bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Hypoglycemia in children and young adults with cystic fibrosis during oral glucose tolerance testing vs. continuous glucose monitoring
Authors: Finn Erin , Severn Cameron , Pyle Laura , Garrish Justin , Vigers Timothy , Behn Cecilia G. Diniz , Zeitler Philip S. , Sagel Scott D. , Nadeau Kristen J. , Chan Christine L. 
Published: June 2023

AbstractBackgroundHypoglycemia is common in people with cystic fibrosis (pwCF) during oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTTs) and in the free‐living setting, yet its pathophysiology remains unclear.ObjectiveTo evaluate hypoglycemia in children and young adults with CF by OGTT and continuous glucose monitoring (CGM).MethodsA 3‐h OGTT was performed in children and young adults with CF and healthy controls (HC). Individuals were classified as experiencing hypoglycemia on OGTT (glucose <70 mg/dL) or not. Insulin, C‐peptide, glucose, glucagon, and incretins were measured. CGM was performed for 7 days in the free‐living setting. Measures of insulin sensitivity, beta cell function accounting for insulin sensitivity, and insulin clearance were calculated.ResultsA total of 57 participants (40 CF and 17 HC) underwent assessment. Rates of hypoglycemia by OGTT were similar in pwCF (53%, 21/40) compared to HC (35%, 6/17), p = 0.23. PwCF compared to HC had higher A1c; on OGTT higher and later glucose peaks, later insulin peaks; and on CGM more glucose variability. CF Hypo+ versus CF Hypo− had higher lung function, higher insulin sensitivity, higher beta cell function accounting for insulin sensitivity, and decreased CGM variability. When comparing CF Hypo+ to HC Hypo+, although rates of hypoglycemia are similar, pwCF had blunted glucagon responses to hypoglycemia. OGTT hypoglycemia was not associated with CGM hypoglycemia in any group.ConclusionYouth with CF have increased insulin sensitivity and impaired glucagon response to hypoglycemia on OGTT. Hypoglycemia on OGTT did not associate with free‐living hypoglycemia.
Patterns of early life somatic growth in infants and children with a history of chronic lung disease of prematurity
Authors: Aoyama Brianna C. , McGrath‐Morrow Sharon A. , Psoter Kevin J. , Collaco Joseph M. 
Published: June 2023

AbstractObjectivePreterm infants, and especially those with additional comorbidities, are at risk of early life growth failure, which may impact postnatal lung growth and attainment of peak lung function. However, little is known about the early life growth patterns of those with chronic lung disease. The goal of this study was to describe the patterns appreciated in this population and their association with certain clinical characteristics.Study DesignDemographic, clinical characteristics, and somatic growth parameters between birth and 3 years were retrospectively reviewed for a cohort of children (n = 616) recruited from an outpatient pulmonary clinic. Group‐based trajectory modeling was used to identify unique longitudinal trajectories for each growth parameter. Demographic and clinical characteristics were compared using nonparametric analysis.ResultsFour distinct trajectories were appreciated in all three somatic growth domains (weight, length, and weight‐for‐length), which demonstrated a sizable proportion of subjects with a z‐score below zero at 36 months of age, suggesting that the traditional preterm paradigm of “catch‐up” growth may not be accurate for this population.ConclusionsChildren with a history of chronic lung disease begin life with somatic growth measurements well below their term peers and display heterogeneous patterns of weight and length growth through the first 3 years of life. Future studies should focus on further understanding the relationship between somatic growth and respiratory outcomes in this population, which will ideally allow for the use of somatic growth measures as surrogate markers to identify individuals at the highest risk of postnatal growth failure and poor respiratory outcomes.
Functional outcome after radical prostatectomy in 1313 patients: A single‐center study
Authors: Haeuser Lorine , Tully Karl H. , Reicherz Alina , Berg Sebastian , Moritz Rudolf , Roghmann Florian , Noldus Joachim , Palisaar Rein‐Jüri 
Published: June 2023

