bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cellular adaptation of Clostridioides difficile to high salinity encompasses a compatible solute‐responsive change in cell morphology
Authors: Michel Annika‐Marisa , Borrero‐de Acuña José Manuel , Molinari Gabriella , Ünal Can Murat , Will Sabine , Derksen Elisabeth , Barthels Stefan , Bartram Wiebke , Schrader Michel , Rohde Manfred , Zhang Hao , Hoffmann Tamara , Neumann‐Schaal Meina , Bremer Erhard , Jahn Dieter 
Published: February 2022

SummaryInfections by the pathogenic gut bacterium Clostridioides difficile cause severe diarrhoeas up to a toxic megacolon and are currently among the major causes of lethal bacterial infections. Successful bacterial propagation in the gut is strongly associated with the adaptation to changing nutrition‐caused environmental conditions; e.g. environmental salt stresses. Concentrations of 350 mM NaCl, the prevailing salinity in the colon, led to significantly reduced growth of C. difficile. Metabolomics of salt‐stressed bacteria revealed a major reduction of the central energy generation pathways, including the Stickland‐fermentation reactions. No obvious synthesis of compatible solutes was observed up to 24 h of growth. The ensuing limited tolerance to high salinity and absence of compatible solute synthesis might result from an evolutionary adaptation to the exclusive life of C. difficile in the mammalian gut. Addition of the compatible solutes carnitine, glycine‐betaine, γ‐butyrobetaine, crotonobetaine, homobetaine, proline‐betaine and dimethylsulfoniopropionate restored growth (choline and proline failed) under conditions of high salinity. A bioinformatically identified OpuF‐type ABC‐transporter imported most of the used compatible solutes. A long‐term adaptation after 48 h included a shift of the Stickland fermentation‐based energy metabolism from the utilization to the accumulation of l‐proline and resulted in restored growth. Surprisingly, salt stress resulted in the formation of coccoid C. difficile cells instead of the typical rod‐shaped cells, a process reverted by the addition of several compatible solutes. Hence, compatible solute import via OpuF is the major immediate adaptation strategy of C. difficile to high salinity‐incurred cellular stress.
The Elite Education of Education Secretaries
Authors: Hilton Adrian 
Published: February 2022

AbstractWhile there is much (party) politicking about the social and educational backgrounds of Members of Parliament, especially presently around the composition of Boris Johnson's Cabinet, it may be observed that the educational backgrounds of Conservative and Labour education secretaries over the decades have not been wildly different. This article examines their elite biographical peculiarities, and how these combine in other education ministers and their networks of advisors to constitute a distinct ‘policy community’ in the pursuit of an agenda in educational reform, presently being that of academies and free schools. It is proposed that while diversity in this context may not always be found in their secondary or higher education, this does not limit, as is sometimes posited, either their capacity for compassion in social deprivation, or their understanding of diverse educational structures.
Longitudinal associations between third‐grade teaching styles and sixth‐grade reading skills: a 3‐year follow‐up study
Authors: Tang Xin , Kikas Eve , Pakarinen Eija , Laursen Brett , Lerkkanen Marja‐Kristiina 
Published: February 2022

