bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Potential for Cure by Stage across the Cancer Spectrum in the United States
Authors: Hubbell Earl , Clarke Christina A. , Smedby Karin E. , Adami Hans-Olov , Chang Ellen T. 
Published: November 2023

Abstract

Background:
Cure fraction—the proportion of persons considered cured of cancer after long-term follow-up—reflects the total impact of cancer control strategies, including screening, without lead-time bias. Previous studies have not reported stage-stratified cure fraction across the spectrum of cancer types.

Methods:
Using a mixture cure model, we estimated cure fraction across stages for 21 cancer types and additional subtypes. Cause-specific survival for 2.4 million incident cancers came from 17 US Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results registries for adults 40 to 84 years at diagnosis in 2006 to 2015, followed through 2020.

Results:
Across cancer types, a substantial cure fraction was evident at early stages, followed by either a sharp drop from stages III to IV or a steady decline from stages I to IV. For example, estimated cure fractions for colorectal cancer at stages I, II, III, and IV were 62% (95% confidence interval: 59%–66%), 61% (58%–65%), 58% (57%–59%), and 7% (7%–7%), respectively. Corresponding estimates for gallbladder cancer were 50% (46%–54%), 24% (22%–27%), 22% (19%–25%), and 2% (2%–3%). Differences in 5-year cause-specific survival between early-stage and stage IV cancers were highly correlated with between-stage differences in cure fraction, indicating that survival gaps by stage are persistent and not due to lead-time bias.

Conclusions:
A considerable fraction of cancer is amenable to cure at early stages, but not after metastasis.

Impact:
These results emphasize the potential for early detection of numerous cancers, including those with no current screening modalities, to reduce cancer death.
Clinical Outcomes of Deferred Lesions by IVUS Versus FFR-Guided Treatment Decision
Authors: Lee Joo Myung , Kim Hangyul , Hong David , Hwang Doyeon , Zhang Jinlong , Hu Xinyang , Jiang Jun , Nam Chang-Wook , Doh Joon-Hyung , Lee Bong-Ki , Kim Weon , Huang Jinyu , Jiang Fan , Zhou Hao , Chen Peng , Tang Lijiang , Jiang Wenbing , Chen Xiaomin , He Wenming , Kang Jeehoon , Ahn Sung-Gyun , Yoon Myeong-Ho , Kim Ung , Ki You-Jeong , Shin Eun-Seok , Choi Ki Hong , Park Taek Kyu , Yang Jeong Hoon , Song Young Bin , Choi Seung-Hyuk , Gwon Hyeon-Cheol , Koo Bon-Kwon , Kim Hyo-Soo , Tahk Seung-Jea , Wang Jian’an , Hahn Joo-Yong ,   the FLAVOUR Investigators
Published: November 2023

BACKGROUND:
There are limited data regarding the safety of deferral of percutaneous coronary intervention based on intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) findings. The current study sought to compare the prognosis between deferred lesions based on IVUS and fractional flow reserve (FFR)–guided treatment decision.

METHODS:
This study is a post hoc analysis of the FLAVOUR randomized trial (Fractional Flow Reserve and Intravascular Ultrasound for Clinical Outcomes in Patients With Intermediate Stenosis) that compared 2-year clinical outcomes between IVUS- and FFR-guided treatment decision on intermediate coronary artery lesions using predefined criteria. In both IVUS and FFR groups, vessels were classified into deferred or revascularized vessels, and patients were classified as those with or without deferred lesions. Vessel-oriented composite outcomes (cardiac death, target vessel myocardial infarction, or target vessel revascularization) in deferred vessels and patient-oriented composite outcomes (death, myocardial infarction, or any revascularization) in patients with deferred lesions were compared between the IVUS and FFR groups.

RESULTS:

A total of 1682 patients and 1820 vessels were analyzed, of which 922 patients and 989 vessels were deferred. At 2 years, there was no difference in the cumulative incidence of vessel-oriented composite outcomes in deferred vessels between IVUS (n=375) and FFR (n=614) groups (3.8% versus 4.1%; hazard ratio, 0.91 [95% CI, 0.47–1.75];
P
=0.77). The risk of vessel-oriented composite outcomes was comparable between deferred and revascularized vessels following treatment decision by IVUS (3.8% versus 3.5%; hazard ratio, 1.09 [95% CI, 0.54–2.19];
P
=0.81) and FFR (4.1% versus 3.6%; hazard ratio, 1.14 [95% CI, 0.56–2.32];
P
=0.72). In comparison of patient-oriented composite outcomes in patients with deferred lesions, there was no significant difference between the IVUS (n=357) and FFR (n=565) groups (6.2% versus 5.9%; hazard ratio, 1.05 [95% CI, 0.61–1.80];
P
=0.86).

