bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Caffeine Restores Neuronal Damage and Inflammatory Response in a Model of Intraventricular Hemorrhage of the Preterm Newborn
Authors: Alves-Martinez Pilar , Atienza-Navarro Isabel , Vargas-Soria Maria , Carranza-Naval Maria Jose , Infante-Garcia Carmen , Benavente-Fernandez Isabel , Del Marco Angel , Lubian-Lopez Simon , Garcia-Alloza Monica 
Published: August 2022

Germinal matrix-intraventricular hemorrhage (GM-IVH) is the most frequent intracranial hemorrhage in the preterm infant (PT). Long-term GM-IVH-associated sequelae include cerebral palsy, sensory and motor impairment, learning disabilities, or neuropsychiatric disorders. The societal and health burden associated with GM-IVH is worsened by the fact that there is no successful treatment to limit or reduce brain damage and neurodevelopment disabilities. Caffeine (Caf) is a methylxanthine that binds to adenosine receptors, regularly used to treat the apnea of prematurity. While previous studies support the beneficial effects at the brain level of Caf in PT, there are no studies that specifically focus on the role of Caf in GM-IVH. Therefore, to further understand the role of Caf in GM-IVH, we have analyzed two doses of Caf (10 and 20 mg/kg) in a murine model of the disease. We have analyzed the short (P14) and long (P70) effects of the treatment on brain atrophy and neuron wellbeing, including density, curvature, and phospho-tau/total tau ratio. We have analyzed proliferation and neurogenesis, as well as microglia and hemorrhage burdens. We have also assessed the long-term effects of Caf treatment at cognitive level. To induce GM-IVH, we have administered intraventricular collagenase to P7 CD1 mice and have analyzed these animals in the short (P14) and long (P70) term. Caf showed a general neuroprotective effect in our model of GM-IVH of the PT. In our study, Caf administration diminishes brain atrophy and ventricle enlargement. Likewise, Caf limits neuronal damage, including neurite curvature and tau phosphorylation. It also contributes to maintaining neurogenesis in the subventricular zone, a neurogenic niche that is severely affected after GM-IVH. Furthermore, Caf ameliorates small vessel bleeding and inflammation in both the cortex and the subventricular zone. Observed mitigation of brain pathological features commonly associated with GM-IVH also results in a significant improvement of learning and memory abilities in the long term. Altogether, our data support the promising effects of Caf to reduce central nervous system complications associated with GM-IVH.
Notch signaling regulates strain-mediated phenotypic switching of vascular smooth muscle cells
Authors: Karakaya Cansu , van Turnhout Mark C. , Visser Valery L. , Ristori Tommaso , Bouten Carlijn V. C. , Sahlgren Cecilia M. , Loerakker Sandra 
Published: August 2022

Mechanical stimuli experienced by vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and mechanosensitive Notch signaling are important regulators of vascular growth and remodeling. However, the interplay between mechanical cues and Notch signaling, and its contribution to regulate the VSMC phenotype are still unclear. Here, we investigated the role of Notch signaling in regulating strain-mediated changes in VSMC phenotype. Synthetic and contractile VSMCs were cyclically stretched for 48 h to determine the temporal changes in phenotypic features. Different magnitudes of strain were applied to investigate its effect on Notch mechanosensitivity and the phenotypic regulation of VSMCs. In addition, Notch signaling was inhibited via DAPT treatment and activated with immobilized Jagged1 ligands to understand the role of Notch on strain-mediated phenotypic changes of VSMCs. Our data demonstrate that cyclic strain induces a decrease in Notch signaling along with a loss of VSMC contractile features. Accordingly, the activation of Notch signaling during cyclic stretching partially rescued the contractile features of VSMCs. These findings demonstrate that Notch signaling has an important role in regulating strain-mediated phenotypic switching of VSMCs.
PVDF/MOFs mixed matrix ultrafiltration membrane for efficient water treatment
Authors: Cheng Lilantian , Zhou Zixun , Li Lei , Xiao Pei , Ma Yun , Liu Fei , Li Jian 
Published: August 2022

Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), with excellent mechanical strength, thermal stability and chemical corrosion resistance, has become an excellent material for separation membranes fabrication. However, the high hydrophobicity of PVDF membrane surface normally leads a decreased water permeability and serious membrane pollution, which ultimately result in low operational efficiency, short lifespan of membrane, high operation cost and other problems. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), have been widely applied for membrane modification due to its large specific surface area, large porosity and adjustable pore size. Currently, numerous MOFs have been synthesized and used to adjust the membrane separation properties. In this study, MIL-53(Al) were blended with PVDF casting solution to prepare ultrafiltration (UF) membrane through a phase separation technique. The optimal separation performance was achieved by varying the concentration of MIL-53(Al). The surface properties and microstructures of the as-prepared membranes with different MIL-53(Al) loading revealed that the incorporation of MIL-53(Al) enhanced the membrane hydrophilicity and increased the porosity and average pore size of the membrane. The optimal membrane decorated with 5 wt% MIL-53(Al) possessed a pure water permeability up to 43.60 L m−2 h−1 bar−1, while maintaining higher rejections towards BSA (82.09%). Meanwhile, the prepared MIL-53(Al)/LiCl@PVDF membranes exhibited an excellent antifouling performance.
Emergence of uncommon KL38-OCL6-ST220 carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter pittii strain, co-producing chromosomal NDM-1 and OXA-820 carbapenemases
Authors: Tian Chongmei , Xing Mengyu , Fu Liping , Zhao Yaping , Fan Xueyu , Wang Siwei 
Published: August 2022

ObjectiveTo characterize one KL38-OCL6-ST220 carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter pittii strain, co-producing chromosomal NDM-1 and OXA-820 carbapenemases.MethodsA. pittii TCM strain was isolated from a bloodstream infection (BSI). Antimicrobial susceptibility tests were conducted via disc diffusion and broth microdilution. Stability experiments of blaNDM-1 and blaOXA-820 carbapenemase genes were further performed. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) was performed on the Illumina and Oxford Nanopore platforms. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was analyzed based on the Pasteur and Oxford schemes. Resistance genes, virulence factors, and insertion sequences (ISs) were identified with ABRicate based on ResFinder 4.0, virulence factor database (VFDB), and ISfinder. Capsular polysaccharide (KL), lipooligosaccharide outer core (OCL), and plasmid reconstruction were tested using Kaptive and PLACNETw. PHASTER was used to predict prophage regions. A comparative genomics analysis of all ST220 A. pittii strains from the public database was carried out. Point mutations, average nucleotide identity (ANI), DNA–DNA hybridization (DDH) distances, and pan-genome analysis were performed.ResultsA. pittii TCM was ST220Pas and ST1818Oxf with KL38 and OCL6, respectively. It was resistant to imipenem, meropenem, and ciprofloxacin but still susceptible to amikacin, colistin, and tigecycline. WGS revealed that A. pittii TCM contained one circular chromosome and four plasmids. The Tn125 composite transposon, including blaNDM-1, was located in the chromosome with 3-bp target site duplications (TSDs). Many virulence factors and the blaOXA-820 carbapenemase gene were also identified. The stability assays revealed that blaNDM-1 and blaOXA-820 were stabilized by passage in an antibiotic-free medium. Moreover, 12 prophage regions were identified in the chromosome. Phylogenetic analysis showed that there are 11 ST220 A. pittii strains, and one collected from Anhui, China was closely related. All ST220 A. pittii strains presented high ANI and DDH values; they ranged from 99.85% to 100% for ANI and from 97.4% to 99.9% for DDH. Pan-genome analysis revealed 3,200 core genes, 0 soft core genes, 1,571 shell genes, and 933 cloud genes among the 11 ST220 A. pittii strains.ConclusionsThe coexistence of chromosomal NDM-1 and OXA-820 carbapenemases in A. pittii presents a huge challenge in healthcare settings. Increased surveillance of this species in hospital and community settings is urgently needed.
Organoids as tools to investigate gastrointestinal nematode development and host interactions
Authors: White Ruby , Blow Frances , Buck Amy H. , Duque-Correa María A. 
Published: August 2022

