bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Xylo-oligosaccharides improve the adverse effects of plant-based proteins on weaned piglet health by maintaining the intestinal barrier and inhibiting harmful bacterial growth
Authors: Wang Qibing , Zhao Yang , Guo Lei , Ma Xiangyuan , Yang Yi , Zhuo Yong , Jiang Xuemei , Hua Lun , Che Lianqiang , Xu Shengyu , Feng Bin , Fang Zhengfeng , Li Jian , Lin Yan , Wu De 
Published: May 2023

IntroductionPiglets are more susceptible to weaning stress syndrome when fed high levels of plant-based proteins that contain abundant food antigens and anti-nutritional factors. Xylo-oligosaccharides (XOS) are a potential prebiotic that may improve the tolerance of weaned piglets to plant-based proteins. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of XOS supplementation in high and low plant-based protein diets on growth performance, gut morphology, short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) production, and gut microbiota of weaned piglets.MethodsA total of 128 weanling piglets with an average body weight (BW) of 7.63 ± 0.45 kg were randomly allocated to one of the four dietary treatments in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement, with two levels of plant-based proteins (d 1–14: 68.3 or 81.33%, d 15–28: 81.27 or 100%) and XOS complex (0 or 0.43%) over a 28-day trial.ResultsThe growth performance of piglets did not differ significantly among groups (P &gt; 0.05). However, the diarrhea index of weaned piglets fed a high plant-based protein diet (HP) was significantly higher than that of those fed a low plant-based protein diet (LP) at days 1–14 and throughout the experimental period (P &lt; 0.05). XOS treatment tended to reduce the diarrhea index at days 1–14 (P = 0.062) and during the whole experiment period (P = 0.083). However, it significantly increased the digestibility of organic matter at days 15–28 (P &lt; 0.05). Moreover, dietary XOS supplementation increased ileal mucosa mRNA expression of occludin and ZO-1 (P &lt; 0.05). Furthermore, the concentration of butyric acid (BA) in the cecal contents and in the concentrations of BA and valeric acid (VA) in colon contents were significantly elevated in the XOS groups (P &lt; 0.05). Additionally, XOS optimized the gut flora by lowering the number of pathogenic bacteria such as p_Campylobacterota, thereby stabilizing the gut ecosystem.DiscussionIn conclusion, the HP diet aggravated diarrhea in weaned piglets while the XOS diet alleviated it by improving nutrient digestibility, protecting intestinal morphology, and optimizing the gut flora.
Scalp acupuncture regulates functional connectivity of cerebral hemispheres in patients with hemiplegia after stroke
Authors: Lin Dan , Gao Jinyang , Lu Mengxin , Han Xiao , Tan Zhongjian , Zou Yihuai , Cui Fangyuan 
Published: May 2023

BackgroundStroke is a common cause of acquired disability on a global scale. Patients with motor dysfunction after a stroke have a reduced quality of life and suffer from an economic burden. Scalp acupuncture has been proven to be an effective treatment for motor recovery after a stroke. However, the neural mechanism of scalp acupuncture for motor function recovery remains to be researched. This study aimed to investigate functional connectivity (FC) changes in region of interest (ROI) and other brain regions to interpret the neural mechanism of scalp acupuncture.MethodsTwenty-one patients were included and randomly divided into patient control (PCs) and scalp acupuncture (SAs) groups with left hemiplegia due to ischemic stroke, and we also selected 20 matched healthy controls (HCs). The PCs were treated with conventional Western medicine, while the SAs were treated with scalp acupuncture (acupuncture at the right anterior oblique line of vertex temporal). All subjects received whole-brain resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) scan before treatment, and the patients received a second scan after 14 days of treatment. We use the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores and the analyses of resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) as the observational indicators.ResultsThe contralateral and ipsilateral cortex of hemiplegic patients with cerebral infarction were associated with an abnormal increase and decrease in basal internode function. An abnormal increase in functional connectivity mainly exists in the ipsilateral hemisphere between the cortex and basal ganglia and reduces the abnormal functional connectivity in the cortex and contralateral basal ganglia. Increased RSFC was observed in the bilateral BA6 area and bilateral basal ganglia and the connectivity between bilateral basal ganglia nuclei improved. However, the RSFC of the conventional treatment group only improved in the unilateral basal ganglia and contralateral BA6 area. The RSFC in the left middle frontal gyrus, superior temporal gyrus, precuneus, and other healthy brain regions were enhanced in SAs after treatment.ConclusionThe changes in functional connectivity between the cerebral cortex and basal ganglia in patients with cerebral infarction showed a weakening of the bilateral hemispheres and the enhancement of the connections between the hemispheres. Scalp acupuncture has the function of bidirectional regulation, which makes the unbalanced abnormal brain function state restore balance.
Contribution of neural circuits tested by transcranial magnetic stimulation in corticomotor control of low back muscle: a systematic review
Authors: Desmons Mikaël , Theberge Michael , Mercier Catherine , Massé-Alarie Hugo 
Published: May 2023

IntroductionTranscranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is widely used to investigate central nervous system mechanisms underlying motor control. Despite thousands of TMS studies on neurophysiological underpinnings of corticomotor control, a large majority of studies have focused on distal muscles, and little is known about axial muscles (e.g., low back muscles). Yet, differences between corticomotor control of low back and distal muscles (e.g., gross vs. fine motor control) suggest differences in the neural circuits involved. This systematic review of the literature aims at detailing the organisation and neural circuitry underlying corticomotor control of low back muscles tested with TMS in healthy humans.MethodsThe literature search was performed in four databases (CINAHL, Embase, Medline (Ovid) and Web of science) up to May 2022. Included studies had to use TMS in combination with EMG recording of paraspinal muscles (between T12 and L5) in healthy participants. Weighted average was used to synthesise quantitative study results.ResultsForty-four articles met the selection criteria. TMS studies of low back muscles provided consistent evidence of contralateral and ipsilateral motor evoked potentials (with longer ipsilateral latencies) as well as of short intracortical inhibition/facilitation. However, few or no studies using other paired pulse protocols were found (e.g., long intracortical inhibition, interhemispheric inhibition). In addition, no study explored the interaction between different cortical areas using dual TMS coil protocol (e.g., between primary motor cortex and supplementary motor area).DiscussionCorticomotor control of low back muscles are distinct from hand muscles. Our main findings suggest: (i) bilateral projections from each single primary motor cortex, for which contralateral and ipsilateral tracts are probably of different nature (contra: monosynaptic; ipsi: oligo/polysynaptic) and (ii) the presence of intracortical inhibitory and excitatory circuits in M1 influencing the excitability of the contralateral corticospinal cells projecting to low back muscles. Understanding of these mechanisms are important for improving the understanding of neuromuscular function of low back muscles and to improve the management of clinical populations (e.g., low back pain, stroke).
Effectiveness of a starch thickened infant formula with reduced lactose content, probiotics and prebiotics on quality of life and clinical outcome in infants with regurgitation and/or colic
Authors: Chouraqui Jean-Pierre , Brancato Sandra , Delmas Berenice , Hanh Thierry 
Published: May 2023

BackgroundRegurgitation and colic are quite common in young infants, leading to a reduced quality of life (QoL) and to parental distress. Their management is challenging and aims to effectively reassure and relieve symptoms. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness over 30 days of a starch thickened formula with a reduced lactose content, Limosilactobacillus reuteri (Lactobacillus reuteri) DSM 17938 and FOS/GOS.MethodsA real-world prospective multicenter experimental study was conducted in a before-after design within subject. Full term infants 0−5 months with regurgitation or colic or both symptoms and without intercurrent illness were included after parental informed consent and received the studied formula. The primary endpoint was the improvement in QoL using the QUALIN infant’s questionnaire. Secondary endpoints were the symptoms outcome and the formula tolerance.ResultsOf the 101 infants included (age: 6.2 ± 4.3  weeks), 33 had regurgitation, 34 colic and 34 had both. At D30, the QoL score was improved in 75% of infants in per protocol analysis (n = 68; +8.2 ± 13.7; p &lt; 0.001), more in those with colic or both symptoms. Meanwhile, in intention to treat analysis (all p &lt; 0.001), the daily number of regurgitations decreased by 61% and the weekly number of days with colic by 63% while the daily cumulative duration of crying decreased by 82 ± 106 mn. These improvements were observed within the first week by 89 and 76% of parents, respectively.ConclusionThe study formula associated with reassurance is shown to be quickly effective in the management of infant’s regurgitation or/and colic in routine clinical practice.Clinical trial registrationhttps://clinicaltrials.gov/, identifier NCT04462640.
Densely Convolutional Spatial Attention Network for nuclei segmentation of histological images for computational pathology
Authors: Islam Sumon Rashadul , Bhattacharjee Subrata , Hwang Yeong-Byn , Rahman Hafizur , Kim Hee-Cheol , Ryu Wi-Sun , Kim Dong Min , Cho Nam-Hoon , Choi Heung-Kook 
Published: May 2023

