers’ routine urine albumin measurement procedures have been found to exceed 40%, suggesting CKD diagnosis and risk classification may vary depending upon the specific measurement procedure implemented in the laboratory.

Content
This review discusses urine albumin pathophysiology and clinical practice guideline recommendations for CKD. The review also provides recommendations for urine specimen collection and storage, and results reporting for the ACR. Recent advances in measurement techniques and development of reference systems intended to facilitate standardization of urine albumin measurements are reviewed.

Summary
Urine albumin is an important measurement procedure used for diagnosis, risk classification, and management of CKD. Urine albumin results should be reported as the ACR using quantitative measurement procedures. Random urine collections used for albuminuria screening should be followed by confirmation with first morning void collections to reduce variation and increase diagnostic accuracy for urine albumin measurement. Most measurement procedures utilize immunoturbidimetric or immunonephelometric techniques. However, results vary significantly among measurement procedures, potentially resulting in differences in classification or risk assessment for CKD. The National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) and other laboratories are developing reference systems, including liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry candidate reference measurement procedures and reference materials, to enable standardization of routine measurement procedures.
Competence-based language curricula: implementation challenges in Africa
Authors: Atuhura Dorothy , Nambi Rebecca 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Drawing on a case study design, this article examines the real-life adaptive challenges secondary school teachers of English in Uganda face while implementing the 2020 English language competence-based curriculum innovation. Findings indicate that scarcity of instructional materials, time constraints and large class sizes, limited planning and stakeholders’ support, dissonance between local culture and learning styles significantly underlie complications ESL teachers face adapting and implementing competence-based curricula innovations in English language classrooms in low-income contexts in the global south. The experiences of teachers in Uganda resonate across most global south ESL educational contexts. They illustrate the universality of challenges teachers face and are likely to face when implementing competence-based curricula in sub-Saharan Africa and the wider global south where the teaching and learning of English is premised on facilitating acquisition of English language for meaningful interaction.
Lack of paternal silencing and ecotype-specific expression in head and body lice hybrids
Authors: Marshall Hollie , de la Filia Andrés G , Cavalieri Ross , Mallon Eamonn B , Clark John M , Ross Laura 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Paternal genome elimination (PGE) is a non-Mendelian inheritance system, described in numerous arthropod species, in which males develop from fertilized eggs, but their paternally inherited chromosomes are eliminated before or during spermatogenesis. Therefore, PGE males only transmit their maternally inherited set of chromosomes to their offspring. In addition to the elimination of paternal chromosomes, diverse PGE species have also repeatedly evolved the transcriptional silencing of the paternal genome, making males effectively haploid. However, it is unclear if this paternal chromosome silencing is mechanistically linked to the chromosome elimination or has evolved at a later stage, and if so, what drives the haploidization of males under PGE. In order to understand these questions, here we study the human louse, Pediculus humanus, which represents an ideal model system, as it appears to be the only instance of PGE where males eliminate, but not silence their paternal chromosomes, although the latter remains to be shown conclusively. In this study, we analyzed parent-of-origin allele-specific expression patterns in male offspring of crosses between head and body lice ecotypes. We show that hybrid adult males of P. humanus display biparental gene expression, which constitutes the first case of a species with PGE in which genetic activity of paternal chromosomes in the soma is not affected by embryonic silencing or (partial or complete) elimination. We did however also identify a small number of maternally biased genes (potentially imprinted genes), which may be involved in the elimination of paternal chromosomes during spermatogenesis. Finally, we have identified genes that show ecotype-specific expression bias. Given the low genetic diversity between ecotypes, this is suggestive for a role of epigenetic processes in ecotype differences.
Learning a microlocal prior for limited-angle tomography
Authors: Rautio Siiri , Murthy Rashmi , Bubba Tatiana A , Lassas Matti , Siltanen Samuli 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Limited-angle tomography is a highly ill-posed linear inverse problem. It arises in many applications, such as digital breast tomosynthesis. Reconstructions from limited-angle data typically suffer from severe stretching of features along the central direction of projections, leading to poor separation between slices perpendicular to the central direction. In this paper, a new method is introduced, based on machine learning and geometry, producing an estimate for interfaces between regions of different X-ray attenuation. The estimate can be presented on top of the reconstruction, indicating more reliably the separation between features. The method uses directional edge detection, implemented using complex wavelets and enhanced with morphological operations. By using convolutional neural networks, the visible part of the singular support is first extracted and then extended to the full domain, filling in the parts of the singular support that would otherwise be hidden due to the lack of measurement directions.
Mediating effects of hypertension in association between household wealth disparities and diabetes among women of reproductive age: analysis of eight countries in sub-Saharan Africa
Authors: Nyarko Samuel H , Addo Isaac Y , Ayebeng Castro , Dickson Kwamena S , Acquah Evelyn 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Background
Diabetes prevalence appears to be increasing in low- and middle-income countries, yet little is known about how hypertension status mediates the association between household wealth and diabetes. This study examined the mediation effects of hypertension in associations between household wealth and diabetes in eight sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries.

