bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Working Paper 22: Hidden agendas, social norms and why we need to re-think anti-corruption
Authors: Baez Camargo Claudia , Passas Nikos 
Published: January 2022

In many countries high levels of corruption persist in spite of the adoption of so-called anti-corruption “best practices”. In this paper we make a call to pursue a context-sensitive inquiry into the drivers of corruption in order to substantially improve the practices and effects of anti-corruption.
We discuss evidence from case studies in Africa, Central Asia and the Caucasus suggesting that high levels of corruption are associated to a significant discrepancy between formal rules and informal practices. Informal practices of co-optation, control and camouflage are used by political and business elites to safeguard regime survival via a de facto re-distribution of public resources in favour of informal networks of “insiders”.
From the perspective of citizens, corrupt acts such as bribing enjoy social acceptability especially when they are effective in solving practical problems and protecting livelihoods. The functional relevance of informal practices clarifies the factors behind the limited effectiveness of anti-corruption law-driven reforms, short-term action plans, and technical measures that focus on particular processes, procedures and institutions.
We argue for the need to ponder informality and consider how it may help us develop better anti-corruption strategies. The prevalence and entrenched nature of informal practices indicate their heuristic potential: they can tell us what we are missing in official policies, inform about resistances and can help uncover pathways to strategic, sustainable reforms.
This paper has been presented at the OECD Global Anti-Corruption & Integrity Forum 2017 in a form of a poster presentation.
Working Paper 30: Corruption and wildlife trafficking
Authors: Kassa Saba , Costa Jacopo , Baez Camargo Claudia 
Published: January 2022

As part of a multi-disciplinary programme of work focused on intelligence-led action against financial crime in illegal wildlife trade (IWT), the Public Governance division of the Basel Institute on Governance is leading research and community engagement activities in East Africa.
The objective is to contribute towards the prevention and combating of IWT by developing a better understanding of the context-specific drivers of trafficking and the role of informal social networks and their associated corrupt practices in facilitating such illicit behaviours.
This Working Paper presents a broad overview of relevant literature on wildlife trafficking, focused on two main questions:

Why does wildlife trafficking happen?
How does wildlife trafficking happen?

It reflects on important themes and dynamics in regard to the wildlife trade in Africa; the drivers and facilitators of wildlife trafficking; the characteristics, functions and operations of trafficking networks; corruption as a cross-cutting theme; and the important role of Uganda as a transit country for the trafficking of wildlife.
The literature review provides the conceptual anchor for social network analysis and field research in East Africa, in particular Uganda. The insights gained are important stepping stones to address the third main question of the wider research project:

What can be done to curb wildlife trafficking?

Developing a better understanding of the root causes of IWT, along with the application of social network analysis to support the investigation of related crimes, provides a novel and complementary approach towards the prevention and effective combating of IWT in East Africa.
Working Paper 35: Social network analysis applied to illegal wildlife trade between East Africa and Southeast Asia
Authors: Costa Jacopo 
Published: January 2022

This report presents the findings of a novel application of social network analysis (SNA) to study a criminal network surrounding an East Africa-based wildlife trafficker. This technique focuses on understanding structural, functional and sociometric characteristics of networks by mapping social interactions between individuals and groups.
Particularly, the research studies how wildlife trafficking happens, and, in doing so, offers several promising avenues to curb it. SNA makes it possible to deconstruct the criminal network in question and identity its key individuals, operative functions and flows of goods, information and money. In turn, this can sustain the activities of investigators and prosecutors to discover new leads and suspects, or to better understand the meaning of financial and information flows.
The research has been conducted under a project of PMI Impact aimed at stopping corruption from fuelling illegal wildlife trade (IWT) between East Africa and Southeast Asia. The results show that by combining SNA (a primarily quantitative method) with network ethnography (a qualitative method), we can gain important new insights into the structures, functions and mechanisms of crime networks engaged in IWT.
This paper is part of the Basel Institute on Governance Working Paper Series, ISSN: 2624-9650. See also the abridged version.
This report was funded by PMI IMPACT, a grant award initiative of Philip Morris International (PMI). In the performance of their research, the authors maintained full independence from PMI. The views and opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of PMI. Neither PMI, nor any of its affiliates, nor any person acting on their behalf may be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained herein.
COVID-19, Cation Dysmetabolism, Sialic Acid, CD147, ACE2, Viroporins, Hepcidin and Ferroptosis: A Possible Unifying Hypothesis
Authors: Cavezzi Attilio , Menicagli Roberto , Troiani Emidio , Corrao Salvatore 
Published: January 2022

