bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Venetian – Ottoman Wars in the East Adriatic Theatre of Operations (1645–1718)
Authors: Markulin Nikola 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire clashed in three wars spanning from 1645 to 1718, with intermittent periods of peace. These military conflicts unfolded in two distinct theatres of operations – the Aegean and the East Adriatic. While the former has received considerable attention in international scholarship, the latter remains largely overlooked. This article seeks to shed light on the East Adriatic theatre and, more specifically, to examine the ratio of forces between the warring armies during this period. This enquiry holds great significance, as local historians have often uncritically relied on Venetian sources, which consistently portrayed the Ottoman armies as substantially larger than they were. By thoroughly examining these Venetian sources, this analysis aims to provide a reevaluated force ratio between the belligerent armies, which can serve as a valid starting point for explaining the consecutive Venetian victories in this theatre.
Envisioning Global Governance in Chinese Sci-fi Blockbusters: Crazy Alien (2019) and The Wandering Earth (2019)
Authors: Yang Xiao 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
This article examines two Chinese sci-fi blockbusters, Crazy Alien and The Wandering Earth, under a theoretical framework of global governance and its variation in Chinese state rhetoric. The article explores how the notion of global governance in China is echoed, reconfigured, and mediated in these two films via their depiction of China’s leadership in solving fictionalized futuristic global challenges. It argues that while Crazy Alien criticizes the present, neoliberal global governance, The Wandering Earth envisages a new global governance system led by China. These two films provide case studies of sci-fi blockbusters produced in a non-Western context and illustrate the convergence of Chinese politics with its sci-fi film production.
The Immigrant Backstories of Asian American Surgeons
Authors: Nakayama Don K. 
Published: November 2023

The stories of Asian immigrants have both shared themes and ones that are unique to the histories of their homelands. Their labor was essential to the settlement and economic development of America, yet their presence incited riots and official restrictions to their rights to immigration and citizenship. Chinese laborers mined the Gold Country, built the transcontinental railroad, and reclaimed tillable land in the Central Valley. Yet they were denied the immense bounty they created, and their immigration was blocked by the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. Japanese, Asian Indians, and Filipinos replaced them on farms as migrant laborers. As foreign nationals they were not allowed to own land, but they thrived as independent farmers on leased plots. Their success attracted discrimination and racist violence. They, too, were barred from immigration and citizenship (Johnson-Reed Act, 1924). World War II was a watershed event for Asians in America. Japanese Americans, ethnically identical to the enemy, were imprisoned in concentration camps in the American interior. China, the Philippines, and India, all allies of the US, were rewarded with naturalization rights for their nationals. In 1965 Congress liberalized immigration quotas and reversed the 1924 restrictions, with priority given to those with advanced technical ability in science, including medicine. Asians from Taiwan and India took advantage of the new regulations and predominated among the newcomers. After the fall of Saigon in 1975, America accommodated yet another Asian population in the country, the tens of thousands of refugees from Southeast Asia.
Impact of Angiotensin Blockade on Development of Chronic Lung Allograft Dysfunction
Authors: January Spenser E. , Hubbard Julie , Fester Keith A. , Dubrawka Casey A. , Vazquez Guillamet Rodrigo , Kulkarni Hrishikesh S. , Hachem Ramsey R. 
Published: November 2023

Background: The renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) is responsible for a multitude of physiological functions, including immunological effects such as promotion of TGF-β and upregulation of IL-6 and IL-8 which are also implicated in the development of chronic lung allograft dysfunction (CLAD). Blockade of the RAAS pathway in pre-clinical models has demonstrated a decrease in these cytokines and pulmonary neutrophil recruitment. Objective: This study sought to evaluate whether use of RAAS inhibitor (RAASi) in lung transplant recipients impacted CLAD-free survival. Methods: In this retrospective, single-center study, 35 lung transplant recipients who received a RAASi post-transplant were compared to 70 lung transplant recipients not exposed to a RAASi and were followed for up to 5 years post-transplant. Results: The incidence of CLAD did not differ based on RAASi treatment (34.3% in RAASi vs 38.6%, P-value .668). This was confirmed with a multivariable Cox proportional hazards model with RAASi initiation as a time-varying covariate (RAASi hazard ratio of 1.01, P-value .986). Incidence of hyperkalemia and acute kidney injury were low in the RAASi group. Conclusions: This study demonstrated no association between post-transplant RAASi use and decreased risk of CLAD development. RAASi were also well tolerated in this patient population.
Confidence of practitioners to support self-management of pain: A multidisciplinary survey
Authors: Penlington Chris , Pornsukjantra Pattramon , Chazot Paul , Cole Frances , Denneny Diarmuid 
Published: November 2023

