bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Paul’s Jewish Addressee in Romans 2–4: Revisiting Recent Conversations
Authors: Sloan Paul T 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
Several scholars (many of whom belong to the approach commonly labelled ‘Paul within Judaism’) have argued that in Romans 2:17 Paul does not address a Jew but a Gentile who believes he can ‘call’ himself ‘a Jew’ because he has been circumcised and adopted customs from the Mosaic Law. These scholars claim that identifying the addressee as a Gentile dramatically affects the interpretation of Romans by shifting a purported Pauline critique of ‘legalism,’ Jewish ‘ethnocentrism’, or ‘Judaism’ to the more accurate critique of gentile transgression and Judaizing. These scholars have rightly noted that the identification of the addressee as a Jew in 2:17 has often been assumed rather than argued. This article responds to common arguments made for a Gentile addressee, provides a positive case that the figure is Jewish, and argues that a Jewish addressee can be accommodated within an interpretation of Rom. 2–4 that does not interpret Paul’s indictment in terms of ‘legalism,’ Jewish ‘ethnocentrism’, or ‘Judaism’, but as an address to a Jewish kinsman of the sinful generation of ‘the last days’ that precedes the national restoration.
Superman as the Measure of All Things: Black Gods and White Saviours in Watchmen and Doomsday Clock
Authors: Cohen J Laurence 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
While the groundbreaking graphic novel Watchmen (1986) responded to Cold War paranoia with a nihilistic critique of a benevolent God, recent spinoffs have taken radically different approaches to race and Christology in the Trump Era. Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ original Watchmen has spawned two unlikely and unauthorised—by Moore, at least—quasi-sequels in different media: HBO’s limited TV series Watchmen (2019), created by Damon Lindelof, and Geoff Johns and Gary Frank’s graphic novel Doomsday Clock (2020). Like estranged siblings, HBO’s Watchmen and Doomsday Clock take the same source material in opposite directions. HBO’s Watchmen explores themes of racial justice by foregrounding 1921’s Tulsa Massacre and vesting Black characters with divine power. In contrast, Doomsday Clock departs from the original Watchmen’s cynicism about cultural and political change, embodying its message of hope and renewal in a white saviour. This article contributes to the growing body of literature examining how pop culture circulates Christological concepts by exploring the racial and theological significance of two of DC Comics’ most iconic characters—Superman and Dr Manhattan. I examine how Black theologians conceptualise Christology, discuss the deistic portrayal of Dr Manhattan in the original Watchmen, analyse the character’s incarnational iteration in the television series, and contrast this with how moral influence Christology underpins the relationship between Superman and Dr Manhattan in Doomsday Clock to show that superhero comics in particular, and pop culture more broadly, are crucial sites of Christological imagination and negotiation over race.
Hume’s Separability Principle, his Dictum, and their Implications
Authors: Clay Graham 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
Hsueh M. Qu has recently argued that Hume’s famed ‘Separability Principle’ from the Treatise entangles him in a contradiction. Qu offers a modified principle as a solution but also argues that the mature Hume would not have needed to avail himself of it, given that Hume’s arguments in the first Enquiry do not depend on this principle in any form. To the contrary, I show that arguments in the first Enquiry depend on this principle, but I agree with Qu that Qu’s solution to Hume’s quandary frees him of the contradiction. Next, I compare Qu’s solution to Hume’s original position. By analysing the divergent forms of 'Hume’s Dictum’ that follow from them, I show that Qu’s solution and Hume’s original position have significantly different consequences in a range of domains, including Hume’s modality. Generally, Qu’s solution fits better with Hume’s other commitments—even though Hume often fails to recognize it—thereby increasing its plausibility.
A Critical Analysis of Japan’s Decision to Accept Ukrainians Following the Russian Invasion in 2022
Authors: Yamagata Atsushi 
Published: September 2023

