bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cholinergic Denervation Patterns in Parkinson's Disease Associated With Cognitive Impairment Across Domains
Authors: d'Angremont Emile , Renken Remco , van der Zee Sygrid , de Vries Erik F. J. , van Laar Teus , Sommer Iris E. C. 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTCognitive impairment is considered to be one of the key features of Parkinson's disease (PD), ultimately resulting in PD‐related dementia in approximately 80% of patients over the course of the disease. Several distinct cognitive syndromes of PD have been suggested, driven by different neurotransmitter deficiencies and thus requiring different treatment regimes. In this study, we aimed to identify characteristic brain covariance patterns that reveal how cholinergic denervation is related to PD and to cognitive impairment, focusing on four domains, including attention, executive functioning, memory, and visuospatial cognition. We applied scaled sub‐profile model principal component analysis to reveal cholinergic‐specific disease‐related and cognition‐related covariance patterns using [18F]fluoroethoxybenzovesamicol PET imaging. Stepwise logistic regression was applied to predict disease state (PD vs. healthy control). Linear regression models were applied to predict cognitive functioning within the PD group, for each cognitive domain separately. We assessed the performance of the identified patterns with leave‐one‐out cross validation and performed bootstrapping to assess pattern stability. We included 34 PD patients with various levels of cognitive dysfunction and 10 healthy controls, with similar age, sex, and educational level. The disease‐related cholinergic pattern was strongly discriminative (AUC 0.91), and was most prominent in posterior brain regions, with lower tracer uptake in patients compared to controls. We found largely overlapping cholinergic‐specific patterns across cognitive domains, with positive correlations between tracer uptake in the opercular cortex, left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and posterior cingulate gyrus, among other regions, and attention, executive, and visuospatial functioning. Cross validation showed significant correlations between predicted and measured cognition scores, with the exception of memory. We identified a robust structural covariance pattern for the assessment of cholinergic dysfunction related to PD, as well as overlapping cholinergic patterns related to attentional, executive‐ and visuospatial impairment in PD patients.
Whole Brain MRI Assessment of Age and Sex‐Related R2* Changes in the Human Fetal Brain
Authors: Ji Lanxin , Duffy Mark , Chen Bosi , Majbri Amyn , Trentacosta Christopher J. , Thomason Moriah 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTIron in the brain is essential to neurodevelopmental processes, as it supports neural functions, including processes of oxygen delivery, electron transport, and enzymatic activity. However, the development of brain iron before birth is scarcely understood. By estimating R2* (1/T2*) relaxometry from a sizable sample of fetal multiecho echo‐planar imaging (EPI) scans, which is the standard sequence for functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), across gestation, this study investigates age and sex‐related changes in iron, across regions and tissue segments. Our findings reveal that brain R2* levels significantly increase throughout gestation spanning many different regions, except the frontal lobe. Furthermore, females exhibit a faster rate of R2* increase compared to males, in both gray matter and white matter. This sex effect is particularly notable within the left insula. This work represents the first MRI examination of iron accumulation and sex differences in developing fetal brains. This is also the first study to establish R2* estimation methodology in fetal multiecho functional MRI.
Chronic Wound Assessment System Using an Improved UPerNet Model
Authors: Zhang Zaifang , Sheng Shenjun , Zhu Shihui , Jin Jian 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTWound assessment plays a crucial role in the healing process. Traditional methods for wound assessment, relying on manual judgment and recording, often yield inaccurate outcomes and require specialized medical equipment. This will result in increasing regular hospital visits and pose a series of challenges, such as delayed examinations, heightened infection risks, and increased costs. Thus, a real‐time, portable, and convenient wound assessment system is essential for healing chronic wounds and reducing complications. This paper proposes an improved UPerNet network for wound tissue segmentation, which consists of three modules: Feature‐aligned Pyramid Network (FaPN), Kernel update head, and Convolutional Block Attention Module (CBAM). The FaPN is employed to address feature misalignment. The Kernel update head is based on K‐Net and dynamically updates convolutional kernel weights. The CBAM module is adopted to attend to crucial features. Ablation studies and comparative studies show that this method can achieve superior performance in wound tissue segmentation compared to other common segmentation models. Meanwhile, based on this method, we develop a mobile application. By using this system, patients can easily upload wound images for assessment, facilitating the convenient tracking of wound healing progress at home, thereby reducing medical expenses and hospital visitation times.