AbstractObjectivesTo assess the impact of urinary continence and erectile function on the quality of life in men undergoing radical prostatectomy (RP) for prostate cancer (PC), we analyzed the preoperative and 1‐year postoperative outcomes of five functional domains and their influencing factors.Patients and MethodsIn this prospective study, all patients undergoing open or robot‐assisted RP between Febuary 2017 and March 2020 in a single academic center were included. Patient‐reported outcomes were assessed pre‐ and 12 months postoperatively using the Expanded Prostate Index Composite (EPIC‐26) survey, evaluating continence, irritative/obstructive micturition, gastrointestinal symptoms, sexuality, and overall vitality. We examined the impact of RP on sexual function and urinary continence using multivariable logistic regression models, accounting for patient and tumor characteristics.ResultsOverall, 1313 consecutive patients gave consent for study participation and completed both surveys. The median age was 66 years (IQR: 60−70). The majority of patients (n = 601, 46%) had an intermediate risk PC. Robotic RP was performed in 71.6% and nerve‐sparing technique in 81% of the cases. The median pre‐ versus postoperative scores were the following: urinary continence 100 (IQR: 91.8−100) versus 85.5 (64.8−100), irritative micturition 87.5 (IQR: 75−100) versus 93.8 (IQR: 87.5−100), gastrointestinal symptoms the same with 100 (IQR: 95.8−100), vitality 95 (IQR: 80−100) versus 90 (IQR: 75−100), and erectile function 65.3 (IQR: 38.8−87.5) versus 22.2 (IQR: 12.5−48.7), respectively. Age (p < 0.001), risk classification (p = 0.002), and nerve‐sparing surgery (p = 0.016) were associated with good sexual function (EPIC‐26 score ≥60), while only age (p = 0.001) was statistically significantly associated with good urinary continence (EPIC‐26 score ≥80).ConclusionNon‐modifiable factors such as age and PC risk classification impact urinary continence and sexual function after RP. Nevertheless, urologic surgeons should further focus on improving nerve‐sparing techniques, the only modifiable variable, to reduce the surgery's negative impact on urinary continence and sexual function.
Influence of the opening pressure of explosion‐venting surface on methane deflagration characteristics in municipal sewage confined spaces
Authors: Lv Pengfei , Li Tiannan , Zhang Yu , Pang Lei , Yang Kai 
Published: June 2023

AbstractThis study investigates the influence of the opening pressure of the explosion‐venting surface (EVS) of a vertical branch pipeline on the deflagration characteristics of methane at different concentrations. The results indicate that the increase in the opening pressure of the EVS promotes the accumulation of deflagration pressure in the horizontal pipeline, whereas the venting effect in the vertical branch pipeline attenuates the peak value of the deflagration pressure. The vertical branch pipeline has both “promoting” and “inhibiting” effects on the flame propagation speed in the horizontal pipeline. With an increase in the methane concentration and opening pressure of the EVS, the promoting effect gradually plays a dominant role, resulting in an increase in the flame propagation speed. In actual industrial production and daily life, in order to avoid explosion hazards, it is essential to install EVSs or reduce their opening pressure in a confined space.
Enhancing communication strategies in controlling neglected tropical diseases in Nigeria
Authors: Durojaye Aishat Bisoye , Adedeji Oluwakorede Joshua , Egbewande Oluwaseyi Muyiwa , Ibrahim Aishat Abiodun , Sampson‐Oladipupo Eniola , Yusuf Rashidat Onyinoyi , Babatunde Yusuf 
Published: June 2023

AbstractNeglected tropical diseases (NTD), a broad set of infectious diseases prevalent in tropical and subtropical environments, are widely known to affect individuals with limited resources in underserved communities. Nigeria is one of the countries with the highest cases of NTD, with an estimated 100 million people in the country at risk for at least one NTD. In Nigeria, the NTD master plan recognizes behavioural change communication as an important part of its strategy for reducing the burden of NTDs. Behavioural change communication has been proven to be significant in preventing and reducing infection, spread and re‐infection of diseases. However, poor communication strategies, lack of funds and human resources and lack of training on how to deliver behavioural change interventions are major challenges. Enhancing communication strategies will significantly help increase attention towards NTD prevention methods and acceptance of treatment interventions. It is also important to ensure that healthcare professionals are provided with adequate skills in the delivery of behavioural change interventions in the communities. This article reviews the activities to enhance communication strategies in the context settings of Nigeria.
Self‐managed abortions in Ghana: A health policy framework analysis
Authors: Morhe Emmanuel Komla Senanu , Gbagbo Fred Yao , Morhe Renee Aku Sitsofe 
Published: June 2023