Gastrointestinal nematodes are a diverse class of pathogens that colonise a quarter of the world’s human population and nearly all grazing livestock. These macroparasites establish, and some migrate, within host gastrointestinal niches during their life cycles and release molecules that condition the host mucosa to enable chronic infections. Understanding how helminths do this, and defining the molecules and mechanisms involved in host modulation, holds promise for novel strategies of anthelmintics and vaccines, as well as new knowledge of immune regulation and tissue repair. Yet the size and complexity of these multicellular parasites, coupled with the reliance on hosts to maintain their life cycles, present obstacles to interrogate how they interact with the gastric and intestinal epithelium, stroma and immune cells during infection, and also to develop protocols to genetically modify these parasites. Gastrointestinal organoids have transformed research on gastric and gut physiology during homeostasis and disease, including investigations on host-pathogen interactions with viruses, bacteria, protozoa and more recently, parasitic nematodes. Here we outline applications and important considerations for the best use of organoids to study gastrointestinal nematode development and interactions with their hosts. The careful use of different organoid culture configurations in order to achieve a closer replication of thein vivoinfection context will lead not only to new knowledge on gastrointestinal nematode infection biology, but also towards the replication of their life cyclesin vitro, and the development of valuable experimental tools such as genetically modified parasites.
Short-coupled variant of torsade de pointes: A systematic review of case reports and case series
Authors: Wang Guangqiang , Zhong Lin , Chu Hongxia , Wang Chunxiao , Zhu Xuefeng 
Published: August 2022

BackgroundThe short-coupled variant of torsade de pointes (scTdP) is characterized by a particular electrocardiogram (ECG) pattern that shows a short-coupling interval of the initial Tdp beat and that can degenerate into ventricular fibrillation without the presence of structural heart disease. However, its etiology, epidemiology, clinical characteristics, underlying mechanism, treatment, and prognosis remain unclear. This study aimed to systematically review case reports and series of scTdP to synthesize existing data on the demography, clinical characteristics, ECG features, management, and outcomes.MethodsA literature search was conducted for eligible published articles using the Medline, Embase, and PubMed databases. All eligible case reports and case series were included without any language restrictions. SPSS 24 was used for statistical analysis.ResultsA total of 22 case reports and 103 case series of patients with scTdP were identified and included in the analysis. All selected cases had acceptable quality of evidence. Most young patients without sex differences had no trigger or a negative programmed simulation. The ECGs of all selected patients showed a short first-coupling interval (302 ± 62 ms) and a long QRS duration of ventricular extrasystole (VE) (135 ± 17 ms). The first coupling interval levels and QRS duration levels of VE were significantly longer and wider in patients with scTdP originating from the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) than in those with scTdP originating from the Purkinje fibers (380 ± 70 vs. 274 ± 28 ms, P &lt; 0.001; 147 ± 8 vs. 131 ± 17 ms, P &lt; 0.001), respectively. The receiver operating characteristic curve showed that the optimal cutoff values of the first coupling interval triggering TdP and QRS duration of VE were more than 319 ms and 141 ms (92% sensitivity, 95.7% specificity; 82.6% sensitivity, 77.8% specificity) for predicting the RVOT origin, respectively. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve revealed increased survival in patients with implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) implantation than in patients without ICD implantation (log-rank =10.127, P = 0.001).ConclusionSome agreements were confirmed in selected case reports regarding the clinical features, diagnosis, and management of scTdPs. Further large-scale and long-term follow-up studies are required to clarify the existing arrhythmogenic entities.
Signaling and structures underpinning conducted vasodilation in human and porcine intramyocardial coronary arteries
Authors: Dora Kim A. , Lin JinHeng , Borysova Lyudmyla , Beleznai Timea , Taggart Michael , Ascione Raimondo , Garland Christopher 
Published: August 2022