Abstract
Shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced that Japan would accept Ukrainians who had fled to third countries. While this prompt decision should be welcomed, the Japanese government has been criticised for its reluctance to accept refugees for years. Because of Japan’s past restrictive approach to refugees and asylum-seekers, the decision to accept Ukrainians was met with surprise. Why, then, did the Japanese government decide to accept Ukrainians? This article explores the rationale behind this decision by analysing the language used by Cabinet members of the Japanese government in Diet discussions from the perspective of Critical Discourse Analysis, which sees language as a form of social practice. By adopting the concept of “ontological security”, or the security of self-identity, it argues that, while Japan’s decision to accept Ukrainians was prompted by its pursuit of ontological security derived from its international relations, its pursuit of ontological security rooted in its biographical narrative caused a desire to prevent this case from affecting Japan’s future refugee policy and to minimise the acceptance of refugees in the country.
Disruption of the primocolonizing microbiota alters epithelial homeostasis and imprints stem cells in the colon of neonatal piglets
Authors: Beaumont Martin , Lencina Corinne , Fève Katia , Barilly Céline , Le‐Normand Laurence , Combes Sylvie , Devailly Guillaume , Boudry Gaëlle 
Published: September 2023

AbstractThe gut microbiota plays a key role in the postnatal development of the intestinal epithelium. However, the bacterial members of the primocolonizing microbiota driving these effects are not fully identified and the mechanisms underlying their long‐term influence on epithelial homeostasis remain poorly described. Here, we used a model of newborn piglets treated during the first week of life with the antibiotic colistin in order to deplete specific gram‐negative bacteria that are transiently dominant in the neonatal gut microbiota. Colistin depleted Proteobacteria and Fusobacteriota from the neonatal colon microbiota, reduced the bacterial predicted capacity to synthetize lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and increased the concentration of succinate in the colon. The colistin‐induced disruption of the primocolonizing microbiota was associated with altered gene expression in the colon epithelium including a reduction of toll‐like receptor 4 (TLR4) and lysozyme (LYZ). Our data obtained in porcine colonic organoid cell monolayers suggested that these effects were not driven by the variation of succinate or LPS levels nor by a direct effect of colistin on epithelial cells. The disruption of the primocolonizing microbiota imprinted colon epithelial stem cells since the expression of TLR4 and LYZ remained lower in organoids derived from colistin‐treated piglet colonic crypts after several passages when compared to control piglets. Finally, the stable imprinting of LYZ in colon organoids was independent of the H3K4me3 level in its transcription start site. Altogether, our results show that disruption of the primocolonizing gut microbiota alters epithelial innate immunity in the colon and imprints stem cells, which could have long‐term consequences for gut health.
Preservation of Distortion Product Otoacoustic Emissions in OTOF-Related Hearing Impairment
Authors: Santarelli Rosamaria , Scimemi Pietro , Cama Elona , Domínguez-Ruiz María , Bonora Chiara , Gallo Chiara , Rodríguez-Ballesteros Montserrat , del Castillo Ignacio 
Published: September 2023

Objectives:
Attenuation of otoacoustic emissions over time has been reported for many patients with hearing impairment harboring mutations in the OTOF gene. In this study, the time course of changes of distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) has been analyzed in a cohort of patients in the light of tympanometry results.

Design:
The changes of DPOAEs in 16 patients with OTOF-related hearing impairment were retrospectively analyzed.

Results:
All but one subject showed DPOAEs bilaterally at the time of diagnosis. Three patients diagnosed as adults still had DPOAEs at ages of 27, 31, and 47 years, respectively. Follow-up was available for 7 children diagnosed at the age of 1 to 3 years, who still showed preservation of DPOAEs at ages of 5 to 16 years. The responses were absent or attenuated in amplitude at some follow-up appointments in association with type B or C tympanograms.

Conclusions:
DPOAEs are preserved much longer than expected in a cohort of patients with OTOF-related hearing impairment. The previously reported loss of DPOAEs may have been caused in some children by increased middle ear impedance due to otitis media.
Prefabricated venous flap, an advanced free venous flap for distant transfer: An experimental rat study
Authors: Chuang David Chwei-Chin , Fang Frank , Lu Johnny Chuieng-Yi , Huang Yen-Lin , Chang Tommy Nai-Jen 
Published: September 2023

Abstract

Background
Arterialized venous flap can improve the survival of traditional free venous flap. Arterialized venous flaps are, however, still not popularly selected as the first choice for microsurgical reconstruction because of its nutrient insufficiency.