AbstractBackgroundSelf‐managed abortions (SMAs) remain a public health challenge; and are worst in deprived settings. In this policy review, we sought to analyze the legal and policy frameworks within which SMA occurs and look at how these may help improve abortion outcomes in Ghana.MethodsWe searched and reviewed documents on “self‐induced” or “self‐managed” abortion in Ghana from 2015 to 2022. Databases searched included Ghana Digital Attorney, PubMed Central, Google Scholar, and Repositories of Public Universities in Ghana. The key documents reviewed included the abortion law (Act 29) of Ghana, the fourth (2021) edition of the Ghana Health Services’ Comprehensive Abortion Care Standards and Protocols, and the 2017 Maternal Health Survey report. Key documents reviewed included amended Act 29, Comprehensive Abortion Care policy, and standards. We then performed policy analysis using Walt and Gilson's policy triangle framework regarding the context, practice, processes, and key players.ResultsAfter a careful review of the literature, the following key themes emerged in the framework analysis: the policy environment for SMA, the practice of SMAs, key players of SMAs, consequences of induced abortions, the abortion law, and criminal connotations of SMA. We found that SMAs remain criminalized in Ghana but the local practice persists with the use of registered and unregistered abortifacients. We also observed frequent criminal connotations of SMAs in the literature but no evidence of related prosecutions. There was limited empirical evidence on the safety and efficacy of SMAs in Ghana.ConclusionFrom our findings, we contend that there is an unduly high criminal connotation of SMA in Ghana. We, therefore, recommend a multilevel stakeholder engagement to decriminalize SMAs to ensure improved access to safe abortions in Ghana.
A global strategy based on deep learning for time‐dependent optimal reliability design
Authors: Ling Chunyan , Li Xingqiu , Kuo Way 
Published: June 2023

AbstractTime‐dependent reliability‐based design optimization (RBDO) is a computationally tough problem that needs to be addressed urgently. The difficulty of solving the time‐dependent RBDO mainly comes from the time‐dependent reliability analysis involved in probabilistic constraints, which itself is one of the thorny problems in the reliability community and makes the computational cost become much more onerous. In this paper, a deep‐learning‐assisted approach is proposed to solve the time‐dependent RBDO. The proposed approach leverages the classification capability of the deep learning, and constructs the alternative model for the actual probabilistic constraint function in the so‐called augmented reliability space, so as to make the trained alternative model accurate wherever it will be invoked. Moreover, a sequential sampling technique utilizing the classification probability provided by the deep learning is proposed to further reduce the computational cost. Then, the time‐dependent reliability analysis involved in the time‐dependent RBDO is conducted by the cheaper alternative model instead of the original computing‐intensive probabilistic constraint function, which evidently reduces the computational burden. The presented examples showcase the performance of the proposed approach. Especially, for the complicated engineering application, the proposed approach saves about 10% of the computational cost compared with the existing methods.
Strongyloides coinfection in COVID‐19 patients treated with corticosteroids: A systematic review
Authors: Zulfiqar Sana , Gasser Robin B. , Ghodsian Sahar , Almukhtar Mustafa , Holland Celia , Rostami Ali 
Published: June 2023

