bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Impact on Electroconvulsive Therapy Services, Including Patient Relapse and Death, During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Sarma Shanthi , Branjerdporn Grace , McCosker Laura , Dong Vanessa , Martin Donel , Loo Colleen 
Published: March 2023

Objectives
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is important in the management of major, life-threatening, and treatment-resistant psychiatric illness. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly disrupted ECT services. The need for new infection control measures, staff redeployment and shortages, and the perception that ECT is as an “elective” procedure have caused changes to, and reductions in, ECT delivery. The aim of this study was to explore the impact of COVID-19 on ECT services, staff, and patients globally.

Methods
Data were collected using an electronic, mixed-methods, cross-sectional survey. The survey was open from March to November 2021. Clinical directors in ECT services, their delegates, and anesthetists were asked to participate. Quantitative findings are reported.

Results
One hundred and twelve participants worldwide completed the survey. The study identified significant impacts on services, staff, and patients. Importantly, most participants (57.8%; n = 63) reported their services made at least 1 change to ECT delivery. More than three-quarters (81.0%; n = 73) reported that their service had identified at least 1 patient who could not access ECT. More than two-thirds (71.4%; n = 67) reported that their service identified patients who experienced a relapse in their psychiatric illness due to lack of ECT access. Six participants (7.6%) reported that their service had identified at least 1 patient who died, by suicide or other means, due to lack of ECT access.

Conclusions
All ECT practices surveyed were impacted by COVID-19 with decreases in capacity, staffing, changes in workflow, and personal protective equipment requirements with relatively little change to ECT technique. Lack of access to ECT resulted in significant morbidity and mortality, including suicide, internationally. This is the first multisite, international survey to explore the impacts of COVID-19 on ECT services, staff, and patients.
Electroconvulsive Therapy in Switzerland
Authors: Wilhelmy Saskia , Brühl Annette Beatrix , Himmighoffen Holger , Conca Andreas , Grözinger Michael 
Published: March 2023

Objectives
The prevalence and use of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) varies widely across Europe. Historically, Switzerland played an important role in the worldwide spread of ECT. Nevertheless, an overview of current ECT practice in Switzerland is still lacking. The present study aims to fill this gap.

Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2017 using a standardized questionnaire to investigate current ECT practice in Switzerland. Fifty-one Swiss hospitals were contacted by email and followed up by telephone. In early 2022, we updated the list of facilities that offer ECT.

Results
Thirty eight of the 51 hospitals (74.5%) provided feedback to the questionnaire, 10 of them claimed to offer ECT. They reported 402 treated patients, which corresponds to an ECT-treated person rate of 4.8 persons per 100,000 inhabitants. Depression was the most frequent indication. All hospitals reported an increase in ECT treatments between 2014 and 2017 except for one with constant numbers. The number of facilities offering ECT almost doubled between 2010 and 2022. Most ECT facilities performed the treatment predominantly on an outpatient rather than an inpatient basis.

Conclusions
Historically, Switzerland relevantly contributed to the worldwide spread of ECT. In an international comparison, the treatment frequency is in the lower middle range. The outpatient treatment rate is high compared with other countries in Europe. The supply and spread of ECT in Switzerland have increased over the past decade.
Acute effects of static stretching to hamstrings on spatiotemporal variables and leg kinematics in late swing at maximal sprint speed phase and its relationship with Nordic hamstring strength
Authors: Ozaki Yusuke , Ueda Takeshi 
Published: March 2023