BackgroundMost previous studies of teaching styles and reading skills have been cross‐sectional. Longitudinal research is needed to clarify the direction of effects. The present longitudinal study examined the degree to which differences in teaching styles in the third grade predict the sixth‐grade reading performance. The consistency of the findings was addressed by comparing results across students in two countries (Finland and Estonia).MethodsA total of 1,057 students (50.9% boys) were followed from the third to sixth grade. Teaching styles of third‐grade teachers (N = 70) were examined as predictors of the development of reading (i.e., third‐grade to sixth‐grade reading fluency and comprehension).ResultsFive patterns of third‐grade teaching practices were found across two countries: child‐centred style, teacher‐directed style, child‐dominated style, extreme child‐centred style, and mixed child‐centred and teacher‐directed style (mixed teaching style). The mixed teaching style and the child‐centred style in the third grade were related to the greatest increases in reading fluency from the third to sixth grade, over and above the contribution of age, gender and maternal education.ConclusionsThe findings underscore the importance of the flexible use of child‐centred and teacher‐directed practices, which are both linked to the development of reading fluency during late primary school years.
Where is the ‘C’ in antenatal care and postnatal care: A multi‐country survey of availability of antenatal and postnatal care in low‐ and middle‐income settings
Authors: Madaj Barbara , Gopalakrishnan Somasundari , Quach Alexandre , Filiaci Simone , Traore Adama , Bakusa Dankom , Mdegela Mselenge , Yousofzai Abdul Wali , Rahmanzai Ahmed Javed , Kodindo Grace , Gami Jean‐Pierre , Rostand Njiki Dounou , Kessely Hamit , Addo Stephen Ayisi , Abbey Mercy , Sapali Mary , Omar Ali , Ernest Alex , Mtandu Rugola , Agossou Abram , Ketoh Guillaume K. , Furtado Nicholas , Mangiaterra Viviana , van den Broek Nynke 
Published: February 2022

AbstractObjectiveAntenatal (ANC) and postnatal care (PNC) are logical entry points for prevention and treatment of pregnancy‐related illness and to reduce perinatal mortality. We developed signal functions and assessed availability of the essential components of care.DesignCross‐sectional survey.SettingAfghanistan, Chad, Ghana, Tanzania, Togo.SampleThree hundred and twenty‐one healthcare facilities.MethodsFifteen essential components or signal functions of ANC and PNC were identified. Healthcare facility assessment for availability of each component, human resources, equipment, drugs and consumables required to provide each component.Main outcome measureAvailability of ANC PNC components.ResultsAcross all countries, healthcare providers are available (median number per facility: 8; interquartile range [IQR] 3–17) with a ratio of 3:1 for secondary versus primary care. Significantly more women attend for ANC than PNC (1668 versus 300 per facility/year). None of the healthcare facilities was able to provide all 15 essential components of ANC and PNC. The majority (>75%) could provide five components: diagnosis and management of syphilis, vaccination to prevent tetanus, BMI assessment, gestational diabetes screening, monitoring newborn growth. In Sub‐Saharan countries, interventions for malaria and HIV (including prevention of mother to child transmission [PMTCT]) were available in 11.7–86.5% of facilities. Prevention and management of TB; assessment of pre‐ or post‐term birth, fetal wellbeing, detection of multiple pregnancy, abnormal lie and presentation; screening and support for mental health and domestic abuse were provided in <25% of facilities.ConclusionsEssential components of ANC and PNC are not in place. Focused attention on content is required if perinatal mortality and maternal morbidity during and after pregnancy are to be reduced.Tweetable abstractANC and PNC are essential care bundles. We identified 15 core components. These are not in place in the majority of LMIC settings.
A robust approach to estimate relative phytoplankton cell abundances from metagenomes
Authors: Pierella Karlusich Juan José , Pelletier Eric , Zinger Lucie , Lombard Fabien , Zingone Adriana , Colin Sébastien , Gasol Josep M. , Dorrell Richard G. , Henry Nicolas , Scalco Eleonora , Acinas Silvia G. , Wincker Patrick , de Vargas Colomban , Bowler Chris 
Published: February 2022