Background:iron and calcium dysmetabolism, with hyperferritinemia, hypoferremia, hypocalcemia and anemia have been documented in the majority of COVID-19 patients at later/worse stages. Furthermore, complementary to ACE2, both sialic acid (SA) molecules and CD147 proved relevant host receptors for SARS-CoV-2 entry, which explains the viral attack to multiple types of cells, including erythrocytes, endothelium and neural tissue. Several authors advocated that cell ferroptosis may be the core and final cell degenerative mechanism.Methods: a literature research was performed in several scientific search engines, such as PubMed Central, Cochrane Library, Chemical Abstract Service. More than 500 articles were retrieved until mid-December 2021, to highlight the available evidence about the investigated issues.Results: based on COVID-19 literature data, we have highlighted a few pathophysiological mechanisms, associated with virus-based cation dysmetabolism, multi-organ attack, mitochondria degeneration and ferroptosis. Our suggested elucidated pathological sequence is: a) spike protein subunit S1 docking with sialylated membrane glycoproteins/receptors (ACE2, CD147), and S2 subunit fusion with the lipid layer; b) cell membrane morpho-functional changes due to the consequent electro-chemical variations and viroporin action, which induce an altered ion channel function and intracellular cation accumulation; c) additional intracellular iron concentration due to a deregulated hepcidin-ferroportin axis, with higher hepcidin levels. Viral invasion may also affect erythrocytes/erythroid precursors, endothelial cells and macrophages, through SA and CD147 receptors, with relative hemoglobin and iron/calcium dysmetabolism. AB0 blood group, hemochromatosis, or environmental elements may represent possible factors which affect individual susceptibility to COVID-19. Conclusions: our literature analysis confirms the combined role of SA molecules, ACE2, CD147, viroporins and hepcidin in determining the cation dysmetabolism and final ferroptosis in the cells infected by SARS-CoV-2. The altered ion channels and electrochemical gradients of the cell membrane have a pivotal role in the virus entry and cell dysmetabolism, with subsequent multi-organ immune-inflammatory degeneration and erythrocyte/hemoglobin alterations.
Evaluation of the rapid, multi-country, parallel process, multi-tasking approach to startup of short-term technical assistance to improve service delivery in newborn and child health in the context of USAID’s Zika response in four Eastern and Southern Caribbean countries
Authors: Aumakhan Bulbul , Coly Astou , Hager Salwan , Chitashvili Tamar , Massoud M. Rashad 
Published: January 2022

