bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
How hydrology and landscape shape Odonata assemblages in marshlands crossed by ditches
Authors: Crabot Julie , Mauchamp André , Bergerot Benjamin , Bonis Anne , Gore Olivier , Rossignol Nicolas , Paillisson Jean‐Marc 
Published: April 2022

Abstract

One of the major current ecological challenges is to understand how to reconcile human activities with biodiversity conservation concerns. This issue is particularly relevant in freshwater ecosystems where biodiversity is globally under severe threat. Artificial waterbodies, such as ditch networks, are part of the few remaining wetlands in agricultural landscapes and hence play a crucial role in maintaining aquatic biodiversity in these landscapes.

We investigated the responses of adult Odonata assemblages at different spatial scales in a marshland crossed by ditches to two factors expected to be pivotal influences on assemblages. At the local scale, this was mainly the water regime in ditches and, at a broader scale, the composition of the landscape. Both taxonomic alpha and beta diversity, and functional trait composition were considered as response variables.

Significant differences were found between the responses of the two Odonata suborders. We showed that Zygoptera species richness decreased and species turnover increased with the duration of drying episodes in ditches. Geographical distances between local assemblages as well as landscape characteristics, notably woodland cover, meadow cover and ditch network length, also significantly shaped the distribution of Zygoptera. For Anisoptera, species richness was not explained by environmental variables and beta diversity was associated only with local conditions; it increased with increasing dissimilarity in water quality and riparian vegetation. We also found evidence of functional trait syndromes (combinations of correlated traits) in Odonata assemblages, but without clear relationships to environmental gradients.

This study reveals the structuring role of water regime for Odonata in ditch networks and demonstrates the need to jointly consider environmental variables at different spatial scales to properly understand the distribution of Odonata.

Our findings have important conservation implications as the water regime is heavily managed in such ecosystems. Even though the relationship between functional composition and environmental gradients was found to be of limited extent in this study, we discuss how it might provide new insights for Odonata assemblage structure and be useful, locally, for stakeholders and managers. Lastly, we call for further multiscale investigations considering both the taxonomic and functional responses of Odonata assemblages (functional analyses with multiple traits and several species being scarce in this taxonomic group) in other anthropogenic freshwater ecosystems to gather more lessons for their conservation.
Bone health in haemophilia carriers and persons with von Willebrand disease: A large database analysis
Authors: Citla‐Sridhar Divyaswathi , Sidonio Robert F. , Ahuja Sanjay P. 
Published: April 2022

AbstractIntroductionPersons with haemophilia(PWH) have been shown to have low bone mineral density likely the result of prolonged immobility, recurrent hemarthrosis, decreased weight bearing, lower physical activity level and obesity. Bone health has been poorly characterized in haemophilia carriers (HC) and persons with von Willebrand disease (PWvWD).AimTo estimate the prevalence of osteoporosis, osteoarthritis and bone fractures in HC and PWvWD and identify risk factors for poor bone health.MethodsThis is a retrospective study using a population level, commercial database – Explorys (IBM Watson Health, Cleveland, USA). We compared prevalence rates of osteoporosis, osteoarthritis and fractures among cases (HC or PWvWD) and controls (general population without an underlying bleeding disorder) from 1999 to 2020. Prevalence of common risk factors for poor bone health were compared among cases and controls.ResultsAmong 72,917,850 active persons in the database, we identified 940 women with the diagnosis of HC and 19,580 PWvWD. Among HC and PWvWD, prevalence of osteoporosis, osteoarthritis and fractures were significantly higher in cases, when compared to controls. In HC, the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency, obesity, hypothyroidism, smoking, diabetes mellitus, hypocalcaemia, corticosteroid use, malignancy, renal failure and Nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs (NSAID) use were significantly higher among the cases. In PWvWD, the prevalence of risk factors was significantly higher in cases when compared to controls.ConclusionThe prevalence of osteoporosis, osteoarthritis and fractures is significantly higher among HC and PWvWD. This data highlights the importance of screening patients for risk factors for poor bone health and provide education to prevent these complications.
Reverse cardiac remodeling after fluid balance optimization in patients with end‐stage renal disease
Authors: Ursi Raffaella , Pesce Francesco , Albanese Miriam , Pavone Vittoria , Grande Dario , Ciccone Marco M. , Iacoviello Massimo 
Published: April 2022

