bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Comparative analysis of 3 pollen sterilization methods for feeding bumble bees
Authors: Strange James P , Tripodi Amber D , Huntzinger Craig , Knoblett Joyce , Klinger Ellen , Herndon James D , Vuong Hoang Q , McFrederick Quinn S , Irwin Rebecca E , Evans Jay D , Giacomini Jonathan J , Ward Robert , Adler Lynn S 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
Pollen is an essential component of bee diets, and rearing bumble bees (Bombus spp.) for commercial use necessitates feeding pollen in mass quantities. This pollen is collected from honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) colonies because neither an artificial diet nor an economical, large-scale pollen collection process from flowers is available. The provenance of honey bee-collected pollen is often unknown, and in some cases has crossed international borders. Both deformed wing virus (DWV) and the fungal pathogen Ascosphaera apis (Claussen) Olive & Spiltoir (cause of chalkbrood disease); occur in honey bee-collected pollen, and infections have been observed in bumble bees. We used these pathogens as general surrogates for viruses and spore-forming fungal diseases to test the efficacy of 3 sterilization methods, and assessed whether treatment altered pollen quality for the bumble bee. Using honey bee-collected pollen spiked with known doses of DWV and A. apis, we compared gamma irradiation (GI), ozone fumigation (OZ), and ethylene oxide fumigation (EO) against an untreated positive control and a negative control. Following sterilization treatments, we tested A. apis spore viability, detected viral presence with PCR, and tested palatability to the bumble bee Bombus impatiens Cresson. We also measured bacterial growth from pollens treated with EO and GI. GI and EO outperformed OZ treatment in pathogen suppression. EO had the highest sterilizing properties under commercial conditions and retained palatability and supported bee development better than other treatments. These results suggest that EO sterilization reduces pathogen risks while retaining pollen quality as a food source for rearing bumble bees.
Genome manipulation by guide-directed Argonaute cleavage
Authors: Huang Shan , Wang Kaihang , Mayo Stephen L 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
Many prokaryotic argonautes (pAgos) mediate DNA interference by using small DNA guides to cleave target DNA. A recent study shows that CbAgo, a pAgo from Clostridium butyricum, induces DNA interference between homologous sequences and generates double-stranded breaks (DSBs) in target DNAs. This mechanism enables the host to defend against invading DNAs such as plasmids and viruses. However, whether such a CbAgo-mediated DNA cleavage is mutagenic remains unexplored. Here we demonstrate that CbAgo, directed by plasmid-encoded guide sequences, can cleave genome target sites and induce chromosome recombination between downstream homologous sequences in Escherichia coli. The recombination rate correlates well with pAgo DNA cleavage activity and the mechanistic study suggests the recombination involves DSBs and RecBCD processing. In RecA-deficient E. coli strain, guide-directed CbAgo cleavage on chromosomes severely impairs cell growth, which can be utilized as counter-selection to assist Lambda-Red recombineering. These findings demonstrate the guide-directed cleavage of pAgo on the host genome is mutagenic and can lead to different outcomes according to the function of the host DNA repair machinery. We anticipate this novel DNA-guided interference to be useful in broader genetic manipulation. Our study also provides an in vivo assay to characterize or engineer pAgo DNA cleavage activity.
Competing contextual processes rely on the infralimbic and prelimbic medial prefrontal cortices in the rat
Authors: George David N , Killcross Simon , Haddon Josephine E 
Published: March 2023

