bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Challenges and improvements associated with transitions between hospitals and care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study with care home and healthcare staff in England
Authors: Newman Craig , Mulrine Stephanie , Brittain Katie , Dawson Pamela , Mason Celia , Spencer Michele , Sykes Kate , Underwood Frazer , Young-Murphy Lesley , Waring Justin , Scott Jason 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Background
Care home residents transitioning from hospital are at risk of receiving poor-quality care with their safety being challenged by the SARS-CoV-2 virus (COVID-19) pandemic. Little is known about how care home staff worked with hospital staff and other healthcare professionals to address these challenges and make improvements to increase patient safety.

Objective
To gain insight into how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced the safety of transitions between hospital and care home.

Method
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with care home staff and healthcare professionals involved in hospital to care home transitions including doctors, nurses, paramedics, pharmacists, social workers, and occupational therapists. Commonalities and patterns in the data were identified using thematic analysis.

Results
Seventy participants were interviewed. Three themes were developed, first, ‘new challenges’, described care homes were pressurised to receive hospital patients amidst issues with COVID-19 testing, changes to working practices and contentious media attention, which all impacted staff negatively. Second, ‘dehumanisation’ described how care home residents were treated, being isolated from others amounted to feelings of being imprisoned, caused fear and engendered negative reactions from families. Third, ‘better ways of working’ described how health and social care workers developed relationships that improved integration and confidence and benefited care provision.

Conclusion
The COVID-19 pandemic contributed to and compounded high-risk hospital-to-care home discharges. Government policy failed to support care homes. Rapid discharge objectives exposed a myriad of infection control issues causing inhumane conditions for care home residents. However, staff involved in transitions continued to provide and improve upon care provision.
Plant-based dietary patterns and the risk of dementia: a population-based study
Authors: de Crom Tosca O E , Steur Marinka , Ikram M Kamran , Ikram M Arfan , Voortman Trudy 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Background
Plant-based dietary patterns are increasingly popular in western countries and are supported by many governments and health organisations for their potential beneficial role in the prevention of chronic diseases. Yet, the potential role of plant-based dietary patterns in the development of dementia remains unclear.

Objective
To evaluate the association between plant-based dietary patterns and the risk of dementia.

Methods
Dietary intake was measured at baseline in 9,543 dementia-free participants (mean age 64 years, birth years 1897–1960, 58% women) of the prospective population-based Rotterdam Study, using food frequency questionnaires. Based on these questionnaires, we calculated an overall plant-based dietary index (PDI), healthy PDI (hPDI) and unhealthy PDI (uPDI), with higher scores reflecting higher consumption of (any, healthy and unhealthy, respectively) plant-based foods and lower consumption of animal-based foods. We analysed the association of the PDIs with incident dementia using Cox proportional hazard models.

Results
During a mean follow-up of 14.5 years, 1,472 participants developed dementia. Overall, the PDIs were not associated with the risk of dementia (hazard ratio [95% confidence interval] per 10-point increase: 0.99 [0.91–1.08] for PDI, 0.93 [0.86–1.01] for hPDI, 1.02 [0.94–1.10] for uPDI). However, among men and APOE ε4 carriers, a higher hPDI was linearly associated with a lower risk of dementia (0.86 [0.75–0.99] and 0.83 [0.73–0.95], respectively), while this association was U-shaped among APOE ε4 non-carriers (P value for non-linearity = 0.01).

Conclusions
We found no strong evidence for an overall association between plant-based eating and the risk of dementia. Our findings in stratified analyses warranted further investigation.
Luteolin inhibits Porphyromonas gingivalis growth and alleviates alveolar bone destruction in experimental murine periodontitis
Authors: Kariu Toru , Hamada Nobushiro , Lakshmyya Kesavalu 
Published: September 2023

