bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Immunosuppression therapy for idiopathic membranous nephropathy: systematic review with network meta-analysis
Authors: Bose Bhadran , Chung Edmund Y. M. , Hong Regina , Strippoli Giovanni F. M. , Johnson David W. , Yang Wen-ling , Badve Sunil V. , Palmer Suetonia C. 
Published: February 2022

Abstract
Background
Idiopathic membranous nephropathy is a common cause of nephrotic syndrome in adults. The Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes guidelines recommend rituximab or cyclophosphamide and steroids, or calcineurin inhibitor-based therapy. However, there have been few or no head-to-head comparisons of the relative efficacy and safety of different immunosuppression regimens. We conducted a network meta-analysis to evaluate the comparative efficacy and safety of available immunosuppression strategies compared to cyclophosphamide in adults with idiopathic membranous nephropathy.

Methods
We performed a systematic search of MEDLINE, Embase and CENTRAL for randomized controlled trials in the treatment of adults with idiopathic membranous nephropathy. The primary outcome was complete remission. Secondary outcomes were kidney failure, partial remission, estimated glomerular filtration rate, doubling of serum creatinine, proteinuria, serious adverse events, discontinuation of treatment, serious infection and bone marrow suppression.

Results
Cyclophosphamide had uncertain effects on inducing complete remission when compared to rituximab (OR 0.35, CI 0.10–1.24, low certainty evidence), mycophenolate mofetil (OR 1.81, CI 0.69–4.71, low certainty), calcineurin inhibitor (OR 1.26, CI 0.61–2.63, low certainty) or steroid monotherapy (OR 2.31, CI 0.62–8.52, low certainty). Cyclophosphamide had a higher probability of inducing complete remission when compared to calcineurin inhibitor plus rituximab (OR 4.45, CI 1.04–19.10, low certainty). Compared to other immunosuppression strategies, there was limited evidence that cyclophosphamide had different effects on other pre-specified outcomes.

Conclusions
The comparative effectiveness and safety of immunosuppression strategies compared to cyclophosphamide is uncertain in adults with idiopathic membranous nephropathy.

Graphical abstract
Turning mobile big data insights into public health responses in times of pandemics: Lessons learnt from the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Authors: Gueguen Chloe , Snel Nicolas , Mutonji Eric 
Published: February 2022

Abstract
In low-income countries like the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)—where data is scarce and national statistics offices often under-resourced—aggregated and anonymised mobile operators’ data can provide vital insights for decision-makers to promptly respond to both prevailing and new pandemics, such as COVID-19. Yet, while research on possible applications of mobile big data (MBD) analytics for COVID-19 is growing, there is still little evidence on how such use cases are actually being adopted by governmental authorities and how MBD insights can effectively be turned into informed public health actions in times of crises. This four-part commentary paper aims to bridge such literature gaps, by sharing lessons learnt from the DRC, whereby Congolese public health authorities, through a steep learning curve, have initiated a public–private sector dialogue with local mobile network operators (MNOs) and their ecosystem partners to leverage population mobility insights for COVID-19 policy-making. After having set the scene on the policy relevance of MBD analytics in the context of the DRC in the first section, the paper will then detail four key enablers that contributed, since March 2020, to accelerate Congolese authorities’ uptake of MBD, thus effectively increasing preparedness for future pandemics. Thirdly, we showcase concreate use-cases where “readiness-to-use” has actually translated into actual “usage” and “adoption” for decision-making, while introducing other use cases currently under development. Finally, we explore challenges when harnessing telco big data for decision-making with the ultimate aim to share lessons to replicate the successes and steer the development of MBD for social good in other low-income countries.
The COVID-19 Church-Closure Cases and the Free Exercise of Religion
Authors: Storslee Mark 
Published: February 2022