Background Supported self-management is an important component of management for persistent pain according to current recommendations and guidelines. However, it is unclear whether staff from differing disciplines who may be in early contact with people with established or developing persistent pain are confident to introduce and support self-management for this patient group. Aim To determine the confidence of staff across professional disciplines to introduce and support self-management. Design and Setting Cross-sectional online survey. Methods Charts were constructed to represent information on professional grouping, prior training in self-management and confidence in supporting key components of self-management for persistent pain. Analysis of variance was used to test for differences between groups. Results Overall, 165 practitioners reported confidence to support self-management below the midpoint of a ten-point scale and 93 above. There were few differences between different professions apart from in explaining pain (f = 6.879 p < .001), managing activity levels (f = 6.340 p < .001) and supporting healthy habits (f = 4.700, p = .001) in which physiotherapists expressed higher confidence than other professional groups. There was no difference in confidence expressed between staff who had or had not received previous training in self-management (f = 1.357, p = .233). Conclusions Many front-line staff who might be expected to introduce and deliver self-management support for persistent pain lack the confidence and skills to do so. This is consistent with a known lack of education about pain across disciplinary boundaries in primary and community-based care. In order to meet treatment priorities for persistent pain there is an urgent need to upskill the workforce by providing access to good quality training and resources.
Molecular characterization of genetic mutations with fitness loss in pulmonary tuberculosis patients associated with HIV co-infection in Northwest Amhara, Ethiopia
Authors: Seid Aynias , Kassa Meseret , Girma Yilak , Dereb Eseye , Nureddin Semira , Abebe Ayenesh , Berhane Nega 
Published: November 2023

Objectives: Molecular approaches to identifying resistance-conferring mutations suggest a revolution in the field of tuberculosis. The aim of the study was to determine the association between resistance-conferring mutations with fitness loss in Mycobacterium tuberculosis clinical isolates and HIV co-infection in the Amhara region of Ethiopia. Methods: A laboratory-based cross-sectional study was conducted between September 2022 and June 2023. A line probe assay was performed on 146 culture-positive clinical isolates. Logistic regression analysis was used to measure the strength of the association between the drug-resistance-conferring mutations with fitness loss in M. tuberculosis isolates and tuberculosis/HIV co-infection. A p-value ⩽ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 11 distinct mutations at four genetic loci among 19 resistant isolates were detected. The frequency of rifampicin, isoniazid, and fluoroquinolones resistance-conferring mutations was identified in 12 (8.2%), 17 (11.6%), and 2 (1.4%) of the isolates, respectively. The most prominent specific mutations were S450L (5/9, 55.6%), S315T (11/11, 100%), C-15T (4/4, 100%), and D94G (1/1, 100%). Double mutations were observed in 10 (52.6%) multidrug-resistant tuberculosis isolates; the most common were detected in both the rpoB and katG genes (8/10, 80.0%). The HIV-co-infected tuberculosis patients carried a higher proportion of low fitness of non- rpoB S450L variants than those tuberculosis patients without HIV (80.0% vs 14.3%) and showed a significant association (cOR = 0.042, 95% CI: 0.002–0.877, p = 0.041), but not with the low fitness of non- katG S315T variants (cOR = 3.00, 95% CI: 0.348–25.870, p = 0.318). Conclusion: This study provides valuable information on the genetic variants with fitness loss associated with HIV co-infection, but requires further whole-genome-based mutation analysis.
A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Vertebral Artery Injury After Cervical Spine Trauma
Authors: Goyal Kartik , Sunny Jesvin T. , Gillespie Conor S. , Wilby Martin , Clark Simon R. , Kaiser Radek , Fehlings Michael G. , Srikandarajah Nisaharan 
Published: November 2023

Study Design Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Objective Identify the incidence, mechanism of injury, investigations, management, and outcomes of Vertebral Artery Injury (VAI) after cervical spine trauma. Methods A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines (PROSPERO-ID CRD42021295265). Three databases were searched (PubMed, SCOPUS, Google Scholar, CINAHL PLUS). Incidence of VAI, investigations to diagnose (Computed Tomography Angiography, Digital Subtraction Angiography, Magnetic Resonance Angiography), stroke incidence, and management paradigms (conservative, antiplatelets, anticoagulants, surgical, endovascular treatment) were delineated. Incidence was calculated using pooled proportions random effects meta-analysis. Results A total of 44 studies were included (1777 patients). 20-studies (n = 503) included data on trauma type; 75.5% (n = 380) suffered blunt trauma and 24.5% (n = 123) penetrating. The overall incidence of VAI was .95% (95% CI 0.65-1.29). From the 16 studies which reported data on outcomes, 8.87% (95% CI 5.34- 12.99) of patients with VAI had a posterior stroke. Of the 33 studies with investigation data, 91.7% (2929/3629) underwent diagnostic CTA; 7.5% (242/3629) underwent MRA and 3.0% (98/3629) underwent DSA. Management data from 20 papers (n = 475) showed 17.9% (n = 85) undergoing conservative therapy, anticoagulation in 14.1% (n = 67), antiplatelets in 16.4% (n = 78), combined therapy in 25.5% (n = 121) and the rest (n = 124) managed using surgical and endovascular treatments. Conclusion VAI in cervical spine trauma has an approximate posterior circulation stroke risk of 9%. Optimal management paradigms for the prevention and management of VAI are yet to be standardized and require further research.
Identification of transcriptionally active transposons in Barley
Authors: Gao Dongying , Fox-Fogle Emma 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Background
The genomes of many major crops including barley (Hordeum vulgare) consist of numerous transposons. Despite their important roles in crop genome evolution and morphological variations, most of these elements are silent or truncated and unable to be mobile in host genomes. Thus far, only a very limited number of active transposons were identified in plants.