ABSTRACT
Periodontal disease is a major oral infectious disease that destroys alveolar bones and causes tooth loss. Porphyromonas gingivalis is a key pathogen that plays a crucial role in periodontitis. In our previous study on the anti-P. gingivalis activity of flavonoid, luteolin, a major flavonoid in edible plants, inhibited the proteolytic activity of gingipains, the major virulence factor in P. gingivalis. This study demonstrated luteolin in vitro and in vivo anti-bacterial activities. Thus, luteolin inhibits planktonic growth and biofilm formation in P. gingivalis. Furthermore, oral administration of luteolin alleviated maxillary alveolar bone resorption (ABR) in murine periodontitis induced by P. gingivalis infection. These results indicate that luteolin may be a potential therapeutic compound that targets P. gingivalis by hindering its growth, biofilm formation, and ABR in the oral cavity.
DeepCCI: a deep learning framework for identifying cell–cell interactions from single-cell RNA sequencing data
Authors: Yang Wenyi , Wang Pingping , Luo Meng , Cai Yideng , Xu Chang , Xue Guangfu , Jin Xiyun , Cheng Rui , Que Jinhao , Pang Fenglan , Yang Yuexin , Nie Huan , Jiang Qinghua , Liu Zhigang , Xu Zhaochun 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Motivation
Cell–cell interactions (CCIs) play critical roles in many biological processes such as cellular differentiation, tissue homeostasis, and immune response. With the rapid development of high throughput single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) technologies, it is of high importance to identify CCIs from the ever-increasing scRNA-seq data. However, limited by the algorithmic constraints, current computational methods based on statistical strategies ignore some key latent information contained in scRNA-seq data with high sparsity and heterogeneity.

Results
Here, we developed a deep learning framework named DeepCCI to identify meaningful CCIs from scRNA-seq data. Applications of DeepCCI to a wide range of publicly available datasets from diverse technologies and platforms demonstrate its ability to predict significant CCIs accurately and effectively. Powered by the flexible and easy-to-use software, DeepCCI can provide the one-stop solution to discover meaningful intercellular interactions and build CCI networks from scRNA-seq data.

Availability and implementation
The source code of DeepCCI is available online at https://github.com/JiangBioLab/DeepCCI.
Pitch posture regulation in Peking geckos (Gekko swinhonis): assessing the role of tails before take-off in upward jumping
Authors: Yuan Jiwei , Wang Zhouyi , Song Yi , Dai Zhendong 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
Small vertebrates, such as geckos, often use their tails to regulate their posture after take-off and suppress abnormal rotations in mid-air (such as sliding and falling). However, research on tail function before take-off remains scarce, particularly when animals overcome gravity to jump upward. This study examined tailed and tailless geckos’ ability to jump over obstacles. The tails swung up and reached their upper limits during take-off, corresponding to a continuous increase in their trunk elevation angle. Compared to tailless geckos, geckos with intact tails had lower body and tail angular velocities. In addition, tailed geckos achieved larger take-off angles and higher jumps; moreover, their take-off angles were consistent with their velocity angles. Theoretical analyses demonstrated that the tail and its upward swing before take-off could benefit lifting the forelimb and hindlimbs off the ground, expanding the stability area of their centre of mass (COM). A robot prototype verified the effect of the tail and its swing on trunk elevation before take-off. Other parameters, such as the posture of the hindlimbs (support length and angle) and initial angle of the trunk, affect posture regulation. This study significantly extends our knowledge in animal locomotion and provides indispensable information for improving robot jumping ability.