AbstractIn a series of cases over the past year, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld then struck down COVID-19–related restrictions on worship in various states across the country. Those decisions clarified that, under the Free Exercise Clause, laws burdening religion aren't “generally applicable” when they treat religious conduct less favorably than comparable secular conduct. But they also relied on controversial claims that religious gatherings were comparable to places like grocery stores in their likelihood of spreading the virus. This article offers a different perspective. In addition to the rule about comparators, general applicability also contains a second rule. Where a law requires officials to consider the religious reasons for conduct as a precondition for regulating it, the law isn't generally applicable and ought to be subject to heightened scrutiny. The Court mostly passed over that requirement in the COVID-19 church-closure cases. But rightly understood, it may have provided an alternative path for resolving them—and one that didn't depend on controversial comparisons between churches and shopping centers. Instead, focusing on this second aspect of general applicability would have yielded a commonsense conclusion: where a law or policy grants favored treatment for activities it explicitly deems “essential,” “critical,” or “life-sustaining,” one of those things must be religion, absent compelling reason to the contrary. And understanding the rationale behind that conclusion provides important insights about the meaning of the Free Exercise Clause and several other issues at the heart of the First Amendment.
Collective Self-Determination, Territory and the Wet'suwet’en: What Justifies the Political Authority of Historic Indigenous Governments over Land and People?
Authors: Luoma Michael 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThis article examines the Wet'suwet’en people's struggle for territorial control over their traditional homeland from the normative perspective of collective self-determination. I focus on two interlocking philosophical questions that arise in examination of the case: the justification for a group's right to control territory and the justification for the right of political institutions and officials within those institutions to make and enforce law for the occupants of the territory. I argue that, pursuant to the collective self-determination theory of territorial rights, the legitimate representatives of the Wet'suwet’en people must reflect the people's shared will. After describing the traditional governance system of the Wet'suwet’en people, I argue that there is nothing in principle preventing the hereditary chiefs from reflecting the shared will of the Wet'suwet’en people (as I argue electoral democracy is not always necessary for collective self-determination). I illustrate several reasons why hereditary leaders could reflect the shared will of Wet'suwet’en people better than alternative political authorities, while demonstrating that the political authority of any Wet'suwet’en governance system depends upon the actual endorsement of Wet'suwet’en people themselves.
Prevalence of Dirofilaria repens in dogs living in deltaic coastal plain of the Volturno River (Italy): a geographical risk model of infection
Authors: Ferrara M. , Maglione R. , Ciccarelli D. , Mundis S.J. , Di Loria A. , Pisaroglo de Carvalho M. , Santoro D. 
Published: February 2022

Abstract
The prevalence of vector-associated parasitic infections is high in central-southern Italy. The deltaic coastal plain of the Volturno River has been suspected, by veterinary practitioners, to have a high accidental incidence of Dirofilaria repens. Thus, the goal of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of dirofilariasis and other coinfections frequently described in dogs living in the Volturno area. Blood samples of 100 clinical asymptomatic dogs were examined using a Knott's technique and polymerase chain reaction in order to identify microfilariae. Other vector-borne coinfections were also investigated using ELISA kits. The results were analysed using statistical and Geographic Information System (GIS) software. Microfilariae of D. repens were detected in 10% of the dogs surveyed, with a presence of antibodies against Ehrlichia canis (4/10) and Dirofilaria immitis (1/10). Such high incidence should be considered in light of the zoonotic potential for D. repens and the support for more regular use of repellents to prevent the spread of this disease. The GIS analyses indicated that the study area provides suitable conditions to sustain populations of mosquito vectors and D. repens parasites throughout much of the year.
A randomised controlled trial of acceptance and commitment therapy for improving quality of life in people with muscle diseases
Authors: Rose Michael , Graham Christopher D. , O'Connell Nicola , Vari Chiara , Edwards Victoria , Taylor Emma , McCracken Lance M. , Radunovic Aleksander , Rakowicz Wojtek , Norton Sam , Chalder Trudie 
Published: February 2022