Results
We analyzed the barley full-length cDNA (FLcDNA) sequences and detected 71 unique FLcDNAs exhibiting significant sequence similarity to the extant transposase proteins. These FLcDNAs were then used to search against the genome of a malting barley cultivar ‘Morex’, seven new intact transposons were identified. Sequence alignments indicated that six intact transposons contained the entire FLcDNAs whereas another one served as 3’ untranslated region (3’ UTR) of a barley gene. Our reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) experiment further confirmed the expression of these six transposons and revealed their differential expression. We conducted genome-wide transposon comparisons and detected polymorphisms of three transposon families between the genomes of ‘Morex’ and other three genotypes including the wild barley (Hordeum spontaneum, B1K-04-12) and two cultivated barley varieties, ‘Golden Promise’ and ‘Lasa Goumang’. Lastly, we screened the transcripts of all annotated barley genes and found that some transposons may serve as the coding regions (CDSs) or UTRs of barley genes.

Conclusion
We identified six newly expressed transposons in the barley genome and revealed the recent mobility of three transposon families. Our efforts provide a valuable resource for understanding the effects of transposons on barley genome evolution and for developing novel molecular tools for barley genetic improvement and other research.
Epidemiology and zoonotic potential of Livestock-associated Staphylococcus aureus isolated at Tamil Nadu, India
Authors: Rao Relangi Tulasi , Madhavan Vinoth , Kumar Pavitra , Muniraj Gnanaraj , Sivakumar Natesan , Kannan Jayakumar 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Background
Staphylococcus aureus is part of normal flora and also an opportunistic pathogen responsible for a wide range of infections in both humans and animals. Livestock-associated S. aureus (LA-SA) has gained importance in recent years due to its increased prevalence in recent years, becoming a worry in public health view. This study aimed to study the epidemiology of LA-SA strains in Madurai district, Tamil Nadu, India.

Methods
A total of 255 samples were collected from bovine and other small ruminants like goats and sheep nares (n = 129 and n = 126 respectively). Nasal swab samples were collected from study animals with sterile sample collecting cotton swabs (Hi-Media, Mumbai). Samples were transported to the lab in Cary-Blair Transport media for further analysis. The samples were tested for S. aureus using antibiotic selection and PCR-based assays. The pathogenicity of the bacteria was assessed using chicken embryo models and liver cross-sections were used for histopathology studies.

Results
The prevalence rate in bovine-associated samples was 42.63% but relatively low in the case of small ruminants associated samples with 28.57% only. The overall prevalence of S. aureus is found to 35.6% and MRSA 10.98% among the study samples. The antibiogram results that LA-SA isolates were susceptible to aminoglycosides and tetracyclines but resistant to β-lactam drugs. The biofilm formation results showed that the LA-SA isolates are weak to high-capacity biofilm formers. The enterotoxigenic patterns revealed that most of the isolated strains are enterotoxigenic and possess classical enterotoxins. The survival analysis of chicken embryos suggested that the Bovine-associated strains were moderately pathogenic.

Conclusion
The study concluded that economically important livestock animals can act as reservoirs for multi-drug resistant and pathogenic which in-turn is a concern for public health as well as livestock health.
A potential candidate gene associated with the angles of the ear leaf and the second leaf above the ear leaf in maize
Authors: Kuang Tianhui , Hu Can , Shaw Ranjan Kumar , Zhang Yudong , Fan Jun , Bi Yaqi , Jiang Fuyan , Guo Ruijia , Fan Xingming 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Background
Leaf angle is a key trait for maize plant architecture that plays a significant role in its morphological development, and ultimately impacting maize grain yield. Although many studies have been conducted on the association and localization of genes regulating leaf angle in maize, most of the candidate genes identified are associated with the regulation of ligule-ear development and phytohormone pathways, and only a few candidate genes have been reported to enhance the mechanical strength of leaf midrib and vascular tissues.