Presence of key cholinergic enzymes in human spermatozoa and seminal fluid
Authors: Thakur Banita , Hasooni Laila Pamela , Gera Ruchi , Mitra Sumonto , Björndahl Lars , Darreh-Shori Taher 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
Little is known about the non-neuronal spermic cholinergic system, which may regulate sperm motility and the acrosome reaction initiation process. We investigated the presence of the key acetylcholine (ACh)-biosynthesizing enzyme, choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), and the acetylcholine-degrading enzymes, acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) and two ACh-receptors in human spermatozoa and seminal plasma. Fresh ejaculates were used for intra- and extracellular flow cytometric analysis of ChAT, AChE, BChE, and alpha-7-nicotinic and M1-muscarinic ACh-receptors in sperm. For determining the source of soluble enzymes, frozen seminal samples (n = 74) were selected on two bases: (1) from vasectomized (n = 37) and non-vasectomized (n = 37) subjects and (2) based on levels of alpha-glucosidase, fructose, or zinc to define sample subgroups with high or low fluid contribution from the epididymis and seminal vesicle, and prostate, respectively. Flow cytometric analyses revealed that ChAT was expressed intracellularly in essentially all spermatozoa. ChAT was also present in a readily membrane-detachable form at the extracellular membrane of at least 18% of the spermatozoa. These were also highly positive for intra- and extracellular BChE (&gt;83%) and M1 (&gt;84%) and α7 (&gt;59%) ACh-receptors. Intriguingly, the sperm was negative for AChE. Analyses of seminal plasma revealed that spermatozoa and epididymides were major sources of soluble ChAT and BChE, whereas soluble AChE most likely originated from epididymides and seminal vesicles. Prostate had relatively minor contribution to the pool of the soluble enzymes in the seminal fluid. In conclusion, human spermatozoa exhibited a cholinergic phenotype and were one of the major sources of soluble ChAT and BChE in ejaculate. We also provide the first evidence for ChAT as an extracellularly membrane-anchored protein.
Update on Outbreak of Fungal Meningitis Among US Residents Who Received Epidural Anesthesia at Two Clinics in Matamoros, Mexico
Authors: Smith Dallas J , Gold Jeremy A W , Chiller Tom , Bustamante Nirma D , Marinissen Maria Julia , Rodriquez Gabriel Garcia , Cortes Vladimir Brian Gonzalez , Molina Celida Duque , Williams Samantha , Vazquez Deida Axel A , Byrd Katrina , Pappas Peter G , Patterson Thomas F , Wiederhold Nathan P , Thompson George R , Ostrosky-Zeichner Luis ,   Fungal Meningitis Response Team, Malani Anurag N , Kauffman Carol A , Perfect John R , Lyman Meghan , Lockhart Shawn R , Litvintseva Anastasia P , Parada Victoria , Castillo James W , Maldonado Jose Campo , Rivas JulieAnna , Zabel Karen , Koenecke Lori , Godwin Simone , Wilson Christopher D , Evert Nicole , Dang Thi , Prot Emilie , Castillo Raquel , Khan Ameera , Rincon Layda , Ruiz Ashley , Offiong Charlene , Zangeneh Ana , Pearson Jessica , Van Fleet Karen 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Background
Public health officials are responding to an outbreak of fungal meningitis among patients who received procedures under epidural anesthesia at 2 clinics (River Side Surgical Center and Clinica K-3) in Matamoros, Mexico, during 1 January to 13 May 2023. This report describes outbreak epidemiology and outlines interim diagnostic and treatment recommendations.

