bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Establishment of a reference panel of Helicobacter pylori strains for antimicrobial susceptibility testing
Authors: Yokota Kenji , Osaki Takako , Hayashi Shunji , Yokota Shin‐ichi , Takeuchi Hiroaki , Rimbara Emiko , Ojima Hinako , Sato Toyotaka , Yonezawa Hideo , Shibayama Keigo , Tokunaga Kengo , Kamiya Shigeru , Murakami Kazunari , Kato Mototsugu , Sugiyama Toshiro 
Published: March 2022

AbstractBackgroundEradication treatment for Helicobacter pylori gastritis is covered by national health insurance since 2013 in Japan. However, eradication failure due to the increase of antimicrobial resistance has become a serious problem. The present study aims to establish a reference panel of Japanese H. pylori strains for antimicrobial susceptibility testing.MethodA total of 28 strains were collected from 4 medical facilities in Japan. Antimicrobial susceptibility tests (ASTs) to clarithromycin (CLR), amoxicillin (AMX), and metronidazole (MNZ), were used to select standard reference strains. Complete genome sequences were also determined.ResultsThree H. pylori strains (JSHR3, JSHR6 and JSHR31) were selected as standard reference strains by the Japanese Society for Helicobacter Research (JSHR). The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of the antibiotics against these 3 strains by agar dilution method with Brucella‐based horse‐serum‐containing agar medium were as follows: JSHR3 (CLR 16 μg/ml, AMX 0.032 μg/ml and MNZ 4 μg/ml), JSHR6 (CLR 0.016 μg/ml, AMX 0.032 μg/ml and MNZ 4 μg/ml), and JSHR31 (CLR 16 μg/ml, AMX 1 μg/ml and MNZ 64 μg/ml).ConclusionsA reference panel of H. pylori JSHR strains was established. The panel consisted of JSHR6, which was antibiotic‐susceptible, JSHR3, which was CLR‐resistant, and JSHR31, which was multi‐resistant. This reference panel will be essential for standardized ASTs before the optimal drugs are selected for eradication treatment.
Do oligopolistic firms benefit from being forced to act non‐strategically?
Authors: Fadaee Mehdi , Esfahani Hamideh 
Published: March 2022

AbstractThe present study seeks to answer the question of whether acting non‐strategically can benefit firms. In a static Cournot framework, if a subset of firms are constrained to the equilibrium level of output, being non‐strategic will have no impact on profits of neither constrained nor strategic firms and provided that sufficiently large number of firms are restricted, a marginal quantity contraction can be to their benefit. In contrast, using a dynamic Cournot framework, we find that the constraint set at the equilibrium level or moderately deviated from it, leads to increased profits for all firms irrespective of the number of non‐strategic ones.
Various approaches for accessing the influence of human leukocyte antigens disparity in haploidentical stem cell transplantation
Authors: Grubic Zorana , Burek Kamenaric Marija , Maskalan Marija , Durakovic Nadira , Vrhovac Radovan , Stingl Jankovic Katarina , Serventi Seiwerth Ranka , Zunec Renata 
Published: March 2022

AbstractIntroductionWe investigated the association of HLA on clinical outcomes in our cohort of patients in the haplo‐HSCT program using the HLAMatchmaker (EM) and PIRCHE score (PS) algorithms.MethodsThe group comprised 64 patients (male = 35–54.7%, female 29–45.3%; median age 43 years) and their related haplo‐HSCT donors (male = 30–46.9%, female 34–53.1%). HLA‐A/B/C/DRB1/DQB1/DPB1 loci were analyzed.ResultsMultivariate analysis of the association between different HLA or patient/donor‐related parameters and clinical outcome revealed the following associations with statistical significance: GvHD and HLA class I PS in the GvH direction (p = .0420) and relapse with diagnosis (p = .0163). For OS, the only variable showing a tendency of association was the source of HSCT (p = .0965).ConclusionCombined results of univariate and multivariate analysis suggest that the patients awaiting the selection of the best haplo‐HSCT donor could benefit the most from the combination of all three approaches, in cases when a suitable donor can be chosen from a number of potential donors.
Does rapid rebound height growth come at a neurocognitive cost for previously institutionalized youth?
Authors: Reid Brie M. , Zhong Danruo , Donzella Bonny , Howland Mariann , Moua Bao , Gunnar Megan R. 
Published: March 2022