Background: In 2018, the USAID Applying Science to Strengthen and Improve Systems (ASSIST) Project started a new partnership with four Eastern and Southern Caribbean countries impacted by the Zika virus: Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, St. Kitts and Nevis, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The goal of the project was to provide short-term technical assistance (STTA) to strengthen the health systems’ capacity to detect newborns and young children potentially affected by Zika and to address their health needs. To meet these objectives, ASSIST developed an innovative approach based on its existing model for service delivery improvement. This novel approach is known as Rapid, Multi-country, Parallel Process, Multi-tasking Approach for a Project Startup (RMPP-MAPS). An evaluation was conducted to document the STTA startup activities, to identify enabling and constraining factors, and to capture lessons learned. Methods: An external consultant conducted remote in-depth interviews with individuals involved in the startup using semi-structured interview guides and retrieved data from the review of project documents. Results: Using RMPP-MAPS, the ASSIST Project successfully implemented the startup for complex STTA in four countries within less than four months, spanning mid-May to early September 2018. Project milestones included achieving buy-in from stakeholders, co-developing the technical scope and materials, and rapidly executing critical operational functions. Dedicated project teams, country leaderships, and local champions were essential to overcoming the main challenges, which included a condensed timeframe, lack of in-country offices, and country-level factors such as a shortage of health care workers and a weak health infrastructure. Conclusions: The RMPP-MAPS is a feasible and resource-efficient mechanism of interest to implementers, donors, and low and middle-income countries facing temporal and financial limitations to rapidly addressing public health priorities.
A population of in silico models identifies the interplay between Nav 1.8 conductance and potassium currents as key in regulating human dorsal root ganglion neuron excitability
Authors: Britton Oliver J. , Rodriguez Blanca 
Published: January 2022

Background: The Nav 1.8 sodium channel has a key role in generating repetitive action potentials in nociceptive human dorsal root ganglion neurons. Nav 1.8 is differentiated from other voltage-gated sodium channels by its unusually slow inactivation kinetics and depolarised voltage-dependence of activation. These features are particularly pronounced in the human Nav 1.8 channel and allow the channel to remain active during repolarisation. Gain-of-function mutations in Nav 1.8 have been linked to neuropathic pain and selective blockers of Nav 1.8 have been developed as potential new analgesics. However, it is not well understood how modulating the Nav 1.8 conductance alters neuronal excitability and how this depends on the balance of other ion channels expressed by nociceptive neurons. Methods: To investigate this, we developed a novel computational model of the human dorsal root ganglion neuron and used it to construct a population of models that mimicked inter-neuronal heterogeneity in ionic conductances and action potential morphology Results: By simulating changes to the Nav 1.8 conductance in the population of models, we found that moderately increasing the Nav 1.8 conductance led to increased firing rate, as expected, but increasing Nav 1.8 conductance beyond an inflection point caused firing rate to decrease. We found that the delayed rectifier and M-type potassium conductances were also critical for determining neuronal excitability. In particular, altering the delayed rectifier potassium conductance shifted the position of the Nav 1.8 inflection point and therefore the relationship between Nav 1.8 conductance and firing rate. Conclusions: Our results suggest that the effects of modulating Nav 1.8 in a nociceptive neuron can depend significantly on other conductances, particularly potassium conductances.
Accuracy of radiographic and protrusive occlusal record methods in determining condylar guidance angles: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Luke Alexander Maniangat , Kuriadom Sam Thomas , George Jeny Mary , Wahjuningrum Dian Agustin 
Published: January 2022

Background: The objective of this systematic review was to compare the accuracy of radiographic and protrusive occlusal record (POR) methods in determining horizontal condylar guidance (HCG) angles in dentate and edentulous patients. Methods: Studies assessing condylar guiding angles in dentulous/partially edentulous and totally edentulous patients free of temporomandibular disorders using both radiographic and protrusive occlusal record methods were included. A comprehensive search with PubMed/MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Web of Science, Google Scholar and Open Grey databases was done. Two reviewers extracted the data after eligibility assessment. Study quality was examined using the NIH quality assessment tool and graded based on tooth selection, number of root canals assessed, study environment, number of observers, test reliability report, validation approach, validation criteria, and validity reliability. A meta-analysis of pooled data, subgroups and sensitivity analysis was performed using RevMan (P<0.05). Results: The qualitative synthesis contained 33 papers, 32 of which were included in the meta-analysis. The standardised mean difference between the radiographic and protrusive occlusal record methods for right and left HCG angle in dentate patients was 0.68 [0.37, 0.98] and 0.63 [0.32, 0.95], respectively, and for right and left HCG angle in edentulous patients was 0.80 [0.36, 1.24] and 0.66 [0.18, 1.15], indicating a statistically significant difference (p<0.05). Conclusions: Clinical variability among the selected studies could not be completely avoided and the sample sizes were limited, resulting in a lack of statistical power. To rule out potential causes of heterogeneity, subgroup and sensitivity analyses were done separately for dentate and edentulous individuals for the right and left HCG angle. The present systematic review and meta-analysis concluded that for the dentate and edentulous patients, the right and left HCG angle values determined by radiographic method showed statistically significant difference as compared to the protrusive occlusal records. PROSPERO registration: CRD42020206599 (28/09/2020)
Ketamine as an adjunctive therapy for major depression - a randomised controlled pragmatic pilot trial (Karma-Dep Trial)
Authors: Gallagher Bronagh , Foley Meabh , Slattery Claire M. , Gusciute Gabriele , Shanahan Enda , McLoughlin Declan M. 
Published: January 2022

