bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
LCN2 is a new diagnostic biomarker and potential therapeutic target in idiopathic short stature
Authors: Liu Xijuan , Zhang Jian , Yuan Jinghong , Ding Rui , Liu Tao , Jia Jingyu 
Published: May 2022

AbstractIdiopathic short stature (ISS) is the most common paediatric endocrine disease. However, the underlying pathology of ISS remains unclear. Currently, there are no effective diagnostic markers or therapeutic strategies available for ISS. In this study, we aimed to identify differential plasma protein expression and novel biomarkers in patients with ISS, and elucidate the biological functions of candidate proteins in ISS pathogenesis. Four specimen pairs from four ISS children and age‐/sex‐matched control individuals were subjected to proteomics analysis, and 340 samples of children with a mean age 9.73 ± 0.24 years were utilized to further verify the differentially expressed proteins by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The receiver‐operating characteristic (ROC) curve and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) were plotted. A total of 2040 proteins were identified, of which 84 were differentially expressed. In vitro and in vivo experiments confirmed the biological functions of these candidate proteins. LCN2 overexpression in ISS was verified using ELISA. Meanwhile, LCN2 showed high sensitivity and specificity in discriminating children with ISS from those with growth hormone deficiency, precocious puberty and normal control individuals. The upregulated expression of LCN2 not only suppressed food intake but also impaired chondrocyte proliferation and bone growth in chondrocytes and rats. As a result, the rats presented a short‐stature phenotype. Subsequently, we found that bone growth inhibition recovered after LCN2 overexpression was stopped in immature rats. To our knowledge, this is the first study to report that LCN2 may be a significant target for ISS diagnosis and treatment.
Vitiligo prevalence and quality of life among adults in Europe, Japan and the USA
Authors: Bibeau K. , Pandya A.G. , Ezzedine K. , Jones H. , Gao J. , Lindley A. , Harris J.E. 
Published: May 2022

AbstractBackgroundVitiligo, an autoimmune disorder characterised by skin depigmentation, is associated with reduced quality of life (QoL). Vitiligo may be under‐reported, in part because of misconceptions that it is a cosmetic disease.ObjectivesThis survey sought to characterise vitiligo prevalence and explore the relationship between sociodemographic and clinical characteristics with QoL in a population‐based, multinational study.MethodsParticipants aged ≥18 years were recruited via an online panel in Europe, Japan and the USA to answer questions regarding skin disorders they may have experienced. Those reporting vitiligo (diagnosed or undiagnosed) or vitiligo signs (experiencing loss of skin colour but unaware of vitiligo and not diagnosed) were included in the analyses of vitiligo prevalence. Participants who self‐reported physician‐diagnosed vitiligo were given a broader survey to characterise disease progression, management and QoL (as measured with the Vitiligo‐specific QoL [VitiQoL] instrument).ResultsThe total estimated vitiligo prevalence among 35 694 survey participants (Europe, n = 18 785; USA, n = 8517; Japan, n = 8392) was 1.3% (diagnosed, 0.6%; undiagnosed, 0.4%; vitiligo signs, 0.3%). Among 219 patients formally diagnosed with vitiligo (Europe, n = 150; USA, n = 48; Japan, n = 21), total VitiQoL scores were associated with age (P = 0.00017), disease extent (P < 0.0001), disease progression (P < 0.0001), disease management (P < 0.0001) and time since diagnosis (P = 0.0015). Behaviour scores varied based on skin phototype (P = 0.024) and ethnicity (P = 0.048). Higher total VitiQoL scores were reported in patients with head lesions (P = 0.027) and those with head and hand and/or wrist lesions (P = 0.018). Substantial high concern (rated 8–10 on an 11‐point Likert scale) for lesions was found across all body areas and varied with geographical region.ConclusionsThe vitiligo prevalence rate may be higher than previously reported, with a substantial proportion attributed to people who have not received a formal diagnosis. Among formally diagnosed patients with vitiligo, QoL was most severely impacted by more progressive and higher extent of disease.
Multiple paternity in superfetatious live‐bearing fishes
Authors: Dekker Myrthe L. , van Son Lisa M. , Leon‐Kloosterziel Karen M. , Hagmayer Andres , Furness Andrew I. , van Leeuwen Johan L. , Pollux Bart J. A. 
Published: May 2022