Methods
This is a cross-sectional study of 71 577 women from recent Demographic and Health Surveys for eight SSA countries. Sample-weighted logistic regression and causal mediation analyses were conducted.

Results
Of the 71 577 women, 1.1% (782) reported ever being diagnosed with diabetes. Women with diabetes were more likely to have hypertension compared with those without diabetes (54.9% vs 9.9%). The odds of diabetes were significantly higher among women with hypertension (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 5.71 [95% confidence interval {CI} 4.62 to 7.05]) and women from rich households (adjusted OR 1.65 [95% CI 1.23 to 2.22]) compared with their respective counterparts. Hypertension status mediated 27.4% of the association between household wealth and diabetes status.

Conclusions
Hypertension status partly contributes to the associations between household wealth disparities and diabetes status among women in the selected countries. Further research and targeted interventions are needed to explore specific mechanisms and confounding factors related to household wealth disparities, hypertension status and diabetes prevalence in this population.
The Practice of Engagement without Recognition under International Law: A Tool for Combatting Human Trafficking
Authors: Hadjigeorgiou Nasia 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
This article argues that, even in the absence of international recognition, international law can make a real and meaningful impact in de facto states. Such impact can come about through engagement without recognition, which should be understood, not as a shadowy practice that takes place in the fringes of international law, but as a strategy that is fully compatible with international legal standards. The article makes this argument by relying on a detailed analysis of relevant case law of the European Court of Human Rights. It further proposes that reconceptualizing engagement without recognition can have important practical consequences in the fight against human trafficking, which has received regrettably limited attention by policymakers in de facto states.
Practice Contestation in and between Communities of Practice: From Top-Down to Inclusive Policymaking at the World Bank
Authors: Sondarjee Maïka 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
By focusing on like-mindedness, community of practice (CoP) scholars are often accused of downgrading issues of power and contestation. This article theorizes practice contestation as an integral part of participation in a community. Building on a relational ontology and the concept of epistemic power, I define practice contestation as tacit (practical) or discursive interventions challenging the shared background knowledge of a CoP. This process is bidirectional (pushing for and against change) and happens at two levels (within a CoP and at the boundaries with other CoPs). This framework leads to four types of practice contestation: internal disruption, internal resistance, external pressure, and external resistance. These concomitant types of contestation participate in the constant fluctuations of international practices and social orders. Methodologically, this article looks at the CoP of World Bank’s senior managers and their boundaries with other communities, and it builds on interview material and archival documents collected between 2017 and 2020.
Cultivating Communities of Practice: From Institutions to Practices
Authors: Bicchi Federica 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Where do communities of practice (CoPs) come from? What relationship do they entertain with institutions within or across which they develop? To what extent can institutions actually create CoPs? These questions are crucial, if only because of the benefits that CoPs are expected to bring, from innovation to learning to shared best practices. This article suggests that the most important relationship is between the CoP and its founding practice, which is ontologically prior to the CoP. The coming into existence of a CoP thus depends on the