AbstractThis study aimed to determine the acute effects of static stretching of the hamstrings on maximal sprint speed and its spatiotemporal variables, and lower limb kinematics during the late swing phase, and its relationship with Nordic hamstring strength. Sixteen healthy male college sprinters were asked to sprint 80 m without static stretching and with static stretching of the hamstrings for 120 s per leg before the sprint, and both conditions were counterbalanced. The knee flexion peak force and torque were measured using the Nordic hamstring. The differences between no static stretch and static stretch, and their relationship with Nordic hamstring strength were investigated. The results showed that the touchdown distance and support time increased, and flight distance decreased in under static stretch conditions with a decrease in maximal sprint speed. Moreover, under static stretch conditions, the angular velocity of knee extension at contralateral release was lower, while the theoretical hamstring length (difference between knee angle and hip angle) at ipsilateral touchdown was greater. In addition, the lower the peak force and torque of the Nordic hamstring, the more significant the decrease in maximal sprint speed, increase in support time, decrease in flight distance, and decrease in peak angular velocity of hip extension at static stretch. Furthermore, the more significant the decrease in maximal sprint speed at static stretch, the smaller the peak theoretical hamstring length at the no static stretch. Therefore, it is suggested that long- term static stretching immediately before sprinting in sprinters with poor Nordic hamstring strength and low hamstring compliance during the late swing phase may induce unfavorable kinematics to prevent hamstring strain injury and maximal sprint speed reduction.
What the analysis of causes of death in France in 2020 reveals about the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic
Authors: Toubiana Laurent , Mucchielli Laurent , Bouaud Jacques , Chaillot Pierre 
Published: March 2023

AbstractContextIn 2020, the French population lived under the threat of the Covid-19 epidemic, which would allegedly cause an exceptional excess mortality rate. Mortality data by cause of death for the year 2020 are now available. These data allow us to quantify and qualify the impact of the epidemic. This analysis presents the evolution of the main mortality indicators by cause and by age group. It is intended to demonstrate how 2020 was an exceptional year.Materials and methodsIn France, causes of death are labeled according to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) based on medical death certificates. The study focuses on aggregated data for the year 2020 as well as complete data from 1979 to 2017 available online. To estimate excess mortality by cause of death, mortality data were standardized to 2020 to consider changes in the age structure of the population.ResultsThe year 2020 is marked, on the one hand, by the introduction of “Covid-19” as a cause of death, which accounts for 10.4% of deaths; and, on the other hand, by a strong downward trend in most other causes of death.DiscussionIn 2020, we show that the overall number of additional deaths due to the Covid-19 epidemic is paradoxically lower than the number of deaths caused by this disease. According to official sources, the number of Covid-19-labeled deaths is nearly 50% higher than the number of additional deaths. Besides excess mortality in 2020 being modest compared to other years that saw health events and it affecting only individuals over 65 years of age, what could explain that this disease has caused more deaths than additional deaths? This analysis shows that the emergency implementation of the “Covid-19” classification led to many biases. A significant number of deaths, usually labeled for other major causes (e.g., neoplasm, circulatory system diseases) were, in a way, transferred to this new label. This analysis of mortality by cause of death provides quantitative answers to the overestimation of the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic in France.
Mapping Dysfunctional Circuits in the Frontal Cortex Using Deep Brain Stimulation
Authors: Hollunder Barbara , Ostrem Jill L. , Sahin Ilkem Aysu , Rajamani Nanditha , Oxenford Simón , Butenko Konstantin , Neudorfer Clemens , Reinhardt Pablo , Zvarova Patricia , Polosan Mircea , Akram Harith , Vissani Matteo , Zhang Chencheng , Sun Bomin , Navratil Pavel , Reich Martin M. , Volkmann Jens , Yeh Fang-Cheng , Baldermann Juan Carlos , Dembek Till A. , Visser-Vandewalle Veerle , Alho Eduardo Joaquim Lopes , Franceschini Paulo Roberto , Nanda Pranav , Finke Carsten , Kühn Andrea A. , Dougherty Darin D. , Richardson R. Mark , Bergman Hagai , DeLong Mahlon R. , Mazzoni Alberto , Romito Luigi M. , Tyagi Himanshu , Zrinzo Ludvic , Joyce Eileen M. , Chabardes Stephan , Starr Philip A. , Li Ningfei , Horn Andreas 
Published: March 2023