Methods
Interim recommendations for diagnosis and management were developed by the Mycoses Study Group Research Education and Consortium (MSGERC) based on the clinical experience of clinicians caring for patients during the current outbreak or during previous outbreaks of healthcare-associated fungal meningitis in Durango, Mexico, and the United States.

Results
As of 7 July 2023, the situation has evolved into a multistate and multinational fungal meningitis outbreak. A total of 185 residents in 22 US states and jurisdictions have been identified who might be at risk of fungal meningitis because they received epidural anesthesia at the clinics of interest in 2023. Among these patients, 11 suspected, 10 probable, and 10 confirmed US cases have been diagnosed, with severe vascular complications and 8 deaths occurring. Fusarium solani species complex has been identified as the causative agent, with antifungal susceptibility testing of a single isolate demonstrating poor in vitro activity for most available antifungals. Currently, triple therapy with intravenous voriconazole, liposomal amphotericin B, and fosmanogepix is recommended.

Conclusions
Efforts to understand the source of this outbreak and optimal treatment approaches are ongoing, but infectious diseases physicians should be aware of available treatment recommendations. New information will be available on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC's) website.
Coalitional Double Auction For Ridesharing With Desired Benefit And QoE Constraints
Authors: Huang Jiale , Wu Jigang , Chen Long , Wu Yalan , Li Yidong 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
Ridesharing is an effective approach to alleviate traffic congestion. In most existing works, drivers and passengers are assigned prices without considering the constraints of desired benefits. This paper investigates ridesharing by formulating a matching and pricing problem to maximize the total payoff of drivers, with the constraints of desired benefit and quality of experience. An efficient algorithm is proposed to solve the formulated problem based on coalitional double auction. Secondary pricing based strategy and sacrificed minimum bid based strategy are proposed to support the algorithm. This paper also proves that the proposed algorithm can achieve a Nash-stable coalition partition in finite steps, and the proposed two strategies guarantee truthfulness, individually rational and budget balance. Extensive simulation results on the real-world dataset of taxi trajectory in Beijing city show that the proposed algorithm outperforms the existing ones, in terms of average total payoff of drivers while meeting the benefits of passengers.
The current clinical practice for management of post-infarction ventricular septal rupture: a European survey
Authors: Ronco Daniele , Ariza-Solé Albert , Kowalewski Mariusz , Matteucci Matteo , Di Mauro Michele , López-de-Sá Esteban , Ranucci Marco , Sionis Alessandro , Bonaros Nikolaos , De Bonis Michele , Russo Claudio Francesco , Uribarri Aitor , Montero Santiago , Fischlein Theodor , Kowalówka Adam , Naito Shiho , Obadia Jean-François , Martín-Asenjo Roberto , Aboal Jaime , Thielmann Matthias , Simon Caterina , Andrea-Riba Rut , Parra Carolina , Folliguet Thierry , Martínez-Sellés Manuel , Sanmartín Fernández Marcelo , Al-Attar Nawwar , Viana Tejedor Ana , Serraino Giuseppe Filiberto , Burgos Palacios Virginia , Boeken Udo , Raposeiras Roubin Sergio , Solla Buceta Miguel Antonio , Sánchez Fernández Pedro Luis , Scrofani Roberto , Pastor Báez Gemma , Jorge Pérez Pablo , Actis Dato Guglielmo , Garcia-Rubira Juan Carlos , de Gea Garcia Jose H , Massimi Giulio , Musazzi Andrea , Lorusso Roberto 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Aims
Many historical and recent reports showed that post-infarction ventricular septal rupture (VSR) represents a life-threatening condition and the strategy to optimally manage it remains undefined. Therefore, disparate treatment policies among different centres with variable results are often described. We analysed data from European centres to capture the current clinical practice in VSR management.

Methods and results
Thirty-nine centres belonging to eight European countries participated in a survey, filling a digital form of 38 questions from April to October 2022, to collect information about all the aspects of VSR treatment. Most centres encounter 1–5 VSR cases/year. Surgery remains the treatment of choice over percutaneous closure (71.8% vs. 28.2%). A delayed repair represents the preferred approach (87.2%). Haemodynamic conditions influence the management in almost all centres, although some try to achieve patients stabilization and delayed surgery even in cardiogenic shock. Although 33.3% of centres do not perform coronarography in unstable patients, revascularization approaches are widely variable. Most centres adopt mechanical circulatory support (MCS), mostly extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, especially pre-operatively to stabilize patients and achieve delayed repair. Post-operatively, such MCS are more often adopted in patients with ventricular dysfunction.

Conclusion
In real-life, delayed surgery, regardless of the haemodynamic conditions, is the preferred strategy for VSR management in Europe. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation is becoming the most frequently adopted MCS as bridge-to-operation. This survey provides a useful background to develop dedicated, prospective studies to strengthen the current evidence on VSR treatment and to help improving its currently unsatisfactory outcomes.
Endothelial damage inhibitor preserves the integrity of venous endothelial cells from patients undergoing coronary bypass surgery
Authors: Nazari-Shafti Timo Z , Thau Henriette , Zacharova Ema , Beez Christien M , Exarchos Vasileios , Neuber Sebastian , Meyborg Heike , Puhl Kerstin , Wittig Corey , Szulcek Robert , Neumann Konrad , Giampietro Costanza , Krüger Katrin , Cesarovic Nikola , Falk Volkmar , Caliskan Etem , Rodriguez Cetina Biefer Hector , Emmert Maximilian Y 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
Despite the success of coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery using autologous saphenous vein grafts (SVGs), nearly 50% of patients experience vein graft disease within 10 years of surgery. One contributing factor to early vein graft disease is endothelial damage during short-term storage of SVGs in inappropriate solutions. Our aim was to evaluate the effects of a novel endothelial damage inhibitor (EDI) on SVGs from patients undergoing elective CABG surgery and on venous endothelial cells (VECs) derived from these SVGs.