pre-existence of a founding practice and practical alignments. This argument counterbalances the two prevailing positions in the literature on CoPs, which focus on institutions instead of practices. In most IR literature on the topic, scholars have viewed CoPs as emerging “organically” and informally at the margins of institutions in a bottom-up fashion and from there often coming back to influence institutions bottom-up. Knowledge management scholars and institutional actors themselves have instead embraced a more agential and performative top-down approach by which CoPs can and should be cultivated to foster knowledge creation in business and international institutions alike. The article explores these positions with the help of examples drawn mainly from the European Union’s experience, including the Joint Research Centre’s attempt to cultivate CoPs from 2016 onwards.
Delegation of Economic Statecraft to Private Enterprises: Russia, China, and Turkey in Africa
Authors: Laryš Martin , Svoboda Karel 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
The literature on economic statecraft, defined as the use of economic means to achieve strategic ends, deals primarily with direct state instruments (sanctions, embargoes, and loans), or delegation to state-owned enterprises. However, states as principals also frequently delegate to private enterprises, which leads to the puzzling question of why some principals delegate economic statecraft to private enterprises instead of state-owned enterprises. In the classic literature on principal–agent theory, the principal delegates to agents because of the agents’ experience, the principal’s poor relationship with the target subject, or inability to participate in every step of the process. Arguably, the reasons for the principal’s delegation to private enterprises in economic statecraft might differ. The contribution of this article is two-fold. First, it introduces a three-tiered model of the economic statecraft’s delegation based on deniability and control. It consists of direct state interventions, delegation to the state-owned enterprises, and delegation to the private-owned enterprises. Second, it aims to close the gap in the existing literature by focusing on the principal’s preference of the delegation to private instead of state-owned enterprises in the context of Russian, Chinese, and Turkish geopolitical goals in Africa.
Linezolid brain penetration in neurointensive care patients
Authors: Hosmann Arthur , Moser Miriam M , van Os Wisse , Gramms Leon , al Jalali Valentin , Sanz Codina Maria , Plöchl Walter , Lier Constantin , Kees Frieder , Dorn Christoph , Rössler Karl , Reinprecht Andrea , Zeitlinger Markus 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Background
Linezolid exposure in critically ill patients is associated with high inter-individual variability, potentially resulting in subtherapeutic antibiotic exposure. Linezolid exhibits good penetration into the CSF, but its penetration into cerebral interstitial fluid (ISF) is unknown.

Objectives
To determine linezolid penetration into CSF and cerebral ISF of neurointensive care patients.

Patients and methods
Five neurocritical care patients received 600 mg of linezolid IV twice daily for treatment of extracerebral infections. At steady state, blood and CSF samples were collected from arterial and ventricular catheters, and microdialysate was obtained from a cerebral intraparenchymal probe.

Results
The median fAUC0–24 was 57.6 (24.9–365) mg·h/L in plasma, 64.1 (43.5–306.1) mg·h/L in CSF, and 27.0 (10.7–217.6) mg·h/L in cerebral ISF. The median penetration ratio (fAUCbrain_or_CSF/fAUCplasma) was 0.5 (0.25–0.81) for cerebral ISF and 0.92 (0.79–1) for CSF. Cerebral ISF concentrations correlated well with plasma (R = 0.93, P &lt; 0.001) and CSF levels (R = 0.93, P &lt; 0.001).
The median fAUC0–24/MIC ratio was ≥100 in plasma and CSF for MICs of ≤0.5 mg/L, and in cerebral ISF for MICs of ≤0.25 mg/L. The median fT&gt;MIC was ≥80% of the dosing interval in CSF for MICs of ≤0.5 mg/L, and in plasma and cerebral ISF for MICs of ≤0.25 mg/L.