CONCLUSIONS:
In patients with intermediate coronary artery stenosis, deferral of percutaneous coronary intervention based on IVUS-guided treatment decision showed comparable risk of clinical events with FFR-guided treatment decision.

REGISTRATION:

URL:
https://www.clinicaltrials.gov
; Unique identifier: NCT02673424.
Flipped C-Terminal Ends of APOA1 Promote ABCA1-Dependent Cholesterol Efflux by Small HDLs
Authors: He Yi , Pavanello Chiara , Hutchins Patrick M. , Tang Chongren , Pourmousa Mohsen , Vaisar Tomas , Song Hyun D. , Pastor Richard W. , Remaley Alan T. , Goldberg Ira J. , Costacou Tina , Sean Davidson W. , Bornfeldt Karin E. , Calabresi Laura , Segrest Jere P. , Heinecke Jay W. 
Published: November 2023

BACKGROUND:
Cholesterol efflux capacity (CEC) predicts cardiovascular disease independently of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels. Isolated small HDL particles are potent promoters of macrophage CEC by the ABCA1 (ATP-binding cassette transporter A1) pathway, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear.

METHODS:
We used model system studies of reconstituted HDL and plasma from control and lecithin-cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT)–deficient subjects to investigate the relationships among the sizes of HDL particles, the structure of APOA1 (apolipoprotein A1) in the different particles, and the CECs of plasma and isolated HDLs.

RESULTS:
We quantified macrophage and ABCA1 CEC of 4 distinct sizes of reconstituted HDL. CEC increased as particle size decreased. Tandem mass spectrometric analysis of chemically cross-linked peptides and molecular dynamics simulations of APOA1, the major protein of HDL, indicated that the mobility of C-terminus of that protein was markedly higher and flipped off the surface in the smallest particles. To explore the physiological relevance of the model system studies, we isolated HDL from LCAT-deficient subjects, whose small HDLs (like reconstituted HDLs) are discoidal and composed of APOA1, cholesterol, and phospholipid. Despite their very low plasma levels of HDL particles, these subjects had normal CEC. In both the LCAT-deficient subjects and control subjects, the CEC of isolated extra-small HDL (a mixture of extra-small and small HDL by calibrated ion mobility analysis) was 3- to 5-fold greater than that of the larger sizes of isolated HDL. Incubating LCAT-deficient plasma and control plasma with human LCAT converted extra-small and small HDL particles into larger particles, and it markedly inhibited CEC.

CONCLUSIONS:
We present a mechanism for the enhanced CEC of small HDLs. In smaller particles, the C-termini of the 2 antiparallel molecules of APOA1 are “flipped” off the lipid surface of HDL. This extended conformation allows them to engage with ABCA1. In contrast, the C-termini of larger HDLs are unable to interact productively with ABCA1 because they form a helical bundle that strongly adheres to the lipid on the particle. Enhanced CEC, as seen with the smaller particles, predicts decreased cardiovascular disease risk. Thus, extra-small and small HDLs may be key mediators and indicators of the cardioprotective effects of HDL.
Ganglioside GM3 Protects Against Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm by Suppressing Ferroptosis
Authors: Zhang Fangni , Li Kan , Zhang Wenhui , Zhao Ziyan , Chang Fangyuan , Du Jie , Zhang Xu , Bao Kaiwen , Zhang Chunyong , Shi Lei , Liu Zongwei , Dai Xiangchen , Chen Chen , Wang Dao Wen , Xian Zhong , Jiang Hongfeng , Ai Ding 
Published: November 2023

BACKGROUND:
Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a potentially life-threatening vascular condition, but approved medical therapies to prevent AAA progression and rupture are currently lacking. Sphingolipid metabolism disorders are associated with the occurrence and development of AAA. It has been discovered that ganglioside GM3, a sialic acid–containing type of glycosphingolipid, plays a protective role in atherosclerosis, which is an important risk factor for AAA; however, the potential contribution of GM3 to AAA development has not been investigated.