IntroductionAutomatic nuclear segmentation in digital microscopic tissue images can aid pathologists to extract high-quality features for nuclear morphometrics and other analyses. However, image segmentation is a challenging task in medical image processing and analysis. This study aimed to develop a deep learning-based method for nuclei segmentation of histological images for computational pathology.MethodsThe original U-Net model sometime has a caveat in exploring significant features. Herein, we present the Densely Convolutional Spatial Attention Network (DCSA-Net) model based on U-Net to perform the segmentation task. Furthermore, the developed model was tested on external multi-tissue dataset – MoNuSeg. To develop deep learning algorithms for well-segmenting nuclei, a large quantity of data are mandatory, which is expensive and less feasible. We collected hematoxylin and eosin–stained image data sets from two hospitals to train the model with a variety of nuclear appearances. Because of the limited number of annotated pathology images, we introduced a small publicly accessible data set of prostate cancer (PCa) with more than 16,000 labeled nuclei. Nevertheless, to construct our proposed model, we developed the DCSA module, an attention mechanism for capturing useful information from raw images. We also used several other artificial intelligence-based segmentation methods and tools to compare their results to our proposed technique.ResultsTo prioritize the performance of nuclei segmentation, we evaluated the model’s outputs based on the Accuracy, Dice coefficient (DC), and Jaccard coefficient (JC) scores. The proposed technique outperformed the other methods and achieved superior nuclei segmentation with accuracy, DC, and JC of 96.4% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 96.2 – 96.6), 81.8 (95% CI: 80.8 – 83.0), and 69.3 (95% CI: 68.2 – 70.0), respectively, on the internal test data set.ConclusionOur proposed method demonstrates superior performance in segmenting cell nuclei of histological images from internal and external datasets, and outperforms many standard segmentation algorithms used for comparative analysis.
Replication of genetic associations of chemotherapy-related cardiotoxicity in the adjuvant NSABP B-31 clinical trial
Authors: Advani Pooja P. , Ruddy Kathryn J. , Herrmann Joerg , Ray Jordan C. , Craver Emily C. , Yothers Greg , Cecchini Reena S. , Lipchik Corey , Feng Huichen , Rastogi Priya , Mamounas Eleftherios P. , Swain Sandra M. , Geyer Charles E. , Wolmark Norman , Paik Soonmyung , Pogue-Geile Katherine L. , Colon-Otero Gerardo , Perez Edith A. , Norton Nadine 
Published: May 2023

BackgroundThe cardiotoxic effects of doxorubicin, trastuzumab, and other anticancer agents are well known, but molecular genetic testing is lacking for the early identification of patients at risk for therapy-related cardiac toxicity.MethodsUsing the Agena Bioscience MassARRAY system, we genotyped TRPC6 rs77679196, BRINP1 rs62568637, LDB2 rs55756123, RAB22A rs707557, intergenic rs4305714, LINC01060 rs7698718, and CBR3 rs1056892 (V244M) (previously associated with either doxorubicin or trastuzumab-related cardiotoxicity in the NCCTG N9831 trial of anthracycline-based chemotherapy ± trastuzumab) in 993 patients with HER2+ early breast cancer from the NSABP B-31 trial of adjuvant anthracycline-based chemotherapy ± trastuzumab. Association analyses were performed with outcomes of congestive heart failure (N = 29) and maximum decline in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) using logistic and linear regression models, respectively, under an additive model with age, baseline LVEF, and previous use of hypertensive medications as covariates.ResultsAssociations of maximum decline in LVEF in the NCCTG N9831 patients did not replicate in the NSABP B-31 patients. However, TRPC6 rs77679196 and CBR3 rs1056892 were significantly associated with congestive heart failure, p &lt; 0.05, with stronger associations observed in patients treated with chemotherapy only (no trastuzumab) or in the combined analysis of all patients relative to those patients treated with chemotherapy + trastuzumab.ConclusionsTRPC6 rs77679196 and CBR3 rs1056892 (V244M) are associated with doxorubicin-induced cardiac events in both NCCTG N9831 and NSABP B-31. Other variants previously associated with trastuzumab-related decline in LVEF failed to replicate between these studies.
Combined bulk RNA and single-cell RNA analyses reveal TXNL4A as a new biomarker for hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Li Yifan , Zhu Qiaozhen , Zhou Shuchang , Chen Jiangtao , Du Aoyu , Qin Changjiang 
Published: May 2023

IntroductionHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has a high mortality rate worldwide. The dysregulation of RNA splicing is a major event leading to the occurrence, progression, and drug resistance of cancer. Therefore, it is important to identify new biomarkers of HCC from the RNA splicing pathway.MethodsWe performed the differential expression and prognostic analyses of RNA splicing-related genes (RRGs) using The Cancer Genome Atlas-liver hepatocellular carcinoma (LIHC). The International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC)-LIHC dataset was used to construct and validate prognostic models, and the PubMed database was used to explore genes in the models to identify new markers. The screened genes were subjected to genomic analyses, including differential, prognostic, enrichment, and immunocorrelation analyses. Single-cell RNA (scRNA) data were used to further validate the immunogenetic relationship.ResultsOf 215 RRGs, we identified 75 differentially expressed prognosis-related genes, and a prognostic model incorporating thioredoxin like 4A (TXNL4A) was identified using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression analysis. ICGC-LIHC was used as a validation dataset to confirm the validity of the model. PubMed failed to retrieve HCC-related studies on TXNL4A. TXNL4A was highly expressed in most tumors and was associated with HCC survival. Chi-squared analyses indicated that TXNL4A expression positively correlated positively with the clinical features of HCC. Multivariate analyses revealed that high TXNL4A expression was an independent risk factor for HCC. Immunocorrelation and scRNA data analyses indicated that TXNL4A was correlated with CD8 T cell infiltration in HCC.ConclusionTherefore, we identified a prognostic and immune-related marker for HCC from the RNA splicing pathway.
The efficacy and safety of Trilaciclib in preventing chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
Authors: Qiu Jingyue , Sheng Dandan , Lin Fei , Jiang Peng , Shi Ning 
Published: May 2023

Background: This study aims to assess the clinical efficacy and safety of Trilaciclib in preventing chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression in adult patients through meta-analysis.Methods: The PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Clinical Trials, EU Clinical Trials Register, and International Clinical Trials Registry Platform were searched up to 25 October 2022. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing the clinical outcomes of Trilaciclib and Trilaciclib plus chemotherapy for treating malignant cancers in adult patients were included. The primary outcome included the incidence of SN, FN, the DSN, and administration of ESAs, G-CSFs, and RBC or platelet transfusions, while the secondary outcomes included the risk of adverse events (AEs) and severe adverse events (SAEs).Results: In total, four randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving 345 patients with SCLC or breast cancer were included in this meta-analysis. Results showed that administration of Trilaciclib significantly reduced the occurrence of SN (19.3% vs. 42.2%, OR = 0.31), FN (3.22% vs. 6.72%, OR = 0.47), anemia (20.5% vs. 38.2%, OR = 0.38) and shortened the DSN during treatment. The proportion of patients receiving therapeutic use of ESAs (4.03% vs. 11.8%, OR = 0.31), G-CSF (37.0% vs. 53.5%, OR = 0.52), RBC transfusions (19.8% vs. 29.9%, OR = 0.56) was also statistically lower in the experimental group than in the control group. Meanwhile, the ORR, overall survival, and progress-free survival of the two groups were identical, and no negative impact of Trilaciclib on the clinical outcomes of chemotherapy treatments was found. Other chemotherapy-induced adverse events (AEs) and severe adverse events (SAEs) like diarrhea, fatigue, nausea, and vomiting were identical regardless of Trilaciclib usage.Conclusion: Trilaciclib demonstrated its efficacy in reducing the occurrence of chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression and utilization of supportive care interventions without undermining the clinical benefits of chemotherapy regimens during treatment with an acceptable safety profile.
Detecting user experience issues from mHealth apps that support stroke caregiver needs: an analysis of user reviews
Authors: Lobo Elton H. , Abdelrazek Mohamed , Frølich Anne , Rasmussen Lene J. , Livingston Patricia M. , Islam Sheikh Mohammed Shariful , Kensing Finn , Grundy John 
Published: May 2023