BackgroundHeight growth faltering is associated with less optimal behavioral outcomes and educational achievement. Although catch‐up growth after growth delay may result in developmental gains, it may also present as a double‐edged sword, with consequences for neurocognitive functioning such as symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity. As previously institutionalized (PI) children experience height delays at adoption and catch‐up growth after adoption, they provide a cohort to test associations between catch‐up growth and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms.MethodsThis study used latent growth curve modeling to examine how catch‐up in height‐for‐age growth is related to attention problems in a population of PI youth followed from adoption in infancy through kindergarten. Participants were assessed within three months of arrival into their families (age at entry: 18–36 months). Anthropometrics were measured four times, approximately 7 months apart. Two visits measured behavioral outcomes with parent and teacher reports of ADHD, internalizing, and externalizing symptoms at age 5 and kindergarten.ResultsThe slope of growth in height z‐scores, but not the intercept, was positively associated with parent‐ and teacher‐reported ADHD symptoms in children. A one standard deviation increase in the slope of height z‐scores across four assessments was associated with a 0.252 standard deviation increase in ADHD symptoms after controlling for internalizing and externalizing problems, iron status, duration of institutional care, sex, and age. The slope of growth was also associated with internalizing but not externalizing symptoms.ConclusionsThis study demonstrates that PI children exhibit individual trajectories of height growth postadoption. Higher rates of change in height‐for‐age growth were associated with increased ADHD symptoms. These results suggest that catch‐up growth comes ‘at the cost’ of poor attention regulation and hyperactive behavior.
Sexual orientation disparities in the developmental trajectories of emotional and behavioral difficulties from childhood to early adolescence
Authors: Xu Yin , Rahman Qazi 
Published: March 2022

BackgroundLesbian, gay, bisexual, and asexual adolescents are at increased risk of poor mental health outcomes but it remains unknown whether this disparity emerges from early childhood and through to adolescence. This study tested sexual orientation disparities in the developmental trajectories of emotional and behavioral difficulties from ages 5 to 14 years, and the influence of early life adversities upon them.MethodsThe Millennium Cohort Study, a British birth cohort, was used (4,838 boys and 5,016 girls). Parent‐report emotional and behavioral difficulties at ages 5, 7, 11, and 14 were measured using the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire. Sexual orientation was measured via sexual attraction at age 17. Early life adversities in the first 5 years of life, including parental age at birth, birthweight, duration of breastfeeding, parent–child relationship quality, and parental absence, were collected prospectively.ResultsLatent growth modeling suggested that, for both sexes, sexual orientation disparities in emotional and behavioral difficulties increased from age 5 to 14 years. Homosexual and bisexual girls displayed significantly greater emotional and behavioral difficulties than heterosexual girls at ages 7, 11, and 14. Homosexual and bisexual boys displayed significantly greater emotional and behavioral difficulties than heterosexual boys at ages 11 and 14. Asexual boys and girls displayed significantly greater emotional and behavioral difficulties than their heterosexual counterparts at all four ages. For both sexes, sexual orientation disparities in emotional and behavioral difficulties only reduced slightly in magnitude after controlling for early life adversities.ConclusionsSexual minority disparities in emotional and behavioral difficulties increased from childhood to early adolescence, possibly due to the accumulation of susceptibility to minority‐related stressors. Sex and early life adversity may contribute to these developmental disparities.
Selfish migrants: How a meiotic driver is selected to increase dispersal
Authors: Runge Jan‐Niklas , Kokko Hanna , Lindholm Anna K. 
Published: March 2022