AbstractPhytoplankton account for >45% of global primary production, and have an enormous impact on aquatic food webs and on the entire Earth System. Their members are found among prokaryotes (cyanobacteria) and multiple eukaryotic lineages containing chloroplasts. Genetic surveys of phytoplankton communities generally consist of PCR amplification of bacterial (16S), nuclear (18S) and/or chloroplastic (16S) rRNA marker genes from DNA extracted from environmental samples. However, our appreciation of phytoplankton abundance or biomass is limited by PCR‐amplification biases, rRNA gene copy number variations across taxa, and the fact that rRNA genes do not provide insights into metabolic traits such as photosynthesis. Here, we targeted the photosynthetic gene psbO from metagenomes to circumvent these limitations: the method is PCR‐free, and the gene is universally and exclusively present in photosynthetic prokaryotes and eukaryotes, mainly in one copy per genome. We applied and validated this new strategy with the size‐fractionated marine samples collected by Tara Oceans, and showed improved correlations with flow cytometry and microscopy than when based on rRNA genes. Furthermore, we revealed unexpected features of the ecology of these ecosystems, such as the high abundance of picocyanobacterial aggregates and symbionts in the ocean, and the decrease in relative abundance of phototrophs towards the larger size classes of marine dinoflagellates. To facilitate the incorporation of psbO in molecular‐based surveys, we compiled a curated database of >18,000 unique sequences. Overall, psbO appears to be a promising new gene marker for molecular‐based evaluations of entire phytoplankton communities.
The Ambitious Modesty of the High‐Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development
Authors: Qerimi Qerim 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThe High‐Level Political Forum (HLPF) on sustainable development is a unique hybrid structure of authority established at the 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. Its design is conceived on the basis of the experience with, and shortcomings of, its predecessor, the Commission on Sustainable Development. The underlying premise is a grand policy ambition of implementation of sustainable development through follow‐up and review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 sustainable development goals. Approaching its first decade of existence, the HLPF should be a valid subject of evaluation. This article presents a review and appraisal of its work with a predominant focus on its voluntary national reviews (VNRs) process, revealing some of its fundamental deficiencies and need for rather radical improvement. Given the magnitude of persisting global challenges, institutional limitations and weaknesses surrounding the HLPF and ensuing risks associated with the implementation of sustainable development agenda, this article proposes alternatives to the existing modalities of status and operation.
Does integrated soil fertility management increase returns to land and labor?
Authors: Hörner Denise , Wollni Meike 
Published: February 2022

AbstractIntegrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) is promoted to enhance soil fertility and agricultural productivity among smallholders. Its core is the combined use of organic and inorganic fertilizers with improved crop varieties. Adoption of these practices potentially involves additional monetary and labor investments, and it remains unclear whether these pay off. This study analyzes the effects of the three core ISFM practices and their combinations on key agricultural outcomes, including land and labor productivity as well as net crop value, in which we account for the shadow costs of unpaid labor. We employ a multinomial endogenous switching model to original survey data from over 6000 teff, maize and wheat plots owned by around 2000 households in Ethiopia. All ISFM practices and their combinations increase land and labor productivity, despite higher labor demand, with the largest effects stemming from the joint use of all three practices. Effects on net crop value are positive for most combinations, but suggest that organic fertilizer with improved seeds may be more beneficial compared to combinations with inorganic fertilizer. The importance of organic fertilizer applications is also supported by our regionally disaggregated analysis that reveals important agroecological heterogeneity.
Epithelial barrier hypothesis: Effect of the external exposome on the microbiome and epithelial barriers in allergic disease
Authors: Celebi Sozener Zeynep , Ozdel Ozturk Betul , Cerci Pamir , Turk Murat , Gorgulu Akin Begum , Akdis Mubeccel , Altiner Seda , Ozbey Umus , Ogulur Ismail , Mitamura Yasutaka , Yilmaz Insu , Nadeau Kari , Ozdemir Cevdet , Mungan Dilsad , Akdis Cezmi A. 
Published: February 2022