AbstractBackgroundIn patients with end‐stage renal disease (ESRD) undergoing hemodialysis, cardiovascular diseases, and in particular chronic heart failure are the leading causes of morbidity and mortality. Nevertheless, few data are available about the impact of fluid optimization on echocardiographic parameters of cardiac function in patients with ESRD.Methods and ResultsIn five patients with ESRD undergoing hemodialysis who had developed nonischemic dilated cardiomyopathy, an optimal fluid volume management based on a strict bioelectrical impedance analysis‐assisted dry weight target and dietary sodium and water restriction led to left ventricular reverse remodeling and improvement in hemodynamic parameters. The reverse remodeling further improved after kidney transplantation.ConclusionsThis case series supports the possible beneficial effect of volume status optimization on cardiac function and the potential reversibility of cardiac dysfunction after kidney transplantation.
iCatcher: A neural network approach for automated coding of young children's eye movements
Authors: Erel Yotam , Potter Christine E. , Jaffe‐Dax Sagi , Lew‐Williams Casey , Bermano Amit H. 
Published: April 2022

AbstractInfants' looking behaviors are often used for measuring attention, real‐time processing, and learning—often using low‐resolution videos. Despite the ubiquity of gaze‐related methods in developmental science, current analysis techniques usually involve laborious post hoc coding, imprecise real‐time coding, or expensive eye trackers that may increase data loss and require a calibration phase. As an alternative, we propose using computer vision methods to perform automatic gaze estimation from low‐resolution videos. At the core of our approach is a neural network that classifies gaze directions in real time. We compared our method, called iCatcher, to manually annotated videos from a prior study in which infants looked at one of two pictures on a screen. We demonstrated that the accuracy of iCatcher approximates that of human annotators and that it replicates the prior study's results. Our method is publicly available as an open‐source repository at https://github.com/yoterel/iCatcher.
Association between changes in bodyweight and cardiovascular disease risk factors among obese Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes
Authors: Yoshimura Ran , Nakagami Tomoko , Hasegawa Yukiko , Oya Junko , Babazono Tetsuya 
Published: April 2022

AbstractAims/IntroductionWe aimed to assess the association between bodyweight reduction and cardiovascular disease risk factors, and to identify the minimum bodyweight reduction associated with significant improvement in cardiovascular disease risk factors among obese Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes.Materials and MethodsThe cohort comprised 1,753 patients with type 2 diabetes and body mass index ≥25 kg/m2, who visited our clinic between 2013 and 2016. Multivariable linear regression analysis was carried out to assess the relationship between bodyweight changes and glycated hemoglobin A1c, serum lipids and blood pressure. Analyses of covariance were carried out to compare mean changes in cardiovascular disease risk factors across six groups of bodyweight change, <−5%, −5% to <−3%, −3% to <−1%, −1% to <1% (reference), 1% to <3% and ≥3%.ResultsLog‐transformed bodyweight change had a significantly positive relationship with log‐transformed glycated hemoglobin A1c, triglycerides, low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol and systolic blood pressure changes, and a negative relationship with high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, after adjusting for sex, age, duration of diabetes, body mass index, use of glucose‐lowering, lipid‐lowering and antihypertensive agents, and changes in the use of these medications. A mean change in glycated hemoglobin A1c was significantly improved only in the <−5% group compared with the reference. Mean changes in triglycerides were improved in all groups, and significantly in the <−5% group.ConclusionsBodyweight change was significantly associated with cardiovascular disease risk factor changes, and >5% bodyweight reduction was associated with improved glycated hemoglobin A1c.
On the phylogenetic position of Raphidocystis pallida with some notes on its life cycle
Authors: Drachko Daria , Shɨshkin Yegor , Zlatogursky Vasily V. 
Published: April 2022