METHODS:

We performed a metabolomics study to evaluated GM3 level in plasma of human patients with AAA. We profiled GM3 synthase (ST3GAL5) expression in the mouse model of aneurysm and human AAA tissues through Western blotting and immunofluorescence staining. RNA sequencing, affinity purification and mass spectrometry, proteomic analysis, surface plasmon resonance analysis, and functional studies were used to dissect the molecular mechanism of GM3-regulating ferroptosis. We conditionally deleted and overexpressed
St3gal5
in smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in vivo to investigate its role in AAA.

RESULTS:

We found significantly reduced plasma levels of GM3 in human patients with AAA. GM3 content and ST3GAL5 expression were decreased in abdominal aortic vascular SMCs in patients with AAA and an AAA mouse model. RNA sequencing analysis showed that
ST3GAL5
silencing in human aortic SMCs induced ferroptosis. We showed that GM3 interacted directly with the extracellular domain of TFR1 (transferrin receptor 1), a cell membrane protein critical for cellular iron uptake, and disrupted its interaction with holo-transferrin. SMC-specific
St3gal5
knockout exacerbated iron accumulation at lesion sites and significantly promoted AAA development in mice, whereas GM3 supplementation suppressed lipid peroxidation, reduced iron deposition in aortic vascular SMCs, and markedly decreased AAA incidence.

CONCLUSIONS:
Together, these results suggest that GM3 dysregulation promotes ferroptosis of vascular SMCs in AAA. Furthermore, GM3 may constitute a new therapeutic target for AAA.
Cerebrovascular Complications Associated With Iatrogenic Fungal Meningitis Following Surgical Procedures in Mexico
Authors: Becerril-Gaitan Andrea , Bindal Shivani , Parker Samantha L. , Mullarkey Matthew P. , Zeineddine Hussein A. , Chen Justine M. , Choi Huimahn A. , Chen Peng R. , Blackburn Spiros , Day Arthur , Torres Luis F. , Brown Robert J. , Bowry Ritvij , Chen Ching-Jen 
Published: November 2023

BACKGROUND:

The current fungal meningitis outbreak caused by contaminated epidural anesthesia with
Fusarium solani
among patients who underwent surgical procedures in Matamoros, Mexico remains a cause of concern. Its association with an increased susceptibility for cerebrovascular complications (CVC) has not been reported. This single-center study describes 3 patients with a unique pattern of CVC attributed to fungal meningitis.

METHODS:
A retrospective case series of patients diagnosed with fungal meningitis following surgical procedures under contaminated epidural anesthesia who developed a unique pattern of CVC during their hospitalization.

RESULTS:

Three female patients (mean age, 35 years) with CVC due to iatrogenic fungal meningitis were included. Positive Fungitell β-D-glucan assay in cerebrospinal fluid was documented in all cases, and
F
.
solani
was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction in case 3. All cases were complicated by severe vertebrobasilar circulation vasculopathy and arterial dissections with resultant subarachnoid hemorrhage and intraventricular hemorrhage, ultimately leading to patients’ death.

CONCLUSIONS:

