bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Real-world treatment patterns for atopic dermatitis in South Korea
Authors: Lee Ji Hyun , Choi Ahhyung , Noh Yunha , Oh In-Sun , Jeon Ja-Young , Yoo Hyun-Jeong , Shin Ju-Young , Son Sang Wook 
Published: August 2022

AbstractThe phenotypes of atopic dermatitis (AD) are diverse, and ethnic differences have been suggested. To date, few studies have explored large-scale national data on the treatment patterns of AD in Asians. Therefore, we aimed to examine real-world treatment patterns for AD, including the probability of discontinuation of AD treatment and restart after discontinuation. A retrospective observational study was conducted using the nationwide healthcare database in South Korea between January 1, 2016 to July 31, 2020. We identified 944,559 pediatric patients and 1,066,453 adults with AD. Topical corticosteroids and antihistamines were the most commonly prescribed medications in all age groups. The frequency of topical corticosteroid prescription decreased as the age increased. Although immunosuppressive drugs were not widely used in both children and adults, cyclosporine was the most frequently prescribed immunosuppressant, particularly among those aged 12 years or more (1–2%). Pediatric patients were more likely to discontinue treatment than adult patients. Treatment restart for moderate-to-severe AD was earlier than that for overall AD. In conclusion, significant differences were observed in the treatment patterns of AD between pediatric and adult patients. These findings will improve our understanding of the latest treatment patterns for AD, which may contribute to decision-making in clinical practice.
Predictive value of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio for the fatality of COVID-19 patients complicated with cardiovascular diseases and/or risk factors
Authors: Higaki Akinori , Okayama Hideki , Homma Yoshito , Sano Takahide , Kitai Takeshi , Yonetsu Taishi , Torii Sho , Kohsaka Shun , Kuroda Shunsuke , Node Koichi , Matsue Yuya , Matsumoto Shingo 
Published: August 2022

AbstractPrevious studies have reported that a high neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) is associated with disease severity and poor prognosis in COVID-19 patients. We aimed to investigate the clinical implications of NLR in patients with COVID-19 complicated with cardiovascular diseases and/or its risk factors (CVDRF). In total, 601 patients with known NLR values were selected from the CLAVIS-COVID registry for analysis. Patients were categorized into quartiles (Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4) according to baseline NLR values, and demographic and clinical parameters were compared between the groups. Survival analysis was conducted using the Kaplan–Meier method. The diagnostic performance of the baseline and follow-up NLR values was tested using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Finally, two-dimensional mapping of patient characteristics was conducted using t-stochastic neighborhood embedding (t-SNE). In-hospital mortality significantly increased with an increase in the baseline NLR quartile (Q1 6.3%, Q2 11.0%, Q3 20.5%; and Q4, 26.6%; p < 0.001). The cumulative mortality increased as the quartile of the baseline NLR increased. The paired log-rank test revealed significant differences in survival for Q1 vs. Q3 (p = 0.017), Q1 vs. Q4 (p < 0.001), Q2 vs. Q3 (p = 0.034), and Q2 vs. Q4 (p < 0.001). However, baseline NLR was not identified as an independent prognostic factor using a multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression model. The area under the curve for predicting in-hospital death based on baseline NLR was only 0.682, whereas that of follow-up NLR was 0.893. The two-dimensional patient map with t-SNE showed a cluster characterized by high mortality with high NLR at follow-up, but these did not necessarily overlap with the population with high NLR at baseline. NLR may have prognostic implications in hospitalized COVID-19 patients with CVDRF, but its significance depends on the timing of data collection.
“Salvage techniques” are the key to overcome difficult biliary cannulation in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography
Authors: Maruta Shikiko , Sugiyama Harutoshi , Ogasawara Sadahisa , Sugihara Chihei , Ouchi Mayu , Kan Motoyasu , Yamada Toshihito , Miura Yoshifumi , Nagashima Hiroki , Takahashi Koji , Kusakabe Yuko , Ohyama Hiroshi , Okitsu Koichiro , Ohno Izumi , Mikata Rintaro , Sakai Yuji , Tsuyuguchi Toshio , Kato Jun , Kato Naoya 
Published: August 2022