AbstractSuperfetation, the ability to carry several overlapping broods at different developmental stages, has evolved independently multiple times within the live‐bearing fish family Poeciliidae. Even though superfetation is widespread among poeciliids, its evolutionary advantages remain unclear. Theory predicts that superfetation should increase polyandry by increasing the probability that temporally overlapping broods are fertilized by different fathers. Here, we test this key prediction in two poeciliid species that each carry two temporally overlapping broods: Poeciliopsis retropinna and P. turrubarensis. We collected 25 females per species from freshwater streams in South‐Eastern Costa Rica and assessed multiple paternity by genotyping all their embryos (420 embryos for P. retropinna; 788 embryos for P. turrubarensis) using existing and newly developed microsatellite markers. We observed a high frequency of unique sires in the simultaneous, temporally overlapping broods in P. retropinna (in 56% of the pregnant females) and P. turrubarensis (79%). We found that the mean number of sires within females was higher than the number of sires within the separate broods (2.92 sires within mothers vs. 2.36 within separate broods in P. retropinna; and 3.40 vs 2.56 in P. turrubarensis). We further observed that there were significant differences in the proportion of offspring sired by each male in 42% of pregnant female P. retropinna and 65% of female P. turrubarensis; however, this significance applied to only 9% and 46% of the individual broods in P. retropinna and P. turrubarensis, respectively, suggesting that the unequal reproductive success of sires (i.e. reproductive skew) mostly originated from differences in paternal contribution between, rather than within broods. Together, these findings tentatively suggest that superfetation may promote polyandry and reproductive skew in live‐bearing fishes.
Concurrent infection of a novel genotype of hepatopancreatic parvovirus and Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei in Penaeus vannamei in Taiwan
Authors: Lee Chi‐Fen , Chang Yen‐Chen , Chiou Hue‐Ying , Chang Hui‐Wen 
Published: May 2022

AbstractHepatopancreatic parvovirus (HPV) and Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (EHP) are emerging and reemerging pathogens in shrimps. In the present study, a novel genotype of HPV concurrently infected with EHP in Penaeus vannamei in Taiwan leading to severe atrophy and damage of hepatopancreas were confirmed by histopathology, in situ hybridization, and PCR. The novel genotype of HPV exhibited 66%–69.5% sequence identities with all known HPVs and carried unique amino acid deletions and insertions in the VP gene. According to phylogenetic analysis, the Taiwan HPV isolates were classified as the genotype IV. The present study not only provided the histopathological and molecular proof of HPV and EHP co‐infection in Taiwan, but also revealed the importance of investigating the geographical expansion of novel HPV genotypes.
Identifying methodological challenges in the social risk assessment of cellulosic ethanol value chains
Authors: Marting Vidaurre Nirvana A. , Lewandowski Iris , Lask Jan 
Published: May 2022

AbstractSocial risk assessment using databases allows sustainability practitioners’ rapid identification of social hotspots in value chains. The Soca database for sustainability assessment allows practitioners to perform a social risk assessment in addition to environmental assessment. As it is based on Ecoinvent, a database for environmental appraisal, the Soca database provides limited regionalization of data. This study aims to perform a regionalized assessment at country‐level by following the Soca approach in combination with EXIOBASE 3 as a source of regional information on the origin of inputs and for the estimation of worker hours. This analysis uses a case study based on the production of advanced biofuels in Croatia to assess the shortcomings of the methodology. We show that the assumptions made during the study can lead to unspecific results and that results need to be validated by external sources of information. Data availability plays a crucial role in achieving usable results. Social hotspots result from the combination of worker hours, raw material requirements, and social conditions in the country where production takes place. These three factors and the assumptions made need to be presented in a clear and transparent way to facilitate the interpretation of results.
Bank Market Power and Monetary Policy Transmission: Evidence from a Structural Estimation
Authors: WANG YIFEI , WHITED TONI M. , WU YUFENG , XIAO KAIRONG 
Published: May 2022