AbstractThe COVID‐19 pandemic linked to the virus SARS‐CoV‐2, which began in China, affected ∼765 million people as of 30 April 2023. The widespread use of corticosteroids for the symptomatic treatment of COVID‐19 could lead to the reactivation of infections of opportunistic pathogens, including Strongyloides. We sought to determine the clinical symptoms and demographic characteristics of SARS‐CoV‐2–Strongyloides co‐infection, particularly in patients with severe disease and being treated with immunosuppressive drugs. To do this, we undertook a systematic review of the literature, and searched public accessible scientific databases—the Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed/Medline and Embase –for eligible studies (1 December 2019 to 30 August 2022). The review protocol is registered in PROSPERO (CRD42022377062). Descriptive statistical analyses were used to present the clinical and laboratory parameters of the co‐infection; for this, we calculated prevalence using the following formula: positive cases/total number of cases × 100. Of a total of 593 studies identified, 17 studies reporting 26 co‐infected patients met the criteria for inclusion in this review. The median age of these patients was 55.14 years. Most of cases (53.8%) were treated with dexamethasone, followed by methylprednisolone (26.9%). Eighteen of 26 patients were immigrants living in European countries or the USA; most of these immigrants originated from Latin America (58%) and South‐East Asia (11%). The commonest symptoms of co‐infection were abdominal pain (50%), fever (46.1%), dyspnoea (30.7%) and cough (30.7%), and frequently reported laboratory findings were high absolute eosinophil count (38.4%), high white blood cell count (30.7%), high C‐reactive protein (23.0%) and high neutrophil count (19.2%). Two of the 26 patients (7.7%) had fatal outcomes. Most of the SARS‐CoV‐2–Strongyloides coinfected cases were immigrants living in developed countries, emphasising the need for clinicians in these countries to be aware of clinical and laboratory parameters associated with such co‐infections, as well as the key importance of rapid and accurate diagnostic tests for timely and effective diagnosis and patient management.
Variability of asymbiotic N‐fixation organism activity with distance and time in North Dakota transitional no‐till soils
Authors: Franzen David W. , Wick Abbey , Bu Honggang , Gasch Caley K. , Inglett Patrick W. 
Published: June 2023

AbstractAsymbiotic nitrogen fixation (N‐fixation) is a microbial process that may result in the introduction of plant‐available N into the soil. Although the process of N mineralization in soils is mediated by many microorganisms and is related mostly to soil moisture, the soil factors which regulate asymbiotic N‐fixation are relatively unknown and the number of microorganisms with the ability to fix N is small relative to the whole soil microorganism pool. Soils under long‐term no‐till management have greater asymbiotic N‐fixing organism activity compared to no‐till. This study was conducted to determine the variance of N‐fixing activity over distance, and the temporal variability of asymbiotic N‐fixing organism activity at six sites with transitional no‐till soils in eastern North Dakota over three growing seasons. Sites were sampled at the same location each month of the growing season from 2019 to 2021. At one of the sampling dates, each year additional samples were obtained at distances from the central sampling location for use in statistical analysis. The sampling over distance indicated that to characterize a large field area, multiple samples should be taken and analyzed separately or mixed together for single analysis. Monthly sampling in all 3 years indicated that peak N‐fixation activity was favored by a moist, warm environment. Dry periods and excessively wet periods resulted in low activity. Heavy rains within 48 h of sampling resulted in extremely low N‐fixation activity at the subsequent sampling date. Models were constructed relating the accumulative rainfall from the 30 days prior to sampling, and the mean air temperature from the 30 days prior to sampling. These data indicate that the activity of asymbiotic N‐fixing organisms increased with temperature and cumulative rainfall prior to measurement.
Bimetallic Nanoalloy Catalysts for Green Energy Production: Advances in Synthesis Routes and Characterization Techniques
Authors: Ashraf Saima , Liu Yanyan , Wei Huijuan , Shen Ruofan , Zhang Huanhuan , Wu Xianli , Mehdi Sehrish , Liu Tao , Li Baojun 
Published: June 2023

AbstractBimetallic Nanoalloy catalysts have diverse uses in clean energy, sensing, catalysis, biomedicine, and energy storage, with some supported and unsupported catalysts. Conventional synthetic methods for producing bimetallic alloy nanoparticles often produce unalloyed and bulky particles that do not exhibit desired characteristics. Alloys, when prepared with advanced nanoscale methods, give higher surface area, activity, and selectivity than individual metals due to changes in their electronic properties and reduced size. This review demonstrates the synthesis methods and principles to produce and characterize highly dispersed, well‐alloyed bimetallic nanoalloy particles in relatively simple, effective, and generalized approaches and the overall existence of conventional synthetic methods with modifications to prepare bimetallic alloy catalysts. The basic concepts and mechanistic understanding are represented with purposely selected examples. Herein, the enthralling properties with widespread applications of nanoalloy catalysts in heterogeneous catalysis are also presented, especially for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction (HER), Oxidation Reduction Reaction (ORR), Oxygen Evolution Reaction (OER), and alcohol oxidation with a particular focus on Pt and Pd‐based bimetallic nanoalloys and their numerous fields of applications. The high entropy alloy is described as a complicated subject with an emphasis on laser‐based green synthesis of nanoparticles and, in conclusion, the forecasts and contemporary challenges for the controlled synthesis of nanoalloys are addressed.
Interfacing Coacervates with Membranes: From Artificial Organelles and Hybrid Protocells to Intracellular Delivery
Authors: Lu Tiemei , Javed Sadaf , Bonfio Claudia , Spruijt Evan 
Published: June 2023