AbstractBackgroundChronic muscle diseases (MD) are progressive and cause wasting and weakness in muscles and are associated with reduced quality of life (QoL). The ACTMuS trial examined whether Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) as an adjunct to usual care improved QoL for such patients as compared to usual care alone.MethodsThis two-arm, randomised, multicentre, parallel design recruited 155 patients with MD (Hospital and Depression Scale ⩾ 8 for depression or ⩾ 8 for anxiety and Montreal Cognitive Assessment ⩾ 21/30). Participants were randomised, using random block sizes, to one of two groups: standard medical care (SMC) (n = 78) or to ACT in addition to SMC (n = 77), and were followed up to 9 weeks. The primary outcome was QoL, assessed by the Individualised Neuromuscular Quality of Life Questionnaire (INQoL), the average of five subscales, at 9-weeks. Trial registration was NCT02810028.Results138 people (89.0%) were followed up at 9-weeks. At all three time points, the adjusted group difference favoured the intervention group and was significant with moderate to large effect sizes. Secondary outcomes (mood, functional impairment, aspects of psychological flexibility) also showed significant differences between groups at week 9.ConclusionsACT in addition to usual care was effective in improving QoL and other psychological and social outcomes in patients with MD. A 6 month follow up will determine the extent to which gains are maintained.
The influence of the temporal characteristics of events on adults’ and children’s pronoun resolution
Authors: FRANCEY Gillian , CAIN Kate 
Published: February 2022

AbstractWe examined the influence of the lexical and grammatical aspect of events on pronoun resolution in adults (18 to 23 years, N = 46), adolescents (13 to 14 years, N=66) and children (7 to 11 years, N=192). Participants were presented with 64 two-sentence stimuli: the first sentence described events with two same gender protagonists; the second began with a personal pronoun and described a status that could be attributed to either protagonist. Participants recorded to whom the pronoun referred, in a booklet. For all groups, Subject resolutions were more likely for events (a) without endpoints relative to those with endpoints, and (b) described as ongoing rather than completed, but this latter influence was restricted to events with endpoints for adults and adolescents. The findings provide support for the Event Structure Hypothesis of pronoun resolution (Rohde, Kehler & Elman, 2006) and provide new insights into the development of pronoun resolution.
Cognitive predictors of language abilities in primary school children: A cascaded developmental view
Authors: ACHA Joana , AGIRREGOIKOA Ainhize , BARRETO-ZARZA Florencia , ARRANZ-FREIJO Enrique B. 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThis study investigated the longitudinal relationship between children’s domain-general cognitive constraints underlying phonological and sentence processing development in a big sample of typically developing children. 104 children were tested on non-linguistic processing speed, phonological skills (phonological short term memory, phonological knowledge, phonological working memory), and sentence processing abilities (sentence repetition and receptive grammar) in 1st grade (aged 6 to 6.5) and one year later. A cross-lagged structural equation model showed that non-linguistic processing speed was a concurrent predictor of phonological skills, and that phonology had a powerful effect on the child’s sentence processing abilities concurrently and longitudinally, providing clear evidence for the role of domain-general processes in the developmental pathway of language. These findings support a cascaded cognitive view of language development and pose important challenges for evaluation and intervention strategies in childhood.
Censoring the Muses: Opera and Creative Control in Nicholas's Russia (1825–1855)
Authors: Zavlunov Daniil 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThis article offers the first systematic investigation of the institution of opera censorship in Russia during the reign of Nicholas I. Drawing on new archival sources, it examines censorship legislation, the organisation of dramatic (i.e., theatre) censorship, the workings of its bureaucracy, censors’ reports and protocols and Nicholas's personal decrees on productions of specific operas, and printed and manuscript librettos. From these, it distils the patterns of state intervention in opera, revealing a remarkable fluidity – even capriciousness – of approaches. Decisions to ban or permit, and specific intrusions into the texts, were based on the censors’ adherence to or disregard for the Empire's censorship laws, Nicholas's inclinations and impulses, changes in cultural policy, practical needs of the Imperial Theatres, the shifting political climate at home and abroad, and, most of all, the national point of origin of the operatic work under review. In addition to surveying the trends, the article offers three case studies: Glinka'sZhizn’ za Tsarya(A Life for the Tsar), Verdi'sRigolettoand Meyerbeer'sLes Huguenots.
Paediatric acute care cardiology collaborative data registry validation
Authors: Khadr L. , Hart S.A. , Schachtner S. , Graupe M. , Veneziale K.L. , Bushnell J. , Roberts F. , Jolly-Passerini H. , Madsen N. 
Published: February 2022