AbstractEnvironmental exposure plays a major role in the development of allergic diseases. The exposome can be classified into internal (e.g., aging, hormones, and metabolic processes), specific external (e.g., chemical pollutants or lifestyle factors), and general external (e.g., broader socioeconomic and psychological contexts) domains, all of which are interrelated. All the factors we are exposed to, from the moment of conception to death, are part of the external exposome. Several hundreds of thousands of new chemicals have been introduced in modern life without our having a full understanding of their toxic health effects and ways to mitigate these effects. Climate change, air pollution, microplastics, tobacco smoke, changes and loss of biodiversity, alterations in dietary habits, and the microbiome due to modernization, urbanization, and globalization constitute our surrounding environment and external exposome. Some of these factors disrupt the epithelial barriers of the skin and mucosal surfaces, and these disruptions have been linked in the last few decades to the increasing prevalence and severity of allergic and inflammatory diseases such as atopic dermatitis, food allergy, allergic rhinitis, chronic rhinosinusitis, eosinophilic esophagitis, and asthma. The epithelial barrier hypothesis provides a mechanistic explanation of how these factors can explain the rapid increase in allergic and autoimmune diseases. In this review, we discuss factors affecting the planet’s health in the context of the ‘epithelial barrier hypothesis,’ including climate change, pollution, changes and loss of biodiversity, and emphasize the changes in the external exposome in the last few decades and their effects on allergic diseases. In addition, the roles of increased dietary fatty acid consumption and environmental substances (detergents, airborne pollen, ozone, microplastics, nanoparticles, and tobacco) affecting epithelial barriers are discussed. Considering the emerging data from recent studies, we suggest stringent governmental regulations, global policy adjustments, patient education, and the establishment of individualized control measures to mitigate environmental threats and decrease allergic disease.
Becoming politicians: Indigenous pageants as training sites for public life
Authors: Erazo Juliet Serenyi , Benitez Ernesto J. 
Published: February 2022

AbstractFeminist scholars typically analyze beauty pageants as spaces where women are objectified, sexualized, and pressured to conform. Yet, many in the Ecuadorian Amazon say that Indigenous pageants are ideal places to begin a career in politics. While interviews with pageant contestants reveal that many do not imagine themselves as politicians, examining Indigenous pageants as sites where women fashion new versions of themselves—versions that are more comfortable speaking in public, performing stereotypical Indigeneity, and taking bold stands on political issues—we can understand them as sites of “becoming” (Biehl and Locke 2017). Rather than simply emphasizing the desires of contestants, as other approaches to becoming have done, we analyze a series of additional, intersecting desires—international, national, capitalist, Indigenist, and familial—that work to shape pageant performances and performers. Building on Saba Mahmood's work, we emphasize the social embeddedness and construction of desire rather than its opposition to subject formation.
Wholehearted Participation: Attuning to Affect and Immanence in a Virtual Field
Authors: Perry Shannon A.B. 
Published: February 2022

SummaryDiving into a virtual field in response to COVID‐19, my orientation to ethnographic inquiry and writing changed as I joined the ranks of thousands of editors worldwide in contributing to the free online encyclopedia, Wikipedia. Honing practices for participating in this dynamic virtual field attuned me to felt senses of flow and more‐than‐human connections that I relate to posthuman concepts of affect and immanence. The essay concludes with potential implications for embracing wholehearted participation as a method.
Theorizing a Female Dalai Lama: An Intersectional Tool for Feminisms
Authors: Sharling Tenzin‐Dhardon 
Published: February 2022

AbstractSeizing on the opportunity provided by the Dalai Lama recently hinting at a female successor, this paper delves deep into theorizing a female Dalai Lama. It offers an intersectional tool to examine how such a conception not only overturns patriarchy pertinent in Tibetan Buddhism, but also disrupts the heteropatriarchal religious traditions beyond Tibetan Buddhism. Moreover, it brings to light affirmative imagination for feminist thinking and intervention premised on the understanding of feminisms as engaging with structures of power and systems of oppression.
Altered States: Liminality and Consciousness During COVID
Authors: Torres Nicole 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThis editorial discusses the function of COVID as what the Indigenous scholar and psychologist, Eduardo Duran, describes as a “great teacher.” The author engages with the opportunities of learning that the COVID‐19 pandemic has provided, especially in the realm of anthropological studies of consciousness. The author encourages both scholars and practitioners to use the current pandemic as an opportunity to practice what Andy Fisher identifies as a “decolonial praxis,” as a tool for liberation and healing.
High flow from Impella 5.5 with partial veno‐arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support: Case series
Authors: Ohira Suguru , Pan Stephen , Levine Avi , Haidry Syed A. , Aggawal‐Gupta Chhaya , Lanier Gregg , Gass Alan , De La Pena Corazon , Goldberg Joshua B. , Spielvogel David , Kai Masashi 
Published: February 2022