AbstractFrontal circuits play a critical role in motor, cognitive, and affective processing – and their dysfunction may result in a variety of brain disorders. However, exactly which frontal domains mediate which (dys)function remains largely elusive. Here, we study 534 deep brain stimulation electrodes implanted to treat four different brain disorders. By analyzing which connections were modulated for optimal therapeutic response across these disorders, we segregate the frontal cortex into circuits that became dysfunctional in each of them. Dysfunctional circuits were topographically arranged from occipital to rostral, ranging from interconnections with sensorimotor cortices in dystonia, with the primary motor cortex in Tourette’s syndrome, the supplementary motor area in Parkinson’s disease, to ventromedial prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortices in obsessive-compulsive disorder. Our findings highlight the integration of deep brain stimulation with brain connectomics as a powerful tool to explore couplings between brain structure and functional impairment in the human brain.
Metagenomic analysis after selective culture enrichment of wastewater demonstrates increased burden of antibiotic resistant genes in hospitals relative to the community
Authors: Acosta Nicole , Lee Jangwoo , Bautista Maria A. , Bhatnagar Srijak , Waddell Barbara J. , Au Emily , Pradhan Puja , Clark Rhonda G. , Meddings Jon , Ruecker Norma , Achari Gopal , Pitout Johann D. , Conly John , Frankowski Kevin , Hubert Casey R.J. , Parkins Michael D. 
Published: March 2023

AbstractAntimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an ever-increasing threat to global health. Wastewater-based surveillance is an emerging methodology that objectively enables an inclusive and comprehensive assessment of population AMR in an observed sewershed. Here we compared the resistome of two tertiary-care hospitals with two separate neighborhoods, using complimentary targeted qPCR and metagenomics of wastewater before and after selective culture enrichment for clinically important Gram negatives. In total 26 ARG-type (1225 ARG-subtypes) were found across all samples, in which β-lactam ARG was the richest (the number of different ARG-subtypes found) followed by multidrug, fluoroquinolone, macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin (MLS) and aminoglycoside. The composition of ARGs in wastewater differed between raw wastewater pellets and culture-enriched wastewater samples and the resistomes clustered based on the type of location (Hospitals vs neighborhoods). Hospital wastewater was found to have higher diversity and greater abundance of ARGs compared to neighborhood wastewater when the composition profiles of ARGs in both raw and culture-enriched wastewater pellets. Clinically relevant ARG (i.e., VIM, NDM metallo-ß-lactamases) were detected in culture enrichment samples that were not identified in raw samples, despite a lower targeted sequencing depth. Wastewater-based surveillance is an effective, and potentially extremely important and powerful tool that could be developed to augment hospital-based infection control and antimicrobial stewardship programs, creating a safer space for those receiving care.
Identification of CAA as highly specific and sensitive antibody target for acute schistosomiasis diagnostics
Authors: Kildemoes Anna O. , Veldhuizen Tom , Hilt Stan T. , van Lieshout Lisette , Supali Taniawati , Sartono Erliyani , Yazdanbakhsh Maria , Camprubí-Ferrer Daniel , Muñoz Jose , Clerinx Joannes , Corstjens Paul L.A.M. , van Dam Govert J. , Visser Leo G. , Roestenberg Meta , van Diepen Angela , Hokke Cornelis H. 
Published: March 2023

ABSTRACTBackgroundThe WHO 2030 roadmap for schistosomiasis calls for development of highly sensitive and specific diagnostic tools to continue and sustain progress towards elimination. Serological assays are excellent for sensitive detection of primary schistosome infections and for schistosomiasis surveillance in near- and post-elimination settings. To develop accurate assay formats, it is necessary to identify defined antibody targets with low cross-reactivity and potential for standardized production. Here we focus on defined schistosome glycan antigens.MethodsTarget identification was performed by assessing antibody responses in well characterized cross-sectional and cohort sample sets (n=366 individuals) on tailor-made antigen microarrays. IgM and IgG binding to candidate diagnostic targets was measured for serum/plasma samples from: controlled human schistosome infection model (CSI), schistosome infected travellers, soil-transmitted helminth infected and non-infected individuals.FindingsWe found that antibodies to circulating anodic antigen (CAA) identify schistosome infection with high sensitivity (IgM≥100%, IgG≥97%) and specificity (IgM≥93%, IgG≥97%) in the test samples. Infection dose affected timing of anti-CAA antibody isotype switch. Furthermore, we demonstrate the presence of shared and non-specific glycan epitopes in crude schistosome cercarial and egg antigen preparations. Many non-specific glycan epitopes contained in crude antigen mixes are responsible for a large proportion of false schistosomiasis positives in standard serological assays.InterpretationCAA is target for development of highly sensitive and specific tools for schistosomiasis serology with use cases for travellers and surveillance in near and post-elimination settings as well as emerging transmission zones.FundingGlobal Health Innovative Technology Fund (GHIT), HIC-Vac, Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC)
Covid-19 impact on food insecurity in Uganda: a dynamic analysis
Authors: Ubabukoh Chisom L. , Tampubolon Gindo 
Published: March 2023