Transaction of parental cognition, stress and depressive symptoms, and infant regulatory challenges
Authors: Bohne Agnes , Høifødt Ragnhild Sørensen , Nordahl Dag , Moe Vibeke , Landsem Inger Pauline , Vannebo Unni Tranaas , Holstad Siri Langmoen , Wang Catharina E. Arfwedson , Pfuhl Gerit 
Published: January 2025

AbstractParental cognitions, stress, depression, and infant regulatory challenges might reinforce each other in the early parent–infant relationship. A transactional model was used as a framework to investigate these relationships. Two hundred and twenty pregnant women and their partners were recruited during pregnancy and followed 7 months postnatally in the NorBaby study in Norway. To investigate risk and protective factors for parental stress and depressive symptoms at 2, 5, and 7 months postnatally, the following variables were entered antenatally: repetitive negative thinking, implicit associations to infants, parity, and social support. Postnatally, observed infant regulatory challenges at 2 months, parent's perception of infant temperament at 5 months, and signs of infant social withdrawal at 7 months. The model yielded that repetitive negative thinking predicted parenting stress and depressive symptoms, while infant regulatory challenges did not. Repetitive negative thinking is also related to infant temperament. For mothers, parity was beneficial against stress, depressive symptoms, and infant regulatory challenges. Implicit associations to infants were not related to parenting stress or depressive symptoms postnatally. Parenting stress and depressive symptoms were not related to infant social withdrawal at 7 months. In sum, how parents perceive their infant's temperament is associated with their own tendency to engage in repetitive negative thinking, and not by their infant's observed regulatory behavior. Accordingly, parental cognition and well‐being should be considered when families struggle to adapt in the perinatal period.
Young mothers’ prenatal attachment and later attachment‐related representations of their young children
Authors: Medina Nora Y. , Edwards Renee C. , Hans Sydney L. 
Published: January 2025

AbstractAlthough mother‐to‐infant attachment begins during pregnancy, few studies have explored correlates of prenatal attachment and associations with later measures of attachment representations. This study explored whether prenatal attachment is related to attachment representations during toddlerhood and whether associations between them reflect the broader quality of mothers’ relationships. Young, ethnically/racially diverse, low‐income American women (n = 160) were followed from pregnancy through 30 months postpartum. Questionnaires assessed prenatal attachment (Maternal Antenatal Attachment Scale [MAAS]) and mothers’ relationships prenatally (Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment [IPPA]; Social Provisions Scale [SPS]). At 30 months, the Working Model of the Child Interview (WMCI) assessed attachment representation classifications (balanced, disengaged, distorted) and affective themes. Stronger prenatal attachment was associated with balanced representations of the child, greater positive affect, and less negative affect at 30 months, even when accounting for quality of mothers’ other relationships. Relationship quality generally and with the parent figure and infant's father specifically, was associated with prenatal attachment, and relationship quality with the parent figure was related to 30‐month attachment representations. Findings support theory that mother‐to‐child attachment formed during pregnancy contributes to attachment representations and affective qualities of the relationship years later. Data highlight the role young mothers’ parent figures play during the transition to parenthood.
Elderly Onset Primary Intestinal Lymphangiectasia—A Rare Case
Authors: Goh Li‐Han , Manoharan Madhavan , Goh Khean‐Lee 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTPrimary intestinal lymphangiectasia (PIL) is a rare protein‐losing gastroenteropathy characterized by diffuse or localized ectasia of the enteric lymphatics, which can be accompanied by lymphatic abnormalities in other parts of the body. This condition results in hypoalbuminemia, hypogammaglobulinemia, and lymphopenia due to the abnormal leakage of lymphatic fluid into the gastrointestinal tract. As there are no specific serological or radiological tests available, the gold standard for diagnosing intestinal lymphangiectasia is endoscopic examination with histopathological examination of intestinal biopsy specimens. We present a rare case of primary intestinal lymphangiectasia in a 62‐year‐old Chinese woman who presented with a six‐month history of lethargy, persistent diarrhea, and progressive weight loss. Gastroscopy and colonoscopy were performed, and biopsies revealed dilated intestinal lymphatics with broadened villi in the small intestine. Secondary causes of intestinal lymphangiectasia were ruled out, confirming the diagnosis of PIL. The patient was treated with a high‐protein, low‐fat diet supplemented with medium‐chain triglycerides, resulting in significant clinical improvement.