AbstractOptimal flow balance between Impella 5.5 and veno‐arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) support in the setting of EC‐PELLA (ECMO+Impella) is unknown. Outcomes of high Impella 5.5 flow in the setting of EC‐PELLA support were reviewed (N = 7). EC‐PELLA was successfully explanted in 6 patients (bridge‐to‐transplant, N = 1; bridge‐to‐recovery, N = 5). The median duration of EC‐PELLA support in explanted patients was 6 days. Survival at discharge was 71.4% (5 patients). In terms of device‐related events, either VA‐ECMO or Impella‐related complications were not experienced. The median performance level of Impella 5.5 was P5 at the time of starting EC‐PELLA support and then increased with time up to the median of P8 with increment of the Impella flow, and index (L/min/m2). The percentage of Impella flow per total EC‐ PELLA flow reached 50% after 48 h of support. The vasoactive‐inotropic score and serum lactate level improved after institution of EC‐PELLA support as well as the pulmonary artery pressures and central venous pressure. In conclusion, a high pump flow from Impella 5.5 with partial VA‐ECMO support in the setting of EC‐PELLA provided great support with favorable survival and device‐related complications rate.
Proteomic profiles in cerebrospinal fluid predicted death and disability in term infants with perinatal asphyxia: A pilot study
Authors: Leifsdottir Kristin , Thelin Eric P , Lassarén Philipp , Siljehav Veronica , Nilsson Peter , Eksborg Staffan , Herlenius Eric 
Published: February 2022

AbstractAimPerinatal asphyxia, resulting in hypoxic‐ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE), has been associated with high mortality rates and severe lifelong neurodevelopmental disabilities. Our aim was to study the association between the proteomic profile in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and the degree of HIE and long‐term outcomes.MethodsWe prospectively enrolled 18‐term born infants with HIE and 10‐term born controls between 2000 and 2004 from the Karolinska University Hospital. An antibody suspension bead array and FlexMap3D analysis was used to characterise 178 unique brain‐derived and inflammation associated proteins in their CSF.ResultsIncreased CSF concentrations of several brain‐specific proteins were observed in the proteome of HIE patients compared with the controls. An upregulation of neuroinflammatory pathways was also noted and this was confirmed by pathway analysis. Principal component analysis revealed a gradient from favourable to unfavourable HIE grades and outcomes. The proteins that provided strong predictors were structural proteins, including myelin basic protein and alpha‐II spectrin. The functional proteins included energy‐related proteins like neuron‐specific enolase and synaptic regulatory proteins. Increased CSF levels of 51 proteins correlated with adverse outcomes in infants with HIE.ConclusionBrain‐specific proteins and neuroinflammatory mediators in CSF may predict HIE degrees and outcomes after perinatal asphyxia.
Purpose in life and personal growth: The unique and joint contribution of physical activity and basic psychological needs
Authors: Teas Elizabeth , Friedman Elliot , Amireault Steve 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThis study examined if physical activity (PA) and self‐determination theory's basic psychological needs directly or interactively predict older adults' eudaimonic well‐being. Participants aged ≥55 years completed five online surveys. At baseline (T1), participants (N = 430) reported on autonomy, competence, and relatedness experienced during PA. PA was assessed prospectively using the Physical Activity Scale for Elderly (recall period = 7 days) for four consecutive weeks (T2, T3, T4, and T5); weekly PA scores were averaged. At T5, purpose in life and personal growth were measured using Ryff's scales of psychological well‐being. In regression analyses, PA was associated with purpose in life for those reporting low relatedness (b = .04, p = .02). Competence was associated with purpose in life only for those high in relatedness (b = .34, p < .001). Autonomy was positively associated with personal growth for those who also reported high competence. Multiple imputation analyses (N = 430) and sensitivity analyses (n = 304) yielded findings consistent with those from complete cases (n = 182). Encouraging older people to move more may not be sufficient to confer well‐being. It may be necessary to help people engage in activities that support their basic psychological needs.