AbstractMeiotic drivers are selfish genetic elements that manipulate meiosis to increase their transmission to the next generation to the detriment of the rest of the genome. One example is the t haplotype in house mice, which is a naturally occurring meiotic driver with deleterious traits—poor fitness in polyandrous matings and homozygote inviability or infertility—that prevent its fixation. Recently, we discovered and validated a novel effect of t in a long‐term field study on free‐living wild house mice and with experiments: t‐carriers are more likely to disperse. Here, we ask what known traits of the t haplotype can select for a difference in dispersal between t‐carriers and wildtype mice. To that end, we built individual‐based models with dispersal loci on the t and the homologous wildtype chromosomes. We also allow for density‐dependent expression of these loci. The t haplotype consistently evolves to increase the dispersal propensity of its carriers, particularly at high densities. By examining variants of the model that modify different costs caused by t, we show that the increase in dispersal is driven by the deleterious traits of t, disadvantage in polyandrous matings and lethal homozygosity or male sterility. Finally, we show that an increase in driver‐carrier dispersal can evolve across a range of values in driver strength and disadvantages.
Selection on dispersal drives evolution of metabolic capacities for energy production in female wing‐polymorphic sand field crickets, Gryllus firmus
Authors: Treidel Lisa A. , Quintanilla Ramirez Gessen S. , Chung Dillon J. , Menze Michael A. , Vázquez‐Medina José P. , Williams Caroline M. 
Published: March 2022

AbstractLife history and metabolism covary, but the mechanisms and individual traits responsible for these linkages remain unresolved. Dispersal capability is a critical component of life history that is constrained by metabolic capacities for energy production. Conflicting relationships between metabolism and life histories may be explained by accounting for variation in dispersal and maximal metabolic rates. We used female wing‐polymorphic sand field crickets, Gryllus firmus, selected either for long wings (LW, flight‐capable) or short wings (SW, flightless) to test the hypothesis that selection on dispersal capability drives the evolution of metabolic capacities. While resting metabolic rates were similar, long‐winged crickets reached higher maximal metabolic rates than short‐winged crickets, resulting in improved running performance. We further provided insight into the mechanisms responsible for covariation between life history and metabolism by comparing mitochondrial content of tissues involved in powering locomotion and assessing the function of mitochondria isolated from long‐ and short‐winged crickets. Our results demonstrated that larger metabolic capacities in long‐winged crickets were underpinned by increases in mitochondrial content of dorsoventral flight muscle and enhanced bioenergetic capacities of mitochondria within the fat body, a tissue responsible for fuel storage and mobilization. Thus, selection on flight capability correlates with increases in maximal, but not resting metabolic rates, through modifications of tissues powering locomotion at the cellular and organelle levels. This allows organisms to meet high energetic demands of activity for life history. Dispersal capability should therefore explicitly be considered as a potential factor driving the evolution of metabolic capacities.
Comparative performance analysis of ohmic thawing and conventional thawing of spinach puree
Authors: Çabas Buse Melek , Azazi Işın , Döner Deniz , Bayana Damla , Çokgezme Ömer Faruk , İçier Filiz 
Published: March 2022

AbstractNowadays dietary habits of consumers have changed to more quick and easier but at the same time healthier meals. Therefore, ready‐to‐eat food production and home processing of such foods are gaining importance. Spinach is one of the main ingredients used in ready‐to‐eat baby foods, and it is produced in chopped, blanched, juice, and powder forms. Commonly ready‐to‐eat meals are sold frozen. Therefore, thawing process becomes an important processing step. Conventional thawing (CT) methods require a long process time and high‐energy consumption. In the present study, frozen blanched spinach puree samples were thawed by ohmic thawing (OT) (10 V/cm, 15 V/cm). The thawing at 4°C (refrigerator thawing) was selected as the control thawing method. The energetic and exergetic evaluations were compared. Accordingly, thawing times were shortened by about 70–80% with OT. The energy loss during the CT method was higher than the OT method. The most energy‐efficient (64.2% ± 4.0%) thawing condition was determined as 15 V/cm OT. In case of exergetic evaluation, the destroyed exergy value of the CT method was highest (19.0 ± 2.0 kJ) while those of thawed with 10 and 15 V/cm were 5.8 ± 0.7 and 3.8 ± 0.4 kJ, respectively. Similar to energetic efficiency, OT with 15 V/cm had the highest exergy efficiency value (40.5% ± 2.6%) while that of the CT method was 11.6% ± 1.0%. The result of the present study indicated that the OT process could be an alternative thawing method to CT to improve energy efficiency.Practical applicationsAs the ready‐to‐eat meal habit is becoming more common, processing of such foods is becoming more important. While preparing food, it is desired that the process to be done quickly, homogeneously, and efficiently. Usage of current food technologies to provide fast and homogeneous heating is becoming widespread. However, examining and evaluating their efficiency also emerges as an important issue. In this study, the use of OT, which is one of the current methods, for the thawing of spinach puree was investigated and the efficiency of OT in different voltage gradients was evaluated. In this way, it is thought that important data about the efficiency of the ohmic heating process, which utilization is increasing day‐by‐day, during the thawing process are obtained. It is thought that these data will contribute to future studies and contribute to the widespread dissemination of OT.
CHESS‐ALARM score to stratify decompensation risk in compensated advanced chronic liver disease patients: An international multicenter study
Authors: Wong Yu Jun , Li Jia , Liu Chuan , Chen Zhaojin , Chan Yiong Huak , Putera Martin , Teh Kok Ban , Ang Tiing Leong , Zhao Lili , Yan Zhongfang , Kumar Rahul , Li Xin , Qi Xiaolong 
Published: March 2022