A global review of national guidelines of post‐exposure prophylaxis for the prevention of HIV
Authors: Maisano Marcus , Tran Daniel , Macdonald Virginia , Baggaley Rachel C. , Ford Nathan , Johnson Cheryl C. , Zhang Ying , Ong Jason J. 
Published: January 2025

AbstractIntroductionThe World Health Organization (WHO) recommends the use of antiretroviral drugs as post‐exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for preventing HIV acquisition for occupational and non‐occupational exposures. To inform the development of global WHO recommendations on PEP, we reviewed national guidelines of PEP for their recommendations.MethodsPolicies addressing PEP from 38 WHO HIV priority countries were obtained by searching governmental and non‐governmental websites and consulting country and regional experts; these countries were selected based on HIV burden, new HIV acquisitions and the number of HIV‐associated deaths. We reviewed national guidelines to collate data on where PEP can be offered, who can prescribe PEP, PEP eligibility, recommended drug regime, linkage to other interventions, recommended investigations prescribed with PEP, HIV self‐test recommendation related to PEP and stopping rules for PEP.ResultsIn total, 46 guidelines from January 2010 to May 2023 across 36 countries were included, with 70% of documents published during or after 2020. There was significant variation across national guidelines regarding where PEP can be accessed and who can provide or prescribe PEP. Six countries (17%) described being able to access PEP from a primary care facility, four countries (11%) from hospitals and two (6%) from community‐based services. Only three countries (8%) specifically considered dispensing PEP by professionals other than doctors (e.g. nurses). None mentioned pharmacists as prescribers. We found a lack of consistency across countries regarding who is eligible for PEP, regimens used, interventions integrated into PEP provision and recommended investigations for PEP users. No country guidance provided considerations on using HIV self‐tests for starting or stopping PEP.DiscussionDespite PEP being recommended for more than three decades, many national policies were lacking in terms of PEP guidance. There are opportunities for countries to update and optimize guidance to consider ways to improve the accessibility of PEP. Greater efforts are needed to support the development of global consensus on how best to implement and integrate PEP, as well as how to include decentralization and task‐sharing to achieve sufficient scale for impact.ConclusionsImproving timely access to PEP and promoting PEP adherence could help contribute to reducing the incidence of HIV globally.
Disparities in Access to Care in the Multimodal Treatment of Primary Nonmetastatic Liver Cancers and Their Impact on Patient Outcomes
Authors: Hargis McKenzie , Danos Denise , Malinosky Hannah R. , Galatas Aimée , McManus Syndey , Byerley Ann , Efishat Mohammad Al , Lyons John M. , Sullivan Kevin , Moaven Omeed 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTBackgroundLiver cancer incidence and mortality have been shown to differ by race, ethnicity, and geography. This study aims to analyze disparities in the multimodal treatment of liver cancers in Louisiana.MethodsCases of nonmetastatic liver cancer in Louisiana from 2010 to 2020 were obtained from the Louisiana Tumor Registry. Generalized linear mixed models were used to model the receipt of therapy.ResultsA total of 2948 patients met inclusion criteria where 30.5% received no therapy. Multivariable models identified patients with increased odds of pursuing no treatment which include those 70 and older, no domestic partner, uninsured, high poverty, and rural residence (p < 0.05).ConclusionsAvailable therapeutic modalities are underutilized in Louisiana with a considerable number of patients receiving no treatment for liver cancer. Older age, no domestic partner, uninsured, rural residence, and high poverty are risk factors for not receiving treatment. Allocating resources to these patients is an important step in reversing inequities.