The death toll from the ongoing fungal meningitis outbreak keeps rising, underscoring the need for early recognition and aggressive treatment. We highlight the risk for vertebrobasilar circulation CVC among these patients. The angioinvasive nature of
F
.
solani
is yet to be clarified; however, a clear pattern has been observed. Public health awareness should be raised and a strong response should be pursued.
Active Inference With Empathy Mechanism for Socially Behaved Artificial Agents in Diverse Situations
Authors: Matsumura Tadayuki , Esaki Kanako , Yang Shao , Yoshimura Chihiro , Mizuno Hiroyuki 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
This article proposes a method for an artificial agent to behave in a social manner. Although defining proper social behavior is difficult because it differs from situation to situation, the agent following the proposed method adaptively behaves appropriately in each situation by empathizing with the surrounding others. The proposed method is achieved by incorporating empathy into active inference. We evaluated the proposed method regarding control of autonomous mobile robots in diverse situations. From the evaluation results, an agent controlled by the proposed method could behave more adaptively socially than an agent controlled by the standard active inference in the diverse situations. In the case of two agents, the agent controlled with the proposed method behaved in a social way that reduced the other agent’s travel distance by 13.7% and increased the margin between the agents by 25.8%, even though it increased the agent’s travel distance by 8.2%. Also, the agent controlled with the proposed method behaved more socially when it was surrounded by altruistic others but less socially when it was surrounded by selfish others.
Complicating Narratives of Contemporary Chinese Art as Global Art through the Lens of Exhibition Histories
Authors: Hopfener Birgit 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
This essay reviews two publications on Chinese contemporary art and its relation to the global through the lens of exhibition histories. The monograph Die chinesische Avantgarde und das Dispositiv der Ausstellung. Konstruktionen chinesischer Gegenwartskunst im Spannungsfeld der Globalisierung (The ‘Chinese avant-garde’ and the exhibition as dispositive. Constructing contemporary Chinese art in the global context) authored by Franziska Koch (2016), and the edited volume Uncooperative Contemporaries: Art Exhibitions in Shanghai in 2000, (2020) published in the Exhibition Histories series by Afterall Books. The former seeks to re-write the history of contemporary Chinese art exhibitions from a transcultural perspective with a particular focus on group exhibitions of contemporary Chinese art in the West. The latter focuses on exhibitions that took place in the wake of China's “global turn in the year 2000. It examines the first international Shanghai biennial and so called “satellite shows,” unofficial exhibitions that took place concurrently with the biennial. Both books examine how Chinese contemporary art's relation to the global has been conceptualized and operated differently at different times, in different yet often transculturally/transnationally entangled locales, socio-political contexts, power structures and geopolitical currents, in different discursive contexts, according to specific political and discursive conditions and agendas, and through various agents and institutions. This essay argue that by shedding light on specific locales, and their transnational and transcultural entanglements, and the various agents involved in the formation of global contemporary Chinese art both publications critically intervene into top-down universalist discourses of the “global contemporary.” Speaking from different positionalities, they seek to complicate narratives and understandings of contemporary global and Chinese art from the bottom-up. Informed by the post-colonial critique of historicism a bottom-up perspective they conceive of global art not as a universalistic concept, but as plural articulations of global contemporaneity conceived as “disjunctive unity,” a shared yet heterogenous present constituted by multiple contemporaneities.
Is a 6-week training protocol effective in preparing young Lusitano horses in early athletic life?
Authors: Coelho C. , Silva A. , Santos A. , Vintém C. , Santos C. , Fonseca J. , Prazeres J. , Souza V. , Gola A. , Manso Filho H.C. , Simões J. 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
A 6-weeks training program, aimed at improving the physical conditioning of dressage horses, was assessed to determine its’ effectiveness. The training program comprised of 40-80 min of daily preparatory exercises for dressage competition (transitions, circles, extended walk, trot or canter, stride length variation, diagonals, straight lines and serpentines) which were performed six times per week. Thus, nine (4 year old) Lusitano horses were evaluated before (M1) and six weeks after (M2) the introduction of the new training routine. On both occasions animals were physically examined and blood samples were collected before (T0), immediately after (T1) a dressage simulation test (DST) and at 30 min (T2) and 240 min (T3) of recovery. Heart rate (HR), respiratory rate (RR), body temperature (BT), erythrogram, blood lactate and glucose, serum proteins, albumin, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and creatine kinase (CK) values were recorded and the obtained variables were analysed using ANOVA and Tukey tests (). The training protocol produced significant changes in the measured biomarkers. Speed of work during the DST (5.8 vs 7.36 m/s; ) significantly increased, though no changes were observed in the HRpeak (∼158.1 beat/min; ), HRmean (∼113.9 beat/min; ) and distance (∼220 m). Additionally, at M1 significantly () lower values of RR and of blood lactate were recorded and at M2 low values of HR, BT, glucose, AST and CK were observed, the latter suggesting a cardiometabolic improvement. The biomarkers returned to basal levels 30 min post DST on both M1 and M2. The training regimen successfully improved the athletic conditioning of the Lusitano horses, preparing them for the practice of dressage without compromising their welfare.