AbstractAmbiguous relationships between events may be established using interference procedures such as latent inhibition, extinction or counterconditioning. Under these conditions, the retrieval of individual associations between a stimulus and outcome is affected by contextual cues. To examine the roles of the dorsal (prelimbic) and ventral (infralimbic) medial prefrontal cortex in the contextual modulation of such associations, we investigated the context specificity of latent inhibition. Male Lister hooded rats were pre-exposed to two separate stimuli, one in each of two distinct contexts. Both stimuli were then paired with the delivery of mild foot-shock in the same one of these contexts. Finally, the strength of the resultant conditioned emotional response (CER) to each stimulus was assessed in each context. For the sham-operated control rats, the CER was attenuated for each stimulus when it was tested in the context in which it had been pre-exposed. Rats who had received lesions to the infralimbic cortex showed this effect only in the conditioning context, whereas rats with lesions to the prelimbic cortex showed the effect only in the context in which conditioning had not taken place. These findings indicate that infralimbic and prelimbic cortices play distinct, and competing, roles in the contextual modulation of initial and later learning.
Fully adaptive Bayesian algorithm for data analysis: FABADA
Authors: Sánchez-Alarcón Pablo M , Ascasibar Yago 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
The discovery potential from astronomical and other data is limited by their noise. We introduce a novel non-parametric noise reduction technique based on Bayesian inference techniques, fully adaptive Bayesian algorithm for data analysis (FABADA) that automatically improves the signal-to-noise ratio of one- and two-dimensional data, such as astronomical images and spectra. The algorithm iteratively evaluates possible smoothed versions of the data, the smooth models, estimating the underlying signal that is statistically compatible with the noisy measurements. Iterations stop based on the evidence and the χ2 statistic of the last smooth model. We then compute the expected value of the signal as a weighted average of the whole set of smooth models. We explain the mathematical formalism and numerical implementation of the algorithm, and evaluate its performance in terms of the peak signal-to-noise ratio, the structural similarity index, and the time payload, using a battery of real astronomical observations. Our FABADA yields results that, without any parameter tuning, are comparable with standard image processing algorithms whose parameters have been optimized based on the true signal to be recovered, something that is impossible in a real application. On the other hand, state-of-the-art non-parametric methods, such as block-matching and three-dimensional filtering, offer slightly better performance at high signal-to-noise ratio, while our algorithm is significantly more accurate for extremely noisy data, a situation usually encountered in astronomy.
Treacherous waters: justifying the non-application of Saunders v Vautier to massively discretionary trusts
Authors: Bond Eliza , Sanderson Harry 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
Under the rule in Saunders v Vautier, a beneficiary may at any time call for the trust property to be transferred to them. An unresolved question is whether this rule can apply to “massively discretionary trusts”—trusts where the trustees’ discretions effectively displace or overwhelm a beneficiary’s interests. There has been conflicting authority on this issue: while decisions of superior courts in Guernsey and Jersey have held that the rule can apply, the balance of authority in English law favours the non-application of the rule. In In re GeraldMartinSmith [2021] EWHC 1272 (Comm) Foxton J made obiter comments on the point, indicating that Saunders v Vautier does not and should not apply to massively discretionary trusts. This note discusses the case, and endorses Foxton J’s conclusion. However, it also comments on some points of principle not considered in the decision, arguing that the concept of indefeasibility should be more central to the justification for this conclusion.
Contrasting stem water uptake and storage dynamics of water-saver and water-spender species during drought and recovery
Authors: Martín-Gómez Paula , Rodríguez-Robles Ulises , Ogée Jérôme , Wingate Lisa , Sancho-Knapik Domingo , Peguero-Pina José , dos Santos Silva José Victor , Gil-Pelegrín Eustaquio , Pemán Jesús , Ferrio Juan Pedro 
Published: March 2023

Abstract
Drought is projected to occur more frequently and intensely in the coming decades, and the extent to which it will affect forest functioning will depend on species-specific responses to water stress. Aiming to understand the hydraulic traits and water dynamics behind water-saver and water-spender strategies in response to drought and recovery, we conducted a pot experiment with two species with contrasting physiological strategies, Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and Portuguese oak (Quercus faginea L.). We applied two cycles of soil drying and recovery and irrigated with isotopically different water to track fast changes in soil and stem water pools, while continuously measuring physiological status and xylem water content from twigs. Our results provide evidence for a tight link between the leaf-level response and the water uptake and storage patterns in the stem. The water-saver strategy of pines prevented stem dehydration by rapidly closing stomata which limited their water uptake during the early stages of drought and recovery. Conversely, oaks showed a less conservative strategy, maintaining transpiration and physiological activity under dry soil conditions, and consequently becoming more dehydrated at the stem level. We interpreted this dehydration as the release of water from elastic storage tissues as no major loss of hydraulic conductance occurred for this species. After soil rewetting, pines recovered pre-drought leaf water potential rapidly, but it took longer to replace the water from conductive tissues (slower labeling speed). In contrast, water-spender oaks were able to quickly replace xylem water during recovery (fast labeling speed), but it took longer to refill stem storage tissues, and hence to recover pre-drought leaf water potential. These different patterns in sap flow rates, speed and duration of the labeling reflected a combination of water-use and storage traits, linked to the leaf-level strategies in response to drought and recovery.
Mobile health lifestyle intervention program leads to clinically significant loss of body weight in patients with NASH
Authors: Stine Jonathan G. , Rivas Gloriany , Hummer Breianna , Duarte-Rojo Andres , May Christine N , Geyer Nathaniel , Chinchilli Vernon M. , Conroy David E. , Mitchell Ellen Siobhan , McCallum Meaghan , Michealides Andreas , Schmitz Kathryn H. 
Published: March 2023

