bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Interspecific interactions alter plant functional strategies in a revegetated shrub-dominated community in the Mu Us Desert, China
Authors: Miao Chun , Bai Yuxuan , Zhang Yuqing , She Weiwei , Liu Liang , Qiao Yangui , Qin Shugao 
Published: March 2022

AbstractBackground and AimsPrevious studies investigating plant–plant interactions have focused on plant growth, context dependence and shifts in interactive outcomes. However, changes in functional traits in the context of interactions have been inadequately explored; few studies have focused on the effects of interactions on the plasticity of functional strategies.MethodsWe conducted a 4-year removal experiment for the xeric shrub Artemisia ordosica and perennial graminoids (PGs) in the Mu Us Desert, northern China. Soil nutrient content, biomass and 12 functional traits related to plant morphology and nutrient status were measured for the shrub species and a dominant PG species (i.e. Leymus secalinus) in the presence and absence of shrubs and PGs.Key ResultsShrubs affected the functional traits of L. secalinus, reducing leaf dry matter content and increasing plant height, which probably promoted the functional strategy of L. secalinus towards a more resource-acquisitive and competitive strategy. In contrast, when the shrubs were affected by PGs, they shifted towards a resource-conservative and stress-tolerative strategy, by increasing leaf dry matter content and decreasing specific leaf area. Moreover, the shrub species relied more on internal nutrient recycling (higher nitrogen resorption efficiency) rather than on external nitrogen uptake under nitrogen competition; instead, L. secalinus tended to exhibit higher external nitrogen uptake from soil during nitrogen shortages.ConclusionsThis study indicated that the functional strategies and nutrient cycling of the shrub species and the dominant PG were altered by each other. The shifts in functional traits may help plants to coexist in the community for a relatively long time. Our findings highlighted that interspecific interactions alter plant functional strategies and provided new insights into community assembly and succession mechanisms in a revegetated shrubland for ecological restoration of drylands.
Drought timing and species growth phenology determine intra-annual recovery of tree height and diameter growth
Authors: van Kampen Ruth , Fisichelli Nicholas , Zhang Yong-Jiang , Wason Jay 
Published: March 2022

Abstract
Droughts interact with tree phenology to drive declines in growth. As climate change makes drought more likely in the Northeastern USA, it is important to understand how droughts at different times of year will lead to reduced height and diameter growth of trees. To determine how seasonal drought may reduce intra-annual growth, we implemented spring, summer or fall droughts on 288 containerized saplings of six tree species (Acer rubrum, Betula papyrifera, Prunus serotina, Juniperus virginiana, Pinus strobus and Thuja occidentalis). We tracked weekly soil moisture, leaf water potential, height, diameter and survival of all trees before, during and after each 6-week drought. We found that the tree species that conducted the majority of their height or diameter growth in the spring were most sensitive to spring droughts (B. papyrifera and Pi. strobus). Thuja occidentalis also experienced significantly reduced growth from the spring drought but increased growth after the drought ended and achieved total height and diameter growth similar to controls. In contrast, summer droughts halted growth in most species for the remainder of the growing season even after the drought had ended. Fall droughts never impacted growth in the current year. These fine temporal-scale measurements of height and diameter growth suggest that tree response varies among species and is dynamic at intra-annual scales. These relatively rare data on intra-annual height growth sensitivity are important for canopy recruitment of saplings in forest ecosystems. Species-specific sensitivities of intra-annual growth to drought can inform models of forest competition in a changing climate.
VATA-ADL: The Visual Analogue Test for Anosognosia for Activities of Daily Living
Authors: Della Sala Sergio , Cocchini Gianna , Beschin Nicoletta , Fowler Elizabeth A , Kaschel Patrick , McIntosh Robert D 
Published: March 2022