AbstractLockdowns were used as a tool to avoid excessive social contact and thus limit the spread of Covid-19. However, the true welfare effects of this policy action are still being determined. This paper studies the impact of these lockdowns on the food security outcomes of households in Uganda using a dynamic probit model. We find that the most consequential determinant of whether a household’s food security was severely impacted by the lockdown was the initial status of whether a family was food insecure to begin with. Also, an increase in a household’s economic resources (log consumption per person) significantly influences a reduction in the probability of being severely food insecure. Over time, this creates a wedge of greater inequality between the food security of households who were initially food secure and those who were not. This is despite the use of government cash transfers which have turned out to be ineffective.HighlightsA dynamic probit model is used to assess the influence Covid lockdowns have had on food securityHouseholds who were initially severely food insecure experienced greater levels of food insecurity post-lockdown, than those who were not.Increased command of economic resources reduces the probability of severe food securityContemporaneous government transfers have not made a significant impact on reducing the probability of severe food insecurity
Microbiome Preterm Birth DREAM Challenge: Crowdsourcing Machine Learning Approaches to Advance Preterm Birth Research
Authors: Golob Jonathan L. , Oskotsky Tomiko T. , Tang Alice S. , Roldan Alennie , Chung Verena , Ha Connie W.Y. , Wong Ronald J. , Flynn Kaitlin J. , Parraga-Leo Antonio , Wibrand Camilla , Minot Samuel S. , Andreoletti Gaia , Kosti Idit , Bletz Julie , Nelson Amber , Gao Jifan , Wei Zhoujingpeng , Chen Guanhua , Tang Zheng-Zheng , Novielli Pierfrancesco , Romano Donato , Pantaleo Ester , Amoroso Nicola , Monaco Alfonso , Vacca Mirco , De Angelis Maria , Bellotti Roberto , Tangaro Sabina , Kuntzleman Abigail , Bigcraft Isaac , Techtmann Stephen , Bae Daehun , Kim Eunyoung , Jeon Jongbum , Joe Soobok ,   The Preterm Birth DREAM Community, Theis Kevin R. , Ng Sherrianne , Lee Li Yun S. , Diaz-Gimeno Patricia , Bennett Phillip R. , MacIntyre David A. , Stolovitzky Gustavo , Lynch Susan V. , Albrecht Jake , Gomez-Lopez Nardhy , Romero Roberto , Stevenson David K. , Aghaeepour Nima , Tarca Adi L. , Costello James C. , Sirota Marina 
Published: March 2023

AbstractGlobally, every year about 11% of infants are born preterm, defined as a birth prior to 37 weeks of gestation, with significant and lingering health consequences. Multiple studies have related the vaginal microbiome to preterm birth. We present a crowdsourcing approach to predict: (a) preterm or (b) early preterm birth from 9 publicly available vaginal microbiome studies representing 3,578 samples from 1,268 pregnant individuals, aggregated from raw sequences via an open-source tool, MaLiAmPi. We validated the crowdsourced models on novel datasets representing 331 samples from 148 pregnant individuals. From 318 DREAM challenge participants we received 148 and 121 submissions for our two separate prediction sub-challenges with top-ranking submissions achieving bootstrapped AUROC scores of 0.69 and 0.87, respectively. Alpha diversity, VALENCIA community state types, and composition (via phylotype relative abundance) were important features in the top performing models, most of which were tree based methods. This work serves as the foundation for subsequent efforts to translate predictive tests into clinical practice, and to better understand and prevent preterm birth.
Robustness Analysis of Colorectal Cancer Colonoscopy Screening Strategies
Authors: Nascimento de Lima Pedro , Rutter Carolyn M. , Maerzluft Christopher , Ozik Jonathan , Collier Nicholson 
Published: March 2023