AbstractCompartmentalization is crucial for the functioning of cells. Membranes enclose and protect the cell, regulate the transport of molecules entering and exiting the cell, and organize cellular machinery in subcompartments. In addition, membraneless condensates, or coacervates, offer dynamic compartments that act as biomolecular storage centers, organizational hubs, or reaction crucibles. Emerging evidence shows that phase‐separated membraneless bodies in the cell are involved in a wide range of functional interactions with cellular membranes, leading to transmembrane signaling, membrane remodeling, intracellular transport, and vesicle formation. Such functional and dynamic interplay between phase‐separated droplets and membranes also offers many potential benefits to artificial cells, as shown by recent studies involving coacervates and liposomes. Depending on the relative sizes and interaction strength between coacervates and membranes, coacervates can serve as artificial membraneless organelles inside liposomes, as templates for membrane assembly and hybrid artificial cell formation, as membrane remodelers for tubulation and possibly division, and finally, as cargo containers for transport and delivery of biomolecules across membranes by endocytosis or direct membrane crossing. Here, recent experimental examples of each of these functions are reviewed and the underlying physicochemical principles and possible future applications are discussed.
An optimal container update method for edge‐cloud collaboration
Authors: Zhang Haotong , Lin Weiwei , Xie Rong , Li Shenghai , Dai Zhiyan , Wang James Z. 
Published: June 2023

AbstractEmerging computing paradigms provide field‐level service responses for users, for example, edge computing, fog computing, and MEC. Edge virtualization technologies represented by Docker can provide a platform‐independent, low‐resource‐consumption operating environment for edge service. The image‐pulling time of Docker is a crucial factor affecting the start‐up speed of edge services. The layer reuse mechanism of native Docker cannot fully utilize the duplicate data of node local images. In this paper, we propose a chunk reuse mechanism (CRM), which effectively targets node‐local duplicate data during container updates and reduces the volume of data transmission required for image building. We orchestrate the CRM process for cloud and remote‐cloud nodes to ensure that the resource overhead from container update data preparation and image reconstruction is within an acceptable range. The experimental results show that the CRM proposed in this paper can effectively utilize the node local duplicate data in the synchronous update of containers in multiple nodes, reduce the volume of data transmission, and significantly improve container update efficiency.
Privacy preserving vaccinating‐ and testing‐pass for the European Union
Authors: Schrahe Dominik , Städter Thomas 
Published: June 2023

AbstractPhysicians and scientists hope that health‐data will provide new insights into improving medical care and optimizing healthcare costs. However, data protection laws in Europe often place limits on the use of patient data. During the COVID‐19 pandemic, both digital immunity records and data on infections were needed for pandemic management. Using this example, the research project will develop a system concept for vaccination, testing, and recovery proof called privacy preserving pass for vaccination and testing (P3VT), that will make collected data available to research and policy pandemic management in real time and anonymized. P3VT consistently considers the goals of privacy‐by‐design, data minimization and transparency of the EU‐GDPR. Expert interviews validated the system from medical, technical, and privacy perspectives. P3VT offers several advantages compared to the EU digital COVID certificate such as pseudonymized proofing of vaccination, testing, and recovery for a reduction of misuse of sensitive personal data and transparency about the nature, timing, and purpose of the proof. Above that anonymized medical data are provided to improve pandemic management, and research. P3VT is thus an exemplary solution for the comprehensive provision of health‐data for research purposes combined with high‐level data protection. Further areas of application are conceivable.