bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Co-morbid mental health conditions in people with epilepsy and association with quality of life in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Tsigebrhan Ruth , Derese Andualem , Kariuki Symon M. , Fekadu Abebaw , Medhin Girmay , Newton Charles R. , Prince Martin J. , Hanlon Charlotte 
Published: January 2023

Abstract
Background
Comorbid mental health conditions are common in people with epilepsy and have a significant negative impact on important epilepsy outcomes, although the evidence is mostly from high-income countries. This systematic review aimed to synthesise evidence on the association between comorbid mental health conditions and quality of life and functioning among people with epilepsy living in low- and middle income countries (LMICs).

Methods
We searched PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, Global Index medicus (GID) and PsycINFO databases from their dates of inception to January 2022. Only quantiative observational studies were included. Meta-analysis was conducted for studies that reported the same kind of quality of life and functioning outcome. Cohen’s d was calculated from the mean difference in quality-of-life score between people with epilepsy who did and did not have a comorbid depression or anxiety condition. The protocol was registered with PROSPERO: CRD42020161487.

Results
The search strategy identified a total of 2,101 articles, from which 33 full text articles were included. Depression was the most common comorbid mental health condition (33 studies), followed by anxiety (16 studies). Meta-analysis was conducted on 19 studies reporting quality of life measured with the same instrument. A large standardized mean effect size (ES) in quality of life score was found (pooled ES = −1.16, 95% confidence interval (CI) − 1.70, − 0.63) between those participants with comorbid depression compared to non-depressed participants. There was significant heterogeneity between studies (I2 = 97.6%, p < 0.001). The median ES (IQR) was − 1.20 (− 1.40, (− 0.64)). An intermediate standard effect size for anxiety on quality of life was also observed (pooled ES = −0.64, 95% CI − 1.14, − 0.13). There was only one study reporting on functioning in relation to comorbid mental health conditions.

Conclusion
Comorbid depression in people with epilepsy in LMICs is associated with poor quality of life although this evidence is based on highly heterogeneous studies. These findings support calls to integrate mental health care into services for people with epilepsy in LMICs. Future studies should use prospective designs in which the change in quality of life in relation to mental health or public health interventions across time can be measured.
Cross-cultural translation, adaptation, and validation of the stroke-specific quality of life (SSQOL) scale 2.0 into Amharic language
Authors: Wayessa Dechasa Imiru , Chala Mulugeta Bayisa , Demissie Solomon Fasika , Abebe Abey Bekele , Janakiraman Balamurugan , Deme Sisay , Gashaw Moges 
Published: January 2023

Abstract
Background
The stroke-specific quality of life 2.0 (SSQOL 2.0) scale is a valid, reliable instrument which has been widely used as a patients reported outcome measure among stroke survivors. However, the SSQOL scale has not been validated and used in any Ethiopian language. This study aimed to translate, culturally adapt, and test the psychometric properties of the SSQOL scale 2.0 in Amharic, which is the official and working language with about 34 million (23%) speakers in Ethiopia.

Methods
The adapted English version of the SSQOL 2.0 scale was translated into Amharic and then back-translated to English. An expert committee translated and created a final Amharic version of SSQOL (SSQOL-AM) scale. Pre-field testing (pilot and cognitive debriefing) was conducted with 15 post-stroke subjects. The SSQOL-Am was administered to 245 stroke survivors from four referral hospitals to determine the psychometric properties. Cronbach’s alpha and Intra-class correlation coefficient were used to calculate the internal consistency and test–retest reliability, spearman’s correlation for the convergent validity of the SSQOL-Am scale. The Standard Error of Measurement (SEM), Minimum Detectable Change (MDC), Bland Altman Limit of Agreement (LOA), Confirmatory Factor Analysis, and Exploratory Factor Analysis were also determined.

Results
The SSQOL-Am demonstrated excellent test–retest reliability (ICC = 0.93), internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.96), SEM 0.857, MDC 1.94, and good LOA. As postulated, the mobility domain of the tool demonstrated a significantly strong correlation with the physical function domain of the SF-36 (rho = 0.70, p < 0.001).