Materials and Methods
Eighty-four Lewis rats (10–12 weeks old, 350–400 g) were used. Left hemivertical chest-and-abdominal skin flap (4 × 14 cm2) was the experimental model. Five protocols were designed and performed: protocol I (n = 18), nutrition territory study; protocol II (n = 18), immediate A-V anastomosis; protocol III (n = 12), prefabricated venous flap (PFVF) transformed from pedicle-based skin flap; protocol IV (n = 18), PFVF transformed from perforator-based skin flap; and protocol V (n = 18), PFVF transformed from capillary-based skin flap. The all transformed PFVFs had a 2-week delay procedure from the original skin flaps.

Results
The hemivertical chest-abdomen skin flap contains 3 nutrient vessels: superior, inferior, and midabdominal. The PFVF coming from the perforator-based skin flap showed significantly superior than other 2 methods with the best survival rates after arterialization, followed by the capillary-based skin flap and then the pedicle-based skin flap.

Conclusions
The PFVFs after delay procedure and arterialization have been proved to greatly increase the flap survival than traditional free venous flap. Delay procedure has benefits for the transformation from the nutritional skin flaps into PFVFs, which is especially true in perforator-based skin flaps. Such transformation is a 2-stage procedure. Prefabricated venous flaps might offer a “last case scenario” surgery as an option to reconstruct wound defects where no other suitable skin flaps are available. Further investigation is warranted.
Evaluation and management of urethral and periurethral masses in women
Authors: Zuo Stephanie W. , Napoe Gnankang Sarah 
Published: September 2023

Purpose of review
Female periurethral masses are an uncommon occurrence. The purpose of this review is to describe etiologies of female urethral and periurethral masses and to provide an update on diagnosis and management.

Recent findings
The most common causes of periurethral and urethral masses in women are urethral caruncles, urethral diverticula, and Skene's gland cysts. Urethral meatal lesions such as urethral caruncles and prolapse can be managed conservatively with topical estrogen therapy and close follow-up or should be excised in the setting of thrombosis, significant or recurrent bleeding, acute urinary retention, or persistent pain. Benign periurethral gland masses, such as Skene's gland cysts, Gartner's duct cysts, and Mullerian duct cysts, remain rare. Recent case series reveal a high rate of surgical management of these lesions with few complications. Urethral malignancy or malignant transformation of benign etiologies are even rarer but can be aggressive in nature and should be treated promptly.

Summary
Nonspecific urinary and vaginal symptoms as well as similar physical presentations make diagnosis of urethral and periurethral lesions in females difficult. Magnetic resonance imaging is useful for differentiation of periurethral masses. The decision for conservative or surgical management is typically guided by patient symptom bother, as well as concern for urethral malignancy.
Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and safety in the preconception period
Authors: Minis Evelyn , Stanford Fatima Cody , Mahalingaiah Shruthi 
Published: September 2023

Purpose of review
Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists (RAs) are becoming increasingly popular for the treatment of type II diabetes and obesity. Body mass index (BMI) thresholds at in vitro fertilization (IVF) clinics may further drive the use of these medications before infertility treatment. However, most clinical guidance regarding optimal time to discontinue these medications prior to conception is based on animal data. The purpose of this review was to evaluate the literature for evidence-based guidance regarding the preconception use of GLP-1 RA.

Recent findings
16 articles were found in our PubMed search, 10 were excluded as they were reviews or reported on animal data. Included were 3 case reports detailing pregnancy outcomes in individual patients that conceived while on a GLP-1 RA and 2 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and a follow-up study to one of the RCTs that reported on patients randomized to GLP-1 RA or metformin prior to conception. No adverse pregnancy or neonatal outcomes were reported.

Summary
There are limited data from human studies to guide decision-making regarding timing of discontinuation of GLP-1 RA before conception. Studies focused on pregnancy and neonatal outcomes would provide additional information regarding a safe washout period. Based on the available literature a 4-week washout period prior to attempting conception may be considered for the agents reviewed in this publication.
Advances in the treatment of gastric cancer: 2022–2023
Authors: Ilson David H. 
Published: September 2023

Purpose of review
To review 2022–2023 studies in gastric cancer.