BackgroundExisting research has demonstrated the potential of mHealth apps in improving the caregiving outcomes of stroke. Since most of the apps were published in commercially available app stores without explaining their design and evaluation processes, it is necessary to identify the user experience issues to promote long-term adherence and usage.ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to utilize published user reviews of commercially available apps to determine the user experience issues to guide future app development in stroke caregiving.MethodsUser reviews were extracted from the previously identified 46 apps that support stroke caregiving needs using a python-scraper. The reviews were pre-processed and filtered using python scripts to consider English reviews that described issues faced by the user. The final corpus was categorized based on TF-IDF vectorization and k-means clustering technique, and the issues extracted from the various topics were classified based on the seven dimensions of user experience to highlight factors that may affect the usage of the app.ResultsA total of 117,364 were extracted from the two app stores. After filtration, 13,368 reviews were included and classified based on the user experience dimensions. Findings highlight critical issues that affect the usability, usefulness, desirability, findability, accessibility, credibility, and value of the app that contribute to decreased satisfaction and increased frustration.ConclusionThe study identified several user experience issues due to the inability of the app developers to understand the needs of the user. Further, the study describes the inclusion of a participatory design approach to promote an improved understanding of user needs; therefore, limiting any issues and ensuring continued use.
Potential impact of metabolic syndrome on cognitive function in US firefighters
Authors: Seo Myong-Won , Gann Joshua , Lee Jung-Min , Heffernan Kevin S. , Kim Joon Young , Jung Hyun Chul 
Published: May 2023

ObjectivesAmong US firefighters, sudden cardiac arrest and psychological stress (i.e., PTSD) are the leading cause of on-duty death. Metabolic syndrome (MetSyn) may influence both cardiometabolic and cognitive health. Here, we examined differences in cardiometabolic disease risk factors, cognitive function, and physical fitness in US firefighters with vs. without MetSyn.Materials and methodsOne hundred fourteen male firefighters, aged 20 to 60 years, participated in the study. US firefighters with MetSyn vs. non-MetSyn were divided by AHA/NHLBI criteria. Of them, we performed a paired-match analysis with respect to the age and BMI of firefighters with (n = 18) vs. without MetSyn (n = 18). The cardiometabolic disease risk factors included blood pressure, fasting glucose, blood lipid profiles [HDL-C, triglyceride (TG)], and surrogate markers of insulin resistance [TG/HDL-C, TG glucose index (TyG)]. The cognitive test included a psychomotor vigilance task as a measure of reaction time and a delayed-match-to-sample task (DMS) as a measure of memory, using the computer-based Psychological Experiment Building Language Version 2.0 program. The differences between MetSyn and non-MetSyn groups in US firefighters were analyzed using an independent t-test adjusted for age and BMI. In addition, Spearman correlation and stepwise multiple regression were conducted.ResultsUS firefighters with MetSyn exhibited severe insulin resistance estimated by TG/HDL-C and TyG (Cohen’s d &gt; 0.8, all p &lt; 0.01) compared with their age- and BMI-matched counterparts without MetSyn. In addition, US firefighters with MetSyn exhibited higher DMS total time and reaction time compared with non-MetSyn (Cohen’s d &gt; 0.8, all p &lt; 0.01). In stepwise linear regression, HDL-C predicted DMS total time (β = − 0.440, R2 = 0.194, p &lt; 0.05), and TyG (β = 0.432, R2 = 0.186, p &lt; 0.05) predicted DMS reaction time.ConclusionUS firefighters with vs. without MetSyn were predisposed to metabolic risk factors, surrogate markers of insulin resistance, and cognitive function, even when matched for age and BMI, and there was a negative association between metabolic characteristics and cognitive function in US firefighters. The findings of this study suggest that the prevention of MetSyn may be beneficial to supporting firefighters’ safety and occupational performance.