AbstractRaphidocystis pallida, a centrohelid heliozoan with unusually shaped tubular siliceous scales, was reisolated from Jamor river, Portugal, and studied with the use of light and electron microscopy. In enriched cultures, the cells were naked, devoid of siliceous external skeleton with the exception of several scales present in one cell. Instead, such cells were covered with a layer of rod‐shaped bacteria. In clonal cultures, the cells gradually acquired siliceous coverings typical for this species and retained them in next generations. Phylogenetic position of R. pallida was clarified with SSU rDNA‐based molecular phylogenetics, and its placement within the genus Raphidocystis despite unusual coverings structure was confirmed. The implications of phylogenetic placement of R. pallida and possible origins of the previously undescribed naked form were discussed.
Social isolation, homebound status, and race among older adults: Findings from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (2011–2019)
Authors: Cudjoe Thomas K. M. , Prichett Laura , Szanton Sarah L. , Roberts Lavigne Laken C. , Thorpe Roland J. 
Published: April 2022

AbstractBackgroundMultiple factors may influence the risk of being homebound, including social isolation and race. This study examines the relationship between social isolation and homebound status by race over 9 years in a sample of adults.MethodsUtilizing a representative sample of 7788 Medicare beneficiaries aged 65+ from 2011–2019, we assessed the odds of becoming homebound by social isolation. We defined social isolation as the objective lack of contact with others. We defined severe social isolation as scoring a 0 or 1 on a social connection scale from 0 to 4. Homebound status was defined as never leaving home or only leaving home with difficulty. Utilizing a multivariate Cox proportional hazards model adjusting for age, gender, marital status, income, and education, we examined the association between social isolation at baseline and becoming homebound during the study in those who were not initially homebound.ResultsOlder adults in this study were on average 78 years old. Overall, most were white (69%), female (56.3%), and married (57.8%) and reported that they had a college education or higher (43.9%). Also, at baseline, approximately 25% of study participants were socially isolated, 21% were homebound, and 6.3% were homebound and socially isolated or severely socially isolated. Homebound status at baseline varied by race: Black, 23.9% and white, 16.6% (p < 0.0001). After 9 years, socially isolated black (hazard risk ratio, HRR 1.35, 95% confidence interval CI [1.05,1.73], p < 0.05) and white (HRR 1.25, 95% CI [1.09,1.42], p < 0.01) older adults were at higher risk of becoming homebound.ConclusionSocially isolated black and white adults are more likely to be homebound at baseline and become homebound over time. Further research is needed to determine whether community‐based strategies and policies that identify and address social isolation reduce homebound status among community‐dwelling older adults.
Validation of the Italian version of the pediatric CMT quality of life outcome measure
Authors: Moroni Isabella , Danti Federica Rachele , Pareyson Davide , Pagliano Emanuela , Piscosquito Giuseppe , Foscan Maria , Marchi Alessia , Ardissone Anna , Genitrini Silvia , Wu Tong Tong , Shy Michael E , Ramchandren Sindhu 
Published: April 2022

AbstractThe pediatric Charcot‐Marie‐Tooth (CMT) specific quality of life (QOL) outcome measure (pCMT‐QOL) is a recently developed and validated patient‐reported measure of health QOL for children with CMT. The aim of this study was to provide and validate an Italian version of the pCMT‐QOL. The original English version was translated and adapted into Italian using standard procedures. pCMT‐QOL was administered to patients genetically diagnosed with CMT, aged 8 to 18 years. A retest was given 2 weeks later to assess reliability in all patients. A total of 22 patients (median age 14 years, DS 2.5; M:F 1:1) affected with CMT (19 CMT1A, 2 CMT2A, 1 CMT2K) were assessed as part of their clinical visit. The Italian‐pCMT‐QOL demonstrate a high test‐retest reliability. None of the patients experienced difficulty in completing the questionnaire, no further corrections were needed after administration in patients. The Italian‐pCMT‐QOL is a reliable, culturally adapted and comparable version of the original English pCMT‐QOL. This questionnaire is expected to be valuable in monitoring disease progression and useful for future clinical trials in Italian‐speaking children with CMT.
Factors associated with the decision to offer memory making in end‐of‐life: A survey of healthcare professionals in adult intensive care
Authors: Riegel Melissa , Randall Sue , Buckley Thomas 
Published: April 2022