Is There a Positive or Negative Correlation Between Cervical Vertebral Bone Quality and Intervertebral Disc Degeneration by Pfirrmann Grading
Authors: Qiu Ziye , Chen Sixue , Feng Ningning , Li Wenhao , Ma Yukun , Zhou Shibo , Jiang Guozheng , Zhou Yishu , Yu Xing , Xiong Yang 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTObjectiveCervical degeneration involves many pathophysiological changes. Vertebral bone loss, sclerotic hyperplasia of the vertebral body and intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) are most common degenerative factors. However, whether there is a correlation between changes in vertebral bone mass and IDD remains unclear. In this study, based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), Pfirrmann method was used to grade cervical disc degeneration, and vertebral bone quality (VBQ) was measured. The correlation between VBQ and IDD was analyzed, and its potential mechanism was discussed as well.MethodsFrom June 2019 to June 2023, clinical data of patients undergoing surgical treatment for cervical degenerative disc diseases (CDDD) in our department were retrospectively analyzed. Preoperative MRI was collected, the degree of IDD was assessed by Pfirrmann grading, and VBQ was measured by T1‐weighted image of MRI. With VBQ score = 3.08 as the threshold, Spearman correlation analysis was used to quantified the correlation between IDD grade and VBQ, and multiple ordered Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the effect of VBQ on IDD grade.ResultsThe preoperative MRI data of 94 patients (male, 42; female, 52) with CDDD were collected. Spearman correlation analysis: When VBQ score ≤ 3.08, the IDD grade was negatively correlated with VBQ (p < 0.05, r = −0.153). When VBQ score > 3.08, the IDD grade was positively correlated with VBQ (p < 0.05, r = 0.306). Multiple ordered Logistic regression analysis: When VBQ score ≤ 3.08, the effect of VBQ on IDD was negatively correlated (p < 0.05, β = −0.597). When VBQ score > 3.08, the effect of VBQ on IDD was positively correlated (p < 0.05, β = 0.986).ConclusionsEither excessive increased or decreased VBQ in the cervical spine may accelerate the progression of IDD. The reason may be that both abnormal interference from the VBQ may imbalance the cervical spinal biomechanics and compromise the absorption of nutrients in the disc, thus accelerating the IDD. Therefore, cervical VBQ may have a bidirectional effect on IDD.
A Cost‐Effective Nonaqueous Reversed‐Phase High‐Performance Liquid Chromatography Method to Measure Vitamin D3 in Hen's Egg Yolk
Authors: Varfaj Ina , Mancinelli Alice Cartoni , Migni Anna , Mercolini Laura , Castellini Cesare , Galli Francesco , Bartolini Desirée , Sardella Roccaldo 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTThe objective of this study is to develop an HPLC‐UV method for the cost‐effective and quantitative determination of vitamin D3 in food, even in the presence of vitamin D2, with a specific focus on egg yolk. During method development, the performance of three stationary phases in resolving the peak of vitamin D2 from that of vitamin D3 was investigated. The physicochemical properties of these phases differed particularly in the extent of hydrophobicity and silanophilic activity, including a GraceSmart RP C18 column without silanol endcapping, a Robusta RP C18 column with silanol endcapping, and a Waters Xbridge RP C18 column with ethylene‐bridged hybrid (BEH) particle technology. The Xbridge C18 stationary phase exhibited the most favorable performance, leading to an RS of 1.6 under the following nonaqueous reversed‐phase (NARP) experimental conditions: mobile phase, acetonitrile, methanol, and trifluoroacetic acid in a (99/1/0.1, v/v/v) ratio; column temperature, 15°C. The developed chromatographic method does not require preanalytical purification steps and is also compatible with mass spectrometry. The identity of the vitamin D3 peak observed in the HPLC analysis was verified via GC–MS. The NARP‐HPLC‐UV method was partially validated, demonstrating satisfactory linearity, precision, accuracy, limit of quantification, and robustness. The HPLC method was then successfully applied to the analysis of real egg yolk samples, revealing average concentrations of vitamin D3 of 4–5 µg/g of wet weight sample.