METHODS
SVGs from 11 patients participating in an ongoing clinical registry (NCT02922088) were included in this study, and incubated with both full electrolyte solution (FES) or EDI for 1 h and then examined histologically. In 8 of 11 patients, VECs were isolated from untreated grafts, incubated with both FES and EDI for 2 h under hypothermic stress conditions and then analysed for activation of an inflammatory phenotype, cell damage and cytotoxicity, as well as endothelial integrity and barrier function.

RESULTS
The EDI was superior to FES in protecting the endothelium in SVGs (74 ± 8% versus 56 ± 8%, P &lt; 0.001). Besides confirming that the EDI prevents apoptosis in SVG-derived VECs, we also showed that the EDI temporarily reduces adherens junctions in VECs while protecting focal adhesions compared to FES.

CONCLUSIONS
The EDI protects the connectivity and function of the SVG endothelium. Our data suggest that the EDI can preserve focal adhesions in VECs during short-term storage after graft harvesting. This might explain the superiority of the EDI in maintaining most of the endothelium in venous CABG surgery conduits.
Children’s outcomes in road traffic accidents: challenges for personal injury assessment
Authors: Cunha-Diniz Flávia , Taveira-Gomes Tiago , Teixeira José M , Magalhães Teresa 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Children represent a specific group of road traffic accident (RTA) victims. Performing a personal injury assessment (PIA) on a child presents a significant challenge, especially when assessing permanent disabilities and needs. However, medico-legal recommendations for PIA in such cases are lacking. The main objective of this study was to analyse the differences between children and a young- and middle-aged adult population of RTA victims to contribute to the development of relevant guidelines. Secondary objectives were to identify and characterize specifics of children’s posttraumatic damages regarding: (i) temporary and permanent outcomes; and (ii) medico-legal damage parameters in the Portuguese context. We performed a retrospective study of RTA victims by comparing two groups (n = 114 each) matched for acute injury severity (SD = 0.01): G1 (children) and G2 (young- and middle-aged adults). Logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratios. G1 presented a greater chance of evolving without or with less severe body, functional and situational outcomes (three-dimensional assessment methodology), and with lower permanent functional disability values than G2. Our findings suggest that childhood trauma generally has a better prognosis than trauma in young- and middle-aged adults. This study generated evidence on the subject and highlighted the most significant difficulties encountered by medico-legal experts when performing PIA in children.

Key points
Genome assembly and analysis of Lactuca virosa: implications for lettuce breeding
Authors: Xiong Wei , van Workum Dirk-Jan M , Berke Lidija , Bakker Linda V , Schijlen Elio , Becker Frank F M , van de Geest Henri , Peters Sander , Michelmore Richard , van Treuren Rob , Jeuken Marieke , Smit Sandra , Schranz M Eric 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) is a leafy vegetable crop with ongoing breeding efforts related to quality, resilience, and innovative production systems. To breed resilient and resistant lettuce in the future, valuable genetic variation found in close relatives could be further exploited. Lactuca virosa (2x = 2n = 18), a wild relative assigned to the tertiary lettuce gene pool, has a much larger genome (3.7 Gbp) than Lactuca sativa (2.5 Gbp). It has been used in interspecific crosses and is a donor to modern crisphead lettuce cultivars. Here, we present a de novo reference assembly of L. virosa with high continuity and complete gene space. This assembly facilitated comparisons to the genome of L. sativa and to that of the wild species L. saligna, a representative of the secondary lettuce gene pool. To assess the diversity in gene content, we classified the genes of the 3 Lactuca species as core, accessory, and unique. In addition, we identified 3 interspecific chromosomal inversions compared to L. sativa, which each may cause recombination suppression and thus hamper future introgression breeding. Using 3-way comparisons in both reference-based and reference-free manners, we show that the proliferation of long-terminal repeat elements has driven the genome expansion of L. virosa. Further, we performed a genome-wide comparison of immune genes, nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeat, and receptor-like kinases among Lactuca spp. and indicated the evolutionary patterns and mechanisms behind their expansions. These genome analyses greatly facilitate the understanding of genetic variation in L. virosa, which is beneficial for the breeding of improved lettuce varieties.