AbstractBackground:The Pediatric Acute Care Cardiology Collaborative (PAC3) was established to improve acute care cardiology outcomes through the development of an accurate and well-validated clinical registry. We report the validation results of the initial PAC3 registry audits and describe a novel regional audit format developed to accommodate a rapidly expanding membership facilitate collaborative learning and allow for necessary modification due to the COVID-19 pandemic.Materials and methods:Six hospitals were audited using a regional audit format and three hospitals were subsequently audited virtually. Critical and challenging-to-collect data elements were audited among at least 40 randomly selected cases. Discrepancies were categorised as either major or minor depending on their relative importance to patient outcomes and clinical care. Results were tabulated and reported.Results:We audited 386 encounters and 27,086 individual data fields across 9 hospitals. The aggregate overall accuracy rate was 99.27% and the aggregate major discrepancy rate was 0.51%. The overall accuracy rate ranged from 98.77% to 99.59%, and the major discrepancy rate ranged from 0.26% to 0.88% across the cohort. No appreciable difference was seen between audit formats. Both the regional and virtual audit methods were viewed favourably by participants.Conclusions:A low data discrepancy rate was found demonstrating that the PAC3 registry is a highly accurate data source for use in quality improvement, benchmarking, and research. Regional audits and virtual audits were both successfully implemented.
Cryptogenic stroke caused by patent foramen ovale with thrombophilia and accessory tricuspid valve in a teenager
Authors: Takafuji Hiroya , Kato Nahoko , Obunai Kotaro 
Published: February 2022

AbstractAccessory tricuspid valve is rare congenital abnormality. We describe a case of cryptogenic stroke in teenager boy caused by patent foramen ovale with thrombophilia and accessory tricuspid valve.
Aggregate Semantics for Propositional Answer Set Programs
Authors: ALVIANO MARIO , FABER WOLFGANG , GEBSER MARTIN 
Published: February 2022

AbstractAnswer set programming (ASP) emerged in the late 1990s as a paradigm for knowledge representation and reasoning. The attractiveness of ASP builds on an expressive high-level modeling language along with the availability of powerful off-the-shelf solving systems. While the utility of incorporating aggregate expressions in the modeling language has been realized almost simultaneously with the inception of the first ASP solving systems, a general semantics of aggregates and its efficient implementation have been long-standing challenges. Aggregates have been proposed and widely used in database systems, and also in the deductive database language Datalog, which is one of the main precursors of ASP. The use of aggregates was, however, still restricted in Datalog (by either disallowing recursion or only allowing monotone aggregates), while several ways to integrate unrestricted aggregates evolved in the context of ASP. In this survey, we pick up at this point of development by presenting and comparing the main aggregate semantics that have been proposed for propositional ASP programs. We highlight crucial properties such as computational complexity and expressive power, and outline the capabilities and limitations of different approaches by illustrative examples.
A SIMPLE SEQUENT SYSTEM FOR MINIMALLY INCONSISTENT LP
Authors: GOLAN REA 
Published: February 2022