ABSTRACTWe quantify the impact of bank market power on monetary policy transmission through banks to borrowers. We estimate a dynamic banking model in which monetary policy affects imperfectly competitive banks' funding costs. Banks optimize the pass‐through of these costs to borrowers and depositors, while facing capital and reserve regulation. We find that bank market power explains much of the transmission of monetary policy to borrowers, with an effect comparable to that of bank capital regulation. When the federal funds rate falls below 0.9%, market power interacts with bank capital regulation to produce a reversal of the effect of monetary policy.
Sesamol protects the function and structure of rat ovaries against side effects of cyclophosphamide by decreasing oxidative stress and apoptosis
Authors: Talebi Athar , Hayat Parisa , Ghanbari Ali , Ardekanian Maryam , Zarbakhsh Sam 
Published: May 2022

AbstractAimChemotherapy with cyclophosphamide can damage ovaries and cause infertility in girls and women. Sesamol is a phenolic antioxidant that can protect various organs from damage. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of sesamol on protecting the function and structure of rat ovaries against the side effects of a chemotherapy model with cyclophosphamide.MethodsTwenty‐four adult female Wistar rats were randomly divided into three groups: (1) normal group, without any treatment, (2) control group, immediately after receiving cyclophosphamide, 0.5% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as the solvent of sesamol was intraperitoneally injected for 14 consecutive days, (3) sesamol group, immediately after receiving cyclophosphamide, 50 mg/kg sesamol was intraperitoneally injected for 14 consecutive days. Four weeks after the last injection, superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels in the ovary, anti‐Mullerian hormone (AMH) levels in the serum, number of ovarian follicles in different stages, and expression of proteins growth differentiation factor‐9 (GDF‐9), Bcl‐2, and Bax in the ovary were evaluated.ResultsThe results of SOD activity and MDA levels in the ovary, AMH levels in the serum, number of ovarian follicles in different stages, and expression of proteins GDF9, Bcl‐2, and Bax in the ovary were significantly more favorable in the sesamol group than the control group.ConclusionsThe results suggest that sesamol may protect function and structure in the rat ovaries against side effects of the chemotherapy model with cyclophosphamide by decreasing oxidative stress and apoptosis in the ovary.
“It changed the atmosphere surrounding the baby I did have”: Making sense of reproduction during the COVID‐19 pandemic
Authors: Wright Kelsey Q. 
Published: May 2022

AbstractObjectiveThis study examines the schemas that women employed during the COVID‐19 pandemic to make sense of their reproductive desires.BackgroundExisting research on reproduction during epidemics suggests that there are variable population responses to periods of long‐term social uncertainty. However, less is known about how individuals make sense of maintaining or adapting their reproductive desires during periods of social upheaval.MethodTwenty‐nine women aged 25–35 from a mid‐sized Midwestern county in the United States were recruited and interviewed about their experiences during the first 8 months of the COVID‐19 pandemic. They were asked about their daily lived experiences and their reproductive desires during in‐depth interviews. These interviews were transcribed and analyzed using thematic coding.ResultsParticipants used three normative schemas to describe their reproductive desires during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Heteronormative schemas were used by many participants to articulate their commitment to a heteronormative aged‐staged timeline of life events. Schemas of social support around being pregnant and giving birth were used by participants, primarily those who were currently or recently pregnant, to express grief and loss over the relational experience of having a new baby. Medicalized schemas were expressed by most participants to describe feelings of fear and risk at real or imagined encounters with medical institutions.ConclusionThe schemas that participants used to make sense of their reproductive desires demonstrate how sense‐making during a profound event that affects everyday realities allows participants to (re)articulate commitments to existing narratives that reinforce heterosexual, social, and medicalized hierarchies in reproduction.
What's in a Name? How Senior Managers use Name‐Based Heuristics to Allocate Financial Resources in Multinational Corporations
Authors: Cerar Jelena , Decreton Benoit , Nell Phillip C. 
Published: May 2022