AbstractAlthough the efficacy and safety of salvage techniques for biliary cannulation in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) have been reported, few reports analyzed the choice of techniques and their clinical outcomes in large cohorts. This study aimed to evaluate the outcomes of biliary cannulation in patients with native papillae. We retrospectively identified 1021 patients who underwent initial ERCP from January 2013 to March 2020. We investigated background factors, treatment details, cannulation success rates, and adverse event rates. Then we analyzed a series of treatment processes, including salvage techniques such as double guidewire technique (DGT), needle knife pre-cutting (NKP), and transpancreatic pre-cut papillotomy (TPPP). The initial ERCP success rate using standard technique alone was 62.8%, which increased to 94.3% including salvage techniques. Salvage techniques were frequently required in patients with long oral protrusions (OR 2.38; 95% CI 1.80–3.15; p < 0.001). A total of 503 cases (49.3%) had long oral protrusions, 47.5% of which required the salvage techniques, much higher than 27.5% of not-long cases. Patients with long oral protrusions had a higher frequency of NKP. In conclusion, patients with long oral protrusions frequently required salvage techniques. Salvage techniques may help to overcome many difficult biliary cannulation cases.
Image thresholding segmentation based on weighted Parzen-window and linear programming techniques
Authors: Xiong Fusong , Zhang Zhiqiang , Ling Yun , Zhang Jian 
Published: August 2022

AbstractImage segmentation by thresholding is an important and fundamental task in image processing and computer vision. In this paper, a new bi-level thresholding approach based on weighted Parzen-window and linear programming techniques is proposed to use in image thresholding segmentation. First, by proposing a weighted Parzen-window to describe the gray level distribution status, we obtain the boundaries for the foreground and background of the image. Then the image thresholding problem can be transformed into the problem of solving a linear programming problem for computing the coefficient values of weighted Parzen-window. The results of testing on synthetic, NDT and a set of benchmark images indicate that the proposed method can achieve a higher segmentation accuracy and robustness in comparison to some classical thresholding methods, such as inter class variance method (OTSU), Kapur’s entropy-based method (KSW), and some state-of-art methods that consider spatial information, such as CHPSO, GLLV histogram method and GABOR histogram method.
The prognosis of non-small cell lung cancer patients according to endobronchial metastatic lesion
Authors: Hong Yoonki , Park Sunmin , Lee Myoung Kyu 
Published: August 2022

AbstractTo evaluate the prognosis of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients according to endobronchial metastatic lesion (EML), especially those not identified on positron emission tomography or computed tomography. We evaluated progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) according to the presence of EML in patients with NSCLC who were diagnosed at a tertiary hospital between January 2010 and December 2019. A total of 364 patients were enrolled in this study. EML was found in 69 (19.0%) patients with NSCLC. In the patients with EML versus the patients without EML, median PFS was 7.0 (3.5–13.5) and 9.5 (5.5–17.5) months (P = 0.011), and median OS was 12.0 (6.0–30.0) versus 20.0 (10.0–39.0) months (P = 0.016), respectively. Median PFS and OS rates were highest in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) (+) and EML (−) patients and lowest in EGFR (−) and EML (+) patients (P < 0.001). By multivariate cox regression analysis, PFS in overall patients with NSCLC was significantly associated with EML, EGFR mutation, performance status, and pleural effusion. NSCLC patients with EML had worse prognoses of PFS and OS than patients without EML.
Long-term study on survival and development of successive generations of Mytilus galloprovincialis cryopreserved larvae
Authors: Heres P. , Troncoso J. , Paredes E. 
Published: August 2022