Background & Aims:
Lifestyle intervention remains the foundation of clinical care for patients with NASH; however, most patients are unsuccessful in enacting sustained behavioral change. There remains a clear unmet need to develop lifestyle intervention programs to support weight loss. Mobile health (mHealth) programs offer promise to address this need, yet their efficacy remains unexplored.

Approach & Results:
We conducted a 16-week randomized controlled clinical trial involving adults with NASH. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1 ratio) to receive Noom Weight (NW), a mHealth lifestyle intervention program, or standard clinical care. The primary end point was a change in body weight. Secondary end points included feasibility (weekly app engagement), acceptability (>50% approached enrolled), and safety. Of 51 patients approached, 40 (78%) were randomly assigned (20 NW and 20 standard clinical care). NW significantly decreased body weight when compared to standard clinical care (-5.5 kg vs. -0.3 kg, p = 0.008; -5.4% vs. -0.4%, p = 0.004). More NW subjects achieved a clinically significant weight loss of ≥5% body weight (45% vs. 15%, p = 0.038). No adverse events occurred, and the majority (70%) of subjects in the NW arm met the feasibility criteria.

Conclusions:
This clinical trial demonstrated that NW is not only feasible, acceptable, and safe but also highly efficacious because this mHealth lifestyle intervention program led to significantly greater body weight loss than standard clinical care. Future large-scale studies are required to validate these findings with more representative samples and to determine if mHealth lifestyle intervention programs can lead to sustained, long-term weight loss in patients with NASH.
A paradigm for fostering patient-centered research in liver disease: The liver transplant patient-engagement program
Authors: Lieber Sarah R. , VanWagner Lisa B. , Noriega Ramirez Alvaro , Serper Marina , Singal Amit G. , Evon Donna M. 
Published: March 2023

Background:
Many federal funding and regulatory agencies require patient engagement to conduct patient-centered research and drug development. We developed a liver transplantation patient-engagement program, which can serve as a model for bringing the patient perspective to digestive diseases research.

Methods:
Six liver transplantation patient-engagement program advisors completed training in patient engagement; participated in several virtual sessions; and completed postsession surveys.

Results:
Qualitative and quantitative results elucidated patient-centered liver transplantation study outcomes and barriers/facilitators to conducting clinical research. Group satisfaction was very high.

Conclusions:
The liver transplantation patient-engagement program model provides a paradigm for how to engage patients in the formative steps of patient-centered clinical research.
The impact of dietary and lifestyle interventions on blood pressure management in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review and metanalysis
Authors: Ilori Titilayo O. , Zhen Aileen , Velani Romie N. , Zhao Runqi , Echouffo-Tcheugui Justin , Anderson Cheryl A.M. , Waikar Sushrut S. , Kengne Andre P. 
Published: March 2023

Objectives:
Current literature is lacking a comprehensive review of data on dietary interventions in blood pressure (BP) management in sub-Saharan African countries. We assessed the association of dietary and other lifestyle interventions with BP-lowering effects in populations within sub-Saharan Africa.

Methods:
We performed a systematic review and random-effects meta-analysis to determine the impact of dietary and lifestyle interventions on SBP and DBP in sub-Saharan Africa. We searched the MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Web of Science databases. We included intervention studies that were randomized and nonrandomized conducted in Africans residing in sub-Saharan Africa investigating diet and other lifestyle, physical activity, weight loss, tobacco, and alcohol cessation modifications. We determined the effect of diet and other lifestyle interventions on SBP and DBP. We expressed effect size as weighted mean difference and 95% confidence interval (CI).