AbstractThe allocation of financial resources to entrepreneurial initiatives in subsidiaries of multinational corporations is crucial to their realization. When allocating resources to these initiatives, senior headquarters managers face uncertainty that they attempt to address using various heuristics, which may bias allocation. Name‐based heuristics – cognitive shortcuts based on names associated with a decision‐making situation – have been shown to influence financial decisions ranging from food purchase to stock investment. Yet little is known about name‐based heuristics in the allocation of financial resources to entrepreneurial initiatives. We analyse 1308 resource allocation decisions made by 109 senior managers in an experiment in which we vary subsidiary country and subsidiary manager names. We find that psychic distance to the subsidiary country is negatively related to resource allocation when subsidiary managers' names express a potential expatriate status. In contrast, this relationship is positive when subsidiary managers' names express a potential local status. We contextualize our results by interviewing senior managers and discuss how reliance on name‐based heuristics to infer the context of an initiative or the interests and competences of subsidiary managers can lead to biased decisions.
Rural and urban differences in the implementation of Virtual Integrated Patient‐Aligned Care Teams
Authors: Oh Anna , Scott Jennifer Y. , Chow Adam , Jiang Hao , Dismuke‐Greer Clara E. , Gujral Kritee , Yoon Jean 
Published: May 2022

AbstractPurposeWorkforce shortages contribute to geographic disparities in accessing primary care services. An innovative, clinic‐to‐clinic videoconferencing telehealth program in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) called the Virtual Integrated Patient‐Aligned Care Teams (V‐IMPACT) was designed to increase veterans’ access to primary care and relieve workforce shortages in VA primary care clinics, including in many rural areas. This paper describes trends in clinic sites and veteran uptake of the V‐IMPACT program, a model that delivered remote, team‐based primary care services, from fiscal years (FY)2013‐2018.MethodsThis observational study used VHA administrative data to compare program uptake, measured by the program penetration rate (percent of patients using V‐IMPACT services in each site) across sites; and characteristics for V‐IMPACT users versus nonusers for 2,155,203 veteran‐years in 69 sites across 7 regional networks for FY2013‐2018. Regression models assessed the association between V‐IMPACT use and veteran characteristics within sites.FindingsAcross sites, V‐IMPACT had higher penetration in rural sites (8%) and primary care community‐based outpatient clinics (7%, P<.001). After adjusting for veteran characteristics, rural veterans (aOR = 1.05; P = .02) and veterans with higher comorbidity risk scores (aOR = 1.08; P<.001) were independently associated with V‐IMPACT use. Highly rural veterans (OR = 0.60; P<.001) and veterans who lived ≥40 miles from the closest VHA primary care site (OR = 0.86; P<.001) were less likely to be a V‐IMPACT user.ConclusionsA clinic‐to‐clinic telehealth program, such as V‐IMPACT, was able to reach many rural sites, rural veterans, and veterans in primary care health professional shortage areas. V‐IMPACT has the potential to increase access to team‐based primary care.
Pairing Project ECHO and patient navigation as an innovative approach to improving the health and wellness of cancer survivors in rural settings
Authors: Rohan Elizabeth , Kuiper Nora , Bowen Shelly‐Ann , Mast Dana Keener , House Marnie , French Cynthia , Tharpe Felicia Solomon , Henley S. Jane , Wanliss Ena , Puckett Mary 
Published: May 2022

AbstractPurposeWe conducted a 12‐month pilot study of 2 complementary strategies for improving rural cancer survivorship outcomes: (1) Project ECHO, a telementoring model to increase knowledge and skills about cancer survivorship among multidisciplinary health care provider teams in rural areas and (2) patient navigation (PN) services to connect rural cancer survivors with resources for enhancing health and wellness.MethodsWe recruited 4 CDC‐funded National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program sites to implement Project ECHO and PN interventions for a defined rural population in each of their jurisdictions. Sites received ongoing technical assistance and a stipend to support implementation. We conducted a mixed‐methods evaluation consisting of quantitative performance monitoring data and qualitative interviews with site staff to assess implementation.FindingsSite teams delivered 21 cancer survivorship ECHO sessions to rural providers resulting in 329 participant encounters. Almost all (93%) ECHO participants reported enhanced knowledge of cancer survivorship issues, and 80% reported intent to apply learnings to their practices. Site teams engaged 16 patient navigators who navigated 164 cancer survivors during the study period. Successful implementation required strong partnerships, clear avenues for recruitment of rural providers and cancer survivors, and activities tailored to local needs. Fostering ongoing relationships among sites through community of practice calls also enhanced implementation.ConclusionsSites successfully implemented a novel approach for enhancing care for cancer survivors in rural communities. Pairing Project ECHO to address structural barriers and PN to address individual factors affecting survivorship may help bridge the health equity gap experienced by cancer survivors in rural communities.
Obstructive sleep apnea: transition from pathophysiology to an integrative disease model
Authors: McNicholas Walter T. , Pevernagie Dirk 
Published: May 2022

SummaryObstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is characterised by recurring episodes of upper airway obstruction during sleep and the fundamental abnormality reflects the inability of the upper airway dilating muscles to withstand the negative forces generated within the upper airway during inspiration. Factors that result in narrowing of the oropharynx such as abnormal craniofacial anatomy, soft tissue accumulation in the neck, and rostral fluid shift in the recumbent position increase the collapsing forces within the airway. The counteracting forces of upper airway dilating muscles, especially the genioglossus, are negatively influenced by sleep onset, inadequacy of the genioglossus responsiveness, ventilatory instability, especially post arousal, and loop gain. OSA is frequently associated with comorbidities that include metabolic, cardiovascular, renal, pulmonary, and neuropsychiatric, and there is growing evidence of bidirectional relationships between OSA and comorbidity, especially for heart failure, metabolic syndrome, and stroke. A detailed understanding of the complex pathophysiology of OSA encourages the development of therapies targeted at pathophysiological endotypes and facilitates a move towards precision medicine as a potential alternative to continuous positive airway pressure therapy in selected patients.
Worse than a double whammy: The intersectional causes of wage inequality between women of colour and White men over time
Authors: George Erin E. , Milli Jessica , Tripp Sophie 
Published: May 2022

AbstractWe evaluate the causes of the wage gap at the intersection of race, ethnicity and gender over time in the United States. We analyse the wage gaps for women of colour along three dimensions: relative to White women, relative to men of their respective race/ethnicity, and relative to White men. Using the American Community Survey, we replicate earlier findings based on the Current Population Survey data which show that, on average, Black women face an unexplained wage gap relative to White men that goes beyond the simple addition of the separate unexplained gender and racial wage gaps. This can be seen persistently between 1980 and 2019, and we find it is true across the entire wage distribution but especially notable at higher centiles. From 1990 through 2019, Black and Hispanic women saw stalled progress, while White women continued to make steady progress closing the wage gap relative to White men.
Bioleaching of rare-earth elements from phosphate rock using Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans
Authors: Tian Y. , Hu X. , Song X. , Yang A.J. 
Published: May 2022

Abstract
Phosphate rock containing rare-earth elements (REEs) is considered one of the most promising potential secondary sources of REEs, as evidenced by large tonnages of phosphate rock mined annually. The bioleaching of REEs from phosphate rock using Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans was done for the first time in this study, and it was found to be greater than abiotic leaching and was more environmentally friendly. The result showed that the total leaching rate of REEs in phosphate rock was 28·46% under the condition of 1% pulp concentration and pH = 2, and the leaching rates of four key rare earths, Y, La, Ce and Nd, were 35·7, 37·03, 27·92 and 32·53% respectively. The bioleaching process was found to be accomplished by bacterial contact and Fe2+ oxidation. The blank control group which contained Fe2+ was able to leach some of the rare earths, indicating that the oxidation of Fe2+ may affect the leaching of rare earths. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the minerals were significantly altered and the intensity of the diffraction peaks of dolomite and apatite decreased significantly after microbial action compared to the blank control, and it was observed that bacteria adhere to the mineral surface and the minerals become smooth and angular after bioleaching by scanning electron microscope, indicating that bacteria have a further effect on the rock based on Fe2+ oxidation. Finally, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and three-dimensional excitation-emission matrix fluorescence spectra analysis showed that extracellular polymeric substances participate in the bioleaching process.