Results
To address this gap, we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) using the leaf angle phenotype and genotyping-by-sequencing data generated from three recombinant inbred line (RIL) populations of maize. Through GWAS analysis, we identified 156 SNPs significantly associated with the leaf angle trait and detected a total of 68 candidate genes located within 10 kb upstream and downstream of these individual SNPs. Among these candidate genes, Zm00001d045408, located on chromosome 9 emerged as a key gene controlling the angles of both the ear leaf and the second leaf above the ear leaf. Notably, this new gene’s homolog in Arabidopsis promotes cell division and vascular tissue development. Further analysis revealed that a SNP transversion (G/T) at 7.536 kb downstream of the candidate gene Zm00001d045408 may have caused a reduction in leaf angles of the ear and the second leaf above the ear leaf. Our analysis of the 10 kb region downstream of this candidate gene revealed a 4.337 kb solo long-terminal reverse transcription transposon (solo LTR), located 3.112 kb downstream of Zm00001d045408, with the SNP located 87 bp upstream of the solo LTR.

Conclusions
In summary, we have identified a novel candidate gene, Zm00001d045408 and a solo LTR that are associated with the angles of both the ear leaf and the second leaf above the ear leaf. The future research holds great potential in exploring the precise role of newly identified candidate gene in leaf angle regulation. Functional characterization of this gene can help in gaining deeper insights into the complex genetic pathways underlying maize plant architecture.
Utilization of anonymization techniques to create an external control arm for clinical trial data
Authors: Mehtälä Juha , Ali Mehreen , Miettinen Timo , Partanen Liisa , Laapas Kaisa , Niemelä Petri T. , Khorlo Igor , Ström Sanna , Kurki Samu , Vapalahti Jarno , Abdelgawwad Khaled , Leinonen Jussi V. 
Published: November 2023

AbstractBackgroundSubject-level real-world data (RWD) collected during daily healthcare practices are increasingly used in medical research to assess questions that cannot be addressed in the context of a randomized controlled trial (RCT). A novel application of RWD arises from the need to create external control arms (ECAs) for single-arm RCTs. In the analysis of ECAs against RCT data, there is an evident need to manage and analyze RCT data and RWD in the same technical environment. In the Nordic countries, legal requirements may require that the original subject-level data be anonymized, i.e., modified so that the risk to identify any individual is minimal. The aim of this study was to conduct initial exploration on how well pseudonymized and anonymized RWD perform in the creation of an ECA for an RCT.MethodsThis was a hybrid observational cohort study using clinical data from the control arm of the completed randomized phase II clinical trial (PACIFIC-AF) and RWD cohort from Finnish healthcare data sources. The initial pseudonymized RWD were anonymized within the (k,ε)-anonymity framework (a model for protecting individuals against identification). Propensity score matching and weighting methods were applied to the anonymized and pseudonymized RWD, to balance potential confounders against the RCT data. Descriptive statistics for the potential confounders and overall survival analyses were conducted prior to and after matching and weighting, using both the pseudonymized and anonymized RWD sets.ResultsAnonymization affected the baseline characteristics of potential confounders only marginally. The greatest difference was in the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (4.6% vs. 5.4% in the pseudonymized compared to the anonymized data, respectively). Moreover, the overall survival changed in anonymization by only 8% (95% CI 4–22%). Both the pseudonymized and anonymized RWD were able to produce matched ECAs for the RCT data. Anonymization after matching impacted overall survival analysis by 22% (95% CI -21–87%).ConclusionsAnonymization may be a viable technique for cases where flexible data transfer and sharing are required. As anonymization necessarily affects some aspects of the original data, further research and careful consideration of anonymization strategies are needed.
Tetanus in a vaccinated soil expert - a case report
Authors: Medu Olanrewaju , Ogunyemi Nazlee , Hennink Maurice , Mawer Shawn , Styles-Mackinnon Theresa , Wong Alex , Omosigho Charles , Diener Tania 
Published: November 2023

Abstract
Background
Tetanus is a life-threatening vaccine-preventable disease found more commonly in tropical climates. It accounted for up to 60 deaths annually until the introduction of the tetanus toxoid. It is now rare in Canada by immunization. This study aims to describe a case of tetanus in Saskatchewan with possible occupational exposure.

Case Report
We describe the case of a vaccinated soil expert with tetanus resulting from skin abrasions. This report highlights the early diagnosis, atypical presentation with possible vaccine attenuation and management approach, including acute care, intensive care unit referral, surgical management and physical rehabilitation. We also describe the public health management provided in this case. Despite the severity, the patient returned to his previous home environment with minimal motor sequelae.

Conclusion
Occupational exposure to tetanus is an important risk, even in regions where the disease is rare. Prevention through vaccination is a key public health intervention that must be encouraged to avoid health complications that are often fatal.