Main results
: We identified six studies with a total of 1412 individuals, 38% males, mean age of 52.8 years (SD = 11.5). The weighted mean difference of dietary and other lifestyle interventions on SBP and DBP was −7.33 mmHg, (95% CI: −9.90 to −4.76, P < 0.001) and −2.98 mmHg, (95% CI: −4.28 to −1.69, P < 0.001), respectively. In the metaregression analyses, the duration of the interventions did not have any effect on changes in SBP and DBP.

Principal conclusion
: Dietary modifications showed a beneficial overall improvement in SBP and DBP in Africans. However, aside from low-salt interventions, studies on dietary potassium, healthy dietary patterns, and lifestyle modifications have not been investigated extensively in Africans and are in critical need. In addition, researchers will need to consider the settings (rural, urban, or semiurban) and the predominant existing dietary habits while designing studies on dietary interventions in sub-Saharan Africa.

PROSPERO registration
: CRD42020207923.
Inverse salt sensitivity in normotensive adults: role of demographic factors
Authors: Romberger Nathan T. , Stock Joseph M. , Patik Jordan C. , McMillan Ronald K. , Lennon Shannon L. , Edwards David G. , Farquhar William B. 
Published: March 2023

Background:
Salt sensitivity and inverse salt sensitivity [ISS; a reduction in blood pressure (BP) on a high sodium diet] are each associated with increased incidence of hypertension. The purpose of this analysis was to determine the prevalence of ISS in normotensive adults and whether ISS is associated with any demographic characteristic(s).

Method:
Healthy normotensive, nonobese adults [n = 84; 43 women; age = 37 ± 13 years; baseline mean arterial pressure (MAP) = 89 ± 8 mmHg] participated in a controlled feeding study, consuming 7-day low-sodium (20 mmol sodium/day) and high-sodium (300 mmol sodium/day) diets. Twenty-four-hour ambulatory BP was assessed on the last day of each diet. ISS was defined as a reduction in 24-h MAP more than 5 mmHg, salt sensitivity as an increase in MAP more than 5 mmHg and salt resistance as a change in MAP between −5 and 5 mmHg from low sodium to high sodium.

Results:
Using this cutoff, 10.7% were ISS, 76.2% salt resistant, and 13.1% salt sensitive. Prevalence of ISS was similar between sexes and age groups (P > 0.05). However, ISS was more prevalent in those with normal BMI (15.8% ISS) compared with those with overweight BMI (0% ISS; P < 0.01). Interestingly, classification of participants using a salt sensitivity index (ΔMAP/Δ urinary sodium excretion) categorized 21.4% as ISS, 48.8% salt resistant, and 29.8% salt sensitive. Overall, we found that the prevalence of ISS was 10.7% (5 mmHg cutoff) or 21.4% (salt sensitivity index), and that ISS was associated with lower BMI.

Conclusion:
These results highlight the importance of future work to understand the mechanisms of ISS and to standardize salt sensitivity assessment.
Association of hydrochlorothiazide treatment compared with alternative diuretics with overall and skin cancer risk: a propensity-matched cohort study
Authors: Götzinger Felix , Wilke Thomas , Hardtstock Fänce , Krieger Julia , Maywald Ulf , Kunz Michael , Lauder Lucas , Schulz Martin , Mahfoud Felix , Böhm Michael 
Published: March 2023

Introduction:
Hydrochlorothiazide (HCT) has been suggested to induce photosensitivity, thereby increasing the incidence of skin cancers. After a pharmacovigilance alert, HCT was frequently withdrawn or substituted by other diuretics. The aim of this study was to compare the association of exposure to HCT with cancer risk versus alternative diuretics.

Methods:
A retrospective cohort study was conducted based on data from the AOK PLUS, a large German statutory health insurance fund. Patients with HCT treatment were propensity score matching to patients using non-HCT diuretics. Incidence of cancer of any kind and, specifically, skin cancer was assessed in both groups. Time-to-incident cancer diagnosis was evaluated and compared between the groups.