Background: Depression is a common psychiatric disorder that has become the leading cause of disability worldwide. The standard medical care for depression over the past 50 years has focused on monoamine neurotransmitters. These treatments can take weeks to take effect, highlighting the need for novel treatment strategies. One such approach may be ketamine. Ketamine acts as an antagonist of the N-methyl-D-asparate receptor and thus targets the excitatory amino acid neurotransmitter glutamate. Interestingly, at sub-anaesthetic doses, a single infusion of ketamine can elicit a rapid, though transient, antidepressant response. Methods: The aim of this study was to conduct a pragmatic randomised controlled pilot trial of four once-weekly ketamine infusions as an adjunctive therapy for depression. The main objective was to assess trial procedures to inform a future definitive trial. The primary clinical outcome was the 24-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD-24). Trial participants were patients admitted to St Patrick’s Mental Health Services for treatment of a depressive episode. They underwent usual inpatient care as prescribed by their treating team. Consented participants were randomly allocated to a four-week course of either once-weekly ketamine (0.5mg/kg) or midazolam (0.045mg/kg) infusions given over 40 minutes and with 12 weeks follow-up. Results: In total, 1581 admissions to St Patrick’s Hospital were assessed for eligibility over nine months, with 125 (8%) meeting criteria, with 25 (20%) providing consent. In total, 13 were randomly assigned to the ketamine arm and 12 to the midazolam arm. There were no major differences in HRSD-24 scores between the two groups. The infusions were generally safe and well tolerated. Conclusions: This is the first pragmatic pilot trial of adjunctive serial ketamine infusions for hospitalised depression, an important possible use of ketamine. This study suggests that a definitive trial of adjunctive ketamine is feasible. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03256162 21/08/2017; EudraCT 2016-004764-18 30/11/2016.
The genetic and epigenetic profile of serum S100β in the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936 and its relationship to Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: A Gadd Danni , I McGeachan Robert , F Hillary Robert , L McCartney Daniel , E Harris Sarah , A Sherwood Roy , Abbott N Joan , R Cox Simon , E Marioni Riccardo 
Published: January 2022

