bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Impact of mechanical shrub removal on encroached mountain rangelands in Lesotho, southern Africa
Authors: Lerotholi Nkuebe , Seleteng‐Kose Lerato , Odenya William , Chatanga Peter , Mapeshoane Botle , Marake Makoala V. 
Published: August 2023

AbstractAlthough rangelands are among the most socio‐economically valuable ecosystems, their degradation remains a world‐wide problem, especially in sub‐Saharan Africa. Lesotho montane rangelands are no exception and are characterised by shrub encroachment and deterioration. As a result, the Lesotho Government has invested heavily on a programme of uprooting the shrubs across the country. Although the programme has been implemented for more than a decade, no scientific studies have assessed the ecological benefits of this approach. Therefore, the current study evaluated the impact of mechanical shrub removal on plant diversity and composition in Lesotho. Stratified random sampling was employed using the Metric Belt Transect‐Quadrat Method to assess the effect of uprooting shrubs on encroached rangeland by comparing herbaceous species diversity and standing biomass across areas that had previously been subjected to shrub removal in three sequential years and rested from grazing. The results reveal that even though mechanical shrub removal enhances herbaceous species diversity and standing biomass, the improvement declines with time post shrub removal. Therefore, the process has a short‐lived benefit and needs to be repeated at least every 2 years to maximise its impact. It is evident that the manual removal of shrubs improves rangeland condition by enhancing growth of herbaceous plants, including forbs and grasses. Therefore, this technique has a potential to be used as a rangeland management tool.
The interaction of placental micro‐EVs with immune cells in vivo and in vitro
Authors: Paek Song , Brooks Anna , Graham Scott E , Chamley Lawrence Willam 
Published: August 2023

AbstractProblemConsiderable evidence suggests that placental extracellular vesicles (EVs) interact with most types of leukocytes in vitro but in vivo biodistribution studies question whether these interactions are reflective of the situation in vivo.Method of StudyCellTracker Red CMTPX stained human placental micro‐EVs were isolated from first trimester placental explant cultures. Equivalent amounts of micro‐EVs were cultured with murine leukocytes in vitro or injected into pregnant or non‐pregnant mice. After intravenous injection, on day 12.5 of gestation, major organs and blood samples were harvested 30 min or 24 h post injection.ResultsWe screened cryosections of the organs and confirmed that human placental EVs were specifically localised to the spleen, liver and the lungs 30 min or 24 h after injection. Immunohistochemistry showed that most of the EVs interacted with macrophages in those three organs and some of them also associated with T and B lymphocytes in the spleen or endothelial cells in the lungs and liver. Flow cytometry demonstrated that there was very little interaction between circulating leukocytes and EVs in vivo. While minimal, significantly more EVs interacted with leukocytes in pregnant than nonpregnant mice.ConclusionThe major interaction between human placental micro‐EVs and maternal leukocytes appear to be with macrophages predominantly in the splenic marginal zone, liver and lungs with little interaction between EVs and circulating leukocytes. Since marginal zone macrophages induce tolerance after phagocytosing apoptotic bodies it is likely that phagocytosis of placental EVs by marginal zone macrophages may also contribute to maternal immune tolerance.
Milking Welfare: Bovis Sacer and the Inclusive Thanatopolitics of the Dairy Farm
Authors: Klasky Evan , Butt Bilal 
Published: August 2023

AbstractAgricultural technologies in dairy farming facilitate increased animal productivity while simultaneously supporting appeals to animal welfare. Dairy producers operationalise these technologies to shape cows’ subjectivities to be compatible with industrial production and consumer preferences. Through this subject formation, cows are incorporated into human society as political subjects, a shift that signifies a reorientation of bovine discipline and exploitation on the farm. This emergent political subjectivity is conceptualised here in the archetype of the “bovis sacer”, an inversion of the “homo sacer” concept that describes an unkillable but sacrificial subject. We examine, primarily in Europe and North America, how welfare certification, labelling schemes, and agricultural technology in the dairy industry facilitate material and discursive changes in producer and consumer relations before exploring how these industrial transformations bring about this shift in bovine subjectivity.
Age and postoperative opioid use in women undergoing pelvic organ prolapse surgery
Authors: Cummings Shannon , Scime Natalie V. , Brennand Erin A. 
Published: August 2023