AbstractObjectiveTo study awareness of problems with one’s own Activities of Daily Living (ADL) following stroke by means of a novel instrument—the Visual-Analogue Test for Anosognosia for Activities of Daily Living (VATA-ADL).MethodsThe new test overcomes some of the methodological problems of traditional structured interviews and self-rating questionnaires. In particular, to account for possible verbal communication difficulties, each question is illustrated by a drawing and a 4-point visual-analogue Likert scale. The patient’s self-rating is compared with that given by informants (personal or professional caregiver) to acquire a measure of metacognition of one’s own problems in performing everyday tasks.ResultsThe VATA-ADL was validated in 61 dyads of older people and their informants. A group of 80 post-acute stroke patients and their informants then completed the test. Informant ratings correlated highly with traditional ADL scales, the questionnaire items showed high internal consistency (α = .95) and loaded onto one factor. By comparison to informants’ assessments, the patients showed a generally poor appreciation of their functional disabilities. Thirty-nine patients overestimated their abilities (anosognosia) whereas nine showed underestimation of their abilities.ConclusionsAnosognosia (overestimation of abilities) for ADL is frequent, even in post-acute stages post-stroke. Some other patients underestimated their abilities, indicating that poor metacognition of one’s own abilities in brain damaged patients is bi-directional. Both types of misestimation may have clinical consequences worth considering for the wellbeing of patients and their carers.
‘Sneering, or Other Social Pelting’
Authors: O’Brien Lucy 
Published: March 2022

Abstract
My aim in this piece is to understand what kinds of acts sneering acts are. I aim to look at what sneering acts do and what social function they perform. In particular, I want to mark them out as acts of ‘making people feel’. I explore the grounds on which we might criticize sneering acts, and ask whether the thing that we do when we sneer is always vicious.
Truth without Dependence
Authors: Trueman Robert 
Published: March 2022

AbstractAccording to the Dependency Theory, truth asymmetrically depends on the world, in the following sense: true propositions are true because the world makes them true. The Dependency Theory strikes many philosophers as incontrovertible, but in this paper I reject it. I begin by presenting a problem for the Dependency Theory. I then develop an alternative to the Dependency Theory which avoids that problem. This alternative is an immodest Identity Theory of Truth, and I end the paper by responding to Dodd’s charge that immodest Identity Theories are incoherent.
Multiobjective optimization-driven primer design mechanism: towards user-specified parameters of PCR primer
Authors: Yang Cheng-Hong , Cheng Yu-Huei , Yang Emirlyn Cheng , Chuang Li-Yeh , Lin Yu-Da 
Published: March 2022

Abstract
Primers are critical for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and influence PCR experimental outcomes. Designing numerous combinations of forward and reverse primers involves various primer constraints, posing a computational challenge. Most PCR primer design methods limit parameters because the available algorithms use general fitness functions. This study designed new fitness functions based on user-specified parameters and used the functions in a primer design approach based on the multiobjective particle swarm optimization (MOPSO) algorithm to address the challenge of primer design with user-specified parameters. Multicriteria evaluation was conducted simultaneously based on primer constraints. The fitness functions were evaluated using 7425 DNA sequences and compared with a predominant primer design approach based on optimization algorithms. Each DNA sequence was run 100 times to calculate the difference between the user-specified parameters and primer constraint values. The algorithms based on fitness functions with user-specified parameters outperformed the algorithms based on general fitness functions for 11 primer constraints. Moreover, MOPSO exhibited superior implementation in all experiments. Practical gel electrophoresis was conducted to verify the PCR experiments and established that MOPSO effectively designs primers based on user-specified parameters.
Roles of the fibroblast growth factor signal transduction system in tissue injury repair
Authors: Chen Keyang , Rao Zhiheng , Dong Siyang , Chen Yajing , Wang Xulan , Luo Yongde , Gong Fanghua , Li Xiaokun 
Published: March 2022