Background: Circulating S100 calcium-binding protein (S100β) is a marker of brain inflammation that has been associated with a range of neurological conditions. To provide insight into the molecular regulation of S100β and its potential causal associations with Alzheimer’s disease, we carried out genome- and epigenome-wide association studies (GWAS/EWAS) of serum S100β levels in older adults and performed Mendelian randomisation with Alzheimer’s disease. Methods: GWAS (N=769, mean age 72.5 years, sd = 0.7) and EWAS (N=722, mean age 72.5 years, sd = 0.7) of S100β levels were performed in participants from the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936. Conditional and joint analysis (COJO) was used to identify independent loci. Expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) analyses were performed for lead loci that had genome-wide significant associations with S100β. Bidirectional, two-sample Mendelian randomisation was used to test for causal associations between S100β and Alzheimer’s disease. Colocalisation between S100β and Alzheimer’s disease GWAS loci was also examined. Results: We identified 154 SNPs from chromosome 21 that associated (P<5x10-8) with S100β protein levels. The lead variant was located in the S100β gene (rs8128872, P=5.0x10-17). We found evidence that two independent causal variants existed for both transcription of S100β and S100β protein levels in our eQTL analyses. No CpG sites were associated with S100β levels at the epigenome-wide significant level (P<3.6x10-8); the lead probe was cg06833709 (P=5.8x10-6), which mapped to the LGI1 gene. There was no evidence of a causal association between S100β levels and Alzheimer’s disease or vice versa and no evidence for colocalisation between S100β and Alzheimer’s disease loci. Conclusions: These data provide insight into the molecular regulators of S100β levels. This context may aid in understanding the role of S100β in brain inflammation and neurological disease.
Gbit/s secure key generation and distribution based on the phase noise of an amplified spontaneous emission source
Authors: Huang Peng , Chen Yongchao , Peng Hekuo , Xiao Qian , Jia Bo 
Published: January 2022

In this paper, a secure key generation and distribution scheme based on the phase noise of an amplified spontaneous emission source is proposed and experimentally verified. A giant key generator that contains two distribution arms is used to generate a specific beat dependent on the path length difference of the arms. Through the method of balanced subtraction of the local signals, the effect of the intensity noise has been mainly excluded, and the two legal users obtain the consistent differential signal that depended on the phase noise. Experiment results show that the correlation coefficient of the key signals reaches to about 0.89, and the bit generation rate of the scheme achieves to 3.06 Gbit/s under a length of 20 km standard single-mode optical fiber route, as the bit error rate stays under 0.02%. Moreover, the converted digital key stream has passed the NIST statistical test suite, which means that the scheme is inherently random in the statistical sense. With the excellent performance mentioned above, the proposed scheme provides a simple and efficient solution for the method of one-time pad.
Effects of soluble guanylate cyclase stimulator on renal function in ZSF-1 model of diabetic nephropathy
Authors: Hu Lufei , Chen Yinhong , Zhou Xiaoyan , Hoek Maarten , Cox Jason , Lin Ken , Liu Yang , Blumenschein Wendy , Grein Jeff , Swaminath Gayathri 
Published: January 2022

Background
Diabetic nephropathy is associated with endothelial dysfunction and oxidative stress, in which the nitric oxide-soluble guanylate cyclase-cyclic guanosine monophosphate (NO-sGC-cGMP) signaling pathway is impaired. We hypothesize that sGC stimulator Compound 1 can enhance NO signaling, reduce proteinuria in a diabetic nephropathy preclinical model with diminished NO bioavailability and increased oxidized sGC. Therefore, we evaluated the effect of sGC stimulator Compound 1 on the renal effect in obese ZSF1 (ZSF1 OB) rats.

Materials and methods
The sGC stimulator Compound 1, the standard of care agent Enalapril, and a combination of Compound 1 and Enalapril were administered chronically to obese ZSF1 rats for 6 months. Mean arterial pressure, heart rate, creatinine clearance for glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), urinary protein excretion to creatinine ratio (UPCR), and urinary albumin excretion ratio (UACR) were determined during the study. The histopathology of glomerular and interstitial lesions was assessed at the completion of the study.

Results
While both Compound 1 and Enalapril significantly reduced blood pressure, the combination of Compound 1 and Enalapril normalized blood pressure levels. Compound 1 improved eGFR and reduced UPCR and UACR. A combination of Enalapril and Compound 1 resulted in a marked reduction in UPCR and UACR and improved GFR.

Conclusion
The sGC stimulator Compound 1 as a monotherapy slowed renal disease progression, and a combination of the sGC stimulator with Enalapril provided greater renal protection in a rodent model of diabetic nephropathy.