Recent findings
Important studies report the role of laparoscopic surgery in gastric cancer, the activity of immune checkpoint inhibitors in metastatic, locally advanced and adjuvant therapy in gastric cancer, and the effectiveness of zolbetuximab in claudin 18.2-positive metastatic disease. From the Japanese JLSSG0901 Trial, equivalent survival was reported for laparoscopically assisted versus conventional open gastrectomy. Adding nivolumab to adjuvant chemotherapy in resected stage III gastric cancer failed to improve 3-year disease-free survival over chemotherapy alone. Ipilimumab and nivolumab as preoperative therapy in MSI-high gastric cancer resulted in a high rate of pathologic complete response. Trastuzumab added to chemoradiotherapy and surgery in HER2-positive locally advanced esophageal and gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma did not improve overall survival over chemoradiotherapy and surgery alone. Adding pembrolizumab to trastuzumab/chemotherapy in metastatic HER2-positive gastric cancer improved antitumor response rate. Addition of zolbetuximab, an antibody targeting claudin 18.2, to first-line chemotherapy in metastatic claudin 18.2-positive gastric cancer improved overall survival.

Summary
Immune checkpoint inhibition has a role in locally advanced MSI-high and metastatic gastric cancer. Laparoscopic gastrectomy is acceptable in gastric cancer. Zolbetuximab in metastatic gastric cancer will emerge as a new therapy option.
A shotgun-induced nonunion humeral fracture treated by Masquelet technique and arthrodesis: a case report
Authors: Taabbodi Alireza , Shahbazi Parmida , Mohammad Hosseini Azar Payman , Gholami Niloofar , Hadavi Dorsa , Najafi Arvin 
Published: September 2023

Introduction and importance:
The Masquelet technique remains one of the procedures with low rates of failure and infection. The use of this technique in humeral defects is still rare.

Case presentation:
A 38-year-old male patient with an open humeral comminuted fracture induced by shotgun injury was referred to our hospital. The Masquelet technique was chosen as the best option with a lower risk of infection and the lower expenses at this stage due to the second time of open reduction and internal fixation and bone graft failure, low patient compliance, and the increasing size of the defect due to bone absorption. An arthrodesis procedure was performed 5 days after the second Masquelet stage as restoring the elbow joint’s range of motion was impossible.

Clinical discussion:
The Masquelet technique, is a two-step surgical procedure to manage pseudoarthroses and bone defects. Various surgical options are available for performing this procedure. There are several reasons behind the rising popularity of this technique during recent years. Some of these reasons include the reproducibility of this technique, as well as requiring less time, not being technically challenging, and having fewer neurovascular complications.

Conclusion:
This case was one of the limited examples of successful implementation of the Masquelete procedure on severe traumatic injuries of the upper limb with bone defects providing more evidence on the safety and efficacy of this technique in similar conditions.
Response to ifosfamide, carboplatin, etoposide (ICE) vs. dexamethasone, cytarabine cisplatin (DHAP) as salvage chemotherapy in patients with relapsed/refractory lymphoma
Authors: Devi Kanta , Soomar Salman Muhammad , Shaikh Muhammad Usman , Ali Natasha 
Published: September 2023

Background:
Non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas are the eighth-most prevalent malignancy in females and the eleventh in males. No research has been conducted comparing dexamethasone, cytarabine cisplatin (DHAP) vs. ifosfamide, carboplatin, etoposide (ICE) as salvage chemotherapy regimens for relapsed or refractory lymphomas in Pakistan. This study aims to compare the response of ICE vs. DHAP as salvage chemotherapy in patients with relapsed/refractory lymphomas.

Methods:
A prospective follow-up study was conducted at the tertiary care hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, from 2019 to 2020. A total of 58 lymphoma patients after first-line chemotherapy were included in the study. The treatment response was evaluated after two cycles of salvage chemotherapy using WHO assessment criteria, and Cox regression was used to determine the hazard ratios considering the P value ≤0.05 significant.