AbstractIntroductionOur objective was to explore the relation between patient age and postoperative opioid use up to 24 hours following pelvic organ prolapse (POP) surgery.Material and methodsWe conducted a prospective cohort study following 335 women ranging in age from 26 to 82 years who underwent surgery for multi‐compartment POP at a tertiary center in Alberta, Canada. Patient characteristics were measured using baseline questionnaires. Perioperative data were collected from medical chart review during and up to 24 hours following surgery. We used logistic regression to analyze the odds of being opioid‐free and linear regression to analyze mean differences in opioid dose, measured as total morphine equivalent daily dose, exploring for a potential non‐linear effect of age. Adjusted models controlled for preoperative pain, surgical characteristics and patient health factors.ResultsOverall, age was positively associated with greater odds of being opioid‐free in the first 24 hours after surgery (adjusted odds ratio per increasing year of age = 1.07, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.04–1.09, n = 332 women). Among opioid users, age was inversely associated with total opioid dose (adjusted mean difference per increasing year of age = 0.71 mg morphine equivalent daily dose, 95% CI −0.99 to −0.44, n = 204 women). There was no evidence of a non‐linear relation between age and postoperative opioid use or dose.ConclusionsIn the context of POP surgery, we found that younger women were more likely to use opioids after surgery and to use a higher dose in the first 24 hours when compared with older women. These findings support physicians to consider age when counseling POP patients regarding pain management after surgery, and to direct resources aimed at opioid‐free pain control towards younger patients.
How to Analyze Continuous and Discrete Repeated Measures in Small-Sample Cross-Over Trials?
Authors: Verbeeck Johan , Geroldinger Martin , Thiel Konstantin , Hooker Andrew Craig , Ueckert Sebastian , Karlsson Mats , Bathke Arne Cornelius , Bauer Johann Wolfgang , Molenberghs Geert , Zimmermann Georg 
Published: August 2023

AbstractTo optimize the use of data from a small number of subjects in rare disease trials, an at first sight advantageous design is the repeated measures cross-over design. However, it is unclear how these within-treatment period and within-subject clustered data are best analyzed in small-sample trials. In a real-data simulation study based upon a recent epidermolysis bullosa simplex trial using this design, we compare non-parametric marginal models, generalized pairwise comparison models, GEE-type models and parametric model averaging for both repeated binary and count data. The recommendation of which methodology to use in rare disease trials with a repeated measures cross-over design depends on the type of outcome and the number of time points the treatment has an effect on. The non-parametric marginal model testing the treatment–time-interaction effect is suitable for detecting between group differences in the shapes of the longitudinal profiles. For binary outcomes with the treatment effect on a single time point, the parametric model averaging method is recommended, while in the other cases the unmatched generalized pairwise comparison methodology is recommended. Both provide an easily interpretable effect size measure, and do not require exclusion of periods or subjects due to incompleteness.
A British Society for Haematology Guideline: Diagnosis and management of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura and thrombotic microangiopathies
Authors: Scully M. , Rayment R. , Clark A. , Westwood J. P. , Cranfield T. , Gooding R. , Bagot C. N. , Taylor A. , Sankar V. , Gale D. , Dutt T. , McIntyre J. , Lester W. ,   the BSH Committee
Published: August 2023

SummaryThe objective of this guideline is to provide healthcare professionals with clear, up‐to‐date and practical guidance on the management of thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) and related thrombotic microangiopathies (TMAs), including complement‐mediated haemolytic uraemic syndrome (CM HUS); these are defined by thrombocytopenia, microangiopathic haemolytic anaemia (MAHA) and small vessel thrombosis. Within England, all TTP cases should be managed within designated regional centres as per NHSE commissioning for highly specialised services.
Object labeling and disambiguation in 4‐month‐old infants
Authors: Saksida Amanda , Langus Alan 
Published: August 2023