Conclusions
The SSQOL-Am is a valid and reliable outcome measure. The tool can be used in both clinical practice and research purposes with Amharic speaking post-stroke survivors.
Complexities of health and care worker migration pathways and corresponding international reporting requirements
Authors: Bourgeault Ivy L. , Spitzer Denise L. , Walton-Roberts Margaret 
Published: January 2023

AbstractThe increasing complexity of the migration pathways of health and care workers is a critical consideration in the reporting requirements of international agreements designed to address their impacts. There are inherent challenges across these different agreements including reporting functions that are misaligned across different data collection tools, variable capacity of country respondents, and a lack of transparency or accountability in the reporting process. Moreover, reporting processes often neglect to recognize the broader intersectional gendered and racialized political economy of health and care worker migration. We argue for a more coordinated approach to the various international reporting requirements and processes that involve building capacity within countries to report on their domestic situation in response to these codes and conventions, and internationally to make such reporting result in more than simply the sum of their responses, but to reflect cross-national and transnational interactions and relationships. These strategies would better enable policy interventions along migration pathways that would more accurately recognize the growing complexity of health worker migration leading to more effective responses to mitigate its negative effects for migrants, source, destination, and transit countries. While recognizing the multiple layers of complexity, we nevertheless reaffirm the fact that countries still have an ethical responsibility to undertake health workforce planning in their countries that does not overly rely on the recruitment of migrant health and care workers.
Bayesian modelling of phosphorus content in wheat grain using hyperspectral reflectance data
Authors: Pacheco-Gil Rosa Angela , Velasco-Cruz Ciro , Pérez-Rodríguez Paulino , Burgueño Juan , Pérez-Elizalde Sergio , Rodrigues Francelino , Ortiz-Monasterio Ivan , del Valle-Paniagua David Hebert , Toledo Fernando 
Published: January 2023

AbstractBackgroundAs a result of the technological progress, the use of sensors for crop survey has substantially increased, generating valuable information for modelling agricultural data. Plant spectroscopy jointly with statistical modeling can potentially help to assess certain chemical components of interest present in plants, which may be laborious and expensive to obtain by direct measurements. In this research, the phosphorus content in wheat grain is modeled using reflectance information measured by a hyperspectral sensor at different wavelengths. A Bayesian procedure for selecting variables was used to identify the set of the most important spectral bands. Additionally, three different models were evaluated: the first model assumes that the observations are independent, the other two models assume that the observations are spatially correlated: one of the proposed models, assumes spatial dependence using a Conditionally Autoregressive Model (CAR), and the other through an exponential correlogram. The goodness of fit of the models was evaluated by means of the Deviance Information Criterion, and the predictive power is evaluated using cross validation.ResultsWe have found that CAR was the model that best fits and predicts the data. Additionally, the selection variable procedure in the CAR model reveals which wavelengths in the range of 500–690 nm are the most important. Comparing the vegetative indices with the CAR model, it was observed that the average correlation of the CAR model exceeded that of the vegetative indices by 23.26%, − 1.2% and 22.78% for the year 2010, 2011 and 2012 respectively; therefore, the use of the proposed methodology outperformed the vegetative indices in prediction.ConclusionsThe proposal to predict the phosphorus content in wheat grain using Bayesian approach, reflect with the results as a good alternative.
Quality evaluation of guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of radiation enteritis
Authors: Yang Xiao-Feng , Zheng Meng-Yao , An Li-Ya , Sun Jin-Min , Hei Qian-Wen , Ji Yan-Hong , Sun Da-Li , He Hai-Yu 
Published: January 2023

Abstract
Objective
To systematically evaluate the guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of radioactive enteritis, compare their differences and reasons and provide some reference for updating them.

Methods
This study used guidelines related to radiation enteritis by searching a database. Four independent reviewers used the AGREE II evaluation tool to evaluate the quality of the included guidelines, collate their main recommendations, and analyze the highest evidence supporting the main recommendations.

Results
Six diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines for radiation enteritis were included in this study, one of which, the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy guidelines, had an overall score of over 60%, which is worthy of clinical recommendation. In the diagnosis and treatment of radioactive rectal injury, the recommendations for hemorrhagic endoscopic treatment are mature and mainly include (I) argon plasma coagulation; (II) formalin treatment; (III) bipolar electrocoagulation; (IV) heater probe; (V) radiofrequency ablation; and (VI) cryoablation.

Conclusion
The methodological quality of radioactive enteritis guidelines is unequal; even in the same guidelines, different domains have a large difference. For radioactive rectal damage diagnosis, a type of endoscopic treatment recommendation is more mature, but the overall diagnosis and treatment of radioactive enteritis still lacks high-quality research evidence.
Implementation challenges and lessons learned from the STREAM clinical trial—a survey of trial sites
Authors: Patel Leena N. , Gurumurthy Meera , Bronson Gay , Sanders Karen , Rusen I. D. 
Published: January 2023

Abstract
Background
Design and implementation of multi-country clinical trials for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) are complex for several reasons, including trial duration, varying levels of experience and infrastructure across settings, and different regulatory requirements. STREAM was an MDR-TB clinical trial that recruited over 1000 participants. We documented challenges and best practices/lessons learned from the site perspective to improve implementation of future trials.