Abstract
Following injury, tissue autonomously initiates a complex repair process, resulting in either partial recovery or regeneration of tissue architecture and function in most organisms. Both the repair and regeneration processes are highly coordinated by a hierarchy of interplay among signal transduction pathways initiated by different growth factors, cytokines and other signaling molecules under normal conditions. However, under chronic traumatic or pathological conditions, the reparative or regenerative process of most tissues in different organs can lose control to different extents, leading to random, incomplete or even flawed cell and tissue reconstitution and thus often partial restoration of the original structure and function, accompanied by the development of fibrosis, scarring or even pathogenesis that could cause organ failure and death of the organism. Ample evidence suggests that the various combinatorial fibroblast growth factor (FGF) and receptor signal transduction systems play prominent roles in injury repair and the remodeling of adult tissues in addition to embryonic development and regulation of metabolic homeostasis. In this review, we attempt to provide a brief update on our current understanding of the roles, the underlying mechanisms and clinical application of FGFs in tissue injury repair.
Evidence of Sexual Transmission of Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamase–Producing Enterobacterales: A Cross-sectional and Prospective Study
Authors: Surgers Laure , Chiarabini Thibault , Royer Guilhem , Rougier Hayette , Mercier-Darty Mélanie , Decré Dominique , Valin Nadia , Woerther Paul-Louis , Decousser Jean-Winoc , Girard Pierre-Marie , Lacombe Karine , Boyd Anders 
Published: March 2022

Abstract

Background
Extended-spectrum β-lactamase–producing Enterobacterales (ESBL-E) represent a major threat to public health. Little is known on their potential for sexual transmission.

Methods
We recruited individuals at a sexually transmitted infection and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) outpatient clinic in Paris, France, in whom we evaluated the prevalence of ESBL-E intestinal carriage and, among those testing positive, the proportion with clearance 6 months thereafter. We compared carriage prevalence between groups using logistic regression adjusted for age, geographic origin, travel outside Europe, and antibiotic use in the past 6 months.

Results
A total of 2157 individuals participated, of whom 226 (10.5%) were ESBL-E carriers. The proportions of ESBL-E carriers varied across sexual groups and were as follows: HIV-negative men who have sex with men (MSM) and who were on preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP), 16.3% (41 of 251); HIV-negative MSM not on PrEP, 9.7% (47 of 487); HIV-positive MSM, 12.2% (61 of 500); HIV-negative men who have sex exclusively with women, 10.0% (44 of 439); and HIV-negative women who have sex with men, 6.9% (n = 33 of 480). After adjustment, ESBL-E prevalence was significantly higher in HIV-negative MSM on PrEP (P &lt; .001) and HIV-positive MSM (P = .01) than in women who have sex with men. A higher number of sexual partners in the past 6 months was associated with ESBL-E carriage after adjustment (P = .004). Escherichia coli sequence type 14 and blaSHV-12–producing ESBL-E were observed only in MSM. Of 102 individuals with ESBL-E returning for testing, 26 (25%) had carriage at 6 months.

Conclusion
ESBL-E carriage is more frequent in MSM undergoing PrEP or living with HIV and with increasing number of sexual partners. More research is warranted to understand the consequences of ESBL-E carriage in these populations and how transmission can be reduced.
Hospitalizations Associated With Strongyloidiasis in the United States, 2003–2018
Authors: Inagaki Kengo , Bradbury Richard S , Hobbs Charlotte V 
Published: March 2022

Abstract

Background
Strongyloides stercoralis is considered to be historically endemic in Appalachia and the American South, but recent surveillance data, especially data evaluating strongyloidiasis associated with hospitalization, are lacking in most parts of the United States.

Methods
We performed a population-based retrospective analysis on strongyloidiasis using the National Inpatient Sample from 2003 to 2018. Geographic distribution of strongyloidiasis associated hospitalization was assessed. Logistic regression was used to identify risk factors associated with strongyloidiasis.

Results
We identified 6931 hospitalizations associated with strongyloidiasis during the study period (11.8 per million hospitalizations). The rate of strongyloidiasis was highest in the Northeast US region, including the Middle Atlantic division (47.1 cases per million population; adjusted odds ratio, 2.00 [95% confidence interval: 1.58–2.53]), and the East South Central division (27.5 cases per million; adjusted odds ratio, 2.77 [2.02–3.80]). Older age, male sex, nonwhite race/ethnicity (particularly Hispanic and Asian), nonprivate insurance, and residence in neighborhoods with low median income were also associated with strongyloidiasis. Immunocompromising conditions, particularly human immunodeficiency virus infection, were present in 41.3% of hospitalizations with strongyloidiasis. In-hospital death occurred in 7.8% of patients with strongyloidiasis-associated hospitalization.