Results:
Of 58 patients, 19 (32.8%) patients achieved complete response (CR), and 8 (13.8%) patients achieved partial response (PR), with an overall response rate of overall response rate of 46.6%. In the ICE group, the response was assessed in 19 patients. Overall response was 42.1%, CR was 31.6% and PR was 10.5%. In the DHAP group, response was evaluated in 39 patients, the overall response rate was 48.7%, CR was 33.3% and PR was 15.4%. The hazard ratio for survival in patients with relapsed/refractory lymphomas who received DHAP was 1.40 times (95% CI: 1.27–3.63, P=0.001) compared to patients who received ICE as salvage chemotherapy.

Conclusion:
DHAP seems to have a marginally better overall response rate than the ICE regimen in patients with refractory or relapsed lymphoma. However, the toxicity profile of patients in both groups was similar.
Tocilizumab in systemic sclerosis treatment: a case report
Authors: Kudsi Maysoun , Khalayli Naram , Tarcha Raghad , Al-Darwish Lama 
Published: September 2023

Introduction:
In the United States, tocilizumab was approved for the treatment of scleroderma and scleroderma-related interstitial lung disease because it inhibited the decrease in forced expiratory volume, so scleroderma treatment is entering a new era.

Case presentation:
A 44-year-old female patient with systemic scleroderma, diagnosed 6 years ago, presented with breathlessness over the last week. The modified Rodnan’s score was 18. Tocilizumab 162 mg subcutaneously once every 2 weeks was prescribed. After 4 weeks, a decrease in Rodnan score was observed. Tocilizumab was stopped after 6 months without any side effects due to treatment.

Discussion:
Treatment with tocilizumab may maintain lung function nearly unchanged. Its effect on perfecting skin fibrosis seems promising. Tocilizumab may be fairly safe to use.

Conclusion:
Tocilizumab may be effective and fairly safe to use. Further exploration is anticipated to advance a new period of systemic sclerosis treatment.
Efficacy of ablation therapy on clinical outcomes in patients with atrial fibrillation: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Zahoor Mohammad Munim , Ullah Saad Ehsan , Kidiavai Harriet Mmaitsi , Eltieb Shahda A.H , Devi Anjuli , Asif Muhammad Anis , Vaswani Akshay , Hyder Ammar , Hoti Muhammad Roshan , Jawad Sayed , Arshid Sana , Shankar Abhirami , Salman Muhammad 
Published: September 2023

Background:
Optimal treatment regimen for patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) remains unclear. Therefore, the authors sought to compare the outcomes of ablation therapy versus pharmacological regimens in patients with AF.

Methods:
MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane Central databases were searched for randomized controlled trials and observational studies comparing clinical outcomes between of ablation and pharmacological therapy in patients with AF. Stroke, all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, cardiovascular hospitalization, heart failure (HF), and bleeding were among outcomes of interest. Mantel–Haenszel weighted random-effects model was used to calculate relative risks (RRs) with 95 % CIs.

Results:
The analysis included ~200 000 patients from 4 randomized controlled trials and 7 observational studies. Meta-analysis showed statistically significant reduction in stroke among patients on ablation therapy [hazard ratio (HR) 0.51, 95% CI (0.43, 0.60), P<0.00001, I2
=10%], all-cause mortality [HR 0.64, 95% CI (0.45, 0.93), P=0.02, I2
=58%], cardiovascular mortality [HR 0.35, 95% CI (0.25, 0.50), P<0.0001, I2
=0%], and HF [HR 0.40, 95% CI (0.31, 0.53), P<0.00001, I2
=30%]. However, no significant difference was revealed in the risk of cardiovascular hospitalization [HR 1.04, 95% CI (0.88, 1.23), P=0.66, I2
=89%] and bleeding [HR 1.11, 95% CI (0.97, 1.27), P=0.13, I2
=0%].

Conclusion:
Ablation significantly reduces the risk of stroke, cardiovascular mortality, all-cause mortality, and HF in AF patients, compared with medical therapy alone, supporting its use in clinical practice.