AbstractAimReport experiences and behaviour influences with healthcare professionals’ decision to and experiences of offering memory making during end‐of‐life care in the adult acute population.BackgroundLittle is known about healthcare professionals’ experiences offering memory making during adult acute end‐of‐life care.DesignSurvey.MethodsRegistered nurses, medical practitioners and social workers employed at a single tertiary referral adult intensive care, where memory making had been implemented nearly two years prior were invited to participate between June and August 2017. Reporting adheres to the STROBE checklist.ResultsNinety‐six valid surveys (75% response rate: 75 registered nurses, 19 medical practitioners, and 2 social workers) were analysed with 67 participants reporting experience offering memory making. Highest overall agreement scores included believing families value memory making and the offer of memory making being beneficial. Enablers were described as organisational supports, personal qualities and good interpersonal relationships. Barriers identified included the intensive care environment, workload, inexperience offering/facilitating memory making, being afraid to offer, lack of resources and legality concerns. Compared with non‐experienced participants, experienced participants reported higher level of confidence and comfort offering memory making, pride in their ability, ability to spend time supporting families and had observed colleagues offering memory making. Experienced participants were less likely to be afraid to offer, be limited by the family's behaviours, report lack of resources or be time limited to offer memory making.ConclusionFindings identify elements needed for the development and support for offering memory making to assist bereaved families in adult acute care including role modelling, support to reduce negative emotions, workload assistance and leadership/organisational support.Relevance to clinical practiceDiscoveries have important implications in addressing evidence gaps regarding behaviour influences linked to the decision to offer memory making. Findings inform development and sustainability to integrate memory making as routine end‐of‐life care intervention in adult acute care.
Integrity and quantity of salivary cell‐free DNA as a potential molecular biomarker in oral cancer: A preliminary study
Authors: Rapado‐González Óscar , López‐Cedrún José Luis , Lago‐Lestón Ramón Manuel , Abalo Alicia , Rubin‐Roger Guillermo , Salgado‐Barreira Ángel , López‐López Rafael , Muinelo‐Romay Laura , Suárez‐Cunqueiro María Mercedes 
Published: April 2022

AbstractBackgroundDifferences in cell‐free DNA (cfDNA) fragments have been described as a valuable tool to distinguish cancer patients from healthy individuals. We aim to investigate the concentration and integrity of cfDNA fragments in saliva from oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) patients and healthy individuals in order to explore their value as diagnostic biomarkers.MethodsSaliva samples were collected from a total of 34 subjects (19 OSCC patients and 15 healthy controls). The total concentration of salivary cfDNA (scfDNA) was determined using a fluorometry method and quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). To evaluate the scfDNA quantity and integrity, qPCR targeting Arthobacter luteus (ALU) sequences at three amplicons of different lengths (60, 115, and 247 bp, respectively) was carried out. ScfDNA integrity indexes (ALU115/ALU60 and ALU247/ALU60) were calculated as the ratio between the absolute concentration of the longer amplicons 115 bp and 247 bp and the total scfDNA amount (amplicon 60 bp).ResultsThe total scfDNA concentration (ALU60) was higher in OSCC than in healthy donors, but this trend was not statistically significant. The medians of scfDNA integrity indexes, ALU115/ALU60 and ALU247/ALU60, were significantly higher in OSCC, showing area under the curve values of 0.8211 and 0.7018, respectively.ConclusionOur preliminary results suggest that scfDNA integrity indexes (ALU115/ALU60 and ALU247/ALU60) have potential as noninvasive diagnostic biomarkers for OSCC.
Review of venom immunotherapy at a regional tertiary paediatric centre
Authors: Johnston Niall , Belcher Jan , Preece Kahn , Bhatia Rani 
Published: April 2022