AbstractBackground and AimA combination of platelet and elastography (PE criteria) was proposed to identify compensated advanced chronic liver disease (cACLD) patients at risk of liver decompensation. We aim to validate and refine PE criteria by developing a new predictive score to predict decompensation in Asian cACLD patients.MethodsAn international cohort of 633 cACLD patients with liver stiffness measurement (LSM) and esophagogastroduodenoscopy performed were included. We validated PE criteria to predict first liver decompensation using competing risk analysis, with death and hepatocellular carcinoma as competing events. We developed a predictive model using proportional subdistribution hazard regression. Prognostic accuracy was compared with the model of end‐stage liver disease (MELD), albumin–bilirubin (ALBI), and ALBI–FIB‐4 score using time‐dependent area under operative characteristic curve (tAUC).ResultsSixty patients developed decompensation over the median follow‐up of 39 months. Favorable Baveno VI status ruled out cACLD patients at risk of liver decompensation. LSM > 25 kPa was suboptimal to predict cACLD patients who will develop liver decompensation. We developed CHESS‐ALARM score by incorporating age, platelet, and gender into LSM. CHESS‐ALARM score (tAUC = 0.86, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.79–0.94) has significantly higher accuracy than MELD (tAUC: 0.61), ALBI (tAUC: 0.62), ALBI–FIB‐4 (tAUC: 0.70), and LSM > 25 kPa (tAUC: 0.54) to predict liver decompensation at 5 years (P < 0.05 for all). Patients with CHESS‐ALARM score ≥ −0.37 had an 11‐fold higher risk of decompensation (subdistribution hazard ratio = 11.2, 95% CI: 5.1–24.5).ConclusionCHESS‐ALARM score can be readily incorporated into clinical practice of cACLD patients to estimate individual risk of liver decompensation; however, more data are required in morbidly obese cACLD patients of nonviral etiology.
The Tyranny of Narco‐Power: Political Rule and Austere Domination in Michoacán, Mexico
Authors: Mendoza Marcos 
Published: March 2022

AbstractThis article analyzes narco‐power as a mode of political rule. Based on research in the Mexican state of Michoacán, this study focuses on rural villagers’ experiences of political rule by three criminal organizations: the Zetas, Familia Michoacana, and Caballeros Templarios. The article argues that narco‐power is understood as a tyrannical political force exercised over everyday life that involves extortion, limited governance, and armed social control. Drawing on Aristotle's theorization of tyranny, this study develops the concept of austere domination as a contribution to the comparative study of the tyrannies of narco‐power.
Which laboratory/ultrasonographic parameters affect the severity of hirsutism?
Authors: Rahimi Hoda , Kashi Majid , Tehranchinia Zohreh , Sharifan Mojgan 
Published: March 2022