AbstractMinimally inconsistent LP (MiLP) is a nonmonotonic paraconsistent logic based on Graham Priest’s logic of paradox (LP). Unlike LP, MiLP purports to recover, in consistent situations, all of classical reasoning. The present paper conducts a proof-theoretic analysis of MiLP. I highlight certain properties of this logic, introduce a simple sequent system for it, and establish soundness and completeness results. In addition, I show how to use my proof system in response to a criticism of this logic put forward by J. C. Beall.
Southern Ocean Precipitation Characteristics Observed From CloudSat and Ground Instrumentation During the Macquarie Island Cloud & Radiation Experiment (MICRE): April 2016 to March 2017
Authors: Tansey Emily , Marchand Roger , Protat Alain , Alexander Simon P. , Ding Saisai 
Published: February 2022

AbstractA 1‐year blended surface precipitation data set using Parsivel disdrometer, surface W‐band radar, and tipping bucket measurements is produced for the Macquarie Island Cloud and Radiation Experiment (MICRE) and compared with retrievals from CloudSat (spaceborne 94 GHz radar). Surface precipitation was observed 44% ± 4% of the time between April 2016 and March 2017. Precipitation composed primarily of small particles (diameter <1 mm) occurred about 36% ± 2% of the time, constituting 10% of total accumulation. Remaining precipitation contained enough large particles such that the disdrometer could be used to identify the precipitation type as rain, ice, snow or wet snow. Seasonal and annual statistics on frequency of occurrence and accumulation for each precipitation type observed during MICRE are presented. Most ice and mixed phase precipitation was shallow, originating at a height of 3 km or lower, and occurred most often when Macquarie Island was to the northwest of the nearest cyclonic low‐pressure center. In contrast, rain was more often deep and occurred most frequently when the island was to the southeast of cyclonic lows. A weak diurnal cycle in frequency and mean rate was present with a minimum between 12:00 and 14:00 local time and maximum between 03:00 and 06:00 local time. The CloudSat 2C‐Precip‐Column product missed the lightest precipitation (because the near‐surface reflectivity is <−15 dBZ) and overestimated total liquid precipitation and occurrence of mixed phase precipitation, but captured reasonably well the distribution of rain rates for rates >0.5 mm/hr.
Gut microbiota and plasma cytokine levels in patients with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
Authors: Wang Liang-Jen , Li Sung-Chou , Li Shiao-Wen , Kuo Ho-Chang , Lee Sheng-Yu , Huang Lien-Hung , Chin Chia-Yin , Yang Chia-Yu 
Published: February 2022

AbstractAttention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common childhood mental disorder with undetermined pathophysiological mechanisms. The gut microbiota and immunological dysfunction may influence brain functions and social behaviours. In the current study, we aimed to explore the correlation of gut microbiome imbalance and inflammation in the pathophysiology of ADHD. Forty-one children with ADHD and thirty-nine healthy-control (HC) individuals were recruited. Faecal samples from all participants were collected and submitted for 16 S rRNA V3–V4 amplicon microbiome sequencing analysis. The plasma levels of 10 cytokines, including TNF-α, IL-6, IL-1β, IL-2, IL-10, IL-13, IL-17A, IFN-α2, IFN-γ, and MCP-1, were determined using a custom-made sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) developed by Luminex Flowmetrix. There was no significant difference between the ADHD and HC groups in species diversity in the faeces, as determined with α-diversity and β-diversity analysis. In the ADHD group, three differentially abundant taxonomic clades at the genus level were observed, namely Agathobacter, Anaerostipes, and Lachnospiraceae. Top differentially abundant bacteria and representative biological pathways were identified in children with ADHD using linear discriminant analysis (LDA) effect size (LEfSe), and the phylogenetic investigation of communities by reconstruction of unobserved states (PICRUSt) analysis, respectively. The plasma levels of TNF-α were significantly lower in children with ADHD than in HCs. Within the ADHD group, the levels of TNF-α were negatively correlated with ADHD symptoms and diversity of the gut microbiome. Our study provides new insights into the association between gut microbiome dysbiosis and immune dysregulation, which may contribute to the pathophysiology of ADHD.