AimBee stings can result in allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis. Venom immunotherapy (VIT) is a definitive cure for bee venom allergy, but controversy surrounds whether accelerated protocols are safe in children. Our primary aim was to assess the safety profile of ultra‐rush bee VIT compared with conventional bee VIT at a regional paediatric tertiary centre. We also sought to evaluate the impact of both approaches on time and resource use.MethodsData were collected retrospectively from 14 patients with bee venom allergy who were treated with ultra‐rush or conventional bee VIT between 2013 and 2021 at John Hunter Children's Hospital. We compared VIT‐associated adverse reactions and use of resources in both these groups.ResultsOverall, six patients received ultra‐rush bee VIT and eight patients received conventional VIT. The ultra‐rush group had a lower rate of systemic reaction (16%) compared with the conventional group (25%). One patient from the conventional group required adrenaline. Ultra‐rush patients require fewer injections over a shorter time and fewer hospital visits to complete the protocol. Travel distance for families was significantly reduced.ConclusionAt our regional paediatric tertiary centre, ultra‐rush bee VIT was a safe treatment option for children with bee venom allergy. It has many advantages over a conventional approach, especially for patients living in regional or remote areas.
What about dreams? State of the art and open questions
Authors: Scarpelli Serena , Alfonsi Valentina , Gorgoni Maurizio , De Gennaro Luigi 
Published: April 2022

SummarySeveral studies have tried to identify the neurobiological bases of dream experiences, nevertheless some questions are still at the centre of the debate. Here, we summarise the main open issues concerning the neuroscientific study of dreaming. After overcoming the rapid eye movement (REM) ‐ non‐REM (NREM) sleep dichotomy, investigations have focussed on the specific functional or structural brain features predicting dream experience. On the one hand, some results underlined that specific trait‐like factors are associated with higher dream recall frequency. On the other hand, the electrophysiological milieu preceding dream report upon awakening is a crucial state‐like factor influencing the subsequent recall. Furthermore, dreaming is strictly related to waking experiences. Based on the continuity hypothesis, some findings reveal that dreaming could be modulated through visual, olfactory, or somatosensory stimulations. Also, it should be considered that the indirect access to dreaming remains an intrinsic limitation. Recent findings have revealed a greater concordance between parasomnia‐like events and dream contents. This means that parasomnia episodes might be an expression of the ongoing mental sleep activity and could represent a viable direct access to dream experience. Finally, we provide a picture on nightmares and emphasise the possible role of oneiric activity in psychotherapy. Overall, further efforts in dream science are needed (a) to develop a uniform protocol to study dream experience, (b) to introduce and integrate advanced techniques to better understand whether dreaming can be manipulated, (c) to clarify the relationship between parasomnia events and dreaming, and (d) to determine the clinical valence of dreams.
A sigmoid‐optimized encoder–decoder network for crack segmentation with copy‐edit‐paste transfer learning
Authors: Çelik Firdes , König Markus 
Published: April 2022

AbstractThe automatic recognition of cracks is an essential requirement for the cost‐efficient maintenance of concrete structures, such as bridges, buildings, and roads. It should allow the localization and the determination of the crack type and the evaluation of the crack severity by providing information on the shape, orientation, and crack area and width. The first step in this direction is the automatized segmentation of cracks. This paper provides a concrete crack data set (370 images) and proposes two solutions that achieve the best results on two different crack data sets. Our first solution concerns the segmentation architecture. We provide an encoder–decoder‐based network with a particular interconnection of layers between the encoder and decoder parts that outperforms several other methods. In addition, this network is enhanced by squeeze‐and‐excitation blocks equipped with a modified sigmoid activation function. We introduce a stretch coefficient into the sigmoid function and declare it a trainable parameter, allowing more differentiated calibration of the feature map during network training. Our second solution concerns kernel initialization by transfer learning (TL). We propose the Copy‐Edit‐Paste Transfer Learning (CEP TL). By copying, geometric editing, and pasting crack masks onto new concrete background images, we generate thousands of semisynthetic images used to pretrain the network. This CEP TL method increases model performance with significant differences. For data set A (ours), we achieve F1‐scores 76.06 ± 0.06% without CEP TL and 92.32 ± 0.82% with CEP TL. For data set B (DeepCrack data set), we achieve F1‐scores 88.56 ± 0.01% without CEP TL and 90.59 ± 0.80% with CEP TL.