Conclusions
Strongyloidiasis-associated hospitalization is rare in the United States but can be associated with increased mortality rate/mortality risk . It occurs more frequently in poor and marginalized populations. Immunocompromised conditions were common among hospitalized patients with strongyloidiasis. Enhanced surveillance efforts are needed to inform health policies for improving the health of at-risk populations.
Clinical Outcome Assessments in Pediatric Patients With Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn’s Disease Receiving Biologics: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Hunter Theresa , Komocsar Wendy J , Liu Chunyan , Colletti Richard B , Steiner Steven J , Dotson Jennifer L , Benkov Keith , Zhang Nanhua , Crandall Wallace 
Published: March 2022

Abstract

Background
To assess disease activity, steroid-free remission, and other clinical outcome assessments among pediatric patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD) in the ImproveCareNow (ICN) registry.

Methods
Patients aged 2–17 years diagnosed with UC or CD between June 1, 2013 and December 31, 2019 were enrolled if they initiated a biologic after enrollment in the ICN registry and completed at least 12 months follow-up after first maintenance dose. Baseline (at biologic initiation) demographics were summarized using descriptive statistics. Pediatric UC Activity Index (PUCAI), partial Mayo score, and Physician Global Assessment (PGA) were assessed for UC; and the Short Pediatric Crohn’s Disease Activity Index (sPCDAI) and PGA were assessed for CD at first maintenance dose, 1- and 3-year time points. Kappa coefficients were used to assess the level of agreement between the outcome measures.

Results
A total of 1887 patients (UC = 350; CD = 1537) were included. Baseline demographics were similar across groups. For UC patients, mean PUCAI scores decreased and the proportion of patients in steroid-free remission, quiescent state based on PGA, and remission based on partial Mayo score increased from first maintenance dose to 1 and 3 years. For CD patients, mean sPCDAI score of CD patients decreased and the proportion of patients in steroid-free remission by sPCDAI and in quiescent state based on PGA increased from first maintenance dose to 1 and 3 years. Kappa coefficients showed only modest correlation between disease activity assessments.

Conclusions
Disease activity scores improved over time, with more pediatric patients with UC and CD achieving steroid-free remission at 1 and 3 years after first biologic maintenance dose.
Machine learning applications in cardiac computed tomography: a composite systematic review
Authors: Bray Jonathan James Hyett , Hanif Moghees Ahmad , Alradhawi Mohammad , Ibbetson Jacob , Dosanjh Surinder Singh , Smith Sabrina Lucy , Ahmad Mahmood , Pimenta Dominic 
Published: March 2022

Abstract
Artificial intelligence and machine learning (ML) models are rapidly being applied to the analysis of cardiac computed tomography (CT). We sought to provide an overview of the contemporary advances brought about by the combination of ML and cardiac CT. Six searches were performed in Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Library up to November 2021 for (i) CT-fractional flow reserve (CT-FFR), (ii) atrial fibrillation (AF), (iii) aortic stenosis, (iv) plaque characterization, (v) fat quantification, and (vi) coronary artery calcium score. We included 57 studies pertaining to the aforementioned topics. Non-invasive CT-FFR can accurately be estimated using ML algorithms and has the potential to reduce the requirement for invasive angiography. Coronary artery calcification and non-calcified coronary lesions can now be automatically and accurately calculated. Epicardial adipose tissue can also be automatically, accurately, and rapidly quantified. Effective ML algorithms have been developed to streamline and optimize the safety of aortic annular measurements to facilitate pre-transcatheter aortic valve replacement valve selection. Within electrophysiology, the left atrium (LA) can be segmented and resultant LA volumes have contributed to accurate predictions of post-ablation recurrence of AF. In this review, we discuss the latest studies and evolving techniques of ML and cardiac CT.
A Delphi Consensus report from the "Prolonged Air Leak: A Survey" study group on prevention and management of postoperative air leaks after minimally invasive anatomical resections
Authors: Zaraca Francesco , Brunelli Alessandro , Pipitone Marco Damiano , Abdellateef Amr , Abu Akar Firas , Augustin Florian , Batchelor Tim , Bertani Alessandro , Crisci Roberto , D’Amico Thomas , D'Journo Xavier Benoit , Droghetti Andrea , Fang Wentao , Gonfiotti Alessandro , Janík Miroslav , Jiménez Marcelo , Kirschbaum Andreas , Kostic Marko , Lazzaro Richard , Lucchi Marco , Marra Alessandro , Murthy Sudish , Ng Calvin S H , Nachira Dania , Pardolesi Alessandro , Perkmann Reinhold , Petersen René Horsleben , Pischik Vadim , Russo Michele Dario , Opitz Isabelle , Spaggiari Lorenzo , Ugalde Paula A , Vannucci Fernando , Veronesi Giulia , Bertolaccini Luca 
Published: March 2022