Methods
We conducted a voluntary survey of trial staff at all sites to obtain information on challenges encountered and best practices/lessons learned from implementation of the STREAM trial. Respondents were asked to identify substantive aspects of trial implementation from a list that included: trial administration, laboratory strengthening/infrastructure, pharmacy and supply chain management, community engagement, regulatory and ethics requirements, health economics, and other (respondent designated) about which a practical guide would be useful to improve future trial implementation. For each aspect of trial implementation selected, respondents were asked to report challenges and best practices/lessons learned during STREAM. Lastly, respondents were asked to list up to three things they would do differently when implementing future trials. Summary statistics were generated for quantitative data and thematic analysis was undertaken for qualitative data.

Results
Of 67 responses received from 13 of 15 sites, 47 (70%) were included in the analyses, after excluding duplicate or incomplete responses. Approximately half the respondents were investigators or trial coordinators. The top three aspects of trial implementation identified for a best practices/lessons learned practical guide to improve future trial implementation were: trial administration, community engagement, and laboratory strengthening/infrastructure. For both challenges and best practices/lessons learned, three common themes were identified across different aspects of trial implementation. Investment in capacity building and ongoing monitoring; investment in infrastructure and well-designed trial processes; and communication and coordination between staff and meaningful engagement of stakeholders were all thought to be critical to successful trial implementation.

Conclusions
Existing practices for clinical trial implementation should be reevaluated. Sponsors should consider the local context and the need to increase upfront investment in the cross-cutting thematic areas identified to improve trial implementation.
Toxoplasma gondii infection in sheep from Romania
Authors: Paștiu Anamaria Ioana , Mircean Viorica , Mercier Aurélien , Passebosc-Faure Karine , Plault Nicolas , Dardé Marie-Laure , Blaga Radu , Villena Isabelle , Pusta Dana Liana , Cozma-Petruț Anamaria , Györke Adriana 
Published: January 2023

Abstract
Background
Toxoplasmosis is a widespread zoonosis caused by the intracellular protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii. Limited epidemiological information is available about the prevalence of T. gondii in sheep in Romania, and a high incidence would have implications for both the economy and public health. To our knowledge, no studies are available about the T. gondii strains circulating in lambs. The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of T. gondii in sheep (serology), lambs (serology, bioassay, PCR) and sheep abortions (PCR) in Romania. Moreover, the study aimed to perform the genetic characterization of T. gondii isolates from lambs.

Methods
Serum samples collected from 2650 sheep (2067 adults and 583 lambs) were tested for anti-T. gondii antibodies (IgG) using a commercial ELISA kit. Likewise, 328 pairs of diaphragmatic muscle-serum samples were collected from lambs aged between 2 and 4 months. Lamb serum samples were analyzed using MAT for anti-T. gondii antibody detection. The diaphragm tissue samples from MAT-positive lambs (at a dilution ≥ 1:25) were bioassayed in mice. The T. gondii strains were genotyped using 15 microsatellites markers. Additionally, brain and heart samples from 76 sheep abortions were analyzed for T. gondii DNA by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting the 529-bp repeat region (REP529).

Results
The results showed that more than half of the tested sheep were T. gondii seropositive (53.5%). The seroprevalence was significantly higher in adults (61.1%) than in lambs (26.4%). The seroprevalence of T. gondii infection in slaughtered lambs, by MAT, was 37.5% (123/328). There were bioassayed in mice 56 diaphragmatic tissues from 123 seropositive lambs. Toxoplasma gondii strains were isolated from 18 (32.1%) lambs intended for human consumption. All T. gondii strains were confirmed by PCR. Six strains were genotyped using 15 microsatellite markers and belonged to genotype II. Toxoplasma gondii DNA was detected in 11.8% (9/76) of sheep abortions.

Conclusions
The present study showed the presence of T. gondii in sheep in all the regions considered in the study. The high prevalence of T. gondii infection in sheep and lambs, demonstrated by serology, molecular analysis and bioassay, highlighted that there is an important risk of human infection in consuming raw or undercooked sheep/lamb meat.

Graphical Abstract
The global prevalence of parasites in non-biting flies as vectors: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Liu Yufeng , Chen Yuancai , Wang Nanhao , Qin Huikai , Zhang Longxian , Zhang Sumei 
Published: January 2023

Abstract
Background
Non-biting flies such as the house fly (Musca domestica), the Australian sheep blowfly (Lucilia cuprina) and the oriental latrine fly (Chrysomya megacephala) may carry many parasites. In the present study, we performed a systematic overview of the different species of parasites carried by non-biting flies, as well as of isolation methods, different geographical distribution, seasonality and risk assessment.

Methods
A meta-analysis was carried out with the aim to review the global prevalence of parasite transmission in non-biting flies. A total sample size of 28,718 non-biting flies reported in studies worldwide satisfied the predetermined selection criteria and was included in the quantitative analysis.