AbstractShellfish aquaculture needs the development of new tools for the improvement of good practices avoiding the reliance on natural spat collection to increase production efficiently. The aim of this work was to improve the cryopreservation protocol for Mytilus galloprovincialis larvae described in Paredes et al. (in: Wolkers, Oldenhof (eds) Cryopreservation and freeze-drying protocol, methods in molecular biology, Humana Press, 2021, pp 2180, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0783-1_18). Moreover, the capability of producing adult mussels from cryopreserved 72 h-old D-larvae and potential long-term effects of cryopreservation through progenies were evaluated. The selection of 72-h old D-larvae for cryopreservation yielded 75% of recovery, higher than 50% from trochophores. The best combination was 10% Ethylene–Glycol + 0.4 M Trehalose in Filtered Sea Water (FSW) with cooling at − 1 °C/min and a water bath at 35 °C for thawing. Sucrose (SUC) solutions did not improve larval recovery (p > 0.05). At settlement, 5.26% of cryopreserved F1 larvae survived and over 70% settled. F2 cryopreservation produced 0.15% survival of spat and settlement varied from 35 to 50%. The delay of shell size showed on cryopreserved larvae declined throughout larval rearing without significant differences with controls from settlement point (p > 0.05). Long-term experiments showed that it is possible to obtain adult mussels from cryopreserved larvae and this tool does not compromise the quality of following progenies, neither for cryopreservation nor post-thawing development of them.
Genetically-biased fertilization in APOBEC1 complementation factor (A1cf) mutant mice
Authors: Hirose Naoki , Blanchet Genevieve , Yamauchi Yasuhiro , Snow Abigail C. , Friedman Robin , Khoo Carmen Y. , Lary Christine W. , Ward Monika A. , Nadeau Joseph H. 
Published: August 2022

AbstractMeiosis, recombination, and gametogenesis normally ensure that gametes combine randomly. But in exceptional cases, fertilization depends on the genetics of gametes from both females and males. A key question is whether their non-random union results from factors intrinsic to oocytes and sperm, or from their interactions with conditions in the reproductive tracts. To address this question, we used in vitro fertilization (IVF) with a mutant and wild-type allele of the A1cf (APOBEC1 complementation factor) gene in mice that are otherwise genetically identical. We observed strong distortion in favor of mutant heterozygotes showing that bias depends on the genetics of oocyte and sperm, and that any environmental input is modest. To search for the potential mechanism of the ‘biased fertilization’, we analyzed the existing transcriptome data and demonstrated that localization of A1cf transcripts and its candidate mRNA targets is restricted to the spermatids in which they originate, and that these transcripts are enriched for functions related to meiosis, fertilization, RNA stability, translation, and mitochondria. We propose that failure to sequester mRNA targets in A1cf mutant heterozygotes leads to functional differences among spermatids, thereby providing an opportunity for selection among haploid gametes. The study adds to the understanding of the gamete interaction at fertilization. Discovery that bias is evident with IVF provides a new venue for future explorations of preference among genetically distinct gametes at fertilization for A1cf and other genes that display significant departure of Mendelian inheritance.
Comprehensive bioinformatic analysis of MMP1 in hepatocellular carcinoma and establishment of relevant prognostic model
Authors: Dai Lei , Mugaanyi Joseph , Cai Xingchen , Dong Mingjun , Lu Caide , Lu Changjiang 
Published: August 2022

AbstractMatrix metalloproteinase 1 (MMP1) encodes endopeptidases associated with degradation of multiple components of the extracellular matrix. This function has increasingly been considered to play a major proteolysis role in tumor invasion and metastasis. However, the relationship between MMP1 gene expression, tumor-immune microenvironment and prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma patients remains mostly unclear. This study focused on a comprehensive analysis of MMP1 in hepatocellular carcinoma, specifically the prognosis and tumor-immune microenvironment. MMP1 expression was analyzed using TCGA database and clinical samples. MMP1 associated mechanisms, pathways, mutations and prognosis in hepatocellular carcinoma were evaluated. We also analyzed the tumor-immune microenvironment and corresponding treatments. Our research demonstrated that MMP1 expression was upregulated in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and correlated with poor survival. A prognostic model was established and its performance evaluated. We also found and report various correlations between MMP1 and immune-related cells/genes, as well the potential therapeutic agents. These findings indicate that MMP1 can potentially be a promising prognostic biomarker and indicator of the tumor-immune microenvironment status in hepatocellular carcinoma.
Subseasonal controls of U.S. landfalling tropical cyclones
Authors: Xiang Baoqiang , Wang Bin , Zhang Wei , Harris Lucas , Delworth Thomas L. , Zhang Gan , Cooke William F. 
Published: August 2022