AbstractThe account that word learning starts in earnest during the second year of life, when infants have mastered the disambiguation skills, has recently been challenged by evidence that infants during the first year already know many common words. The preliminary ability to rapidly map and disambiguate linguistic labels was tested in Italian‐speaking infants (N = 96, 47 boys; age = 4 and 6 months, eye tracking). Infants can rapidly map linguistic labels to objects and movements, and disambiguate the intended referents to novel words, but they fail with sinewave analogs. In hearing infants, mapping and disambiguation emerge early in development, and are flexible as to which visual referents infants are willing to map to linguistic labels, but may be constrained to linguistic sounds.
Mālama i ke kai: Exploring psychosocial factors associated with personal and community coral reef conservation behavior on Maui, Hawai‘i
Authors: Santana Francisca N. , Yurkanin Alana , Stark Tiara E. , Lindsey Ekolu , Ardoin Nicole M. , Wong‐Parodi Gabrielle 
Published: August 2023

AbstractLocal and community conservation efforts can increase coral reefs' capacity to adapt to climate change. In this community‐engaged study, we examine affective dimensions and other psychosocial factors associated with coastal user conservation intentions and behaviors on Maui, Hawai‘i. In October and November 2019, we surveyed coastal users (n = 299). We found natural place attachment, sense of responsibility, and concern for coral reef ecosystems were positively associated with personal conservation intentions; civic place attachment was positively associated with community conservation intentions; and natural place attachment was positively associated with signing the Pono Pledge, a voluntary conservation commitment. We found personal and community response efficacy were positively associated with corresponding levels of conservation intentions. Our results provide insights into psychosocial factors that may underpin coral reef conservation behavior and inform partner communications and outreach.
Laminar evoked responses in mouse somatosensory cortex suggest a special role for deep layers in cortical complexity
Authors: Hönigsperger Christoph , Storm Johan F. , Arena Alessandro 
Published: August 2023

AbstractIt has been suggested that consciousness is closely related to the complexity of the brain. The perturbational complexity index (PCI) has been used in humans and rodents to distinguish conscious from unconscious states based on the global cortical responses (recorded by electroencephalography, EEG) to local cortical stimulation (CS). However, it is unclear how different cortical layers respond to CS and contribute to the resulting intra‐ and inter‐areal cortical connectivity and PCI. A detailed investigation of the local dynamics is needed to understand the basis for PCI. We hypothesized that the complexity level of global cortical responses (PCI) correlates with layer‐specific activity and connectivity. We tested this idea by measuring global cortical dynamics and layer‐specific activity in the somatosensory cortex (S1) of mice, combining cortical electrical stimulation in deep motor cortex, global electrocorticography (ECoG) and local laminar recordings from layers 1–6 in S1, during wakefulness and general anaesthesia (sevoflurane). We found that the transition from wake to sevoflurane anaesthesia correlated with a drop in both the global and local PCI (PCIst) values (complexity). This was accompanied by a local decrease in neural firing rate, spike‐field coherence and long‐range functional connectivity specific to deep layers (L5, L6). Our results suggest that deep cortical layers are mechanistically important for changes in PCI and thereby for changes in the state of consciousness.
Five fundamental ways in which complex food webs may spiral out of control
Authors: Lever J. Jelle , Van Nes Egbert H. , Scheffer Marten , Bascompte Jordi 
Published: August 2023