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
This study reports the results of an international expert consensus process evaluating the assessment of intraoperative air leaks (IAL) and treatment of postoperative prolonged air leaks (PAL) utilizing a Delphi process, with the aim of helping standardization and improving practice.

METHODS
A panel of 45 questions was developed and submitted to an international working group of experts in minimally invasive lung cancer surgery. Modified Delphi methodology was used to review responses, including 3 rounds of voting. The consensus was defined a priori as &gt;50% agreement among the experts. Clinical practice standards were graded as recommended or highly recommended if 50–74% or &gt;75% of the experts reached an agreement, respectively.

RESULTS
A total of 32 experts from 18 countries completed the questionnaires in all 3 rounds. Respondents agreed that PAL are defined as &gt;5 days and that current risk models are rarely used. The consensus was reached in 33/45 issues (73.3%). IAL were classified as mild (&lt;100 ml/min; 81%), moderate (100–400 ml/min; 71%) and severe (&gt;400 ml/min; 74%). If mild IAL are detected, 68% do not treat; if moderate, consensus was not; if severe, 90% favoured treatment.

CONCLUSIONS
This expert consensus working group reached an agreement on the majority of issues regarding the detection and management of IAL and PAL. In the absence of prospective, randomized evidence supporting most of these clinical decisions, this document may serve as a guideline to reduce practice variation.
Effect of mental health collaborative care models on primary care provider outcomes: an integrative review
Authors: Holmes Ashleigh , Chang Yu-Ping 
Published: March 2022

Abstract

Background
Collaborative care models (CCMs) have robust research evidence in improving mental health outcomes for diverse patient populations with complex health care needs. However, the impact of CCMs on primary care provider (PCP) outcomes are not well described.

Objective
This integrative review synthesizes the evidence regarding the effect of mental health CCMs on PCP outcomes.

Methods
PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science, and PsycInfo were systematically searched using key terms, with inclusion criteria of English language, peer-reviewed literature, primary care setting, PCP outcomes, and mental health CCM. This resulted in 1,481 total records, with an additional 14 records identified by review of reference lists. After removal of duplicates, 1,319 articles were reviewed based on title and abstract, 190 full-text articles were assessed, and a final selection of 15 articles were critically appraised and synthesized.

Results
The articles included a wide variety of sample sizes, designs, settings, and patient populations, with most studies demonstrating low or moderate quality evidence. Although CCMs had an overwhelmingly positive overall effect on PCP outcomes such as knowledge, satisfaction, and self-efficacy, multiple logistical barriers were also identified that hindered CCM implementation such as time and workflow conflicts. Adaptability of the CCM as well as PCP enthusiasm enhanced positive outcomes. Newer-to-practice PCPs were more likely to participate in CCM initiatives.

Conclusion
Accumulating evidence supports CCM expansion, to improve both patient and PCP outcomes. Logistical efforts may enhance CCM adaptability and workflow. Further studies are needed to specifically examine the effect of CCMs on PCP burnout and retention.