AbstractLandfalling tropical cyclones (LTCs) are the most devastating disaster to affect the U.S., while the demonstration of skillful subseasonal (between 10 days and one season) prediction of LTCs is less promising. Understanding the mechanisms governing the subseasonal variation of TC activity is fundamental to improving its forecast, which is of critical interest to decision-makers and the insurance industry. This work reveals three localized atmospheric circulation modes with significant 10–30 days subseasonal variations: Piedmont Oscillation (PO), Great America Dipole (GAD), and the Subtropical High ridge (SHR) modes. These modes strongly modulate precipitation, TC genesis, intensity, track, and landfall near the U.S. coast. Compared to their strong negative phases, the U.S. East Coast has 19 times more LTCs during the strong positive phases of PO, and the Gulf Coast experiences 4–12 times more frequent LTCs during the positive phases of GAD and SHR. Results from the GFDL SPEAR model show a skillful prediction of 13, 9, and 22 days for these three modes, respectively. Our findings are expected to benefit the prediction of LTCs on weather timescale and also suggest opportunities exist for subseasonal predictions of LTCs and their associated heavy rainfalls.
Dual PET-fMRI reveals a link between neuroinflammation, amyloid binding and compensatory task-related brain activity in Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: Canário Nádia , Jorge Lília , Martins Ricardo , Santana Isabel , Castelo-Branco Miguel 
Published: August 2022

AbstractThe interplay among neuropathological mechanisms underlying Alzheimer’s disease (AD), as neuroinflammation and amyloid-beta (Aβ), as well their impact on neuronal function remains elusive. A major gap in knowledge is the functional impact of neuroinflammation. The posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), as the most prominent site of amyloid pathology in AD, is a pivotal region to investigate the concomitant presence of pathophysiological mechanisms such as microglia activation, indexing neuroinflammation, and changes in task related activity. Here we used a dual PET approach to simultaneously study Aβ load and neuroinflammation (TSPO uptake marker), using 11C-PiB and 11C-PK11195 radiotracers, respectively and fMRI to study task related neural activation in an AD sample (n = 19) and matched controls (n = 19). Here we show significantly increased Aβ deposition, neuroinflammation and brain activity related to a visual object working memory task in this key region. Microglia activation was associated with increased brain activity specifically in patients, independently of amyloid binding, raising the possibility that abnormal brain activity might be restored in clinical trials aimed at reducing microglia activation.
The multifaceted actions of the lncRNA H19 in cardiovascular biology and diseases
Authors: Busscher Denise , Boon Reinier A. , Juni Rio P. 
Published: August 2022

Abstract
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death and debility worldwide. Various molecular mechanisms have been studied to better understand the development and progression of cardiovascular pathologies with hope to eradicate these diseases. With the advancement of the sequencing technology, it is revealed that the majority of our genome is non-coding. A growing body of literature demonstrates the critical role of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) as epigenetic regulators of gene expression. LncRNAs can regulate cellular biological processes through various distinct molecular mechanisms. The abundance of lncRNAs in the cardiovascular system indicates their significance in cardiovascular physiology and pathology. LncRNA H19, in particular, is a highly evolutionarily conserved lncRNA that is enriched in cardiac and vascular tissue, underlining its importance in maintaining homeostasis of the cardiovascular system. In this review, we discuss the versatile function of H19 in various types of cardiovascular diseases. We highlight the current literature on H19 in the cardiovascular system and demonstrate how dysregulation of H19 induces the development of cardiovascular pathophysiology.
Uncovering protein function: from classification to complexes
Authors: Morris Rhiannon , Black Katrina A. , Stollar Elliott J. 
Published: August 2022