AbstractTheory suggests that increasingly long, negative feedback loops of many interacting species may destabilize food webs as complexity increases. Less attention has, however, been paid to the specific ways in which these ‘delayed negative feedbacks’ may affect the response of complex ecosystems to global environmental change. Here, we describe five fundamental ways in which these feedbacks might pave the way for abrupt, large‐scale transitions and species losses. By combining topological and bioenergetic models, we then proceed by showing that the likelihood of such transitions increases with the number of interacting species and/or when the combined effects of stabilizing network patterns approach the minimum required for stable coexistence. Our findings thus shift the question from the classical question of what makes complex, unaltered ecosystems stable to whether the effects of, known and unknown, stabilizing food‐web patterns are sufficient to prevent abrupt, large‐scale transitions under global environmental change.
Functional traits explain waterbirds' host status, subtype richness, and community‐level infection risk for avian influenza
Authors: Yin Shenglai , Li Ning , Xu Wenjie , Becker Daniel J. , de Boer Willem F. , Xu Chi , Mundkur Taej , Fountain‐Jones Nicholas M. , Li Chunlin , Han Guan‐zhu , Wu Qiang , Prosser Diann J. , Cui Lijuan , Huang Zheng Y. X. 
Published: August 2023

AbstractSpecies functional traits can influence pathogen transmission processes, and consequently affect species' host status, pathogen diversity, and community‐level infection risk. We here investigated, for 143 European waterbird species, effects of functional traits on host status and pathogen diversity (subtype richness) for avian influenza virus at species level. We then explored the association between functional diversity and HPAI H5Nx occurrence at the community level for 2016/17 and 2021/22 epidemics in Europe. We found that both host status and subtype richness were shaped by several traits, such as diet guild and dispersal ability, and that the community‐weighted means of these traits were also correlated with community‐level risk of H5Nx occurrence. Moreover, functional divergence was negatively associated with H5Nx occurrence, indicating that functional diversity can reduce infection risk. Our findings highlight the value of integrating trait‐based ecology into the framework of diversity–disease relationship, and provide new insights for HPAI prediction and prevention.
Survival of formalin intoxication in a 13‐year‐old Thoroughbred gelding
Authors: Lovett Amy , Vokes Jessica , Loghides Natasha , Johnstone Laura , Sykes Benjamin 
Published: August 2023

AbstractBackgroundFormalin intoxication via the gastrointestinal route has not been previously reported in the horse. Whereas ingestion of formalin in humans, although rare, is well documented. Majority of human cases are either accidental, suicidal or homicidal and often lead to fatality, with a reported lethal formaldehyde dose equating to 0.12 – 0.16 g/kg bwt.ObjectivesTo describe a single case report of the clinical management of an adult horse referred to a veterinary teaching hospital following accidental administration of 10% formalin via nasogastric tube.MethodsA 13‐year‐old Thoroughbred gelding originally presented to the referring veterinarian for colic where 1.8 L of 10% formalin was accidentally administered instead of mineral oil via nasogastric intubation, a potentially lethal dose of formaldehyde (0.12 g/kg bwt). Approximately 20‐hours following 10% formalin administration the horse was admitted to the referral hospital with moderate tachycardia, occasional ectopic beats, tacky and hyperaemic mucous membranes, delayed capillary refill time, reduced borborygmi, and pronounced digital pulses. Diagnostic investigations included laboratory blood analysis, urinalysis, electrocardiogram, abdominal ultrasound, palpation per rectum and gastroscopy.ResultsPatient assessment found evidence of toxicity to the gastrointestinal tract, hypovolaemia and risk for laminitis. Intensive care included fluid and electrolyte therapy, anti‐inflammatories and analgesia, continuous digital cryotherapy, gastro‐protectants and other methods of gastrointestinal support. The horse was discharged from hospital on day 14 with no long‐term complications and the client‐veterinarian relationship was preserved.DiscussionIn human cases of ingestion, gastrointestinal injury is typically accompanied by severe metabolic acidosis and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome due to toxicity of other body systems that can contribute to non‐survival. Formaldehyde toxicity in the present case predominantly affected the gastrointestinal tract, most likely a direct result of the route of administration. Aside from gastrointestinal injury, primary toxicity of other body systems was not confirmed. To prevent this medical error recurring, the referring veterinary clinic revised their labelling and storage of 10% formalin.ConclusionThis is the first report of systemic formalin intoxication in the horse. Following a high dose of 10% formalin (0.12 g/kg bwt formaldehyde) enterally, the horse survived having received intensive supportive care based on human guidelines for ingested formalin.
Antibiotic usage in 14 equine practices over a 10‐year period (2012–2021)
Authors: Tallon Rose E. , Whitt Brian , Bladon Bruce M. 
Published: August 2023