BackgroundAdequate blood flow into coronary micro-arteries is essential for myocardial function. Here we assess the mechanisms responsible for amplifying blood flow into myogenically-contracting human and porcine intramyocardial micro-arteries ex vivo using endothelium-dependent and -independent vasodilators.MethodsHuman and porcine atrial and ventricular small intramyocardial coronary arteries (IMCAs) were studied with pressure myography and imaged using confocal microscopy and serial section/3-D reconstruction EM.Results3D rendered ultrastructure images of human right atrial (RA-) IMCAs revealed extensive homo-and hetero-cellular contacts, including to longitudinally-arranged smooth muscle cells (l-SMCs) found between the endothelial cells (ECs) and radially-arranged medial SMCs (r-SMCs). Local and conducted vasodilatation followed focal application of bradykinin in both human and porcine RA-IMCAs, and relied on hyperpolarization of SMCs, but not nitric oxide. Bradykinin initiated asynchronous oscillations in endothelial cell Ca2+ in pressurized RA-IMCAs and, as previously shown in human RA-IMCAs, hyperpolarized porcine arteries. Immunolabelling showed small- and intermediate-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ channels (KCa) present in the endothelium of both species, and concentration-dependent vasodilation to bradykinin followed activation of these KCa channels. Extensive electrical coupling was demonstrated between r-SMCs and l-SMCs, providing an additional pathway to facilitate the well-established myoendothelial coupling. Conducted dilation was still evident in a human RA-IMCA with poor myogenic tone, and heterocellular contacts were visible in the 3D reconstructed artery. Hyperpolarization and conducted vasodilation was also observed to adenosine which, in contrast to bradykinin, was sensitive to combined block of ATP-sensitive (KATP) and inwardly rectifying (KIR) K+ channels.ConclusionsThese data extend our understanding of the mechanisms that coordinate human coronary microvascular blood flow and the mechanistic overlap with porcine IMCAs. The unusual presence of l-SMCs provides an additional pathway for rapid intercellular signaling between cells of the coronary artery wall. Local and conducted vasodilation follow hyperpolarization of the ECs or SMCs, and contact-coupling between l-SMCs and r-SMCs likely facilitates this vasodilation.
Impact of borderline pulmonary hypertension due to left heart failure on mortality in a multicenter registry study: A 3-year survivorship analysis
Authors: Lin Yangyi , Pang Lingpin , Huang Shian , Shen Jieyan , Wu Weifeng , Tang Fangming , Su Weiqing , Zhu Xiulong , Sun Jingzhi , Quan Ruilin , Yang Tao , Han Huijun , He Jianguo 
Published: August 2022

BackgroundPatients with left heart failure (LHF) are often associated with the development of pulmonary hypertension (PH) which leads to an increased risk of death. Recently, the diagnostic standard for PH has changed from mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) ≥25 mmHg to &gt;20 mmHg. Nonetheless, the effect of borderline PH (mPAP: 21–24 mmHg) on the prognosis of LHF patients is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between borderline PH and 3-year clinical outcomes in LHF patients.MethodsA retrospective analysis of a prospective cohort study was done for LHF patients who underwent right heart catheterization (RHC) between January 2013 and November 2016. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality; the secondary outcome was rehospitalization.ResultsAmong 344 patients, 62.5% were identified with a proportion of PH (mPAP ≥ 25), 10.8% with borderline PH (21–24), and 26.7% with non-PH (≤20), respectively. Multivariable Cox analysis revealed that borderline PH patients had a higher adjusted mortality risk (HR = 3.822; 95% CI: 1.043–13.999; p = 0.043) than non-PH patients. When mPAP was treated as a continuous variable, the hazard ratio for death increased progressively with increasing mPAP starting at 20 mmHg (HR = 1.006; 95% CI: 1.001–1.012). There was no statistically significant difference in adjusted rehospitalization between borderline PH and non-PH patients (HR = 1.599; 95% CI: 0.833–3.067; p = 0.158).ConclusionsBorderline PH is independently related to increased 3-year mortality in LHF patients. Future research is needed to evaluate whether more close monitoring, and managing with an intensifier improves clinical outcomes in borderline PH caused by LHF.Clinical trials registrationwww.clinicaltrials.gov NCT02164526.
Hidden molecular clues in marine sediments revealed by untargeted mass spectrometry imaging
Authors: Liu Weimin , Alfken Susanne , Wörmer Lars , Lipp Julius S. , Hinrichs Kai-Uwe 
Published: August 2022

Mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) in sedimentary archives can produce records of molecular proxies at μm-scale resolution. For example, in annually varved sediments of the Santa Barbara Basin, such a fine resolution allows deciphering sub-annual distributions of archaeal tetraether lipids, haptophyte-derived alkenones, and sterols. Herein, we reported the establishment of an untargeted data processing workflow aimed at dissecting the MSI datasets and extracting information beyond that obtained by targeted analysis of known molecular proxies. The combination of MSI and the untargeted workflow not only increases the spatial resolution for molecular stratigraphy but also dramatically broadens the number and diversity of molecular signals evaluated, enabling us to discover unique molecular signatures imprinted by various biogeochemical processes. We applied the proposed workflow to two MSI datasets that were both measured on the uppermost ∼10 cm of the Santa Barbara Basin sediments while covering different mass ranges. Two matrices of 18625×293 and 18963×323 (number of spectra × number of peaks) were, respectively, extracted after peak alignment using bin-wise kernel density estimation and subsequent peak picking by peak prominence filtering combined with geochemical context-based filtering. Feature extraction by non-negative matrix factorization revealed in total 15 stable molecular clusters with distinct spatial distributions in the sediments. Each cluster typically comprised several to dozens of compounds, with the majority of compounds in each cluster likely belonging to similar chemical taxonomies. Some of these clusters can be linked to specific biogeochemical processes. For example, chlorin-like compounds are possibly related to diatom production, alkenones are related to coccolithophorid production, and steranes and long-chain fatty acids likely represent terrigenous input. Supervised learning from these data mining results further extracted molecular signatures with proxy potential that appear to be linked to specific environmental conditions inferred from historical oceanographic data. However, generalizability to other sedimentary settings will require further investigation.
Atmospheric conditions conducive to marine fog over the northeast Pacific in winters of 1979–2019
Authors: Li Xinbei , Zhang Suping , Koračin Darko , Yi Li , Zhang Xin 
Published: August 2022

Observations show that the northeast Pacific (NEP) is a fog-prone area in winter compared with the northwest and central Pacific where fog rarely occurs in winter. By synthesizing observations and reanalysis results from 1979 to 2019, this study investigates the atmospheric circulation and marine atmospheric boundary layer structure associated with marine fog over the NEP in winter. Composite analysis shows that the eastern flank of the Aleutian low and the northwestern flank of the Pacific subtropical high jointly contribute to a northward air flow over the NEP. Under such conditions, warm and moist air flows through a cooler sea surface and facilitates the formation of advection-cooling fog. The air near the sea surface in foggy areas is cooled by the downward sensible heat flux. The smaller upward latent heat flux (∼10 W m−2) compared to the surrounding area (>60 W m−2) demonstrates that the moisture originates from the advection instead of local evaporation. The lower (at 925 to 875 hPa) and stronger (up to 0.08 K hPa−1) inversion layer, compared with cloudy cases and the turbulence in the lower atmosphere (below 975 hPa), also promotes fog formation and evolution. Approximately 68% of all fog cases (42242) show positive differences between surface air temperature (SAT) and sea surface temperature (SST), while 32% are negative, during southerly winds. Composite analysis of the latter shows lower specific humidity above the inversion bottom compared to the former. Dry air enhances longwave radiative cooling from the fog top, favoring cooling of the fog layer, gradually causing SAT to fall below SST.