Abstract
Almost all interactions and reactions that occur in living organisms involve proteins. The various biological roles of proteins include, but are not limited to, signal transduction, gene transcription, cell death, immune function, structural support, and catalysis of all the chemical reactions that enable organisms to survive. The varied roles of proteins have led to them being dubbed ‘the workhorses of all living organisms’. This article discusses the functions of proteins and how protein function is studied in a laboratory setting. In this article, we begin by examining the functions of protein domains, followed by a discussion of some of the major classes of proteins based on their function. We consider protein binding in detail, which is central to protein function. We then examine how protein function can be altered through various mechanisms including post-translational modification, and changes to environment, oligomerisation and mutations. Finally, we consider a handful of the techniques employed in the laboratory to understand and measure the function of proteins.
Lexical Acquisition and Phonological Development in Minimally Verbal Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders
Authors: Biller Maysoon F. , Yeager Kayleigh A. 
Published: August 2022

Purpose:
This study examines two components of lexical acquisition and phonological development that occur during the first 50-word stage of language development in neurotypical (NT) children. One component is how children learn words based on their existing speech sound inventories (i.e., in-phonology and out-of-phonology word learning). The other component is the relationship between the children's number of words and the number of phonemes in their speech sound inventories. The goal of this study is to determine if the same two components occur in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) who are older than their NT peers but are in the same stage of lexical development.

Method:
This study involved 20 minimally verbal children with ASDs, ages 28–72 months, who produced five to 50 spoken words. The children's spoken words were obtained from the MacArthur–Bates Communicative Development Inventories. The speech sound inventories were obtained from the utterances produced during assessment/play sessions with the children. The children's spoken words from the Communicative Development Inventories (CDI) were categorized as either in-phonology or out-of-phonology based on whether the words began with a phoneme in the child's existing speech sound inventory. Additionally, the children's number of spoken words on the CDI was compared to the number of phonemes in their speech sound inventories.

Results:

The children in this study produced in-phonology words more often than out-of-phonology words (
z
= −3.922;
p
< .001). Moreover, there was a moderate positive correlation between the children's number of spoken words and the number of phonemes in their speech sound inventories (
r
= .534,
p
= .019).

Conclusions:
The relationship between lexical acquisition and phonological development appears to exist for the children in this study, who are in the first 50-word stage of development. Clinical implications for increasing the expressive language of children with ASDs were discussed.
The Arecibo Galaxy Environment Survey (AGES)
Authors: Deshev Boris , Taylor Rhys , Minchin Robert , Scott Tom C. , Brinks Elias 
Published: August 2022

Context. Many galaxy properties are known to correlate with the environment in which the galaxies are embedded. Their cold, neutral gas content, which is usually assessed through 21 cm H I observations, is related to many other galaxy properties as it is the underlying fuel for star formation. With its high sensitivity and broad sky coverage the blind Arecibo Galaxy Environment Survey (AGES) brings significant improvement to the census of H I properties of galaxies in a wide range of environments, from voids to the core of a massive cluster. Here we present an H I census over a volume of ∼44 000 Mpc3 towards the merging cluster Abell 1367 and extending well beyond.
Aims. We measure the effects that different environments have on the H I content of their constituent galaxies.
Methods. We use AGES- a deep, blind, H I survey carried out with the Arecibo radio telescope, which covers 20 square degrees on the sky centred on the merging cluster Abell 1367, mapping the large-scale structure (LSS) surrounding the cluster out to cz = 20 000 km s−1. The survey is sensitive down to a column density of NH I = 1.5 × 1017 cm−2 for emission filling the beam and a line width of 10 km s−1. As an approximate mass sensitivity limit, a member of A1367 (at a distance of 92 Mpc), containing MH I = 2.7 × 108 M⊙ distributed over a top-hat profile of 50 km s−1 width would be detected at 4σ. The results are analysed in combination with optical spectroscopy data from SDSS which we use to estimate the local galaxy density based on the Voronoi-Delaunay method.
Results. We present the results of the complete AGES survey of the A1367 field. In total, we detect 457 H I sources, 213 of which are detected for the first time by the AGES survey, and 134 of which are presented in this article for the first time. Of the 457 detections, 225 are in the cluster and 232 are in the remaining volume surveyed. Here we present the full catalogue of H I detections and their basic properties, including optical ones. We concentrate on the difference between the cluster and the foreground and background LSS, revealing a continuous correlation of H I-detected fraction (and H I deficiency) with local galaxy density, independent of global environment.