AbstractColorectal Cancer (CRC) is a leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. Despite significant overall declines in CRC incidence and mortality, there has been an alarming increase in CRC among people younger than 50. This study uses an established microsimulation model, CRC-SPIN, to perform a ‘stress test’ of colonoscopy screening strategies. First, we expand CRC-SPIN to include birth-cohort effects. Second, we estimate natural history model parameters via Incremental Mixture Approximate Bayesian Computation (IMABC) for two model versions to characterize uncertainty while accounting for increased early CRC onset. Third, we simulate 26 colonoscopy screening strategies across the posterior distribution of estimated model parameters, assuming four different colonoscopy sensitivities (104 total scenarios). We find that model projections of screening benefit are highly dependent on natural history and test sensitivity assumptions, but in this stress test, the policy recommendations are robust to the uncertainties considered.
Tyrosinase-induced neuromelanin accumulation triggers rapid dysregulation and degeneration of the mouse locus coeruleus
Authors: Iannitelli Alexa F. , Hassenein Leslie , Mulvey Bernard , Blankenship Harris E. , Liles L. Cameron , Sharpe Amanda L. , Pare Jean-Francoise , Segal Arielle , Sloan Steven A. , Martinowich Keri , McCann Katharine E. , Dougherty Joseph D. , Smith Yoland , Beckstead Michael J. , Weinshenker David 
Published: March 2023

AbstractThe locus coeruleus (LC), the major source of norepinephrine (NE) in the brain, is an early site of pathology in both Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD), and it undergoes catastrophic degeneration later in both disorders. Dysregulation of the LC is thought to contribute to prodromal symptoms of AD and PD such as anxiety and sleep disturbances, while frank LC-NE loss promotes cognitive decline. However, the mechanisms responsible for its selective vulnerability are unknown. The LC is among the only structures in the brain that produces appreciable amounts of neuromelanin (NM), a dark cytoplasmic pigment. It has been proposed that NM initially plays a protective role by sequestering toxic catecholamine metabolites and heavy metals, but may become harmful during aging as it overwhelms cellular machinery and is released during neurodegeneration. Rodents do not naturally produce NM, limiting the study of causal relationships between NM and LC pathology. Adapting a viral-mediated approach for expression of human tyrosinase, the enzyme responsible for peripheral melanin production, we successfully promoted pigmentation in mouse LC neurons that recapitulates key ultrastructural features of endogenous NM found in primates. Pigment expression results in LC neuron hyperactivity, reduced tissue NE levels, transcriptional changes, and novelty-induced anxiety phenotypes as early as 1-week post-injection. By 6-10 weeks, NM accumulation is associated with severe LC neuron neurodegeneration and microglial engulfment of the pigment granules, while the anxiety-like behavior is abated. These phenotypes are reminiscent of LC dysfunction and cell death in AD and PD, validating this model for studying the consequences of pigment accumulation in the LC as it relates to neurodegenerative disease.
Synthetic Mucus Biomaterials for Antimicrobial Peptide Delivery
Authors: Yang Sydney , Duncan Gregg 
Published: March 2023

ABSTRACTDespite the promise of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) as treatments for antibiotic-resistant infections, their therapeutic efficacy is limited due to the rapid degradation and low bioavailability of AMPs. To address this, we have developed and characterized a synthetic mucus (SM) biomaterial capable of delivering AMPs and enhancing their therapeutic effect. LL37 loaded SM hydrogels demonstrated controlled release of LL37 over 8 hours as a result of charge-mediated interactions between mucins and LL37 AMPs. Compared to treatment with LL37 alone where antimicrobial activity was reduced after 3 hours, LL37-SM hydrogels inhibitedPseudomonas aeruginosaPAO1 growth over 12 hours. LL37-SM hydrogel treatment reduced PAO1 viability over 6 hours whereas a rebound in bacterial growth was observed when treated with LL37 only. These data demonstrate LL37-SM hydrogels enhance antimicrobial activity by preserving LL37 AMP activity and bioavailability. Overall, this work establishes SM biomaterials as a platform for enhanced AMP delivery for antimicrobial applications.