Soil Health Under Global Change and Human Impact
Authors: Bilyera Nataliya , Turner Benjamin L. , Zhang Xuechen , Zang Huadong , Dorodnikov Maxim , Kuzyakov Yakov 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTSoil health is pivotal to sustain biological productivity, maintain environmental quality, and ensure the health of plants, animals, and ultimately humans. Global changes—such as climate warming, elevated CO₂ atmospheric concentration, droughts, and floods—as well as human impacts like land‐use change, chemical contamination, and application of fertilizer and pesticides, threaten soil health. Protecting soil health and raising global awareness on this topic are now critical to ensure sustainable management of natural and agricultural ecosystems under global change. This Special Issue includes 19 studies in three thematic groups. The first group includes methodological advances in the assessment of soil health, exploring new tools, techniques, and approaches for accurate evaluation. The second group encompasses studies examining how soil health responds to land‐use change, agricultural and forestry practices. The third group addresses human‐induced pollution and its effects on soil health. Overall, these studies provide contemporary insight into soil health in managed and natural ecosystems and methods for soil health evaluation. These contributions will shape strategies to sustain soil functions and preserve healthy soils for future generations, including efforts to meet Sustainable Development Goals for the 21st century.
Unlocking Probiotic Potential: Physicochemical Approaches to Evaluate Probiotic Bacterial Adhesion Potential to the Intestinal Tract
Authors: Phùng Thị‐Thanh‐Trúc , Dupont Sébastien , Beney Laurent , Chanut Julie , Karbowiak Thomas 
Published: January 2025

ABSTRACTBacterial adhesion in the gut is critical to evaluate their effectiveness as probiotics. Understanding the bacterial adhesion within the complex gut environment is challenging. This study explores the adhesion mechanisms and the adhesion potential of five selected bacterial strains (Escherichia coli, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, Faecalibacterium duncaniae, Bifidobacterium longum, and Bifidobacterium longum subsp. infantis) at the initial stages when bacterial cells arriving in the gut, using different physicochemical approaches. Bacterial morphology, rheology, and surface properties were evaluated. Surprisingly, previous methods such as bacterial adhesion to hydrocarbon and the interfacial tension between bacterial suspensions and mineral oil did not fully capture the bacterial adhesion to intestinal mucus. Consequently, this study introduced a novel approach to assess bacterial adhesion to mucus, based on contact angle measurements, calculation of surface tension, and work of adhesion. Interestingly, both small and large intestinal mucus are rather hydrophilic, and thus highly hydrophilic bacteria such as E. coli and B. infantis tend to adhere better. Additionally, a multicriteria evaluation of bacterial adhesion to the gut, from the bulk liquid transport stage until the irreversible adhesion, was proposed. E. coli and B. infantis demonstrated the highest overall adhesion potential in the intestinal tract, followed by Lpb. plantarum, B. longum, and F. duncaniae, respectively. This work contributed original physicochemical approaches to comprehensively examine bacterial adhesion in the gut.
Rapid prospective motion correction using free induction decay and stationary field probe navigators at 7T
Authors: Serger Matthias , Stirnberg Rüdiger , Ehses Philipp , Stöcker Tony 
Published: January 2025

AbstractPurposeMR‐based FID navigators (FIDnavs) do not require gradient pulses and are attractive for prospective motion correction (PMC) due to short acquisition times and high sampling rates. However, accuracy and precision are limited and depend on a separate calibration measurement. Besides FIDnavs, stationary NMR field probes are also capable of measuring local, motion‐induced field changes. In this work, a linear model is calibrated between field probe data and motion parameters analog to FIDnav calibration and both tracking methods are compared and combined for PMC.MethodsFIDnavs and field probe navigators were implemented in a fast 3D‐EPI sequence and calibrated by a linear model to realignment motion parameters of the 3D‐EPI time series. A workflow was established to correct head motion prospectively by FIDnavs, field probe navigators or a combination of both. Large motions were instructed to test the accuracy and the impact on image quality in EPI data.ResultsIn a group of five subjects, FIDnavs demonstrated approximately doubled accuracy and precision in comparison with field probe navigators for large motions, especially nodding motions were tracked less accurately by field probes. A combination of both methods could not improve the accuracy consistently. Motion artifacts in high‐resolution data were reduced similarly by both PMC methods, although artifacts remained due to susceptibility‐induced B0 changes.ConclusionStationary field probe navigators can be calibrated equivalently as FIDnavs and enable rapid PMC of large and fast motions. Although they reveal decreased accuracy, their contrast‐independence facilitates the potential insertion into many sequences.