Results
The global prevalence of parasites in non-biting flies was 42.5% (95% confidence interval [CI] 31.9–53.2%; n = 15,888/28,718), with the highest prevalence found for non-biting flies in Africa (58.3%; 95% CI 47.4–69.3%; n = 9144/13,366). A total of 43% (95% CI 32.1–54.4%; n = 7234/15,282) of house flies (M. domestica), the fly species considered to be the most closely associated with humans and animals, were found with parasites. The prevalence of parasites in the intestine of non-biting flies was 37.1% (95% CI 22.7–51.5%; n = 1045/3817), which was significantly higher than the prevalence of parasites isolated from the body surface (35.1%; 95% CI 20.8–49.4%; n = 1199/3649; P < 0.01). Of the 27 reported parasites, a total of 20 known zoonotic parasites were identified, with an infection rate of 38.1% (95% CI 28.2–48.0%; n = 13,572/28,494).

Conclusions
This study provides a theoretical basis for the public health and ecological significance of parasites transmitted by non-biting flies.

Graphical Abstract
Azithromycin attenuates wheezing after pulmonary inflammation through inhibiting histone H3K27me3 hypermethylation mediated by EZH2
Authors: Wu Shuqi , Tian Xiaochun , Mao Qian , Peng Chang 
Published: January 2023

Abstract
Background
Histone methylation modification plays an irreplaceable role in the wheezing diseases. The aim of this study was to explore whether azithromycin (AZM) attenuates post-inflammatory wheezing through inhibiting hypermethylation of histone H3K27me3 mediated by EZH2.

Results
A randomized controlled trial was conducted on 227 children who underwent fiber-optic bronchoscopy, and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was collected for analyses. The expressions of IL-6, IL-2, NF-κB P65, EZH2 and H3K27me3 in the BALF of wheezing cases were significantly increased when compared with levels in non-wheezing cases (P < 0.05), while IL-10 was decreased (P < 0.05). AZM attenuated the overexpression of NF-κB P65, EZH2 and H3K27me3 in wheezing cases (P < 0.05) and shortened the time of wheezing in wheezing cases (P < 0.05). An in vitro model of inflammation was established using rat alveolar macrophages induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). AZM, SN50 (a NK-κB inhibitor) and GSK126 (an EZH2 inhibitor) attenuated the overexpression of EZH2, NF-κB P65 and H3K27me3 induced by LPS in rat alveolar macrophages (P < 0.05). AZM, SN50 and GSK126 normalized the decreased expression of IL-10 induced by LPS in the same samples (P < 0.05). Co-immunoprecipitation results showed that H3K27me3 interacted with EZH2 and NF-κB P65, and immunofluorescence data showed that AZM and SN50 inhibited LPS-induced NF-κB P65 nuclear translocation in rat alveolar macrophages.

Conclusion
Histone H3K27me3 hypermethylation mediated by EZH2 may be involved in wheezing after pulmonary inflammation. AZM attenuated wheezing after pulmonary inflammation by inhibiting NF-κB P65-related hypermethylation of H3K27me3 mediated by EZH2.
Convergent transcriptomic and genomic evidence supporting a dysregulation of CXCL16 and CCL5 in Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: Li Xiao , Zhang Deng-Feng , Bi Rui , Tan Li-Wen , Chen Xiaogang , Xu Min , Yao Yong-Gang 
Published: January 2023

Abstract

Background
Neuroinflammatory factors, especially chemokines, have been widely reported to be involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). It is unclear how chemokines are altered in AD, and whether dysregulation of chemokines is the cause, or the consequence, of the disease.

Methods
We initially screened the transcriptomic profiles of chemokines from publicly available datasets of brain tissues of AD patients and mouse models. Expression alteration of chemokines in the blood from AD patients was also measured to explore whether any chemokine might be used as a potential biomarker for AD. We further analyzed the association between the coding variants of chemokine genes and genetic susceptibility of AD by targeted sequencing of a Han Chinese case–control cohort. Mendelian randomization (MR) was performed to infer the causal association of chemokine dysregulation with AD development.

Results
Three chemokine genes (CCL5, CXCL1, and CXCL16) were consistently upregulated in brain tissues from AD patients and the mouse models and were positively correlated with Aβ and tau pathology in AD mice. Peripheral blood mRNA expression of CXCL16 was upregulated in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD patients, indicating the potential of CXCL16 as a biomarker for AD development. None of the coding variants within any chemokine gene conferred a genetic risk to AD. MR analysis confirmed a causal role of CCL5 dysregulation in AD mediated by trans-regulatory variants.

Conclusions
In summary, we have provided transcriptomic and genomic evidence supporting an active role of dysregulated CXCL16 and CCL5 during AD development.