AbstractBackgroundMonitoring antibiotic usage is an important part of tackling antimicrobial resistance. The use of computerised records for monitoring has been previously described in the equine sector but there is currently no consensus on metrics used to report usage.ObjectivesTo document antibiotic use in equine practices in the United Kingdom over a 10‐year period using commercially available practice management software.Study designRetrospective survey.MethodsA custom antibiotic usage report was created using Eclipse® practice management software. Participating practices were given instructions on how to generate the usage report. Annual reports were requested for a 10‐year period (2012–2021 inclusive). Each report provided sales of each class of antibiotic in total mg and in mg/kg, based on the number of equids treated (for any transaction) and their average weight. The defined daily dose for animals (DDDvet) and the DDD/1000 (used in people) were also calculated to correct for variation in dosage rates between antibiotics.ResultsFourteen practices submitted data for an annual maximum of 107 977 horses. Overall, median annual antibiotic usage was 54.25 mg/kg (range 45.34–60.27 mg/kg), 1.52 defined daily doses/animal/year (range 1.39–1.70) and 4.17 defined daily dose/1000 animals (range 3.82–4.66). Overall median highest priority critically important antimicrobial usage was 0.67 mg/kg (range 0.56–1.71), 0.12 defined daily doses/animal/year (range 0.10–0.14) and 0.33 defined daily dose/1000 animals (range 0.29–0.39).Main limitationsThe software relied on the accurate identification of antibiotic preparations. The calculation of DDDvet was complicated by the varying dose rates of antimicrobials used in equine practice.ConclusionsA reliable technique to measure antibiotic usage is presented. Defined daily dosage calculations may be more helpful in equine practice due to the preponderance of potentiated sulphonamides usage. These data and methods may provide the basis for future clinical audits aiming to enhance antimicrobial stewardship.
Preliminary evidence that Merkel cells exert chemosensory functions in human epidermis
Authors: Piccini Ilaria , Chéret Jeremy , Tsutsumi Moe , Sakaguchi Saito , Ponce Leslie , Almeida Luis , Funk Wolfgang , Kückelhaus Maximilian , Kajiya Kentaro , Paus Ralf , Bertolini Marta 
Published: August 2023

AbstractThe mechanotransduction of light‐touch sensory stimuli is considered to be the main physiological function of epidermal Merkel cells (MCs). Recently, however, MCs have been demonstrated to be also thermo‐sensitive, suggesting that their role in skin physiologically extends well beyond mechanosensation. Here, we demonstrate that in healthy human skin epidermal MCs express functional olfactory receptors, namely OR2AT4, just like neighbouring keratinocytes. Selective stimulation of OR2AT4 by topical application of the synthetic odorant, Sandalore®, significantly increased Piccolo protein expression in MCs, as assessed by quantitative immunohistomorphometry, indicating increased vesicle trafficking and recycling, and significantly reduced nerve growth factor (NGF) immunoreactivity within MCs, possibly indicating increased neurotrophin release upon OR2AT4 activation. Live‐cell imaging showed that Sandalore® rapidly induces a loss of FFN206‐dependent fluorescence in MCs, suggesting OR2AT4‐dependent MC depolarization and subsequent vesicle secretion. Yet, in contrast to keratinocytes, OR2AT4 stimulation by Sandalore® altered neither the number nor the proliferation status of MCs. These preliminary ex vivo findings demonstrate that epidermal MCs also exert OR‐dependent chemosensory functions in human skin, and invite one to explore whether these newly identified properties are dysregulated in selected skin disorders, for example, in pruritic dermatoses, and if these novel MC functions can be therapeutically targeted to maintain/promote skin health.