Conclusions
Linezolid demonstrates a high degree of cerebral penetration, and brain concentrations correlate well with plasma and CSF levels. However, substantial variability in plasma levels, and thus cerebral concentrations, may result in subtherapeutic tissue concentrations in critically ill patients with standard dosing, necessitating therapeutic drug monitoring.
Carbohydrate-binding ability of a recombinant protein containing the DM9 motif from Drosophila melanogaster
Authors: Hatakeyama Tomomitsu , Kojima Fuki , Ohkawachi Issei , Sawai Hitomi , Unno Hideaki 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Proteins containing DM9 motifs, which were originally identified in the Drosophila melanogaster genome, are widely distributed in various organisms and are assumed to be involved in their innate immune response. In this study, we produced a recombinant protein of CG13321 (rCG13321) from D. melanogaster, which consists of four DM9 motifs, in Escherichia coli cells. In affinity chromatography using a mannose-immobilized column, rCG13321 exhibited mannose-binding ability and was separated into high-affinity and low-affinity fractions, named HA and LA, respectively, based on its binding ability to the column. In addition to having a higher affinity for the column, HA exhibited self-oligomerization ability, suggesting slight differences in tertiary structure. Both LA and HA showed hemagglutinating activity and were able to agglutinate an oligomannose-containing dendrimer, indicating that they have multiple carbohydrate-binding sites. Glycan array analysis suggested that rCG13321 primarily recognizes d-mannose and d-rhamnose through hydrogen bonding with the 2-, 3- and 4-hydroxy groups. Isothermal titration calorimetry demonstrated that rCG13321 has a comparable affinity to typical lectins. These findings suggest that CG13321 functions as a carbohydrate-binding protein or lectin that recognizes mannose and related carbohydrate-containing molecules on the surface of foreign organisms as a pattern recognition molecule.
The Religious Dimensions of Epidemic Disease: Cholera, the Ghost Rite, and Missionary Medicine in Nineteenth-Century Korea
Authors: Kim Shin Kwon 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
One of the most catastrophic pandemics in human history was the repeated spread of cholera in the nineteenth century. In spite of its historical significance, few scholars have studied cholera’s influence in East Asia. This paper illustrates how cholera was considered, conceptualized, and treated by Korean people prior to contact with North American medical missionaries in 1885. In particular, the article compares the government-ordered public health measures during the Joseon dynasty, focusing on the “ghost rite” performed during outbreaks of epidemic disease with the work of medical missionaries in the late nineteenth century. This study finds that even after the introduction of Western biomedicine, the Korean people persisted with a religious-based etiology of cholera and other infectious diseases until the twentieth century.
Racial and ethnic disparities in genomic testing among lung cancer patients: a systematic review
Authors: Meernik Clare , Raveendran Yadurshini , Kolarova Michaela , Rahman Fariha , Olunuga Ebunoluwa , Hammond Emmery , Shivaramakrishnan Akhilesh , Hendren Steph , Bosworth Hayden B , Check Devon K , Green Michelle , Strickler John H , Akinyemiju Tomi 
Published: February 2024

Abstract

Background
Racial and ethnic disparities in genomic testing could exacerbate disparities in access to precision cancer therapies and survival—particularly in the context of lung cancer where genomic testing has been recommended for the past decade. However, prior studies assessing disparities in genomic testing have yielded mixed results.

Methods
We conducted a systemic review to examine racial and ethnic disparities in the use of genomic testing among lung cancer patients in the United States. Two comprehensive searches in PubMed, Embase, and Scopus were conducted (September 2022, May 2023). Original studies that assessed rates of genomic testing by race or ethnicity were included. Findings were narratively synthesized by outcome.