Physiology of human-horse interactions during substance withdrawal within psychotherapy participants
Authors: Friend M.M. , Nicodemus M.C. , Cavinder C.A. , Lemley C.O. , Prince P. , Holtcamp K. , Swanson R.M. 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Psychotherapy incorporating equine interaction (PIE) is emerging as an effective treatment for substance use disorder (SUD); however, research concerning physiological impacts of PIE during substance withdrawal is lacking. This study investigated impacts of PIE on salivary cortisol concentrations and heart rates in SUD patients during withdrawal. Heart rate and cortisol concentrations were also measured in horses to investigate potential human-horse coupling during PIE. Saliva samples and heart rates were collected from SUD patients (n = 18) and their therapy horses (n = 4) prior to the introduction of the horse and following equine interaction within a residential psychotherapy program during the substance withdrawal period. Without the presence of the horse, the equine environment during the first week of withdrawal produced lower () cortisol and heart rate measures than found in the equine interaction for the SUD patients. Human heart rates, however, decreased () in the second week in response to the equine interaction. A strong negative correlation (r = −0.9, ) was found within the changes in human and horse cortisol concentrations during week two as human cortisol concentrations decreased while horse cortisol concentrations increased. Results indicate equine interaction during psychotherapy is more effective in the second week than the first at mitigating stress for withdrawing residential SUD treatment program patients and the equid environment, even without the presence of a horse, can positively impact stress parameters in withdrawing SUD patients during the first week of treatment.
Effects of the mycotoxins aflatoxin B1, deoxynivalenol and zearalenone on survival, biomass and toxin accumulation in Musca domestica larvae
Authors: Niermans K. , Hoek-van den Hil E.F. , van Dam R. , van der Fels-Klerx H.J. , van Loon J.J.A. 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Insects are receiving increasing attention as a possible ingredient for feed and/or food production. When used efficiently, insects can provide a sustainable and economically favourable contribution to global food security. Housefly larvae (HFL) can grow on a variety of organic side streams and upgrade them by partial conversion into high-quality protein. Organic side streams may be chemically contaminated by naturally occurring toxins, e.g. mycotoxins, therefore, effects on insect survival and biomass as well as other feed and/or food safety issues should be investigated. In this study, the HFL were exposed to a feed substrate spiked with aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), deoxynivalenol (DON) or zearalenone (ZEN) at concentrations of either 1 or 10 times the maximum levels or guidance values set for feed materials by the European Commission. Mortality and biomass of HFL were recorded over five days of exposure. LC-MS/MS analysis was used to determine the concentration of the mycotoxins in the substrate offered, the larvae and the residual feed material. A molar mass balance was calculated to estimate how much of the spiked mycotoxins (and several metabolites), was recovered in the larval body and the residual material. Exposure to either of the three mycotoxins did not affect larval mortality and biomass, and accumulation in the larval body did not take place. Metabolism does seem to occur for AFB1 and ZEN as the molar mass balance revealed an unrecovered fraction of ca. 40-50%. Little DON metabolism occurred as most of the initially present DON was found back unchanged. The results of this study support the potential for safe use of HFL as food- and/or feed when reared on mycotoxin contaminated side-streams, as accumulation of the tested mycotoxins did not take place in HFL. Further research is needed to identify the fate of the unrecovered fractions of AFB1 and ZEN.
Exploring mitigating factors for aflatoxin awareness and incidence among smallholder groundnut farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa
Authors: Jelliffe J. , Bravo-Ureta B. , Jordan D. , Dankyi A. , Appaw W. , Mochiah M. 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
This study considers the association between agricultural extension, aflatoxin, and good management practices among smallholder groundnut farmers in sub-Saharan Africa. The first part examines extension and self-reported knowledge and perceptions of aflatoxin for three countries. This is done using pooled survey data (n = 1388) collected from 2014 to 2016, beginning with Uganda (n = 480) in 2014, Ghana (n = 537) in 2015, and Mozambique (n = 335) in 2016. Results from probit regressions suggest that aflatoxin knowledge and perceptions are related to village extension services, household head education, farm size, groundnut production area, and experience with aflatoxins. To build upon these findings, additional information on aflatoxin levels and good management practices for a sub-sample of the 2015 Ghana survey (n = 134) is analysed. Negative binomial regression estimates indicate significantly lower aflatoxin levels for households that (1) follow good management practices and (2) are in receipt of village extension services, with the lowest average aflatoxin level from the combination of (1) and (2). These findings underscore the role of extension in combating the incidence of aflatoxin in groundnut value chains. In this way, extension is associated with greater knowledge and perceptions, as well as lower levels of aflatoxin, that can be further reduced with good management practices.