Results:
A total of 199 708 patients were included in the final analysis (n = 76 855 in the HCT group; n = 122 853 in the non-HCT-diuretics group). After propensity score matching, 122 554 patients remained in the sample (n = 61 277 for both groups, of which >96% had hypertension, mean age 73 years, 61% female). HCT treatment was associated with a lower incidence of cancer of any kind compared with non-HCT diuretics (incidence rate ratio per 100 patient years 0.84 95% confidence interval: 0.82–0.87). HCT treatment was associated with a small albeit significantly higher incidence rate ratio of skin cancer (1.14 95% confidence interval: 1.06–1.24) with significant variances over time. Although numerically higher, the difference accounts to only 0.05 more skin cancer diagnoses in 100 patient-years.

Conclusion:
HCT treatment compared with alternative diuretics was associated with a lower all-cancer risk and a numerically small increased skin cancer risk in a large German population. Risk–benefit evaluation should be executed in patients with increased skin cancer risk and treatment with HCT. Furthermore, advice for skin protection is warranted in all patients taking thiazide or thiazide-like diuretics.
Neonatal Group B Streptococcal Infection in Australia: A Case–control Study
Authors: Yanni Marianne , Stark Michael , Francis Laura , Francis Joshua R. , McMillan Mark , Baird Rob , Heath Paul T. , Gordon Alex , Riccardione James , Wilson Angela , Lee Rebecca , Chooi Kathrina , Quinn Olivia-Paris , Marshall Helen S. 
Published: March 2023

Background:
To determine maternal and neonatal risk factors for, and incidence of, neonatal early-onset group B streptococcus (EOGBS) and late-onset (LOGBS) infection in South Australia (SA) and the Northern Territory (NT).

Methods:
A case–control study with 2:1 matched controls to cases. The study included tertiary hospitals in South Australia and the Northern Territory, Australia. Retrospective data were collected from a 16-year epoch (2000–2015).

Results:
Of a total of 188 clinically suspected or confirmed cases, 139 were confirmed, of which 56.1% (n = 78) were EOGBS and 43.9% (n = 61) were LOGBS. The incidence of clinically suspected and confirmed cases of EOGBS was 0.26/1000 live births in SA and 0.73/1000 live births in the NT, and the incidence of confirmed cases was 0.19/1000 for SA and 0.36/1000 for the NT. The incidence of clinically suspected or confirmed LOGBS was 0.18/1000 live births in SA and 0.16/1000 for the NT. The majority of infants with GBS presented with sepsis, pneumonia, or meningitis. Developmental delay was the most commonly recorded long-term complication at 1 year old. Risk factors for EOGBS included maternal GBS carriage, previous fetal death, identifying as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, and maternal fever in labor/chorioamnionitis.

Conclusions:
GBS remains a leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. Adding previous fetal death to GBS screening guidelines would improve GBS prevention. The introduction of maternal GBS vaccination programs should be guided by country-specific disease epidemiology.
Colorectal cancer with testicular metastasis: A case report and literature review
Authors: Wu Jia-Ming , Zhang Ao , Dong Yu , Lin Si-Hong , Meng Jin-Cheng , Fang Can-Tu 
Published: March 2023

Rationale:
Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the world. About 50% of patients will have metastases during the course of the disease. The common sites of metastasis are the liver, lung, peritoneum, lymph, etc. Metastatic carcinoma to the testes is uncommon. We found a case of ascending colon cancer metastasized to the testis in the clinic.

Patient concerns:
We reported a 50-year-old male patient who was found to have testicular metastases >4 years after intestinal cancer surgery, and multiple metastases in the peritoneum and pelvis were found 1 week later.

Diagnoses:
After enhanced computed tomography and pathological biopsy, the patient was diagnosed with testicular metastasis of colon cancer.

Interventions:
Capecitabine combined with bevacizumab is currently undergoing palliative treatment.

Outcomes:
The patients died of tumor progression on June 28, 2021.

Lessons:
The testicular metastasis of colorectal cancer is a sign of peritoneum and multiple metastases. When the testicular metastasis occurs in colorectal cancer patients, it usually indicates that the patient has a poor prognosis.