Results
The search yielded 2739 unique records, resulting in 18 included studies. All but 1 study were limited to patients diagnosed with non–small cell lung cancer. Diagnosis years ranged from 2007 to 2022. Of the 18 studies, 11 found statistically significant differences in the likelihood of genomic testing by race or ethnicity; in 7 of these studies, testing was lower among Black patients compared with White or Asian patients. However, many studies lacked adjustment for key covariates and included patients with unclear eligibility for testing.

Conclusions
A majority of studies, though not all, observed racial and ethnic disparities in the use of genomic testing among patients with lung cancer. Heterogeneity of study results throughout a period of changing clinical guidelines suggests that minoritized populations—Black patients in particular—have faced additional barriers to genomic testing, even if not universally observed at all institutions.
Long noncoding RNA KCNQ1OT1 aggravates cerebral infarction by regulating PTBT1/SIRT1 via miR-16-5p
Authors: Jiang Yuanming , Ma Chi , Guan Yuxiu , Yang Wenqi , Yu Jiaqi , Shi Hanfei , Ding Zihang , Zhang Zhuobo 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Cerebral infarction (CI) is one of the leading causes of disability and death. LncRNAs are key factors in CI progression. Herein, we studied the function of long noncoding RNA KCNQ1OT1 in CI patient plasma samples and in CI models. Quantitative real-time PCR and Western blotting tested gene and protein expressions. The interactions of KCNQ1OT1/PTBP1 and miR-16-5p were analyzed using dual-luciferase reporter and RNA immunoprecipitation assays; MTT assays measured cell viability. Cell migration and angiogenesis were tested by wound healing and tube formation assays. Pathological changes were analyzed by triphenyltetrazolium chloride and routine staining. We found that KCNQ1OT1 and PTBP1 were overexpressed and miR-16-5p was downregulated in CI patient plasma and in oxygen-glucose deprived (OGD) induced mouse brain microvascular endothelial (bEnd.3) cells. KCNQ1OT1 knockdown suppressed pro-inflammatory cytokine production and stimulated angiogenic responses in OGD-bEnd.3 cells. KCNQ1OT1 upregulated PTBP1 by sponging miR-16-5p. PTBP1 overexpression or miR-16-5p inhibition attenuated the effects of KCNQ1OT1 knockdown. PTBP1 silencing protected against OGD-bEnd.3 cell injury by enhancing SIRT1. KCNQ1OT1 silencing or miR-16-5p overexpression also alleviated ischemic injury in a mice middle cerebral artery occlusion model. Thus, KCNQ1OT1 silencing alleviates CI by regulating the miR-16-5p/PTBP1/SIRT1 pathway, providing a theoretical basis for novel therapeutic strategies targeting CI.
Symptomatic appendiceal intussusception—rare pitfall of the historical inversion technique
Authors: Nan Xinyi , Pyle Braden , Kwik Charlotte , Nolan Greg J 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
Appendiceal intussusception is a rare condition with an unknown incidence of clinical presentation, and an estimated incidence of 0.01% is based on a histological study only. It presents a diagnostic challenge with lack of standardized management strategies, and its description in literature is limited to case reports and series. Clinical presentation is often variable and nonspecific; it is uncommon to have a definitive preoperative diagnosis. Iatrogenic appendiceal intussusception can occur as a result of the historical simple inversion or inversion-ligation appendicectomy technique, but it is seldom reported to cause symptoms. We present a case of symptomatic appendiceal intussusception diagnosed preoperatively on both computed tomography and colonoscopy prior to proceeding with elective definitive surgery in a patient with no reported prior history of appendicectomy.
An alternative definition of tense operators on residuated lattices
Authors: Calomino Ismael , Pelaitay Gustavo , Zuluaga Botero William 
Published: February 2024

Abstract
In this paper, we introduce and study an alternative definition of tense operators on residuated lattices. We give a categorical equivalence for the class of tense ICRDL-algebras, which is motivated by an old construction by J. Kalman. The paper concludes with some applications regarding descriptions of congruences and a 2-contextual translation.