AbstractBackground and ObjectivesHirsutism is associated with other androgen‐dependent signs/symptoms. This study was designed with the aim of a comprehensive investigation of laboratory and ultrasonographic findings in hirsute women and their probable association with the “severity” of the disease.Patients and MethodsThis cross‐sectional study included 123 hirsute women. Comprehensive medical history of each patient was recorded, and a broad physical examination was performed by a single dermatologist. Ferriman–Gallwey score was used to evaluate the hirsutism severity. Pelvic ultrasonography was done by a single radiologist for each patient, and serum levels of the follicular stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), LH/FSH ratio, prolactin, thyroid‐stimulating hormone, total testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, 17‐alpha‐hydroxyprogesterone, and cortisol were measured. The association of hirsutism severity and these paraclinical parameters was investigated.ResultsA statistically significant association was observed between polycystic ovary disease (PCOD) and the severity of hirsutism. A past medical history of PCOD was found to cause more severe forms of hirsutism in the involved patients as well. The presence of hormonal abnormalities was also significantly associated with the severity of hirsutism.ConclusionsMore than half of the hirsute patients have endocrine abnormalities and/or PCOD. These two disorders are associated with the severity of hirsutism.
Broadening risk factor or disease definition as a driver for overdiagnosis: A narrative review
Authors: Bandovas João Pedro , Leal Beatriz , Reis‐de‐Carvalho Catarina , Sousa David Cordeiro , Araújo João Cruz , Peixoto Pedro , Henriques Susana Oliveira , Vaz Carneiro António ,   the Choosing Wisely Working Group of the European Federation of Internal Medicine
Published: March 2022

AbstractMedical overuse—defined as the provision of health services for which potential harms exceed potential benefits—constitutes a paradigm of low‐value care and is seen as a threat to the quality of care. Value in healthcare implies a precise definition of disease. However, defining a disease may not be straightforward since clinical data do not show discrete boundaries, calling for some clinical judgment. And, if in time a redefinition of disease is needed, it is important to recognize that it can induce overdiagnosis, the identification of medical conditions that would, otherwise, never cause any significant symptoms or lead to clinical harm. A classic example is the impact of recommendations from professional societies in the late 1990s, lowering the threshold for abnormal total cholesterol from 240 mg/dl to 200 mg/dl. Due to these changes in risk factor definition, literally overnight there were 42 million new cases eligible for treatment in the United States. The same happened with hypertension—using either the 2019 NICE guidelines or the 2018 ESC/ECC guidelines criteria for arterial hypertension, the proportion of people overdiagnosed with hypertension was calculated to be between 14% and 33%. In this review, we will start by discussing resource overuse. We then present the basis for disease definition and its conceptual problems. Finally, we will discuss the impact of changing risk factor/disease definitions in the prevalence of disease and its consequences in overdiagnosis and overtreatment (a problem particularly relevant when definitions are widened to include earlier or milder disease).
Regional multipliers across the Italian regions
Authors: Destefanis Sergio , Di Serio Mario , Fragetta Matteo 
Published: March 2022

AbstractThis paper estimates the multipliers of different types of government spending in the 20 Italian administrative regions throughout 1994–2016. We derive region‐specific multipliers through a Bayesian random effect panel vector autoregressive model. We find that the EU structural funds, compared to the other types of government spending, provide the largest and most pervasively significant GDP multipliers, whereas the effectiveness of nationally funded government investment and, especially, government consumption shocks is more limited. An exploratory analysis of the regional multipliers suggests that they are positively associated with the amount of unused resources and the size of the regional economy.
Do enterprise zones promote local business development? Evidence from Vietnam
Authors: Vu Tien Manh , Yamada Hiroyuki 
Published: March 2022

AbstractWe examined the effects of Vietnamese enterprise zones, under the initiative of the central government, on local businesses across different types of ownership of zone infrastructure developers (ZIDs). We constructed a panel of communes during 2000–2007 using data on zone‐based firms, local firms, and zones. We found that zones led to an increased number of firms and increased employment in the communes hosting the zones, even after excluding zone‐based firms. Our findings also suggest that private partnerships in ZIDs worked best in attracting firms to the zones. The spatial spillover effects of the zones occurred up to a distance of 14 km.
International coordination of debt rules with time‐inconsistent voters
Authors: Arawatari Ryo , Ono Tetsuo 
Published: March 2022

AbstractIn this study, we investigate the international coordination of debt rules in an economy consisting of several countries with varying degrees of present bias. A case wherein each country sets its own uncoordinated debt rules is compared with a case wherein all countries have common coordinated debt rules. Countries with weak present‐biased preferences increase their debt issuance and suffer from welfare losses by participating in coordination. In contrast, countries with strong present‐biased preferences reduce their debt issuance and can enjoy welfare improvement by participating in coordination. The contrasting results suggest the possibility that countries with weak present‐biased preferences have little incentive to follow the coordinated rule.